Delphi: The Navel of the Earth Preview

My name is Maria, and I am going to be your guide for this tour.

Welcome to Delphi, welcome to the navel of the Earth as the Ancient Greeks believed. Delphi was a place seen as a spiritual focal point for all Greeks; of course, it included many sanctuaries and the most prestigious oracle in all of ancient Greece.

I’m an expert on Greek history and a licensed tour guide for over than 25 years. Till the end of this “journey”, I will truly have captured the whole history, myths and legends of Delphi. I hope you agree.

HOW TO USE THIS APP

Before we start our tour, it’s useful to tell you how to use this app. As you can see from the display window on your audio player, each of the stops on this tour has its own title. You can skip ahead or tailor your itinerary to your own tastes. Whenever you like, you can pause the audio guide and then restart it when you are ready to move on.

Now, let’s go to Delphi.

Before we start our tour, it’s useful to tell you how to use this app. As you can see from the display window on your audio player, each of the stops on this tour has its own title. You can skip ahead or tailor your itinerary to your own tastes. Whenever you like, you can pause the audio guide and then restart it when you are ready to move on. To help you along, there’s a map available for this tour. Be aware that, even with the very best of directions, sightseeing through the ancient ruins can be confusing.

Now, let’s go to Delphi. But, Mary, isn’t it better to say, “let’s go to see if we can find it”?

Mmmm, that’s for sure! Delphi is well hidden under the mountains and this special feature spreads a veil of mystery that will follow us during our tour through the myths and untold stories about this place. You know, Delphi was the only one that we see the Divine presence and also, highlights what the ancient world represented: a mix of balance and harmony.

Leaving the Fountain of Castalia behind us after a couple of minutes, on our right-hand side, the sanctuary of Apollo is nesting on an opening of the Faidriades. Being under the rocks and the ground, due to strong earthquakes the excavation started in 1891, officially by the French archaeologists. The location of the Sanctuary of Apollo was known, but the French were the ones who managed to persuade the villagers and their families, who had constructed the villages above the ruins and as were the oracles of Apollo had to be revealed or what was slightly visible was the theatre of the sanctuary, though covered and nothing else.

The poor village with the name "Kastri" was transferred to a few kilometers to where it is now known Delphi and the excavations started and lasted at least 10 years.

Now, let's enter the archaeological site.

We are standing in front of the ticket booth at Delphi site. Please, purchase your ticket, show it, and enter. Passing the ticket control on our right hand-side we follow the wide steps in order to reach our next stop: the "Agora", in other words, the market that existed in the Roman time, meaning 2000 years ago. Around us there are grey blocks of local stone, once parts of buildings, also bases with inscriptions from the Roman time.

Well, construction wised, the market on its right side has columns of Ionic style and behind them are visible the shops of one time, made by tiles and it was a typical way of the Roman time. The walls until now have the plaster so the plaster is still visible. As we face the portico or stoa, which was operating as shops, the last room to the right has a Capitol with a cross that indicates that this portico had been used as a church-basilica in the early Christian time, meaning 6th century A.D. The market was located in front of the sacred path, the path that the believers and visitors of the past were following to reach Apollo's temple. Horse riders and carriages could approach the market, and the believers had to continue on foot following the sacred path. Now part of the market to the left had another long portico-entrance but this one has been collapsed and is not visible anymore, while the ground of the market as you can see looks to be paved with big grey-white stones. Passing the 4 steps, covered in wood, we start following the sacred path. It is said that from where the steps are up to the corner, were about 100 statues-offerings of Greek city-states. Left and right are monument bases with inscriptions. On the top of them, statues had been erected, made of silver, marble dedicated by the cities of Greece to show their respect towards Apollo, as with this way they were making the reason of dedication known.

The first monument base as we start walking on the sacred path and our right-hand side was a giant metallic silver bull and it was an offering made from the island of Corfu. The name of the sculptor is on the side of the base. As the people of Corfu had a great fish-catch dedicated part of the profits from the fish catch and in the sanctuary of Apollo, they offered this statue to show their respect that was 2.500 years ago. What follows next is an extended base of black-grey stones supported nine bronze statues, dedications of the Arcadians (Arcadia, is and was an area of the south part of Greece – Peloponnese). The statues represented gods and heroes of Arcadia, and the reason for their dedication offering was the intrusion and looting of Lakedaimonia (Sparta) from them. What is interesting to observe on this base monument are the inscriptions. Many words are visible to this day. Plus, most of these bases had been used through the years and centuries as catalogues by the authorities, the amphiktionoi.

Now, these inscriptions have to do with decisions the authority was making about the finance of the sanctuary or its functions. Some of them also had to do with the liberation of the slaves as slaves had constructed the sanctuary of the Gods and they were sacred enslaved people. They could find their freedom of their work they did in the sanctuary of Apollo.

As we keep walking on the path which levels dates in the Roman Christian era, we see broken pieces left and right.

Once they used to be important and glorious offerings symbolizing the victories of Greeks against other Greeks. What we can see on our left-hand side is one of the first remainings of the buildings and of course we can see the black grey material which is a local material.

We are still immersed by the Oracle of Apollo, on the corner of the path, elevated from the ground, there is a massive black base of a dedicated treasury; its decoration is exhibited in the museum. We are talking about the Treasury of Siphnians, the inhabitants of Sifnos, an island of the Aegean Sea. This was a great marble small room; it had two beautiful female statues instead of columns representing maiden girls and were operating as columns. It had a decorated frieze-like belt surrounding the outer part of the wall and was narrating important mythological and real events, important mythological findings like Gigantomachy or real events like the war of Troy etc. Our gaze gets captured by a strange conical stone called "omphalos" or "the navel of the world". The location of the stone is not where it is exhibited. It was probably located inside God's temple and in the hidden lower-level room, the Abaton of the temple. The theory was that maybe it was standing above an opening of the ground, where gas was coming out. So the omphalos was operating as a gas regulator.

Omphalos represents actually the past of the area, the background and the identity of the Oracle.

