The Treasury of the Thebans at Delphi was built in the Doric order and made entirely out of local limestone from the quarries of St. Elias close to the town of Chrisso. It was situated a few meters below the first turn of the Sacred Way, the processional route in the sanctuary of Apollo. It had been dedicated by the Thebans for their victory against the Lacedaemonians at Leuctra (371 B.C.). [1]
Shortly after their victory against the Lacaedemonians at Leuctra in 371 B.C., a landmark of the brief Theban supremacy in the political life of Greece, the Thebans dedicated at the sanctuary of Apollo a treasury built in the Doric order. [2] It was the largest treasury in dimensions of Delphi, situated close to the SW corner of the sanctuary. Rectangular in plan, measuring 12.29 by 7.21 meters, it stood on a crepis with two steps. It was constructed entirely out of local limestone from the quarries at St. Elias, a particularly hard stone with bluish-grey shades, which accentuates the austere style of the Doric building. Thus, the Treasury of the Thebans made a visual contrast to the nearby Siphnian Treasury, with its colourful and decorative Ionian style. A frieze with metopes and triglyphs ran all around the building.
Several opinions have been expressed regarding its actual architectural form. [3] The current views, however, suggest that it was a uniform building, without columns, possibly with two entrances on the narrow sides and with a vertical wall functioning as boulder. An opening along the western wall provided natural lighting in the building. [4]
Delphi, in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), in ancient times was a sacred precinct that served as the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world. The oracle was international in character and also fostered sentiments of Greek nationality, even though the nation of Greece was centuries away from realization. The ancient Greeks considered the centre of the world to be in Delphi, marked by the stone monument known as the omphalos (navel). The sacred precinct was in the region of Phocis, but its management had been taken away from the Phocians, who were trying to extort money from its visitors, and had been placed in the hands of an amphictyony, or committee of persons chosen mainly from Central Greece. According to the Suda, Delphi took its name from the Delphyne, the she-serpent (drakaina) who lived there and was killed by the god Apollo.
The Stoa of the Athenians is an ancient portico in the Delphic Sanctuary, Greece, located south of the Temple of Apollo. The southern side of the polygonal wall of the platform forms the north wall of the stoa. It was constructed c. 478 BC-470 BC during the early Classical period. The one-aisled stoa with Ionic colonnade opens toward the southeast. It was dedicated by the Athenians after the Persian Wars.
The Athenian Treasury at Delphi was constructed by the Athenians to house dedications and votive offerings made by their city and citizens to the sanctuary of Apollo. The entire treasury including its sculptural decoration is built of Parian marble. The date of construction is disputed, and scholarly opinions range from 510 to 480 BCE. It is located directly below the Temple of Apollo along the Sacred Way for all visitors to view the Athenian treasury on the way up to the sanctuary.
The Lesche of the Knidians was a Lesche, i.e. a club or meeting place, at the sanctuary of Apollo in Delphi, it is one of those structures there that was destroyed in their most part. Today, the only surviving parts are some architectural relics. It hosted two famous paintings by the famous painter Polygnotus the Thasian, namely the Capture of Troy and the Nekyia. It was built in the second quarter of the 5th century B.C. Apparently a rectangular building bearing a clerestory along its western side and possibly had a tripartite interior arrangement. In the 4th century along its southern side was added a wall for placing ex votos.
The Gymnasium at Delphi is a building complex of the 4th century B.C. at Delphi, Greece which comprised the xystus and the palaestra, along with its auxiliary buildings such as the changing rooms and baths. It was situated between the Sanctuary of Athena Pronaia and the fountain Castalia. Some remains of archaic buildings, discovered under the xystus, were possibly related to a sanctuary dedicated to Demeter and indicate the sanctity of the area from earlier times.
The Altar of the Chians was the altar of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi, dedicated by the people of Chios.
The Temple of Athena Pronaia was a temple at the ancient site of Delphi, in the Sanctuary of Athena Pronaia, a group of buildings comprising temples and treasuries as well as the famous Tholos of Delphi. There were in fact three successive temples built at the site. The earlier temples (38°28′49″N22°30′30″E), referred to as A and B, were built in the 7th and 6th centuries BC respectively and were made of porous stone; a third temple (38°28′49″N22°30′28″E) was built of limestone in the 4th century BC, although it is not certain that it actually was dedicated to Athena this time.
The tenth book of the work Description of Greece by the traveler Pausanias is dedicated to Phocis; its larger part constitutes a description of the sanctuaries and buildings of Delphi. His work constituted a precious aid to travelers and archaeologists who attempted to identify the monuments revealed by the excavations, although in some cases their identifications were not enough.
The Stadium of Delphi lies on the highest spot of the Archaeological Site of Delphi. It overlooks the sanctuary of Apollo and has a view to the Delphic Landscape. It was built either within the second half of the 4th century B.C. or even after the Galatian attacks. Its measured 178 meters in length and knew several refurbishment phases. The Stadium of Delphi is the best preserved ancient stadium in Greece.
The Portico of the Aetolians, known also as the Western Portico, is one of the largest buildings of Delphi, situated outside of the sacred precinct of the sanctuary of Apollo.
The Treasury of Cyrene was a building in the sanctuary of Apollo in Delphi. The treasury was possibly built as a token of gratitude for a large endowment of wheat offered to Delphi's inhabitants during a lean period.
The Megarian Treasury was a building situated within the sanctuary of Apollo in Delphi, to the north of the Siphnian Treasury along the Sacred Way. On its façade have been inscribed 26 inscriptions referring to the citizens of Megara, a fact which led to the secure identification of the monument.
The Treasury of the Sicyonians is one of the buildings within the sanctuary of Apollo in Delphi. It has a long and complicated history. The treasury itself replaced two former buildings, namely the tholos and the monopteros, built by the same city at an earlier stage within the 6th century. The earlier buildings were related to the Orthagorids of Sicyon and particularly to the victories of the tyrant Cleisthenes of Sicyon in the course of the First Sacred War and their replacement probably marks the change in tide in Sicyonian politics.
The Treasury of the Boeotians was dedicated in the late Archaic period within the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi. It is identified due to some epigraphic material.
After the naval Battle of Aegospotami, the Lacedaemonians dedicated a majestic ex voto in Delphi.
Next to the Bull of the Corcyreans close to the entrance to the sanctuary of Apollo in Delphi lay a grandiose monument dedicated by the Arcadians, particularly the Tegeates.
The city of Argos dedicated several ex votos within the sanctuary of Apollo in Delphi. It was, after all, one of the most powerful cities of the archaic and classical period.
Several Hellenistic kings dedicated monuments in the sanctuary of Apollo in Delphi, in an effort to emphasize their prestige. Among those kings were the Attalids of Pergamon, who occupied a prominent position at the highest point of the Sacred Way, close to the temple of Apollo where they erected their ex votos.
Behind the column with the Dancers of Delphi was situated the Athenian Treasury, where was located the famous ex voto of Daochos, a long marble base where stood nine statues, eight of which represented members of Daochos' family and one a god, probably Apollo. Daochos II, son of Agias, a politician from Pharsalus and supporter of Macedonia, was a hieromnemon at the delphic sanctuary from 336 to 332 B.C. He dedicated the ex voto as a sign of honour to his prominent family.
The treasury of the Massaliots was situated in the Sanctuary of Athena Pronaea. It looked like a small temple in antis with two columns on the façade; it was constructed of Paros marble and among its remarkable features were its "Aeolian" capitals.