archaeological Site of Delphi
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How it came to be
Delphi lies in Phocis in central Greece, between the cliffs of Mount Parnassus called the Phaedriades, the Shining Rocks. People lived here in the 2nd millennium BC, as Mycenaean remains of 1500 to 1100 BC show. In myth, Zeus released two eagles, one from the east and one from the west, and where they met at Delphi was the centre of the world.
The sanctuary and oracle of Apollo began to grow in the 8th century BC, and by the 6th century BC Delphi was the religious centre of the Greek world. Pilgrims came from everywhere to hear the prophecies of the Pythia, Apollo's priestess, and four sacred wars were fought over the oracle. The Pythian Games were held every four years in the theatre and stadium. Later Nero and Constantine the Great looted the sanctuary and carried its offerings to Rome and Constantinople.
The village of Kastri later grew over the ruins, and its people reused the ancient stone in their houses. After an earthquake badly damaged the village it was moved, and from 1893 the French School at Athens carried out the Great Excavation, clearing landslide debris to uncover the sanctuaries of Apollo and Athena Pronaia and thousands of objects, inscriptions and sculptures. The site was inscribed in 1987.
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