The lovely myth narrates how Zeus, the father of Gods and humans, showed the centre of the world. Before the cult of the 12 gods, primitive societies were worshiping “Gaia”, the goddess of nature as we said. The cult of Gaia succeeded the cult of Cronos (Saturn). The ambitious and cunning Cronos took over the power of his father and as he was afraid of his children – Hera, Hestia, Vesta (according to the Romans), Demetra, Ceres (according to the Romans), Aiades, Pluto (according to the Romans), Poseidon, Neptune according to the Romans) and Zeus or Jupiter) would do the same so he was swallowing them. But instead of Zeus, he swallowed a stone, covered in clothes and was looking like a baby. Zeus grew up in Crete, according to a version of the myth in Crete. When he became capable to affront his father, he came back with the help Earth the mother Zeus gave to Cronos a liquid. That’s how he vomited the brothers and sisters but he also vomited the stone.

When, finally, Gods succeeded and ruled the world, after almost ten years of fighting with the Titanes (the famous Titanomachy) and Giants (Giantomachy), Zeus showed the centre of the world by releasing two eagles. The first eagle flew from the eastern edge of the world, the second one from the western part. The point where the two birds met was Delphi, so there was the centre, there was the stone that Cronos vomited.

The explanation of the myth is there is success in the cult, which means a continuation of the cult from the father to son meaning that the cult of Cronos was father to Zeus and from Zeus to God Apollo. That’s how the place has been dedicated to God Apollo.

Rising our eyes behind the Omphalos, we can see a beautifully restored building made of Parian marble (the marble of Paros, and the island of the Aegean Sea. It is the Treasury of the Athenians. The small, beautiful structure looks like a small Doric style temple. It has only one room, and the roof is missing as it is the most vulnerable part of an ancient building. So actually cannot be preserved. Inside the little treasury, the Athenians were keeping unique offerings dedicated to the God of music and harmony Apollo. At the same time, the outer part of the building was also decorated with metopes. A metope is a rectangular carved block depicting in this case the adventures of the mythical king Theseus. Theseus was the king the man who liberated the Athenians from the Minotaur into the maze the labyrinth in Crete and other metopes treasury of Athenians were narrating the adventures of Hercules, the semi-god. Probably the Treasury had been constructed 2.600 years ago, around 506 B.C., as an offering for the first Democracy in Athens. For sure, with the victory of the first Persian war, that means in the Marathon (490 B.C.) the Athenians dedicated the trophies. The inscription is still visible on the base in front of the Treasury and verifies historical evidence as above.

‘Till now, on the walls of the building and mainly on the south and eastern part of it, there are many inscriptions. These were writings that had to do with orders and decisions of the Athenians for their society and at the same time, the archaeologists discovered two hymns-songs with their musical notes – this is really a rare exhibit of composing music. These Delphian hymns are exhibited in the museum of Delphi. They were written 2.200 years ago and had been sung in the Pythian games of 128 B.C. It was in 1894 when they were played at the International athletic congress for the first modern Olympic games of 1896. Listen! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7rkMg3Nkt8

Mary? Any ace up your sleeve?

Always Anna. What is also interesting on the Treasury is that there were wreaths of olive leaves on the 5th and 6th lines of the wall, visible from the sacred path. It was clear proof of the identity of the building; As the olive tree was the favourite tree of the Goddess Athina, the beloved Goddess of the Athenians.

Amazing! As you can imagine, the Treasury, like all Treasuries, had a religious character, but after the time of Alexander the Great, it changed and became commercial. On the building that once people were dedicated objects to show respect, later the same building became the seat of commercial trading. The first installation took place in the first years of the 20th century and again in 2000. What is yellow as a material is the original marble and what is white is the new part.

If you make some steps, right next to the Treasury, the ruins that follow are of the political building “Bouleuterion”, which was the parliament of Delphi. In charge of the operation of Delphi was a fraternity; a brotherhood, the Delphian amphictyony, elected by 12 ancient Greek tribes. It had a vital role in supervising the sanctuary, keeping it neutral and independent. They were organizing the Pythian games and securing the property of the place. The fraternity was electing the priests and the priestess Pythia.

As we pass in front of the remaining parliament house, and before we see the masterpiece of the site, which is the Polygonal-retaining wall, on our left-hand side, there is a rock covered with ivy. This is the oldest spot of the sanctuary, and it is known as the “rock of Sibylla”. The rock of Sibylla is located on the spot of the first prophecies. She was the first fortune-teller who gave the predictions on behalf of Gaia. Sibylla was a title for the first woman who held the gift to issue prophecies, and they were at the service of this place – the first Sibylla was “Erofile”. Behind the rocks of Sibylla, remains are lying connected with the first ancient cult of Gaia and the snake dragon Python that Apollo killed and left his body to rotten. Slightly to the right, an extensive rectangular base is proof of a great dedication by the island of Naxos, exhibited in the museum. An Ionic high column of marble, at 12 meters height (almost 36 feet) with gigantic Sphinx, pure influence from Egypt. There is a portico with slender marble Ionic columns without capitals, in front of the polygonal wall, dedications of the Athenians. So it is an Athenian stoa. The building had a length of 30 meters with seven monolithic columns in front.

The Athenians constructed and dedicated the stoa after the critical battle of Salamis in 480 B.C. and kept in the portico the trophies of the Persians, like ropes that held the wooden bridge that Xerxes used to cross to Europe and Greek territory and the figureheads of the Persian ships. This entrance was the example of the stoa that followed later through the centuries.

Now behind the rock of Sibylla and the Athenians' stoa is the sanctuary's masterpiece. We are talking of a polygonal retaining wall 2.600 years old constructed probably in the 6th B.C. with local material, it retains the ground to its position, as the sanctuary had been built on an uneven level operates as a base for the temple of Apollo. And as a catalogue from the moment that has carving inscriptions, more than a thousand and most of them are decisions for the liberation of slaves. The amazing construction has been preserved but not to its original height. It is almost 2 meters (6 feet) but apparently was at least 5 meters (15 feet). The polygonal blocks get fitted without a link and for sure without having any space in between. Sightly carved the edges of the stones, creating a balance of the same blocks' pressure.

