Delphi Oracle

A religious centre of the ancient Greek world

Perched on the slopes of Mount Parnassus, Delphi was considered the omphalos, or the navel of the world. For centuries, pilgrims and kings traveled here to consult the Pythia, the high priestess who delivered enigmatic prophecies from the Temple of Apollo. The Sacred Way winds up the mountainside, past the Treasuries—magnificent small buildings erected by various city-states to house their offerings.
The site’s dramatic topography includes a well-preserved theater and a stadium situated high above the temple complex, emphasizing the connection between the divine and the physical. Beyond the ruins, the site possesses a unique "Delphic light" and a profound sense of isolation that makes it easy to understand why the ancients viewed this as a place where the veil between gods and men was thinnest.