Constructed between 447 and 432 BC during the golden age of Pericles, Parthenon was designed to honor the goddess Athena Parthenos. The finely fluted columns are made of pristine Pentelic marble, which rest directly on the stepped stone foundation (stylobate) without a base and taper upward to support a heavy entablature. A slight outward swelling and an inward tilt were engineered into the pillars to counteract optical illusions and make the building appear perfectly straight.