Walking next to the polygonal wall on our right-hand side, we are getting fascinated by the landscape; a cliff, the sea of the olive trees where many of them are aged but still grow olives, the high mountain of Pleistos and course, the sanctuary of Goddess Athena-Pronaia with the three columns from the round-shaped building of Tholos and further the ruins of the athletic installations. In front, sightly to the left as a landmark, is a narrow, snake-shaped road coming from Athens, while the two rocky hills of Fiadriades dominate the space and orient the sanctuary.

Across the retaining wall and next to the sacred path, on our right hand side there is a considerable platform ground.

A grey-black circular base is around, and pieces of limestone from destroyed buildings are transferred by the archaeologists to the spot called “Alos”, which is the threshing floor. A drama (play) was taking place every eight years at “Alos”. A young boy from an aristocratic family was pretending to be Apollo. With an escort, they were approaching Alos, and the drama was getting narrated. A wooden nest was located there. The boy was acting and making movements of killing the snake python. The myth of Apollo and Python was getting virtualized. Then they were burning the wooden nest, and the boy with the escort was walking towards a valley, northern of the sanctuary, in order to be purified into the water of the valley. According to the local myth of Apollo and Python, God Apollo killed the dragon-protector of the sanctuary as Python was chasing the mother of Apollo, “Leto”, and was not letting her give birth to the twins, Apollo and Artemis-Diana. In order to take revenge, after his dawn, Apollo at Delphi fights with Python that was protecting the area, was protecting Gaia and as we have said before, it was the opening of the ground where a sound or a vapour was coming out. It was as if Python was protecting and guarding the heart of Gaia. Getting killed by Apollo immediately, the act is so severe that it turns Apollo into an assassin where he has to be purified. So Apollo flies to the northern countries; till now, the archaeologists and historians have tried to figure out where were these countries.

After a few years, Apollo returned when spring was starting, and his cult was established. That’s why for Delphi, Apollo gets worshipped as “Pythios”, and the celebrations were called “Pythian games”. At the same time, the priestess who was becoming the instrument of the god and through her Apollo was giving prophecies, took the title “Pythia”.

We see, like that, that the previous cult of “Python and Gaia” is still alive and got replaced by Apollo and exist through them. With the theatrical play at “Alos”, the past of the sanctuary was becoming alive again, and they were enriching the celebration with musical competitions and dances. After all, Apollo was the God of music and harmony.

As we keep walking and taking the turn next to the polygonal wall, full of writings, and the ruins of the Treasuries-offerings of Greek cities but also of Greek colonies, we see a rectangle like the Greek letter Π, construction with writing on its base. It is the altar of the temple of Apollo. Dedication as construction by the islanders of Chios, located in the northeast of the Aegean Sea. It was in the 5th century B.C. when the people of the island constructed and dedicated the altar. Black and white marble had been sent from the island of Chios to build the altar. That’s why the authority of Delphi gave the right to the citizens of Chios to have the first prophecy and not be part of a waiting list. So, three places had the right to have the prophecy Apollo given once a month and for nine months, through Pythia the Great Priestess. These places were: Delphi, Athens, and the island of Chios.

On the altar, the high priests were sacrificing the animals, there were offerings by the people or authorities of city-state, showing like that their respect. We do know that on the 7th day of the month and for nine months, Apollo could give the prophecies through “Pythia”, that was the way the oracle was functioning. At certain times though, “Pythia” had to serve as the instrument of God Apollo without being used on that specific day of the month. So how did they know when Apollo was willing and if he was willing to give the prophecy through her? How did they know that Apollo was there as a spirit to occupy “Pythia” and speak through her? How did they know that Apollo was there as a spirit to occupy Pythia and speak through her?

We do know that Apollo was there with a way that they had and it had to do with a ram or a goat were placing on the altar of the God.

Let’s say that the representative of the city state was there on a different day of the month and had a very urgent matter. He was offering a ram or a goat. The high priest were placed on the altar the ram/goat and were throwing cold water on the neck of the animal. If the animal was shaking, it meant that Apollo was there could give the prophecy.

That’s how the animal was getting sacrificed, and they were completing the procedure. Mary, do you have something you would like to add?

- Yes, please. We do also know that the representative of the city-states, or the kings of barbarian countries (according to the ancient Greek belief, those who were not Greeks were barbarians foreigners), or all of them who were using this technique of prophecies with the presence of God, were not paying money but instead were offering a kind of “sweet pie” (pelanos) that according to their social level could be pretty expensive. Later they could dedicate complexes of statues made with precious materials or offer an amount of money. Thousands of statues-masterpieces were decorating the sanctuary of Apollo, where most of them had been taken away by the Romans (Nero time) and by the time of Constantine the Great (4th century A.D.)

Passing in between the altar and the bases of important and valuable donations, we see the remains of the temple in full sight. As a matter of fact, the temple is visible from the first moment, even from the road that comes from Athens, the Agora (forum) of the sanctuary, the spot of Omphalos, and the polygonal retaining wall. Even if we are being preserved only 7 Doric style columns of local limestone material columns and the floor of the building, still our gaze gets attracted, and with eagerness, we try to find the spot of the oracle. We try to imagine how exactly Pythia was becoming the instrument of Apollo and where was the place of this transformation, where was the oracle? Is it a room? A stone? A hole in the ground? Or maybe was “Pythia”? What do you think? Let’s try to clear the matter as we pass the temple and stop above the building to see it from up high and understand it better.

So, now we had followed the path that is passing and turning in front of the temple, above a wooden bridge where underneath a water spring was running “Kassotes” and was becoming subterranean and was also passing under the floor of the temple, like that we are reaching the terrace above the temple, feeling that we are nesting in the opening of the Faidriades and protected naturally.

