The frieze is divided, part in the British Museum, part in the Acropolis museum. The average length of each block is 1.22 m. The total length of the north frieze was 58.70 m. The scenes begin at the northwest corner of the opisthonaos as a continuation of the procession which has already started on the west side, thus running from block N XLVII to block N I. The action develops gradually and from quiet preparation accelerates to a gallop. Ignoring the divisions of the blocks, the horsemen are depicted proceeding in groups of seven or eight, the horses partly overlapping each other. The continuous flow of horses and riders is interrupted only by the marshal (90) on block XXXIV. Yet with variety of garment, of stance and gesture of the most beautiful of the horsemen and with the occasional depiction of a man turning his head to look back, monotony is avoided. The drawings of Carrey contribute significantly to the interpretation of fragments.
The discernible sections of the north frieze are as follows. A) the horsemen on nineteen blocks (XXIX-XLVII). Ten groups of horsemen can be distinguished, which are neither equal in number nor distinguishable by differences in what they wear. As a rule, the first is the one whose horse is fully visible. Thus, the first in the groups are thought to be numbers 80, 82, 89, 98, 102, 108, 113, 120, 127, 135. B) Then, on eighteen blocks (XI-XXVIII) come the chariot racers with the apobates. Twelve chariots are shown (each one occupying one and one half blocks), beginning their course, during the contest, with the hoplite (apobates) descending, and at the finish. C) The procession bringing the sacrificial animals (four bulls and four rams) occupies the first four blocks (I-IV) and on the six remaining blocks (V-X) are men bringing vessels and trays (the hydriaphoroi and skaphephoroi), musicians and the elders. Even though they may have taken place at a another time or place, these scenes represent activities that were part of the festival of the Panathenaia. Corresponding scenes can be detected on the south frieze.