Delphi .... We are in love with this place....
Itea is a cute little town.... We walked across the railroad tracks from the wharf into downtown. As we walked to the bus station we saw a nice church. I took a picture of the top of it... quite a few people were outside and from their sad demeaner we could tell it was a funeral. I felt bad that I hadn't realized it before I took a photo... we moved on quickly. Coffee was calling to us... while we waited for the bus we got a cup of cappucino. I drew a little face in the foam.... Hooray I'm a coffee artist!
We caught the morning bus from Itea and rode to Delphi. ( When you ride the bus do not get off at the first stop.
We hadn't had breakfast so we decided to eat before we went to the Delphi area.
We decided to visit the museum first because it closed at 2:30 PM and we wanted to see it at our leisure instead of hurrying through.
We walked to the downtown area ..... A shop keeper recommended a place to eat at the other end of town. (about a 10 minute walk) We shopped after we ate. We felt very fortunate to speak to quite a few of the shopkeepers ... business is down about 40% with the Euro hitting the American's and with the gas prices.
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We have been twice and still feel like we didn't see it all. We feel it is beneficial to see the museum first then visit the site. It helps when you can visualize the ruins as they were in ancient times.
The first room is mainly about the Siphians. It has the battle of the gods against the giants: These remarkable carvings/freizes are from the Treasury of the Siphians. They have remarkable details... the room also contains the Caryatide of the Siphians and the Sphinx of Naxians.
One room is dominated by the carvings of the two kouri who may be the sons of Hera, Kleobis and Biton. They are over 7 feet tall. From that room is a smaller area. It contains the black cult figures called Chryselephantine. It is an ancient technique that placed thin carved ivory over wood for face and gold over the wood for garments. Only the delphi items have been discovered in this technique so far. The room also has the gold and silver bull reconstruted.
One room has the treasures from the Treasury of the Athenians. Another has some famous bronze shields... One room is devoted to the Temple of Apollo...
And finally: At the far end is the wonderful Charioteer. He has a room entirely to himself. When you enter the room he is displayed on a pedestal in the middle... When there are a lot of people in the room it is unusually loud ... The last time we were there we stood to the side until the crowds moved on. It is a very popular display and to take pictures with no one in the room you must photograph really fast....
One thing I really liked were the temple pediments that were partially filled in. (The lines indicated the outline and statues stood on the platform in the correct places:) It gave you an idea of the size and grandier of the temples. These were in the Temple of Apollo rooms...
The museum is laid out well and the displays are not crowded feeling. It does get very loud when a lot of people are in the rooms. The guards continually tell people to speak quietly. Flash pictures are not allowed although you can take pictures .. It is not allowed to pose by the displays... This is consistant in all of the Greek museums we visited.. The Delphi displays are close and many are not behind barriers... that is wonderful.
We really love this museum. The items displayed come from all over Greece as it was an important religious site and many offerings and gifts were given to it. It is only about three hours out of Athens... if you can come ... do it! You will thank us!
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