Perfect moment as we are looking at the temple from the north side to explain the name of the area and the name “Delphi”.

Three different explanations with common base which is the God Apollo. According to the explanation for the name “Delphi”, the story says that the first priests of Apollo were fishermen from Crete. Due to stormy weather and after a long sailing to various places, their boat sank close to the coast of Delphi. A dolphin saved them. It is believed that the dolphin was Apollo transfigured like that. The fishers showed their respect and became the first priests of Apollo by god’s will. In Greek, the word dolphin is delphine; through centuries derived the word “Delphi”.

The second explanation and the name of the place are connected with the fraternity, the brotherhood (amphictyony) that was ruling. We've said that the amphictyony was a brotherhood, similar to the brotherhood of the universities. Twelve ancient Greek tribes were elected from each tribe two members. With political and religious power, the amphictyony of Delphi obtained panhellenic character, meaning importance for all Greeks of the main Greek land and the Greeks living in the colonies around the Mediterranean Sea. Their duty was to keep Delphi's place neutral and independent, like the United Nations of nowadays. In Greek, the word "amphictyony" is adelphoteta through the centuries derived the term "Delphi".

There is a third explanation though that the archaeologists accept more. The word “Delphi” is a primitive pre-Greek word, meaning that the tracks of the name are getting noticed even before the war of Troy which is like 3.500 years ago. Actually we are losing the tracks of the name through the ages. The word “Delphi” means “uterus”. What sort of explanation is that then?

We start bringing to our memory the cult of Gaia, a female and the guardian protector of the place "Python". Apollo replaced all that, but the meaning of the place remained, as it had to do with the area's morphology. We see this landscape result of convulsions and earthquakes. We remember what we've said about the landscape: the sanctuary is nesting in an opening of the ground with natural protection. Matching these elements, we understand why they nominated the "Delphi = uterus" area. After all, from the same uterus of the mother are usually the brothers.

Analysing the syllables of the Greek word brother = adelphos and we do see that one of the syllables is Delph that means uterus. Proving that the character of the place was so particular and important due to the past and the meaning that it had among the Greeks also became important to those who were not Greeks. Like that, Delphi was not only a centre of Greeks but also a centre of foreigners meaning it was an international centre. A centre of the Earth where the truth was hiding in the conscience of humans. And all this was getting completed inside the temple.

The temple that we see was the 6th effort of construction. According to the myths, the first temples were constructed with elements that were showing the cult of Apollo, for instance, laurel wood, as the laurel tree was the favourite tree of the Gods, or bee wax and feathers copper.

We imagine elementary constructions with these materials. But this temple of the 4th century B.C. cost millions if we want to calculate with nowadays money. And the amount of cash was the offering of people and authorities of the Greek city-states, but not only. It gets constructed after the strong earthquake of 373 B.C. that destroyed the previous one. This new temple was constructed with the local hard grey titan-stone from the local quarries.

The temple faces the east and had six Doric style columns in front, six at the back, the west and fifteen on the long sides. It had three rooms like the front room and followed the long main room of the temple that probably had columns inside of Ionic style. The last back room of the building usually was operating as Treasury meaning the high priests were keeping precious objects.

Seeing the remains of the temple in front of us becomes very difficult to imagine what exactly the building was looking like. On the other hand, the marble was decorating the façade and the decorations of the pediments. The ancient historians are talking about a hidden-secret room, negligible on a lower level, inside the long main room of the temple, that now the whole floor is missing and was called “abaton”. It was the room where “Pythia” was entering and, under the spell of “Apollo”, was becoming the instrument, the oracle of the God. A small rectangular-like room-shaped place was located three meters lower (9 feet underground) and in direct contact with it.

A few days before the specific day of the prophecies, Pythia was fasting, and three days before the prophecy day was skipping water too. Early morning at dawn on the 7th of the month, and for nine months, except winter, Pythia was following the path and was making her way to the fountain of Castalia. As she was washing, she returned at a slow pace and entered the temple. From that moment, nobody could see her again. Wearing a long white veil was entering the abaton, and she was burning bay leads or chewing them. As she was also breathing a vapor (gas) that was coming out of the gutter of the floor, Pythia was dropping in ecstasy. She was sitting on a deep-high tripod (a vase on three legs) to be protected. Pythia had illusions; it was when God Apollo was occupying her body and mind. Through her, Apollo was speaking to the ones who were asking the question.

The representative of the city-state had also been purified was entering inside the temple with one of the high priests. They had to stop in front of the wall of the abaton - the hidden room and with a loud voice to ask the question. The high priest was repeating it. The questions had to do with strategy and policy or crucial for a kingdom matter.

That's why Delphi was such an important place that could change or influence the world's fate destiny. Pythia was replying with loud sounds-cries, and the high priests who had the excellent knowledge were translating these sounds. Often, the prophecies were unclear and ambiguous, with more than one meaning. That's why misunderstandings were taking place, as it was the duty of the humans to understand the oracle-prophecy by using their logic and conscience. The responsibility was always on them and never on the God or Pythia, or the sanctuary. This is what Apollo was demanding from the humans to be reasonable logical. In order to prepare the humans spiritually, there were on the walls of the first room of the temple the Delphians orders, phrases said by the seven wise philosophers. We know, for sure, at least two phrases: “Nothing in excess” and “Know yourself”. If and when humans know their limits and know themselves and their abilities, only then can they understand the prophecies, which was so tricky on the other hand.

Mary do we have any historical examples?

