Treasury of the Athenians
Treasury of the Athenians features on the Gingerguide audio walk through Delphi. Give it roughly ~20 min: enough to look, hear a two to three minute story on the spot, and ask the AI guide whatever the story leaves open.
- Type monument
- Suggested visit ~20 min
- Delphi Delphi guide
About Treasury of the Athenians
A small Doric treasury of Parian marble, built by Athens to celebrate victory over Persia, its thirty carved metopes pairing the labours of Herakles with the deeds of Theseus.
The Treasury of the Athenians is a small Doric building on the Sacred Way at Delphi, standing about 9.75 metres high directly below the Temple of Apollo. It is distyle in antis in plan and built entirely of Parian marble. According to the Ephorate, Athens raised it after the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC to display its triumph over the Persians, though some scholars date the building slightly earlier, around 510-500 BC. A dedicatory inscription on its base records the offering to Apollo from Persian spoils.
Its thirty sculpted metopes depict the Labours of Herakles and the deeds of Theseus, the earliest surviving juxtaposition of the two heroes; the metopes now on the building are reproductions, while the originals are held in the Archaeological Museum of Delphi. Enough original blocks survived for the French School at Athens to reconstruct it almost completely between 1903 and 1906, financed by the City of Athens. Two Delphic Hymns to Apollo were inscribed on its outer south wall.
Did you know? The treasury's south wall holds a surprise: the two Delphic Hymns to Apollo, the earliest surviving Western music with both readable notation and named composers, Athenaios and Limenios, discovered carved there in 1893.
How long is a visit to Treasury of the Athenians?
Set aside roughly ~20 min for Treasury of the Athenians. That covers a good look and the narrated story, and because you set the pace you can always stay on.
Is Treasury of the Athenians worth your time?
Treasury of the Athenians is among the 12 narrated highlights the Gingerguide team chose for Delphi, so it is worth a look. Hear the story for the context, then ask the AI guide for anything more.
Nearby stops in Delphi
Day 1 of the Delphi in 2 days itinerary →
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Hear the story of Treasury of the Athenians
Preview the Delphi tour free in the Gingerguide app.