Delphi – The navel of the Earth

Delphi is considered the most spiritual and mystical location of Greece, and perhaps of the entire world. It is a destination of global cultural heritage, recognised by UNESCO and regarded as one of the ‘holy places’.

Delphi was an ancient Greek city, home to one of the most important oracles of the ancient world. The city during the Homeric age is also well known as ‘Pytho’. At the beginning of historical times, Delphi was one of the cities of ancient Phocis, but gradually, as the role of the city strengthened, it developed as a national center of spiritualism and ‘the’ holy city of the ancient Greeks.

It was considered the navel of Earth in ancient times, as, according to ancient legend, when Zeus released two eagles simultaneously, one to the east and one to the West, they both met at Delphi. The oracle temple was dedicated to the God Apollo; the medium or priestess was called ‘Pythia’, a virgin maid, blessed with being able to communicate with the Gods via oracles and prophecies, which were then recorded and interpreted by the priests of Delphi.

In 1892, the first major excavations of the French Archaeological School began in the area, bringing some impressive findings to light, among which are 3000 inscriptions that reveal various aspects of ancient public life. The Delphi Archaeological Museum is one of the most important museums in Greece. Their collections include ancient artifacts discovered at the archaeological site of Delphi and special offerings dedicated to the sanctuary. It hosts some of the most important archaeological collections in the country such as the Treasury of the Athenians, the Hellenistic Art Sculptures and the Pediments of the Temple of Apollo. The most important exhibits in its halls are the Charioteer, the Silver Bull and Sphinx of Naxos.

Today It belongs to the prefecture of Fokida and has a population of approximately 2500 residents.

 

Arachova – Agoriani

Arachova is one of the most popular winter destinations of our country and is located just 10 km away from Delphi. It is built on a slope of Mount Parnassus which ends in a ravine, through which the river Pleistos flows. The average altitude of the village is 960 meters.

Arachova town perfectly combines traditional feel with contemporary style. It offers countless activity and entertainment options, while also constituting one of the largest and most modern ski resorts of Greece. This factor helped Arachova to grow at a greater extent than its neighboring areas.

Exploration lovers will discover a magical place of seven hills on the lap of Parnassus, at an altitude of 940 meters: the village of Ano Agoriani (or Eptalofos). The area belongs to the Municipality of Delphi and has been described as the jewel of the mountain of Apollo. Mount Parnassus is also known as mountain of Apollo due to the Oracle being dedicated to him, so the mountain is also known by his name. This village of Eptalofos is also the birthplace of some of the most renowned fighters of the 1821 Independence Revolt and the National Resistance.

The village is literally built into the green and incomparable beauty of Parnassus’ landscape that fully consists of fir and plane trees. It’s beautiful, paved square with the taverns and tall plane trees from which natural water gushes out, is the starting point for discovering it all. At the village, you can admire old but renovated chapels from the 19th century, such as Saint Anargyroi and Aghia Paraskevi with its huge oak Sikelianos.

 

Galaxidi

Just 30 minutes away from Arachova, Galaxidi is located, famous for its blue and crystal clear water beaches. Characterized as being a traditional settlement since 1978, Galaxidi is an alluring place that takes visitors back in time especially when the quaint port is full of bratseres and schooners (boat types). The atmosphere of the past has remained intact thanks to the locals’ love for tradition. The mild tourism development of the area, with its small guesthouses and elegantly restored mansions offers the perfect promenade for a lovely walk by the sea and can be reached by a short trip from Delphi or Athens.

 

Osios Loukas

Osios Loukas Monastery is situated at an altitude of 430 m. in the western foothills of Mount Helicon, below the citadel of the ancient town of Steiri, near the village of Stiri in Viotia. It is one of the most important monuments of Middle Byzantine art and architecture, and is included in the list of UNESCO world heritage monuments.

Osios Loukas Monastery enjoys a scenic hillside spot of Helicon, at the location where the temple of Demeter Steiritidas was once was located and is surrounded by an olive grove plateau. The landscape has not been altered by any residential or other type of activity, and so still retains its authenticity.

Osios Loukas was one of the most beloved figures to the local populace. Known to offer charity and therapeutic work, it is said that he had the gift of prophesying the future. He even predicted the recapture of Crete by Nikiforos Fokas during the age of Romanos II in 941 A.D.