- Absolutely! The first one is the oracle that had been given to the Spartans to their question “If you could win the Peloponnesian War” was “if you fight with all your forces, you will win”. The second one is the impressive oracle was the one that had been given to the arrogant king Kroissus, ruler of Lydia, in Asia Minor. The king wanted to know if his almost mute but intelligent son would speak. The Oracle replied to the king that he should not have wished to listen to his son's voice because he would speak the day of his father’s catastrophe. It is a fact that when the king's enemies invaded the kingdom, a soldier entered the palace to kill the king without knowing who he was. At that moment, the mute son of Croesus cried out not to kill his father. The continuation of the story is yours, Anna

- Great! So, Pythia was a woman of a certain age. Even if she had a family, from the moment she was getting selected to be the priestess, she had to abandon her family, and for the rest of her life, she had to spend it in the sanctuary. She had strong morality or maybe the sixth sense to be alert,

It’s of great importance to realize the location of the temple. Always located on that spot, almost to the centre of the sanctuary and constructed above a gap of the ground, the hidden-mystic room was spotted above rifts. As the water of the spring was running under the temple, the water was bringing out gas of ethylene and ethanon. Ethylene is a sweet gas that is used in medicine to cause anaesthesia.

The historians describe the place to have a sweet fragrance. It is clear now, after research under the temple and around the sanctuary, that due to the water of the two springs that the sanctuary had, the gas was finding access under the opening of the temple floor, while the Omphalos was like a regulator. For sure, the sacred laurel tree inside the abaton could make the smell even stronger. After all, the cracking of the one rocky hill of Faidriades which is in front of the temple proves the seismic activity.

The reason why we don’t see anything of that now has the routes in the Christian time. As the cult of Apollo and the existence of the sanctuary was a threat, that’s why gradually the place got destroyed. The hidden room, abaton, either got demolished by the Christians as it was representing the heart of paganism or maybe when the ancient Greeks had demolished it to avoid passing it into the hands of the Christians.

As we keep climbing towards the theatre, the only remaining visible in the centuries, worth saying that Delphi was not the only prophecy place of the ancient Greek world. There were also other places, but it was the most important one. It was the only one that Divine presence was there visible.

Meanwhile, they were using other common ways to predict the future, like the flying of the birds, the formation of clouds or the combination of the teeth of the snake “Python” certain times that they were using them as dice.

Keep in mind that the ancient Greek world is a world of balance and harmony, The ancient Greeks were against nature and always were celebrating and worshipping the cult. Apollo for Delphi was the God of logic and responsibility. We saw that was demanding from the people to use both of them. But people can’t always be in limits and they must relax and they have to feel so we do know that in the same sanctuary, same temple the three months in the winter showing respect and honour of Dionysus (Bacchus) the god of wine. He was the God of enthusiasm and feeling. Apollo according to the belief was leaving from Delphi to the northern places, that was in the winter time so this was the moment where people were enjoying the benefits of Dionysus cult.

In springtime, the rebirth of nature occurs with the arrival of Apollo again back to the sanctuary. And there we are in front of the theatre of Delphi. We do see a perfect shape like a horse-shoe orchestra. On the natural slope of the hill are situated the audience's seats made of grey hard titan stone. The capacity of the theatre reaches the 5.000 spectators. While the stage is like a low wall, once it was decorated with the labours of Hercules, which are exhibited in the museum of Delphi. The reason why it was a low stage was to allow the view of the landscape. Between the orchestra and the stage, a path is passing, indicating access to the theatre. Always open-air buildings the theatres without a roof and on a natural side of a hill and in the beginning, did not have seats. The people were sitting directly on the slope of the hill. The same for the theatre of Delphi, without being clear though if the first seats were made of wood.

2.400 years ago, in the 4th century B.C., the theatre obtained stone seats. In Roman time 2.100 years ago, the theatre gets reconstructed and renovated to what we see now. The orchestra was paved during that time as the shape of it. Meanwhile, around the orchestra till now is visible a water pipe for the rainwater access. Rhythmical dances and musical competitions were getting organized finally every four years in ancient times. It was in 1927 and after 2.000 years, the theatre of Delphi had been used again; a drama was presented as an honour to the idea of the Delphian celebrations and a revival of the Delphian spiritual light.

What do you say Maria? Shall we go higher?

- Sure Anna! Following the path from the theatre and after 10’ climbing, on the highest point of the site, the best-preserved ancient stadium of the Greek territory is located. Let’s go!

- Take a deep breath and step over! We left behind us the ancient water fountains and their cisterns, one of the main reasons for the construction of the sanctuary on that spot. The landscape is unique, is lifting the soul and mind. All this is getting complete with the existence of the stadium. There, thousands of years ago used to be the place where athletic games, for sure running and later on similar to the Olympic game’s events, were held. Part of the big, religious celebration, known as “Pythian” games, probably were lasting 6 to 8 days, and they were naked games; athletes were participating like that and of course the musical competitions were following. It was the way to show respect to God.

Maybe the athletic games were not being held from the very first moment in the stadium. There is the theory that they were getting organized in the valley of the olive trees. But through centuries and in the classical time (5th century B.C.) are being transferred in the stadium. To participate in the Pythian Games, a truce of 3 months was being imposed to secure like safe trips from and to their cities. The reward of the Games was a wreath of laurel for the winners of the games.

Approaching the stadium from the eastern side, we do see three broken monumental arches, the only stadium of the ancient Greek world with a monumental entrance. Behind the grand opening, still are located on the rock, a base of 5 steps older remaining of the stadium. It makes sense seeing previous remains, as the stadium had been reconstructed in the Roman times on the 2nd A.D. by Herodes Atticus, who was a benefactor, philosopher, friend of the Roman emperor Hadrian.

In front of the broken, monumental entrance, the starting line still preserves the gaps for the feet of the athletes. Stepped ground and almost round shape, the length of the stadium was 178 meters, nearly 600 feet, was reduced to 177,414 meters in Roman time. On the right side of the stadium still are preserved the seats for the spectators, almost 12 lines being split up to 12 sectors. The seats with a back were for the authority. Like an aqueduct, a water pipe on the slope keeps repeating the importance of helping the water find access. The back (west) and the left side had also been seated. The left side probably has the same number of seats as the right part that, due to earthquakes and destruction, don’t exist anymore, only piles of stones. The retaining of the local material wall is there to remind us of the importance of its existence.

An interesting inscription of the 2nd B.C. is still visible on the left part of the stadium. It refers to the performance of a hymn for the God and Hellenes (Greeks) by the musician Satyr of Samos.

