Each long side of the Parthenon has 32 metopes.
The temple originally had 92 metopes in total: 14 on the east façade, 14 on the west façade, and 32 on each of the two long north and south sides. These square or nearly square marble panels occupied the spaces between triglyphs in the Doric entablature. Their high-relief sculpture made the Parthenon’s exterior decoration unusually ambitious for a Greek temple.
The scenes present mythic battles associated with the triumph of order over chaos. The south side is famous for its Centauromachy, the battle between Lapiths and Centaurs; the east shows the Gigantomachy, and the west is generally associated with the Amazonomachy. Damage, especially from Christian iconoclasm and the 1687 Venetian bombardment, makes some scenes difficult to identify.