Have you always been dreaming of flying? Are you ready to explore new, mystical places from high above? Then this is the right activity for you! Join Giannis on a tandem paragliding activity and fly over the Oracle of Delphi. The high cliffs in the area are ideal for a paragliding flight. The views … simply magical!

Giannis is an experienced instructor, having performed more time flying in his life than walking. You will be flying with him from a take off point on the cliffs. You will land on the valley, smoothly after a 20-30 minutes flight. You do not need to do anything at all! Just sit back, relax and enjoy the magnificent views!

What will you be seeing?
Flying over Delphi is pure magic! It’s class, it’s everything! You will see the temple of Apollo, the archaeological sites, and the valley. The view will leave you breathless. Green mountains, silver coloured gloves and the weather always sunny and beautiful.

What should you have with you?
The only thing you need to bring with you is a pair of boots, a warm jacket for winter, and to be at the predefined point on time. Your pilot will let you know before the flight from which point you will be flying depending on the wind conditions.

Nature activities in Delphi 

1. Ancient Footpath Delphi Hiking – Trekking Hellas. 

A historic and inspiring hike that combines the magic of nature with the mystery of ancient temples!  

We follow the ancient footpath, from the slopes of Mt Parnassos in a forested route to the village of Delphi. The same footpath that took Pan’s worshippers up from the ancient temples of Delphi to the Corycean Grotto to celebrate rites, which is now a part of the E4 european trail. We start at Livadi plateau at an altitude of 1200m. En route, we will stop for a picnic in a traditional sheep barn, near the cave of Pan. We continue our descend to Delphi sanctuary overlooking the olive trees valley and the Corinthian Gulf, whilst the mountains of the Peloponnese complete our picturesque scenery.

2. Ancient Port of Kirra Delphi Hiking – Trekking Hellas

A historic hike in the ancient trail that connected the port of ancient Kirra with the Oracle of Delphi.

We follow a downhill path and a rural road from Delphi to the edge of  Chrisso village, the ancient city of Crissa that hosted the visitors of the oracle.
Following the footsteps of ancient pilgrims, we continue our tour in the heart of the famous Crisaean field olive grove, today mentioned by UNESCO as a unique landscape that is composed of more than 1,5 million olive trees. We will enjoy the unique scenery noticing the silver-green foliage of the olive trees changing colors depending on the time of the day , and admire the naturally carved trunks of hundred-year-old trees. We savor a traditional picnic stop in the shade of an old chapel and discover together the taste of different sorts of olives. We will explain how olives are cultivated and why the olive tree is a word wide symbol of immortality, wisdom and abundance.

3. Biking Delphi to Kirra – Trekking Hellas

Bike and discover the beauty of a famous ancient olive grove. Our ride starts in the archaeological site of Delphi at the temple of Athena Pronaia. We enter in the heart of the Crisaean field olive grove with naturally carved trunks of hundred-year-old trees, noticing the silver-green foliage of the olive trees changing colors depending on the time of the day.

We encounter the little chapel of St George with the typically Greek high cypresses, enjoying the unique scenery, arriving at Plistos riverbed,  we stop near a traditional stone fountain in the refreshing shade of a large plane tree. There we can savour a traditional picnic. If we feel tired we stop there otherwise we continue our ride to seaside Itea for 5 more kilometres.

For more information and reservations click here.

Ancient Footpath Delphi Hiking 
https://trekking.gr/en/product_en/hiking-delphi/

Ancient Port of Kirra Delphi Hiking
https://trekking.gr/en/product_en/hike-delphi-to-kirra/

Biking Delphi to Kirra
https://trekking.gr/en/product_en/mountain-bike/

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During this period the Delphic Oracle was the most prestigious and authoritative oracle among the Greeks. Everyone, from rich warlords to common people, would pay enough to get themselves a prophecy revealing the future and shaping their decisions and way of life based on the visions of the Pythia, which were delivered in a trance that most probably resulted from the inhaling of vapors rising from a chasm in the rock of the adyton (Greek for “inaccessible”).

Ancient Greek historian Plutarch (46-120 A.D.), who presided as high priest at Delphi for several years, observed in his documents that the Pythia’s oracular powers appeared to be associated with vapors from the Kerna spring waters that flowed under the temple. These observations of Plutarch have triggered the interest of scientists who conducted research over the years to determine the true origins of the Oracle’s inspiration that brought delirium to the local priestesses and made them talk in cryptic and rhymed language that were open to various interpretations.