The capacity of the stadium could reach about 6.500 spectators. It was in 394 A.D. when the stadium got abandoned. Already the decay of the sanctuary is obvious. After the looting of the precious objects by the Romans and Constantine the Great, the final destruction caused by humans was by order of the emperor Theodosius in that year 394 A.D. that ceased its operation. Not only of the stadium but also of the whole sanctuary. Strong earthquakes complete the destruction of the sanctuary. Rocks are falling, and the ground starts covering the buildings. Till 1438 the stadium was visible, but in the years was covered with dirt, and shepherds were breeding animals. The theatre was almost covered as we said, and a few Christians’ houses were around. The shape of the theatre was always visible, though. The Christian village Kastri was on the top of the ruins.

“Apollo does not live here anymore, the spring does not speak, the water becomes mute”.

This was the last prophecy of this remarkable place that was given to the emperor Julian the offender, in the 4th A.D.

Thank you for the companion, and we hope you enjoyed this tour of Delphi. You can either exit the way you came in or join us on the following audio tour and go straight to the Archaeological Museum of Delphi, one of the most important museums in Greece with one of the best masterpieces of the country that exhibits there, the Chariote of Delphi.

And with other exhibits from the Delphi sanctuary, the sanctuary dedicated to God Apollo, the Oracle of the God.

If you‘re up for even more sightseeing, visit our website at www.keytours.gr and choose among plenty of guided tours covering great sites of Greek history. Antio sas!

It was in 1903 when under the project of the French architect Albert Tourneire and the financial support of the Greek benefactor Andreas Singros started the construction of the two sidal buildings. In 1935, the museum gets reconstructed, but bigger this time while last reconstruction was in 1999 before the Olympic games of Athens in 2004.

In the beginning, the building was reminding a train station. Now looks modern, covered with big rectangular blocks. Few steps are leading at the ticket control, while there is an elevator straight ahead and under the portico of the ground floor for the handicapped people. The view from the museum is breath taking towards the sea of the olive trees and the two (2) rocky hills that dominate the area, the Faidriades.

So let us enter to admire and find the most important, original exhibits that have been found in the sanctuary of God Apollo.

Passing the ticket control on our right-hand side and as we scan our ticket, we are entering in the first room of the museum that happens to be connected with the lobby. Our gaze gets captivated by a full-size drawing, showing to us how the sanctuary of God Apollo was looking like at its peak.

Walking in the 1st room on our left hand-side, inside the window glasses are exhibiting figurines of clay that are dating 3.500 years ago. These figurines of clay are representing the goddess of fertility Gaia. They are small, yellowish with red or brown stripes, with their hands to be open like the trident or the Greek letter Ps (Ψ), while other times are round shape like the Greek letter fi (Φ). Interesting is that the breast area is tonalized as symbolizes fertility while the face has no features. The ceramists used to paint the figurines with the same quality clay.

What follows is a tripod made of bronze, that dates in the 8th century B.C., that is 2.800 years ago.

Tripods usually were vases of clay small that they were getting used in everyday life as kitchen pots. Much later the tripods became precious, athletic rewards made of bronze; they could be dedications to the sanctuaries.

For Delphi the tripod as idea was connected with the prophecy. Pythia the great priestess of Apollo is believed to be seated on a tripod similar to what we are looking at. Maybe she was holding herself from the circular handles as she was dropping in ecstasy.

The tripod we see was a dedication that has been oxidized but has been also restored.

Passing from the second room, we turn to the right, and we enter in the third room of the museum. A huge statue of a Sphinx made of marble is standing on an ionic marble column with its capitol.

A Sphinx was a statue with the head of a woman, the body of a lioness and the wings of a griffin. Pure influence from Egypt, the statue of a Sphinx was representing power and could be an offering in a sanctuary or could stand above a grave. The Sphinx of the Sanctuary of Apollo was a dedication of the Naxians, islanders from the beautiful Naxos Island in the Aegean Sea. The height of the Sphinx with its column is at least 12,50 meters (almost 4 feet) and the age touches the 2.600 years.

Our gaze gets attracted on the features of the face of the Sphinx. Wide open eyes, broken nose that would be straight and a big smile, the famous archaic smile, long hair like stripes, slender but stable body. The statue looks static, rigid without any particular movement. This was the art of the 6th century B.C. while the smile carved on the face represents the prosperity of the ancient Greek world during that time.

This was the time of aristocracy, where the aristocrats were the big landowners. We do know on the mountain of Thebes, a Sphinx was put on the famous riddle to the travellers. Oedipus, the man with the sorted legs – the future king of Thebes, was the one who solved it.

The Naxian Sphinx of the sanctuary is an original statue, except the white plaster we see on its body; we do know that the Sphinx of Delphi was standing in front of the polygonal wall of the sanctuary and behind the rock of Sibylla.

As we are looking at the Sphinx, slightly to the right there is a beautiful, female statue of marble. It looks like a column. Actually, her body is a column, but wearing the chiton full of folds, it creates the impression of a complete body. With the same archaic smile on her face like the smile of the Sphinx, but gentler, the female statue column was representing a “Kore”.

“Kore” means daughter and always the term was representing maiden girls. The statue-column was part of a small, like jewel building, a “treasury”. This treasury was dedication from the island of Sifnos, which was rich in gold and silver during that time. In a clever way, the Sifnians used two statues, instead of columns to support part of the roof of the building and to decorate it as well.

The statue-column that we see of the treasury is the forerunner of the great six statues known as Karyatides that had been carved a hundred year later to decorate the important temple of the Acropolis, the so called “Erechtheion”.

The statue columns of the treasury of Sifnians that we see was very ornated. The little holes we see around her forehead used to bring metallic decoration. We keep in mind that nothing was white in ancient Greek. Everything was painted and many times the statues or the wall of the building could be decorated with metallic ornaments.

On the wall, next to the daughter, there is a depicted representation of the little building.

