Olympia
Category: Art & Architecture
Location: Peloponnese, Greece
“Valley of gods” is the name of the area where ancient Olympia lies, in the western part of Peloponnese, in a sleepy part of the Greek mainland.
Two thousand years ago, when he participated in the Olympic Games of 65 AD, this is where emperor Nero lived in his famous villa “Octagon”, by the Kladeos River, complete with a peristyle court, many rooms, gardens and a luxurious bath.
The mosaics and arched roofs are still well preserved and possible to visit.
However, the name of the valley does not refer to the mortal Nero, but to the powerful Greek gods, who called Olympia and Peloponnese their home.
The most famous building of Olympia was the temple of Zeus, placed in the Aitis, a sacred grove in the central section and providing the core of the sanctuary.
The giant temple, devoted to the ruler of gods and men, dominated the cluster of buildings, while the oldest temple dedicated to Hera, lies slightly north.
East of these two holy temples is where the Olympic Games were held.
Zeus was the king of gods and the god of sky and thunder (and cognate with the Roman equivalent Jupiter).
Son of Cronus and Rhea, he was raised by his grandmother Gaia.
Together with the Olympians (from Mount Olympus, not to be confused with Olympia), he fights for power, and wins over his father, thus becoming the ruler of cosmos.
Married seven times, Hera was his seventh wife (and also his older sister).
In order to woo her, he turned himself into a cuckoo. Together, they had several children. Hera was the goddess of marriage, women and family, and the protector of women during childbirth.
She was also the first deity to whom the Greeks dedicated an enclosed roofed temple sanctuary, possibly an effect of the large cult-like following she enjoyed in Ancient Greece.
Olympia was the most celebrated sacred place in Greece, and also the birthplace of the Olympic Games, the most important sports events in all antiquity.
It started in 776 BC, and from then on, every four years all Greeks would be united, and all hostilities suspended, so that everyone could take part in the games.
Olympia was a famed destination and a powerful landmark.
Today, this is where the Olympic flame – symbol for the continuity between ancient and modern times – is lit, and then brought to the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, where it continues to burn for the duration of the Games.
In Ancient Greek mythology, fire had divine connotations, having been stolen from the gods by Prometheus.
During the Olympic Games at Olympia, fires would be lit in the temples of Zeus and Hera.
The first games took place during the festival of Zeus at Olympia, at the time a sanctuary within the independent state Elis. The games conducted in Zeus’ name drew visitors from all over the Greek world.
Today, Olympia’s archaeological site is categorised as part of the UNESCO World Heritage. It is possible to tour the impressive remains of buildings used by the ancient Greeks as worship areas, and as sports and symposia centres.
In the sleek and cleverly designed Archaeological Museum of Olympia, many of Greece’s most important ancient treasures and statues are on display, including several depicting emperor Marcus Aurelius.
