In ancient times, Delphi was considered the center of the known world by the Greeks. Kings, warriors and philosophers visited Delphi and the famous Pythia, the prophetess, anticipating an oracle about their future. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its ancient ruins set against the magnificent Mount Parnassus makes it one of the highlights of my Greece trip.
First, we checked into our hotel, Hotel Amalia at Delphi in late noon.
The waiting area in the hotel lobby.
View from my room.
The hotel also has a big swimming pool.
Just beautiful!
After checking in to the hotel, we decided to explore the town of Delphi on our own.
This is the Orthodox Cathedral of Agios Loukas. It is the only church that can be found in the town of Delphi.
Interior of the Cathedral of Agios Loukas.
This is a lookout point of the mountains and sea.
The view of the green valley, all the way to the sea.
I was pretty nervous actually but I still managed to smile for the camera. Haha.
Telescope cafe offers the nice view while enjoying a meal.
The modern town of Delphi.
The Delphi bus station.
Modern Delphi is indeed a charming little town and it's not to be missed.
Time to head back to the hotel.
The city map of Delphi.
Dinner time. Its an eat all you can buffet dinner.
In the next morning, we began our day by visiting the archaeological site of Delphi. The Kastalian Spring supplied the sacred oracle with water, which served for the purification both of priests as well as the faithful who entered the sanctuary.
The opening hours for the archaeological site and museum are both from 8am to 8pm, but the last entrance is 7.40pm.
The Archeological site of Delphi is inscribed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The sanctuary, which combines in a unique manner the natural and historical environment, is related to numerous, key events of Greek history that have an impact on the progress of civilization.
The site consist of two separate sacred areas, the Sanctuary of Athena Pronaia and Sanctuary of Apollo.
We began with the sanctuary of Apollo. The Sanctuary of Apollo is more extensive and is covered with an astonishing collection of ruins, monuments, friezes and altars.
The Sacred Way is the main route through the Sanctuary of Apollo, leading the gateway uphill 200 meters to the Temple of Apollo.
It was originally lined with monuments and treasuries erected by various Greek cities but they have disappeared. Only their bases remain.
The Treasury of Athenians built around 510 BC is in the form of a Doric temple. The original frieze is in the Delphi Museum.
The Athenian Treasury is the most impressive building at Delphi as all the rest of the buildings lies in ruins.
The location of the omphalos which was supposed to mark the center of the world. Yep, the Ancient Greeks considered Delphi to be the centre of the world.
The sixth century BC Polygonal Wall support the platform on which the Temple of Apollo stands.
More steps to climb.
The remaining columns of the Temple of Apollo.
The Temple of Apollo is the most important building in the Sanctuary of Apollo. It was built on the same location three times. The present Temple of Apollo was built in the fourth century BC.
The Pythia (priestess) would sit in the temple and uttered the words of Oracle, sent to her by Apollo and interpreted by the priests.
This is how the Temple of Apollo would have looked like.
Pillar of Prusias II at the sanctuary of Apollo.
The theatre could accommodate 5,000 spectators on 35 rows of stone benches.
The theater of Delphi as seen from above.
The ruins of the complex of Delphi are situated in a suitably awe-inspiring position on a ledge beneath the towering cliff face.
Right at the top of Delphi is the stadium which is also wonderfully preserved. It is capable of seating 7,000 spectators and it was used to host the athletic contests of the Pythian religious festival.
It has a triumph arch at the end.
I didn’t get to visit the Sanctuary of Athena Pronaia which has the Tholos which is a little more than 1 km apart from the Sanctuary of Apollo.
The Sanctuary of Athena Pronaia as seen from the roadside. Tholos should be at the other side of the mountain,
Instead, I visited the Archeological Museum of Delphi. The rich collection of this museum consists of beautiful marble statues, sculpture works, coins and other finds from that time.
The Sphinx of Nixos sitting on an Ionic column. It is one of the highlights of the museum.
It depicts a mythical monster with the head of a woman, the breast of a bird and the body of a lion.
The north frieze of Treasury of Siphnos at Delphi.
Stone statues which has been identified as Cleobis and Biton, the two pious brothers from Argos, or as the Dioscuri whose cult was popular in the Peloponnese.
Gold and ivory statues, possibly depicting Artemis and Apollo.
The west pediment of the Temple of Apollo.
The entablature of the Tholos’ Doric peristyle.
Dancing girls on the Acanthus Column.
The omphalos was located at the Temple of Apollo and was viewed only by the priest or priestess who had access to the chamber.
Statue of the athlete Hagias.
Marble statue of Antinos.
The bronze cast statue of the Charioteer is one of the most famous exhibits in the museum.
This was how the sanctuary of Delphi would have looked like.
This marked the end of my trip in Delphi. Still, I can’t believe I missed the Tholos, the iconic building of ancient Delphi.
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