Before we leave the room, we give a look on the frieze of the same building which is exhibited across the statue column and the Sphinx.

The frieze is like a belt and was surrounding on the external part the little building made of marble and painted with mineral colours. The decoration of the frieze was representing the war of Troy (this was on the east side), the famous Gigantomachy (on the north), the judgment of Paris for the prettiest Goddess (on the west) and finally the kidnapping of women (on the south side).

Details of the frieze are the way of the warriors were holding the shields, the symbol emblem of the medusa’s head in one of the shields in order to create fear to the enemies, the structure of the body of the giants and the decoration of their helmet.

To all this we observe three (3) dimensions and the lines of a great, full of details art, while we understand that probably different sculptors collaborated for the carvings of the frieze.

As we turn to the right, straight ahead in front of us, two (2) identical marble statues about 2m (6 feet high, are occupying the space. The Yia, the famous kouroi of 600 years old, representing young men with their names Cleobis and Bitone, brothers from a city from the south part of Greece (Argos of Peloponnese). The story says that the young brothers were famers, wealthy and athletic. One day they had to run and cover a very long distance of 8 stadiums, carrying the chariot with their mother inside. Their mother was priestess in the sanctuary of Hera, and she was running out of time for a celebration.

The results was that she was on time and as they sacrificed to the goddess to show their respect, the two brothers died next to the temple. Like this, though they gained immortality. Immortality means in this case that after thousands of years we know what they did, which was so thoughtful, we know their identity as we know their names and through this they live forever.

Apart their fame, the statues look very Egyptian. There is a detail that makes a difference and that is the step. The Greeks opened more the step of the statues, creating like this a balance of their bodies and releasing them. The left foot in front is in balance with the right shoulder and the other way around. So it is like the ruler of their body to be the letter – X – and this is what it is balancing them and releases the body.

The two great statues from the city-state of Argos were dedications and have been found under the ground close to the treasury of the Athenians. They are originals except certain parts of their bodies that had been reconstructed and we can identify them due to the different colour of the material.

As we enter in the room that refers to the treasury of the Athenians, our gaze gets attracted to a photo. On the wall, we see how the treasury of Athenians should look like in front of the building had been dedicated weapons, trophies from the first fighting between Athenians and Persians. Under the photo, there are two (2) broken, original thought pieces of wall with inscriptions. As a matter of fact, these are songs, composed 2.300 years ago by 2 professional Athenian musicians: Athineos and Levenios – this is a rare and interesting exhibit because for first time we do have a composed music on a building. Above the syllables there are musical notes.

It has been discovered in the 1893, it has been re-composed a year later for the international athletic congress in Paris which was the preheader of the first modern Olympic Games that took place in Athens in 1896.

Two (2) songs honouring God Apollo, Delphi, Mountain Parnassus, but also recalling the muses’ followers of Apollo who are singing for the God on the mountain Parnassus.

On our left-hand side into the glass a marvellous cup “kylix” the official name and it is 2.500 years old.

It is made of clay; the external part is black but the internal has preserved a rare painting. God Apollo, with his slender delicate features is sitting on a stool that its legs are ending on the paws of a lion. Above his garment he wears a chiton, a wreath of laurel, around his head. Apollo is making a ritual with red wine and his other hand is holding a Lyra.

The lines of the drawing are so precise in the complete circle where they create depth in the scene. Into these limits, there is a black dove or a craw. According to the myth, Apollo curses the bird to be black from white when the raven brought a hint bad news about a maiden girl who was in love and her name was Koronis. The cup had been found to where we are standing to where is the museum and under our feet in one of the graves, probably a cup was buried with a high priest.

Turning to the right we are passing from the room where decorations from the treasuries of the sanctuary are exhibited. In the centre of the room behind the glass, are standing separately three (3) small masterpieces of bronze.

The first is a female slender figurine, holding on her fine hands and above her head a round shape pot where apparently, they were placing the incense. We observe the serious face, the harmony on the way she is bending on her leg.

Next to the figurine of the musician made of bronze, there are two (2) figurines representing athletes made of solid bronze.

We do see their exercised bodies and we focus our gaze to the one and we can understand in what game he was participating. We do see that he is holding a stone so we understand that he was participating; he was an athlete of Pentathlon; one of the Games of Pentathlon was the long jump. Usually to do the long jump, the athletes were holding two stones. As they were running and before doing the jumping, they had to release these two (2) stones behind them so to have the speed or the boost and do the jumping. The hand they lifted hand of the small statue made of bronze. We see that he is holding like a broken wreath that means that he was a winner while the next figure is raising his hand as if he is greeting him.

The room that follows is the one that shows to us beautiful, of small size figurines made of marble from the decorations of the round-shape building known as “Tholos”, that means dome. From the sanctuary of Athena Pronaia, providence full of grace the body forms with their muscle details and proportions make us understand the high-quality level art. Their subject was referring to a mythical fighting between female warriors known as Amazons and Greek heroes’ fighters. The Metopes that we see have been destroyed in the early Christian times.

In the room that follows, we get attracted by a high pillar looking like a stem of a flower. It is a column of marble looks like acanthus leaves and on the top are studying three (3) beautiful female statues, representing maiden girls and probably were representing the mythical daughters of the Athenian king Kekrops.

The daughters were the legs of a bronze tripod where probably inside was situated the marble Omphalos that we see next to this pillar.

The Omphalos stone that we see is a roman copy and is decorated with a net of egg-flowers.

We do not forget that Delphi had been considered as the navel of the world and according to the myth, the father of Gods and Humans, Zeus or Jupiter as it is the Latin name, to show to the people the centre of the world, when he released two (2) eagles, one from the East and the other from the West part of the world. The point where the 2 birds met was Delphi.

The beautiful daughters metaphorically have been called “dancers”. They are creating the impression that they were dancing as they unveil with all these folds those left and right so creates the illusion that they are moving. High level technique art classical art means that the dress looks so transparent as if it sticks to the body. And we can see all their details.

