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Delphi's District of
The Temple of Apollo
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TO DELIAN APOLLO --
1-18 - I will remember and not be unmindful of Apollo who shoots afar. As he goes through the house of Zeus, the gods tremble before him and all spring up from their seats when he draws near, as he bends his bright bow. But Leto alone stays by the side of Zeus who delights in thunder; and then she unstrings his bow, and closes his quiver, and takes his archery from his strong shoulders in her hands and hangs them on a golden peg against a pillar of his father's house.
Historical Background The heart of historic Delphi was the Temple of Apollo, from which the Pythia and priests of the oracle worked and lived and in which the fault line in the mountain spewed up gases that, we now know, cause effects ranging from hallucinations to mild intoxication.
The legends about Delphi, including Apollo's trip to Crete to find priests, have some historical substance, as scholars believe that the worship of Apollo came to Delphi from Knossos, on Crete, in roughly the 8th century B.C. Homer writes that Apollo said:
(Hymn to Pythian Apollo, 285-295). To orient oneself, the tourist must visualize the spring, the Temple of Apollo, and the temple of Artemis. The most ancient sacred site at Delphi, and perhaps the reason the site was chosen as the abode of Apollo, is the sacred Castalian Spring that wells up in a ravine in the Phaedriades mountains. It is connected with the chemical vapors that arise from the earth to inspire the Pythia's oracles. The spring feeds two beautiful fountains (one early 6th century, one Roman). All pilgrims to Delphi stopped here to ritually bathe before entering the sacred precinct. The visitor then follows the path of the "Sacred Way" that leads from the southeast corner of the site and winds its way up the hillside, past ancient treasuries and monuments, to the Temple of Apollo. The visitor will pass by the most notable of these treasuries and offerings is the Treasury of the Athenians, dating from 490 BC. It was funded by the spoils of Athens' victory over the Persians at the Battle of Marathon, which was won after an oracle advising the Athenians to put their faith in their "wooden walls." It was Themistocles who persuaded the Athenians that this meant, not a wooden building, but the wooden navy of the Athenians. The treasury includes a wall covered with Greek inscriptions, including musically annotated hymns to Apollo.
 Long View of Temple of Apollo The visitor then reaches the focus of Delphi, the Temple of Apollo, dating from the 4th century BC. It originally had 6 columns on the front and 15 on the sides, covered in stucco. The exterior was decorated with shields captured from the Persians at the Battle of Plataea, at which the Persians were finally driven from Greece in 480 BC. The visitor entered the Temple and followed the priests down a long ramp into the earth to speak with the Pythia.
Things To Do and Learn
In the "Discussions" threads here at the Temple of Apollo, you may actually visit the Pythia and ask your own questions, or take the quiz about her famous - or infamous! - predictions.
-Write-up by Lorelei Aristophanes
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