Like Olympia, Delphi is also a PanHellenic sanctuary. There was no propylaea here. It no longer remains, but the Sanctuary of Athena Pronaia used to be here, and was a hexastyle Doric temple with a 2-step crepis. Apollo chose to make this his dwelling because there was already a culture here, which had emerged in the 9th/8th century BC.
But what Delphi is most famous for is being home to the oracle. It was the place where past, present, and future collided, and the center for advice for all of civilization. Despite the fact that the people who gave advice couldn’t actually see the future, they did give good advice, because they were well aware of what was going on in the world.
Delphi also contained several buildings, one of which is a circular building that is theoretically a heron. Supposedly Philaktos saved this building from the Persians, but more likely they were allies and so chose not to burn it. Theodorus was the architect in 330 BC. The building is interesting because it is Greek in style, but it is also curved. It combined Doric and Corinthian styles with 20 Doric columns on outside and 16 Corinthian ones on inside. It is built from white marble for the columns and a black stone for the crepis.
Since there is no propylaea, the entry and sanctuary are defined by a series of terraced spaces that you walk up, and through, on the Hiera Odos or “sacred road.” On this road there were treasuries from each city, and they all competed for the best location (closest to the top). Each treasury held offerings to Apollo. Two of these were the Treasury of Syphnians (529 BC) and the Treasury of Athenians (490 BCE). At the top of the hill, the Lesbian Wall (called this because every stone had different shape so it can withstand seismic activities) provided a foundation for the temple and it has writings all over it that tell the history of Greece.
But what Delphi is most famous for is being home to the oracle. It was the place where past, present, and future collided, and the center for advice for all of civilization. Despite the fact that the people who gave advice couldn’t actually see the future, they did give good advice, because they were well aware of what was going on in the world.
Delphi also contained several buildings, one of which is a circular building that is theoretically a heron. Supposedly Philaktos saved this building from the Persians, but more likely they were allies and so chose not to burn it. Theodorus was the architect in 330 BC. The building is interesting because it is Greek in style, but it is also curved. It combined Doric and Corinthian styles with 20 Doric columns on outside and 16 Corinthian ones on inside. It is built from white marble for the columns and a black stone for the crepis.
Since there is no propylaea, the entry and sanctuary are defined by a series of terraced spaces that you walk up, and through, on the Hiera Odos or “sacred road.” On this road there were treasuries from each city, and they all competed for the best location (closest to the top). Each treasury held offerings to Apollo. Two of these were the Treasury of Syphnians (529 BC) and the Treasury of Athenians (490 BCE). At the top of the hill, the Lesbian Wall (called this because every stone had different shape so it can withstand seismic activities) provided a foundation for the temple and it has writings all over it that tell the history of Greece.