People lived in small, uncomfortable houses that lined narrow streets. Yet the city's public spaces and buildings were large and stately. Homes made of mud bricks. Athenian houses had few windows, and they were lit by oil lamps. The Athenians built large government buildings around the agora. These buildings made of stone. On the ACROPOLIS (the hill above the city), the most famous temple standing on the acropolis was the PARTHENON.