In ancient Greek cities, an agora (meaning "gathering place") was an area where people gathered for commercial, civic, social, and religious activities. Inevitably, the principal public buildings of the city came to be built around the space. The Athenian agora, first laid out in the 6th century BCE, was located to the northwest of the Acropolis and bordered to the west by the Agoraios Kolonos (meaning "the hill next to the Agora"). Pausanias described the agora in book one of his guide (chapters 3 to 17).
The Athenian Agora Excavations by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens have been ongoing since 1931.
