The story of Delos goes that Zeus had a mistress named Leto, who became pregnant. This angered Hera, so to keep Leto safe, Zeus took a hidden island, called Adelos (which means hidden), and made it unhidden for Leto. The island was then called Delos (which means unhidden). Leto then gave birth here to Apollo and Artemis. Delos later became another PanHellenic sanctuary.
Delos is in the center of all of the islands of Greece, which made it an important stop when traversing from Asia Minor to Greece. The fact that it was in a strategic location that also had access to water made it a good place to start a settlement, which eventually reached an impressive size of about one hundred thousand people. However, the city was never properly organized. It expanded over time with only some sections that were carefully planned while others were not.
The road to the sanctuary of Apollo was lined by 2 stoas, one of which was the stoa of the Romans, the largest slave market in antiquity where as many as ten thousand people were sold every day. At the end of the road there is a wall that defined the sacred area.
The sanctuary of Apollo had a formal propylaea at the entry. Once inside, the Oikos of the Naxians was next to you, with a statue of Apollo at its side. The sanctuary had an east to west orientation with three temples inside: the Poros, which built in the 6th century BC, was the simplest and smallest; the Temple of the Delians, which was started but not finished, was the largest, and stored the treasury until Pericles moved it back to Athens in 454 BC; and the Temple of the Athenians, which was built in 424 BCE with Kallikrates as the architect and was baroque, with less light. The sanctuary terminated on the northern edge.
The rest of the city extended to the north of the sanctuary. The road next to the lake, where Apollo and Artemis were born, is lined by lions, that are from the 7th century BC. They were built to show the power and authority from the Mycenaean past, and the growing strength of the Greeks.
Just like any other city, Delos had a stadium. The Delian Stadium, built in 426 BC, was home to the Delian Games, which included chariot races, horse races, and musical contests. Next the stadium was the gymnasium, which was built in 200 BC. This was where athletes trained. It was similar to the palaestra in that it had a colonnade with rooms all the way around an open courtyard. The athletes exercised in the courtyard in good weather, and in the xystos stoa in bad weather.
Delos is also a home to domestic architecture. Houses had walls made of stone (lower part) and brick (upper part) that were covered with stucco. The design was an inner courtyard with everything else built around it. The windows faced into the courtyard, dividing the public and private spaces. During the first and second centuries BC, residents used Rhodeon peristyle, which meant there were awnings which were tall and closer to the house, allowing more light into the house.
While sitting in the shade from the peristyle, we learned about commerce in ancient Greece. This included the currency, Greece's sphere of influence, the market, and the food.
When we stepped onto the island of Delos, it was kind of like walking into a creepy ghost town. That feeling quickly dispersed when we started walking through the ruins; the city came back to life. It was very interesting to be able to see an entire city layout on an island that is easily traversable on foot. Delos was like a compressed Athens, with all of the same ancient buildings, just in a smaller place.
Delos is in the center of all of the islands of Greece, which made it an important stop when traversing from Asia Minor to Greece. The fact that it was in a strategic location that also had access to water made it a good place to start a settlement, which eventually reached an impressive size of about one hundred thousand people. However, the city was never properly organized. It expanded over time with only some sections that were carefully planned while others were not.
The road to the sanctuary of Apollo was lined by 2 stoas, one of which was the stoa of the Romans, the largest slave market in antiquity where as many as ten thousand people were sold every day. At the end of the road there is a wall that defined the sacred area.
The sanctuary of Apollo had a formal propylaea at the entry. Once inside, the Oikos of the Naxians was next to you, with a statue of Apollo at its side. The sanctuary had an east to west orientation with three temples inside: the Poros, which built in the 6th century BC, was the simplest and smallest; the Temple of the Delians, which was started but not finished, was the largest, and stored the treasury until Pericles moved it back to Athens in 454 BC; and the Temple of the Athenians, which was built in 424 BCE with Kallikrates as the architect and was baroque, with less light. The sanctuary terminated on the northern edge.
The rest of the city extended to the north of the sanctuary. The road next to the lake, where Apollo and Artemis were born, is lined by lions, that are from the 7th century BC. They were built to show the power and authority from the Mycenaean past, and the growing strength of the Greeks.
Just like any other city, Delos had a stadium. The Delian Stadium, built in 426 BC, was home to the Delian Games, which included chariot races, horse races, and musical contests. Next the stadium was the gymnasium, which was built in 200 BC. This was where athletes trained. It was similar to the palaestra in that it had a colonnade with rooms all the way around an open courtyard. The athletes exercised in the courtyard in good weather, and in the xystos stoa in bad weather.
Delos is also a home to domestic architecture. Houses had walls made of stone (lower part) and brick (upper part) that were covered with stucco. The design was an inner courtyard with everything else built around it. The windows faced into the courtyard, dividing the public and private spaces. During the first and second centuries BC, residents used Rhodeon peristyle, which meant there were awnings which were tall and closer to the house, allowing more light into the house.
While sitting in the shade from the peristyle, we learned about commerce in ancient Greece. This included the currency, Greece's sphere of influence, the market, and the food.
When we stepped onto the island of Delos, it was kind of like walking into a creepy ghost town. That feeling quickly dispersed when we started walking through the ruins; the city came back to life. It was very interesting to be able to see an entire city layout on an island that is easily traversable on foot. Delos was like a compressed Athens, with all of the same ancient buildings, just in a smaller place.
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