Delphi

The “navel” of the world, Delphi, is situated below the slopes of mount Parnassus to the south of mainland Greece. Delphi was a place with springs, exhalations and crevices which gave it a sacred character. Very early it became the seat of a prehistoric oracle and then it gave place to the sanctuary and oracle of Apollo, god of music, light and divination.

The “navel” of the world, Delphi, is situated below the slopes of mount Parnassus to the south of mainland Greece. Delphi was a place with springs, exhalations and crevices which gave it a sacred character. Very early it became the seat of a prehistoric oracle and then it gave place to the sanctuary and oracle of Apollo, god of music, light and divination. Those who wanted to consult the oracle asked the Pythia, priestess of Apollo, who intoxicated by the exhalations gave a quite often equivocal answer. Soon the oracle acquired worldwide fame and governors from all the known world consulted the Pythia and so Delphi turned into a famous oracle adorned by the splendid offerings of the worshipers and at the same time a centre of political decision. At Delphi there is an archaeological site with ruins of treasuries, porticoes, and the temple of Apollo, all scattered over the uneven mountain slope. Nearby there is an archaeological museum with the movable findings of the excavations, with the “Charioteer” counting the most famous ones.