Sunday, January 27
This was our last day in Nafplio before moving on. We decided to go out with a bang. Our first stop was the archeological site of Ancient Tiryns in the nearby town of Argolis. Tiryns was another Mycenaean city that thrived between 1400 BC and 1200 BC. By the 2nd Century AD it had been completely abandoned. Tiryns, like most of the Mycenaean cities, had a fabulous palace. It also had Cyclopean tunnels and walls. Homer referred to it as, “mighty walled Tiryns”. It cost €2.00 / $2.30 per person to visit the site. Credit cards are accepted.
Large parts of the fortress walls are still intact. They earn their moniker, Cyclopian, because of the large size of the stones used to construct them. Several huge stones can be seen where the main gate was. This gate was a copy of the famous Lion’s Gate from the city of Mycenae, which we visited earlier in the week. The buildings inside the walls are just ruins. Many of the artifacts are now on display at the Archeological Museum of Athens; none are on display at the site.
(Lion Gate of Tiryns)
Our next stop was the town of Epidaurus. That site contains the remains of a temple complex dedicated to Asclepius, the son of Apollo and the god of medicine. One of his symbols is a snake wrapped around a pole known as the Rod of Asclepius, which is the symbol for medicine (it is often referred to incorrectly as the Caduceus, which was the staff with two snakes carried by the god Hermes). The site also containes a theater and a museum. We started with the temple complex.
The complex covers a large area and includes a Greek bath, Roman baths, temples to Asclepius and other gods and much, much more. The water for the baths and the healing rituals all came from a natural spring that was delivered to various locations through the use of underground pipes.
At the center of the complex was the Sanctuary of Asclepius. Entry was through a monumental propylaea which has been partially restored. We were able to walk through one of the Roman bath houses whose many walls are still in good condition. We had fun identifying the various rooms, pointing out the niches where statues would have stood and even found small patches of once colorful mosaic tiles. We could still make out some colors and shapes that had once decorated the building.
The three most important buildings were the Temple of Asclepius, which was mostly ruins, the partially restored Stoa of Abaton, where patients were cured and the partially restored Tholos. The Stoa had an unusual design. One section was at ground level. It had a colonnade with solid marble panels fixed between the columns that effectively blocked the view from the outside. This is where patients purified themselves with water from the sacred well and performed other rituals. The second part of the building was built one floor lower by making use of the natural slope of the hill. Here patients would lie down and sleep, waiting for a miraculous cure to come. The Tholos was also quite impressive. It is a round building with a double colonnade. It is thought that sacrifices were made to Asclepius in this building. Behind the Tholos in a deep, natural depression, was a stadium where athletic events were held in honor of Asclepius.
(L: Tholos, R: Stoa of Abaton)
A few hundred feet away is a large theater that dates from the 4th Century BC. The stadium, which has been restored and is still in use today, could hold about 12,000 people. The theater had, and still has, excellent acoustics that are based on the design and shape of the theater. From the very top of the theater we could easily hear people talking on the stage. The theater is an absolutely grand sight to behold.
(The Theater of Epidaurus)
Finally, we visited the museum. There was a nice array of sculptures that had been found at the site. The most interesting items on display were portions of the friezes from the Temple of Asclepius.
(Asclepius with Snake and Stick, Copy of 4th Century BC Original)
Distance walked: 4.8 miles