Rick Steves Athens & The Heart of Greece
Ολυμπία
Ancient Olympia to Kardamyli Day 5
We said goodbye to Lagkadia today after a hearty breakfast. Because of Covid regulations, the breakfast crew at the hotel makes safety a priority. We all have to glove up before serving ourselves at the breakfast buffet. So far, no one on our tour has gotten ill, and we are all very glad!
Archaeological Museum at Olympia
As we walked up to the Archaeological Museum at Olympia, I could sense why this place was special in ancient times. The birds chirping, the spring flowers blooming, the rushing of water from the Kladeos River - it just felt so serene and peaceful.
Excavations of the site of Olympia began in 1875 and finished in 1972. It was an earthquake in the 6th century AD that finally toppled the temples; flooding from two nearby rivers buried the area under 25 feet of silt. Luckily, that's what preserved the site; the museum collection includes those discoveries of the excavations from the surrounding area, including the site of the Ancient Olympic Games.
Museum Highlights
Statues from the East pediment of the Temple of Zeus; this would have been placed over the temple's main entrance.
The statues tell the story of the chariot race between Pelops and King Oenomaus (Zeus is the statue in the middle) for the hand of Oenomaus' daughter Hippodamia.
Pelops wins the race by sabotaging the wheels of King Oenomaus chariot, killing him. Pelops becomes king and unifies the people of the PELOPonnese with a festival called the Olympic Games.
Statues from the West pediment of the Temple of Zeus.
This pediment would have been on the back side of the temple, viewable from the Sacred Way; the statues tell the story of the the fight between Centaurs and Lapiths, battling over the abduction of the Lapith women by the centaurs. (Apollo is the statue in the middle). I do like all the interesting poses, especially the Centaur's hair and beard being pulled!
My favorite piece at the museum - Nike of Paeonius 421 BC. (Paeonius was the sculptor)
It's beautiful, even if it isn't quite all there, she's missing her wings and a few other parts. She would have stood tall on a 29 foot tall pedestal next to the Temple of Zeus.
The statue was installed to commemorate the victory of a battle between Athens and Sparta, placed where everyone who came to Olympia would see it. (a slight jab on Sparta, wouldn't you agree?)
(This statue reminds me of the Delacroix painting Liberty Leading the People...)
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Bronze Helmet of Miltiades
The Battle of Marathon 490 BC, maybe the most famous of all battles, and here in the museum is the helmet of the man who lead the Greeks in victory against the Persians!
Miltiades dedicated his helmet to Zeus at the sanctuary for his victory (on the side of the helmet are written the words “Miltiades offered his helmet to Zeus”)
Hermes of Praxiteles 4th century BC
Discovered in the Temple of Hera. Attributed to the famous sculptor Praxiteles, based on a remark recorded by the second century Greek traveler, Pausanias. In this statue, Hermes is holding the baby Dionysus, who is reaching for (presumably) a bunch of grapes Hermes is dangling in front of him.
The Nymphaeum of Herodes Atticus: the Nymphaeum was a water-distribution system that was built by Herodes Atticus in the second century AD, (we met him back in Athens, the wealthy friend of Emperor Hadrian and major project engineer).
Herodes had attended the Olympic games and had seen first hand the problems with the supply of water for the masses that attended the games, so he promised to put in a water system before the next Olympic games.
Good to his word, in 160 AD, the Nymphaeum was a reality, a two-story structure with an ornate fountain surrounded by statues of Roman Emperors, as well as Herodes Atticus and his family (the Bull statue was in the middle of the fountain) As you can see, the statues were not small!
The Sanctuary of Olympia
The sanctuary dedicated to Zeus was the greatest center of ancient Greek religion. The Festival of Zeus (which included the Olympic games) took place every 4 years (called an Olympiad), from 776 BC to 393 AD.
The sanctuary area, known as the Altis, was separated from the rest of the area by a rectangular enclosure. Inside the Atlis were the temples of Zeus and Hera, along with altars and treasuries. Outside of the enclosure were the buildings that served the needs of the visitors to the sanctuary and the athletes during the Olympic games.
The Temple of Zeus was built in the 5th century BC. It was 6 columns wide and 13 columns long. At each end would have been the pediments that we saw in the museum. The temple was destroyed by earthquakes in the 5th and 6th century AD; other than one reconstructed column, the rest remain where they fell after the earthquakes.
