ANCIENT GREEK CULTURETHE ORACLE OF DELPHIof state: be it whether to go to war, whether to colonise a new country or
subjects more prosaic. City-states like Sparta and Athens made generous
contributions to the oracle, as did nations like Persia, with some even
establishing treasuries on the site. For more than six centuries, until it
was destroyed by a Christian emperor, Delphi shaped the history of the
world with its often eerily prescient prophecies.
Visiting today is a magical experience, not least because the accompa-
nying modern village high up in the mountains is so pretty (see p 205 ).
Best seen early morning before the day-trippers arrive, or late afternoon,
climb up past the temple of Apollo, and on past the place the Pythia
used to receive her Apollonian messages; weaving your way through the
still-standing treasuries to the site of the Pythian games higher up the
mountain. Strangely preserved, there’s still something enigmatic and
otherworldly about Delphi.
MUST-SEE THEATRES» (^) Argos (p 145 ) Dating from Classical times; could seat up to 20,000 people.
» Ancient Delphi (p 207 ) A well-preserved 4th-century-BC theatre,
» (^) Odeon of Herodes Atticus (p 77 ) Built in AD 161 by Roman Herodes Atticus.
» (^) Theatre of Dionysos (p 76 ) Once held seating for 17,000 spread over 64 tiers,
» (^) Theatre of Dodoni (p 307 ) A colossal, 3rd-century-BC ancient site.
» (^) Theatre of Epidavros (p 155 ) One of the best-preserved Classical Greek structures.