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Central Greece | Fokida | Delphi Town

Delphi Archaeological Museum

The Museum of Delphi is considered among the three most important museums in Greece, together with the ones of the Acropolis of Athens and in Heraklion, Crete. What makes a visit to the Greek Museums in general, this one in particular, an unforgettable experience, is the fact that they usually exist on the very archaeological site(s), thus putting the exhibits in the surroundings in which they were initially established, in close relevance to their cultural and/or religious role.
The Delphi Museum first opened its doors tο the public in 1903; in the more than 100 years that have elapsed since then, it has been recognized as one of the most important museums in Greece. It has undergone many renovations during this time and four different exhibitions, each reflecting the scientific concepts and artistic standards as they evolved through the 20th century. The quality of the exhibits, though, has always been the main advantage of this Museum.

According to Rosina Colonia, (Delphi Ephorate of Antiquities) “… the Delphi exhibits speak for themselves: they have the power to command respect and captivate the visitor, inviting him or her to admire them, and leaving this visitor with the memory of their charm and the enigma surrounding them. Even though the exhibits on display today constitute no more than a small but representative part of the dedications seen by Pausanias at Delphi, and an even smaller part of the many more that inundated the sanctuary during the years of its heyday, they indisputably continue to delight people with their wealth, variety and beauty. …Delphi has been included in archaeology textbooks, it has adorned art books; some of the Delphi finds, such as the Treasury of the Siphnians, are landmarks in the history of ancient Hellenic art, while others, even though more than one hundred years have elapsed since they came to light, continue to be a focal point of scholarly discussions even today, owing to unanswered questions regarding their identity and interpretation. But above all, they still chaim the broad public who flock, like ancient pilgrims, to admire the monuments of Delphi”. (Quotation ©: John S. Latsis Public Benefit Foundation)


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The Temple of Apollo in Classical Times (Hall VI)

The Temple of Apollo in the 4th century BC.

The temple of the Alcmeonids was reduced left in ruins by the rock fall that accompanied a strong earthquake in 373 BC., the same one that buried the statue of the Charioteer under piles of earth. For its reconstruction, the Amphictyony (the representatives of the cities who were in charge of the sanctuary) once again made a fund-raising campaign throughout the Hellenic world. However, a large part of the emormous amount of money required was provided from the fine imposed on the Phocians for pillaging the sanctuary during the ten-year Third Sacred War. Unique testimony of the financial management plans and technical methods used in the sprawling construction site, which was organised under the direction of specially appointed archons (Naopoioi = the "temple-builders"), is provided to us by inscriptions on stone stelae found during excavations.

The new peripteral Doric temple, the remains of which can be seen today, was inaugurated in 330 BC; its pediments were adorned with sculptural compositions depicting Apollo among the Muses on the east side and Dionysus among the Thyiads (Baccantes or Maenads) on the west side. Persian shields that had been part of the Athenians' booty from the battle of Marathon were nailed to its metopes.

The excavations have been unable to add to the scant information from the ancient sources about the temple interior, since the latter was almost totally destroyed. A gold-plated cult statue of Apollo stood in a prominent position in its cella (sekos, or inner chamber). On the wall of the vestibule (pronaos) famous sayings by the Seven Sages were inscribed, together with the enigmatic letter E. Nothing has been preserved of the oracular adyton (holy of holies) in which the Oracle prophecies were given. There, beneath the floor of the cella, the shrine would have contained the symbols of the prophet-god: the oracular tripod on which Pythia would be seated and, perhaps, also the sacred navel-stone (omphalos) which was believed to mark the grave of Python or Dionysus.

In recent years, the systematic re-examination of a number of sculptures that had been overlooked in the Museum storage area led to their being unexpectedly identified as belonging to the statues of the two pediments which were previously believed to have been taken away by Roman emperors. This important discovery was confirmed by Pausanias' description of the pediments with a detailed description of the statues forming them as he himself saw them in situ in the 2nd cent. AD.; his testimony has made possible their reconstruction for the first time, albeit in fragmentary form, in this display. Works of Athenian artists, they lack the magesty and strength of the Archaic pediments of the earlier temple, but feature a number of interesting innovations in iconography. The depiction of the two gods on the same monument and the unique representation of Dionysus as a cithara player take on symbolic significance. Apollo, the principal deity of the sanctuary, concedes the west pediment of his temple and lends his favorite musical instrument, the kithara, to Dionysus. It appears that this neoterism is not irrelevant to the official recognition of Dionysian worship at the Delphic sanctuary with the support of the temple priests at the time of construction of the pediments (340-330 BC.)

On the east pediment of the temple, Apollo is presented with his mother Leto and his sister Artemis among the Muses. In the center is Apollo, wearing a mantle that leaves his chest bare, and sitting on a tripod holding a laurel branch and a wide-rimmed bowl (phiale). He is depicted not as Musagetes, but as the lord of his oracle. The Muses, some standing and others seated in a rocky landscape, link the god with the world of the arts and culture.

On the west pediment of the temple, Dionysus is portrayed among Bacchantes (women in Dionysus' retinue who, according to the poetic tradition, would dance across Parnassus). Dionysus is standing in the center in the rare type of kithara-player. He is wearing a tunic belted under the chest, a mantle thrown over his shoulders and the characteristic headband (mitra) of the initiated on his forehead. The kithara he is holding in his left hand ranks him with the god of music, Apollo, and reconciles the different worlds of the two gods that are depicted on the same temple.


Plan of the classical Temple of Apollo

Plan of the classical Temple of Apollo
The west pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo

The west pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo


...depicting Dionysus portrayed among Bacchantes (women in Dionysus' retinue who, according to the poetic tradition, would dance across Parnassus). Dionysus is standing in the center in the rare type of kithara-player. He is wearing a tunic belted under the chest, a mantle thrown over his shoulders and the characteristic headband (mitra) of the initiated on his forehead. He is holding a kithara in his left hand.
The west pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo

The west pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo


The sculpture with the figure of Dionysus
The east pediment  of the classical Temple of Apollo: A drawing

The east pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo: A drawing
The east pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo

The east pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo


Apollo, central figure of the pediment, wearing a mantle that leaves his chest bare, and sitting on a tripod holding a laurel branch and a wide-rimmed bowl (phiale)
The east pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo

The east pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo
The east pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo

The east pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo
The east pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo

The east pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo
The east pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo

The east pediment of the classical Temple of Apollo
Part of the marble sima of the Classical temple of Apollo

Part of the marble sima of the Classical temple of Apollo


The relief decoration with palmettes and spirals was interrupted by the lion-head water-spouts.
Part of the marble sima of the Classical temple of Apollo

Part of the marble sima of the Classical temple of Apollo


The relief decoration with palmettes and spirals was interrupted by the lion-head water-spouts.
Part of the marble sima of the Classical temple of Apollo

Part of the marble sima of the Classical temple of Apollo


The relief decoration with palmettes and spirals was interrupted by the lion-head water-spouts.
Part of the marble sima of the Classical temple of Apollo

Part of the marble sima of the Classical temple of Apollo


Lion-head spout seen from underneath

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