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Delphi ~ Temple of Athena

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Delphi.... Mystic Center of the Universe.....Since ancient times people have been fascinated with the mystery of Delphi.... Finally in February of 2006 we got to make the pilgrimage...

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Delphi ~ Temple of Athena

February 11, 2006

4th Century BC ...

From the top of Delphi we could see a lovely circular temple.... we asked and found it was part of the Delphi site. The tickets were included in the one for the main site. We were told a lot of people miss the lower temple: Temple of Athena. The entrance was across the road. We walked down the winding path until we came to the temple... It was elegant and beautiful. It dated from the 4th and 5th century BC. Three of the columns were restored. We got some great shots there.... from the bottom area we could see the Delphi temple far above us

One problem we saw was there were a lot of thin, starving cats.... I went through my back pack and found a piece of toast from that morning. It was gone in a heartbeat. I kept thinking about the "temple cats". It bothered me that there were so many and so many youngsters.

I saved food from my breakfast the next morning and jumped the fence to take it down to them....David just about died.... he could just see me dragged to jail for felony cat feeding... We don't usually break rules but I couldn't stand not feeding the kitties before I left the area.... it was pitious seeing how hungry they were.

Later that day, I bought some cat food at a pet store for the "temple cats".... I carried the food and fed cats as we went to different temples. everyone was happier then....

7 comments

9 smiles

princessbride029 says:

I felt the same about the cats we saw as well - and they were so friendly, too! Talk about tugging the heart-strings...

Posted on: Dec 19, 2008

scubagirl76 says:

I'm a cat feeder too :D! when I was little I asked my mom for a bag of cat food to feed a stray, before we knew it we had all the neighborhood strays coming to eat every night!

Posted on: Apr 21, 2008

Sunflower300 says:

Go Sylvia!

Posted on: Apr 19, 2008

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Delphi .... still steeped in mystery

February 11, 2006

Charioteer 478 BC

Delphi: David and I did quite a bit of research on this site so we were particularly excited to be there. It was magic ........we could feel the history......

It was said that the Zeus wanted to find the exact center or navel of the world he ruled. He released two eagles and when they flew around the world the exact place they met was Delphi. Long before the first temples were built it was a sacred place.

Treasury of the Athenians 490 BC

In ancient times it was very important: it had temples, an amphitheater and a stadium. It was called the navel of the Universe. The actual carving of the representative navel is lost but they have a replica. It has twisted rope designs somewhat like a fishing net that represents the "no man is an island" every nation is entwined.....

One thing I found out that I found amazing was that the priestess who was the oracle was a simple village woman who was older. The floor of the Temple of Apollo had a chasm that had gas and fumes coming up. It is speculated that the Oracle women would breathe the fumes and go into a trance and babble things... the priests then interpreted the babbling into replies : the replies were more advice than predictions... and the advice was sometimes difficult to interpret. The Oracle of Delphi was famous for her cryptic prophecies.

Temple of Apollo: 4 CENTURY BC the owner of the motel we stayed @ in Delphi said he played in the temples as his dad was a guard... the ramp is smooth on the sides but they cannot figure out how they did it..

She told poor Oedipus he would kill his father and marry his mother.... Yikes..... job security for Freud for years.... a second famous prophecy was given to Croesus: he was told that if he embarked on war against neighboring Persia he would destroy a mighty empire.... he did destroy a mighty empire: his own. The orales were considered truthful. This is probably because the advice was sound and the priests were well informed of "world" news.

The museum was amazing. They had several of the pillars and fronts from the temples. The statues from the temple were 10 feet high. They were so detailed. The rainspouts for the temples were lions with their mouths open … often made from terracotta. Neat details...

They also had the sphinx (it looked like the sphinx in the movie "The Never Ending Story" ) it was easily 17 feet tall.

Sphinx 570 BC

I walked into the room and walked to the plaque to see what year it was....... while I was bending over writing the information a huge group of 40 Japanese tourists came in silently behind me. They gathered in a semi circle around the front of the sphinx where I was leaning over with my back to them.... then their guide started talking really loud. I jumped …. When I turned around my jaw dropped. I couldn't believe that many people had come in. I hurried to the side where the guard was laughing.... I said "Yikes" and that really set him off. What a crack up.

They also have a really famous bronze called the charioteer. He was from 478 BC. He was lost for years and years....... I believe he was found in a retaining wall that needed to be replaced in 1896. . It was a huge, huge discovery..... he is holding bronze reins and they figure he was part of a group of three.

The back of the Charioteer:

he is missing one arm... although you don't really notice it: he has inset eyes of marble and onyx. My first thought was that he was smaller than life and I was disappointed: then when I walked into the actual room he was standing in…. I forgot his size and I was really taken with how lifelike and detailed he is. David is 6'6 (2 meters tall) and took pictures almost at eye level .... I especially like the one taken of the back of his head where his hair curls and his headband is tied.

Outside, next to the Sacred Way, there were a bunch of “bases” stacked row on row. When Nero , the roman emperor invaded they estimated he took over 5000 statues from Delphi. This was proven by the empty "bases" and plaques that he left behind.... this pillage is how Rome got so many Greek antiquities… but the victors of war took what they wished…. (that’s the rules)

9 comments

11 smiles

bkretzer says:

Great Blog, Sylvia!

Posted on: Apr 22, 2008

glennisnz says:

Very interesting, thay sphinx is just fantastic, with wings.

Posted on: Feb 27, 2008

margmack says:

This brought back memories for me as I was there at the navel of the world in 1989. What an awesome place...so ancient and atmospheric. I wish I could go again.

Posted on: Dec 30, 2007

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