Ancient Delphi

The oracle of Delphi, along with the rest of oracles in the Roman Empire, was shut down with an edict issued by the emperor Theodosius I in 394 A.D. However, the site was not abandoned but, rather, transformed into a prosperous city, which continued its activity until the beginning of the 7th century.

Historical evolution

The sanctuaries of Delphi were gradually degraded, as Roman emperors and officers took away several of its precious ex-votos. In the course of the 3rd century mystery cults became more popular than the traditional Greek pantheon. Christianity, which started as yet one more mystery cult, soon gained ground. The anti-pagan legislation of the Flavian dynasty deprived ancient sanctuaries of their assets. The emperor Julian attempted to reverse this religious climate, yet his "pagan revival" was particularly short-lived. When the doctor Oreibasius visited the oracle of Delphi, in order to question the fate of paganism,he received a pessimistic answer:

Εἴπατε τῷ βασιλεῖ, χαμαὶ πέσε δαίδαλος αὐλά,

οὐκέτι Φοῖβος ἔχει καλύβην, οὐ μάντιδα δάφνην,

οὐ παγὰν λαλέουσαν, ἀπέσβετο καὶ λάλον ὕδωρ.

[Tell the king that the flute has fallen to the ground. Phoebus does not have a home any more, neither an oracular laurel, nor a speaking fountain, because the talking water has dried out.]

In 394 Theodosius I issued an edict forbidding the function of the oracles and sanctuaries all over the Roman empire.

Archaeological data

However, excavations proved that life in Delphi continued to thrive even after the closing of the oracle. On the contrary, it seems that the city continued to prosper for three more centuries. During the Great Excavation were discovered architectural members from a 5th-century Christian basilica, when Delphi were a bishopric. Other important Late Roman buildings are the Eastern Baths, the house with the peristyle, the Roman Agora, the large cistern usw. At the outskirts of the city there were located late Roman cemeteries. To the Southeast of the precinct of Apollo lay the so-called Southeastern Mansion, a very large building with a 65 meters-long façade, spread over four levels, with four triclinia and private baths. Large storage jars kept the provisions, whereas other pottery vessels and luxury items were discovered in the rooms. Among the finds stands out a tiny leopard made of mother of pearl, possibly of Sassanian origin, on display in the ground floor gallery of the Delphi Archaeological Museum. The mansion dates to the beginning of the 5th century and functioned as a private house until 580, later however it was transformed into a potters' workshop.^[1] It is only then, in the beginning of the 6th century, that the city seems to decline: its size is reduced and its trade contacts seem to be drastically diminished. Local pottery production is produced in large quantities:^[2] it is coarser and made of reddish clay, aiming at satisfying the needs of the inhabitants.

Town planning

The Sacred Way remained the main street of the settlement, transformed, however, into a street with commercial and industrial use. Around the agora were built workshops as well as the only intra muros early Christian basilica. The domestic area spread mainly in the western part of the settlement. The houses were rather spacious and two large cisterns provided running water to them.^[3]

Bibliography

• Petrides, P., 2010, La céramique protobyzantine de Delphes. Une production et son contexte, École française d’Athènes, Fouilles de Delphes V, Monuments figurés 4, Paris – Athènes
• Petrides, P., Déroche, V., Badie, A., 2014,Delphes de l’Antiquité tardive. Secteur au Sud-est du Péribole, École française d’Athènes, Fouilles de Delphes II, Topographie et Architecture 15, Paris-Athènes
• Petrides, P., 1997, «Delphes dans l’Antiquité tardive : première approche topographique et céramologique», BCH 121, 681-695.
• Petrides, P., 2003, «Αteliers de potiers protobyzantins à Delphes », in Χ. ΜΠΑΚΙΡΤΖΗΣ (ed.), 7ο Διεθνές Συνέδριο Μεσαιωνικής Κεραμικής της Μεσογείου, Θεσσαλονίκη 11-16 Οκτωβρίου 1999, Πρακτικά, Αθήνα, 443-446.
• Petrides, P., 2005, «Un exemple d’architecture civile en Grèce : les maisons protobyzantines de Delphes (IVe–VIIe s.)», Mélanges Jean-Pierre Sodini, Travaux et Mémoires 15, Paris, pp. 193–204.
• Petrides, P., Demou, J., 2011, « La redécouverte de Delphes protobyzantine », Pallas 87, 267-281.

References