After visiting Livadeia we reached our destination Delphi. I had been there once with friends and convinced my family to go visit it again as I really enjoyed it there. As it was off season, Merli and mother paid around half of the ticket price and others got in for free being students or a kid. There are less people and off season prices, so would recommend travelling then.
Delphi is located between Mount Parnassus, the valley of Pleistos and a coastal plain.
Delphi, also called Pytho, is an ancient sanctuary, known to be the center of the world by ancient Greeks. Delphi is in UNESCO as a World Heritage Site because of its great influence in the ancient world.
The Omphalos of Delphi is an ancient marble monument found at Delphi's archaeological site. According to the myths, Zeus sent two eagles at the ends of the world to meet which would locate the center of the world. The two eagles met above the area of Delphi and from there Zeus threw a stone from the sky to see where it would land and as it landed in Delphi, the city was considered to be the center of the world. The stone took the name Omphalos, defined as the navel of the earth. Besides Omphalos' meaning of world centrality and Hellenic religious symbolism, it also meant power and its symbolic references include uterus, phallus and cup of red wine which represents the royal blood lines.
The Athenian Treasury was constructed between 510-480 BC to house dedications and offerings from the citizens and the city to the sanctuary of Apollo. It is 9,75 m high and 6,68 m in diameter and the treasury was built directly below the Temple of Apollo along the Sacred Way for all visitors to view the Athenian treasury on the way up to the sanctuary.
The ancient theater was built in the 4th century BC but it was remodeled a couple of times in 160/159 BC and 67 AD. The latter's occasion was the visit of emperor Nero. The theater could fit around 4500 visitors and well, had an extraordinary view.
The stadium is located on the highest point of Archaeological site of Delphi. It was built around the second half of the 4th century or mid 3rd century BC but it had been altered centuries later. The last altering happened during the 2nd century AD where the stone seating was built, seating 6500 people. The north side was supported by the slope of the mountain, to the south a wall was built to support the seats of the viewers. The track itself is 177 m long and 25,5 m wide. The stadium is the best preserved ancient stadium in Greece.
In Delphi, Pythian Games were part of the Panhellenic Games which were held in 4 years starting with the Olympic Games, Nemean and Isthmian Games were held in year 2 and 4 in different months and Pythian Games were held in year 3. Year 5 started the circle again. The Pythian Games started as a singing contest held in every 8 years but later changed to 4 and added other musical and sports contests and then removing the musical parts.
The preparations for the games started 6 months prior when 9 people were sent from Delphi to all Greek cities to announce the beginning of the games, to attract athletes and to declare the period of the Sacred Truce, to protect the 9 messengers, athletes who travelled to Delphi and temple of Apollo. If a city was involved in an armed conflict or robberies during the 6 months period, its citizens were banned to enter Delphi, meaning no participation in the games nor consulting the oracle. The truce helped in preparation of the games, restoring structures like streets, temples and fountains. People all over Greece travelled to see the games creating a lot of revenue for the city.
The ruins of the Temple of Apollo date back to the 4th century BC, being the third temple built in that exact location. Apollo was the god of music, harmony and light and his temple had the most prominent position in the Delphi sanctuary. The Oracle of Delphi, Pythia, operated in the temple. How the oracle worked exactly is unknown as the authors from 6th - 4th century BC who wrote about her, did not write how she operated as the process was common knowledge needing no explanations. The main story claimed that the Oracle of Delphi, operated inside the temple inhaling emitting vapors beneath the site, entering the state of delirium and uttering gibberish which priests turned into enigmatic oracles. This has been challenged by scholars who argue that the ancient sources uniformly represent the Pythia speaking intelligibly and giving the prophecies in her own voice. As all of this is ancient history, nothing is certain. Everything seems to be explained by myths.
After visiting the site, we walked to the Archaeological Museum of Delphi, which was nearby. If I remember correctly, there was a combined ticket to Delphi and the museum.
After the museum we walked to the modern city of Delphi while Riin went to get the car closer. When she arrived we found a cozy gyros place where I ate 2. No ragrets.
After that we did some shopping and admired the sunset.
The last stop was at The Tholos of Delphi, a 10 minute walk from the entrance of the Delphi's ticket office. "Tholos" meaning a circular temple created between 380-360 BC at the center of Athena Pronaia sanctuary. It stands 13,5 m tall and had 20 external columns, 3 of them are now reconstructed. The purpose of the building is still uncertain.
One feature which many buildings of that period had was the combination of different architectural orders. The 20 outer columns are Doric Order columns and the interior 10 columns are Corinthian Order. The exterior of Tholos of Delphi and the floor plan of Tholos of Delphi look like this. The materials used are also different creating a nice contrast with different shades between the elements of the building. Ledge of the interior columns and the floor were made out of grey limestone and the rest of the building from while marble. The roof was decorated by eight female statues on eight-arched roofs.
And after Delphi, we drove back to Athens which took around 2.5 h.
09.11.2018