Next to the daughters, there is a complex of statues, but we focus our gaze to a naked perfect male statue was part of a family complex, dedication to a great family of generals, politicians, and athletes from central Greece.

His name is Agias; He was an athlete he won more than three times, so he had the right to erect himself. We are observing his serious look, the deep gaze the way he is turning slightly his face, the shoulders that are bending, the whole balance on one foot. And that’s how with the other one can balance also his weight. We can see the muscles and bones on their exercising body that are looking so natural. This harmony from the head to the feet and we can understand the high-quality art if we could remove his head and we could see that fits his body 7 times. This was a proportion that they were following

Interesting information is that the sculptor of Agias originally was the great sculptor Lyssipos, the one who had the right the only one to make the portrait of Alexander the Great.

Apparently, the statue of Agias that we have in front of us is an exact copy of the prototype statue and we can understand the mentality that had been developed in the classical time was to exercise the body equally to the mind.

With this way the people could be perfect mentally and physically. And if they were perfect, also their societies could be perfect too. That’s why they were not feeling embarrassed if their bodies were naked art.

Before we leave from the room, we give a last look on a photo across the complex of statues.

We see how the French archaeologists were discovering the statues and excavating the area and we can understand that we discover the statue that is called Philosopher or old man and is 2,300 years old. We see that the statue is covered with his chiton, but his chest is uncovered, standing in a comfortable way. His age is visible and that’s a clue that shows now that the art becomes realistic, it is a characteristic of the Hellenistic period, that is 2,300 years ago.

The holes that we see in his arms is because of the sculptors were using different pieces of marble in this case and they were joining them with links; links that they were using to join the pieces with the rest of the body. That’s why where the statue is connected is more fragile this part.

We are passing the steps and we enter in the room that refers to the Romans’ art. Roman art had a big influence from the Greeks. Our gaze gets focused on the great statue of a handsome man with the name “Antinoos”. Antinoos is standing next to the step.

According to the story, Antinoos was the favourite boy of the Roman emperor Hadrian. He was very handsome and maybe his origins were of Greek Syrians. Antinoos drowned in the river of Niles in a very young age and the Roman emperor Hadrian was devastated. For that reason, the emperor dedicated to the sanctuaries of Greece but not only and in the cities of the empire the statue of the boy and he claimed him divine.

Antinoos of Delphi that we see is so well preserved as he was found protected under the soft ground and close to the temple of Apollo. We do see him naked with very natural shape body, his balancing on a bending foot, his turning his head to a direction and his look is almost dreaming and apparently was wearing a metallic wreath, due to the holes we see around his curly hair. Antinoos is one of the masterpieces of the museum.

The hint for that statue is that still the marble shines, particularly on the neck. We do know that the Romans in order to protect the marble statues were using a specific oil and that’s how they were protecting, and they could create a shining colour. They were calling this technique, patina.

Next to the remarkable statue there is another roman masterpiece known as “the melancholy Roman”. We are talking of the marble head which is actually a portrait of the Roman Consul Titus Quintus Flaminian. He was one of the Roman Consuls who declared in Corinth, a city of Peloponnese the “freedom” of Greece from the dominion of the Greek Macedonians.

The last room of the museum exhibits one of the greatest artifacts of Greece – the famous “Charioteer”. A bronze, intact statue where his eyes have been made with semi-precious stones and white enamel.

It was a gift dedication originally from the south part of Italy known as Great Greece and from the city of Tzela. The story says the tyrant of this place Polyzalos participated in one of the Pythian Games, actually horse races and he sent the Charioteer and his chariot.

He won so he dedicated a complex of statues, three horses, a servant, the charioteer and the chariot.

The earthquake of 373 B.C. destroyed it, but on the other hand protected it as well as the complex had been covered with a ground and a rock. The French archaeologist found three horse legs and a hand of the servant while the big statue was found divided in 2 pieces and 10 meters one from the other – The statue has been restored and we can understand the hight quality art and the three dimensions that has. But we have to walk clockwise and observe the head of the statue and compare it with its legs. In the beginning standing in front of him, we observe that the head is turning slightly to the right and his feet to the left. We start walking clockwise and around him, always keeping the distance and we observe the upper with the lower part of the body. Reaching his side part, we see that the upper part is turning to the left while from the waist and below is turning on the opposite side.

Observing his back part, we understand that his shoulders are bending too. The stripes that he wears create the impression that they keep his chiton tight to his body.

The ‘Pleiades’ of his chiton emphasize the idea of the wind that is entering underneath, as he is running with the horses.

With a closer look at his feet, we see that he is not stepping with a full step on the base. If we could pass a piece of paper under his feet, we could see that the paper is sliding under them and is stopping on the heels. Actually, the charioteer is balancing on his heels while the bending shoulders creating the balance, they keep him stable and he is in coordination the upper part with the lower part of the body.

Arriving diagonally and almost in front of him our aspect changes again – now the feeling is that only from the waist and above is turning as if the statue plays games with our gaze. ‘Till the moment we stop again from where we started, that means almost in front of him, we can see that he has, ‘Till the moment we stop again from where we started, the very first moment, we can understand the three dimensions that the statue has, we can see the two (2) directions of his body and the feeling is of a moving image.

The charioteer wears a band around his head should be of silver and symbolizing the ‘meander’, symbol of eternity, the Greek key. Usually, the winners as they were symbolizing their victory, they were wearing this band. The eyelashes have been restored and if we had the chance to see to see between his lips, we could see that his teeth are made of silver. The charioteer of Delphi is one of the rare statues of bronze so well preserved without being oxidized and remains in Greece where most of them ended in the fond of the sea or have been melted by the Romans.

The technique of the statue of bronze was the technique of the lost wax, a very measured in details art.

On our way out worth a last look on this magnificent statue that leads the classical Greek art towards the immortality.

Thank you for the companion, and we hope you enjoyed this tour of Delphi Museum. If you ‘re up for even more sightseeing, visit our website at www.keytours.gr and choose among plenty of guided tours covering great sites of Greek history. Antio sas!