Penteli, Greece 3.06

Penteli is a town and a municipality in the North Athens regional unit, Attica, Greece. It belongs to the Athens metropolitan area. It takes its name from the Penteli mountain.MunicipalityThe municipality Penteli was formed at the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following 3 former municipalities, that became municipal units: MelissiaNea PenteliPenteliGeographyPenteli is situated on the southern slopes of the limestone Penteli mountains. The municipality has an area of 36.064 km2, the municipal unit Penteli 28.878 km2. It is 14 km northeast of central Athens. Some of the neighbourhoods of Penteli are Agia Triada, Agios Dimitrios, Daou and Kallithea.HistoryThe bones of prehistoric animals - mastodons, rhinoceros, antelope, and giraffe, along with giant turtles, hyenas and other animals no longer extant in the area - have been found among the limestone crags of the mountain that looms over the present suburb of Athens. The Penteli mountains were renowned in Classical Greece as well as in the Roman Empire as a source of the marble, which was also used to build the Parthenon. The Romans constructed a 140-foot water tower and aqueduct to supply water to the city of Athens.