Inside the Temple of Zeus would have been a colossal statue of Zeus seated on a golden throne (see picture from the museum). It measured 40 feet tall and was made of ivory and gold. The statue was created by Pheidias, the same man who constructed the statue of Athena for the Parthenon in Athens.
The statue of Zeus was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient world.
All that remains of the temple of Zeus.... toppled columns surrounding the temple area
It's all so very Greek!
Beginning in 776 BC, every 4 years, thousands of Greek-speaking free men (not slaves) came to participate in the religious festival and the Olympic games; athletes would arrive a month early to prepare! A truce would be called between warring city-states so athletes could pass through enemy territory to get to the games safely. Originally, the event lasted only 1 day; soon, though, they expanded to 3 days, then to 5 days by the 5th century.
The games were not only to honor Zeus, but to develop a sense of "Greek" identity, to unite all Greeks. The Olympics became the symbol of Panhellenic unity, an "all-Greeks" culture.
The Temple of Hera, built in 650 BC, making it the oldest structure on the site. It was 6 columns wide and 16 columns long. The temple housed the statue of Hermes (found in the museum).
The lighting of today's Olympic Flame takes place in front of the temple of Hera, the flame lit by the rays of the sun caught in a parabolic mirror
Stadium of Olympia - built in the 5th century BC. To the left of the stadium entrance is a row of 16 pedestals that would have held bronze statues of Zeus (plural "Zanes") The Bases of Zanes would have the names of quitters and cheaters inscribed on the bases of the pedestals. As people entered the stadium, they would spit on the names; the Greeks took these games seriously!
The stadium could hold 45,000 people, all seated on the man-made banks of dirt on either side. No women were allowed inside, except for the priestess of the goddess Demeter.
The winners of the Olympic games were awarded an olive branch twisted into the shape of a crown, along with fame and honor the athlete brought to his city.
The Krypti - the vaulted entrance into the stadium. It was thrilling to walk through the same entrance as all the athletes of those ancient times!
The first Olympic Games had only ONE event, and that was running the length of the stadium (one stade). The distance covered was about 600 feet (180 meters). Even the marble-paved starting (and finish) line from the ancient Olympic games is still there.
This was my chance to take part in the games, since females weren't allowed to compete! Athletes were barefoot (and naked) back then, so I was grateful to wear tennis shoes and be fully dressed!
Unfortunately I wasn't awarded any crowns made of olive branches for my athletic abilities demonstrated at Olympia; maybe next time!
The Philippeion built by Phillip of Macedon, with 18 Ionic columns; inside held the statues of Phillip and his family (including his son, Alexander (as in the Great)
The Olympic games changed after the conquest of Greece by Phillip, and again by the Romans. The ideals that the games held in highest regard waned.
One story that our guide told us was of the Roman Emperor Nero, who participated in the chariot races in 67 AD; he competed in the 4-horse chariot race using 10 horses. Even though he was thrown from his chariot, he was declared the winner of the race. (it's good to be emperor)
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It was later determined that Ron was found guilty of cheating; he was seen pushing Debbie off balance in the stadium race. Shame, shame... forever banished from the games!
Time for refreshments - we're starting to get into these coffee drinks!
Our group lunch took us to the wonderful family-run restaurant, Bacchus, just 5 minutes from Olympia.
(I was really trying to get pictures of all the dishes served, but they came so fast and so often, well, you can see I gave up after the second dish was passed around!)
Believe me, everything was DELICIOUS!!
Our vegetarian lunch included:
Salad
Olives
Rice with Spinach
Black Eyed Peas with spices
Chard with Feta
Eggplant with Tomatoes
Fries
Tsazicki
Garlic Spread
Bread
It was a bit of a drive to Kardamyli after lunch, we stopped just before arriving to get this scenic view of the water and the village. It look absolutely beautiful; all of us were ready for our "free day" tomorrow!!
After checking into our hotel, Apostolos gave us an overview of the town and the many choices of restaurants for dinner. Since we were here for two nights, we decided to go with the restaurant 1866 and it's very cute logo with the beer tap; besides, a juicy burger sounded So good! Oh, yes, and frozen yogurt for dessert!
It's all so very Greek!
In case you are worried you will have to eat "Greek food" every night, don't be! Greece has everything you could possibly be hungry for. Our burgers were even better than anything we've had in the USA!
Our hotel for two nights, the Hotel Esperides; we have the room with that cute little balcony there on the second floor!