According to the ancient legend, the hallucinative vapors were the breath of Python, the enemy of the Olympian deity Apollo, who slew her and remade her former home and the oracle his own. The body of the monster was buried deep under the Delphi Oracle, also considered the Center of the Earth, and with each of the breaths the Pythia would come one step closer to Apollo’s charisma of telling the future.

Excavations based on Plutarch’s remarks brought a team of French archaeologists directed by Théophile Homolle of the Collège de France to the site of Delphi in 1892. The French team focused their research on locating a hole in the ground, interpreting Plutarch’s observations to the letter, and so they found no fissure and no possible means for the production of fumes. In 1904, Adolphe Paul Oppé published an influential article, which made three crucial clai

ms: no chasm or vapor ever existed; no natural gas could create prophetic visions; and the recorded incidents of a priestess undergoing violent and often deadly reactions was inconsistent with the more customary reports. Oppé explained away all the ancient testimony as being reports of gullible travelers fooled by wily local guides who, Oppé believed, invented the details of a chasm and a vapor in the first place. In accordance with this definitive statement, scholars Frederick Poulson, E.R. Dodds, Joseph Fontenrose and Saul Levin all stated that there were no vapors and no chasm.

For the decades to follow, scientists and scholars believed the ancient descriptions of a sacred, inspiring soul to be fallacious. During 1950, French philhellene Pierre Amandry, who had worked at Delphi and later directed the French excavations there, concurred with Oppé’s pronouncements, claiming that gaseous emissions were not even possible in a volcanic zone such as Delphi. Neither Oppé nor Amandry were geologists, though, and no geologists had been involved in the debate until then.

GAS FROM THE PAST

Subsequent re-examination of the French excavations, however, has shown that this consensus may have been mistaken. Broad (2007) demonstrates that a French photograph of the excavated interior of the temple clearly depicts a springlike pool as well as a number of small vertical fissures, indicating numerous pathways by which vapors could enter the base of the temple.

During the 1980’s, the interdisciplinary team of geologist Jelle Zeilinga de Boer, archaeologist John R. Hale, forensic chemist Jeffrey P. Chanton and toxicologist Henry R. Spiller investigated the site at Delphi using this photograph and other sources as evidence, as part of a United Nations survey of all active faults in Greece.

De Boer saw evidence of a fault line in Delphi that lay under the ruined temple. During several expeditions, they discovered two major fault lines, one lying north-south, the Kerna fault, and the other lying east-west, the Delphic fault, which parallels the shore of the Corinthian Gulf. The rift of the Gulf of Corinth is one of the most geologically active sites on Earth; shifts there impose immense strains on nearby fault lines, such as those below Delphi.

The two faults cross one another, and they intersect right below where the adyton was probably located. (The actual, original oracle chamber had been destroyed by the moving faults, but there is strong structural evidence that indicates where it was most likely located.)

They scientists also found evidence for underground passages and chambers, and drains for spring water. Additionally, they discovered at the site formations of travertine, a form of calcite created when water flows through limestone and dissolves calcium carbonate, which is later redeposited. Further investigation revealed that deep beneath the Delphi region lies bituminous deposit, rich in hydrocarbons and full of pitch, that has a petrochemical content as high as 20%. Friction created by earthquakes heat the bituminous layers resulting in vaporization of the hydrocarbons which rise to the surface through small fissures in the rock.

De Boer’s research caused him to speculate ethylene as a gas known to possess this sweet odor. Spiller specified that inhalation of even a small amount of ethylene can cause both benign trances and euphoric frenzied states. Other effects include physical detachment, loss of inhibitions, the relieving of pain, and rapidly changing moods without dulling consciousness. He also noted that uncontrolled doses can cause confusion, agitation, delirium, and loss of muscle coordination. Anesthesiologist Isabella Herb found that a dose of 20% ethylene gas administered to a subject was a threshold. A dosage higher than 20% caused unconsciousness. With less than 20% a trance was induced where the subject could sit up, hear questions and answer them logically, although the tone of their voice might be altered, their speech pattern could be changed, and they may have lost some awareness of their hands and feet, (with some it was possible to have poked a pin or pricked them with a knife and they would not feel it).

When patients were removed from the area where the gas accumulated they had no recollection of what had happened, or what they had said. With a dosage of more than 20% the patient lost control over the movement of their limbs and may thrash wildly, groaning in strange voices, losing balance and frequently repeatedly falling.

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