Date: Friday, May 13, 2005
Partners for the day: Ben Silverman (text) Laura Sides (images)
Site(s): Ancient Delphi
Museum(s): Delphi Museum
Principal Buildings/Monuments: Monument of the Admirals, Treasury of the Sikyonians, Treasury of the Siphnians, Treasury of the Athenians, polygonal wall retaining the Temple of Apollo, Treasury of the Corinthians, Temple of Apollo, stadium, Temple of Athena Pronoia, Doric treasury, Treasury of Massilia, Tholos, gymnasium
Time Spent on Each Site: from ca. 8:00 AM to ca. 11:45 AM [3.75 hours at Delphi] from ca. 12:15 PM to ca. 2:15 PM [2 hours at the museum] from ca. 4:30 PM to ca. 5:45 PM [1.25 hours at the Sanctuary of Athena]
Weather: mid 70s, sunny and hot
Today the group spent the entire day at the site of Delphi. We traveled up the Sacred Way, examining the multitude of ancient dedications and treasuries along the way, including the treasuries of the Sikyonians and the Athenians. We walked up to Temple of Apollo and then the stadium, but due to the hot weather, the group decided against sprinting down the ancient track. We spent the early afternoon at the museum, battling loud tourists groups for space to look at some of the unique objects, like the Archaic silver bull and the bronze charioteer. After a break, the group concluded the day in the Sanctuary of Athena, enjoying the quiet site in the late afternoon sun.
On the drive to Delphi yesterday I read the description of the site in Blue Guide. The first line of the entry read: “Delphi…is by common consent the most spectacularly beautiful ancient site in Greece and the one which, even to the uninitiated, most vividly evokes the Classical past.” I was taken aback by the entry. Not only have I disagreed with the Blue Guide’s subjective comments about other sites—its unfair denigration of Miletus, for example—but I did not picture Delphi when I thought of Classical Greece. Olympia, the Athenian Acropolis and the Athenian Agora all stood out as more representative of the “Classical past” for me. I visualized the site as a mysterious collection of buildings, tucked away in a thick forest. I certainly did not think that the current site could impress me nearly as much as the Parthenon or Olympia. Yet, after visiting the site today and seeing the landscape that surrounds it, I have a newfound appreciation for Delphi.
Before I stepped onto the site, I was overcome by the magnificence of the scenery. We approached the site from the modern town that sits high above the valley between the two mountain ranges, but we could trace the path that the Greeks would have taken from the port to the site. I tried to imagine how visitors would have walked up from the water, their view of the valley and the site partially blocked by Kirphys Mountain. They must have been in awe after they entered the valley and saw the impressive mountain ranges on both sides. From their perspective the site of Delphi must have glistened in the distance with the sun reflecting off the metal monuments and dedications.
On the site, I appreciated how the landscape serves as an impressive backdrop for the various buildings at Delphi. The Sacred Way winds up the site, lined with monuments, dedications and treasuries. Each time we looked at a statue base on the north side of the road, I saw the Phaedriades Mountains above the site. From the large Temple of Apollo to the smaller dedications along the Sacred Way, the buildings stood out impressively against these mountains and the ones on the other side of the valley. Moreover, a similarly gorgeous backdrop stands behind the theater, stadium, and even the practice track at the gymnasium. It seemed to me that no matter where I went on the site, I was always surrounding by the stunning landscape.
When we walked to the site today, I gazed at the beautiful mountains cradling the green valley below. A thin veil of mist floated over the mountaintops, and the sun peaked through the haze. Walking back from the site to the hotel, I once again was taken aback by the picturesque scenery, as the sun disappeared over the mountain ranges and created shadows over the trees lining the road. I could feel that the area was something special, something unique. The Greeks thought it was the center of the world, and after seeing the site today, I can see why. Perhaps the Blue Guide’s assessment does, after all, accurately describe the site of Delphi.