Epidauros

History

• Prehistoric houses
• Originally a sanctuary of Apollo; the temples belonged to the town of Epidauros
• The (originally Thessalian?) cult of Asclepius was added in the s.VI
• Stadium dates back to the s.V: the Asclepian Games were celebrated every four years, nine days after the Isthmian Games
• The cult of Asclepius eclipsed the worship of Apollo in the s.IV BCE (temple of Asclepius 370 BCE)
• At that moment, Epidauros was already recognized as birthplace of the healing god
• Some of the medical (as opposed to magical) expertise of the priests may have come from Egypt via the sanctuary of Asclepius on the isle of Kos
• The priests of Asclepius had a more scientific approach to medicine than was customary in Antiquity
• Theater s.IV; tholos building 360-320 BCE; temple of Artemis second half s.IV
• 293 BCE: Rome asks for a snake from Epidauros
• 86 BCE: Sulla sacks the sanctuary
• Roman baths

Epidaurus, Corinthian capital	Epidauros, Stadion	Epidauros, Statue of Athena (based on the East Pediment of the Parthenon in Athens)	Epidauros, Temple of Artemis, Nike
Epidauros, Theater	Epidauros, Lion	Epidauros, Statue of Athena (based on the West Pediment of the Parthenon in Athens)