Greece

Augustus' Victory

Augustus Caesar built Nicopolis (“city of victory”) as the capital of Epirus in northwestern Greece. It commemorated his victory over Mark Antony at the battle of Actium on September 2, 31 B.C. Nicopolis rested on a peninsula leading into the Ambrakian Gulf into the Adriatic Sea, while Actium sat on another peninsula to the south. Nicopolis became an important city and trade center; Augustus resettled citizens of nearby cities to this site and then transferred his quadrennial Actian games here.

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Banqueting Hall

Epidaurus sits a few miles off the Saronic coast. Apollo was worshiped on the site in Geometric times, but with the rise of his son Aesclepius (god of healing and medicine) in the Archaic period, Epidaurus came to be known as the “birthplace” of Aesclepius (ca. 500-475 B.C.). First thought to be a gymnasium, this banqueting hall had a ramp leading up north to a Doric gateway. It was probably built around 300 B.C. and was used for ritual meals called thusia. After animals were sacrificed on altars, they would be consumed here.

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Foot of Mt. Olympus

Dion was an agricultural and port city in Pieria, linked to the sea by the Baphyras River. The city was named for the god Zeus (Zeus’ Greek name was Dias), for it sat in the foothills of Mt. Olympus, thought to be the throne of Zeus. Archelaus built a temple to Zeus at the site ca. 400 B.C., making it the center of Zeus worship in Macedonian times. He also constructed a theater, stadium, and wall (413-399 B.C.) and instituted Macedonian games similar to the Olympic games at Dion.

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History

The site of Delphi served as a cultic center beginning some time before the 10th century B.C. Votives were used ca. 800 B.C. and within a century the oracle of the priestess Pythia came here. When the cult of Apollo Delphinios (worship of an island deity in dolphin form) was brought to the region from Crete, the city acquired its name “Delphi.” After the Dorian Invasion in 1100 B.C., the sanctuary at Delphi became the center for the Amphictyonic League, a group of 12 tribes representing city-states throughout the surrounding regions. It included Thessalians, Achaeans, Ionians, Dorians, and cities such as Athens and Sparta.

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Corinth Plain

The Corinth area here is visible from the Acrocorinth above. The remains of the ancient city are located in the center of the photo (in the midst of a modern village), the ancient harbor is roughly in the center of the visible shoreline, and the isthmus is out of view to the right.

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Corinth Excavations

This is the view of the ancient city center looking from the Acrocorinth (with a big telephoto lens). On the left the standing columns of the Temple of Apollo are visible. On the right side the Lechaion Road can be seen. In between the two (and slightly down) is the ancient agora.

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