A tour around the temple of poseidon on cape sounion. The blue flag beaches are a popular attraction as well. It is part of lavreotiki municipality, east attica, greece. During the roman empire sailors sought the protection of isis, rather than that of poseidon you may wish to see the temple to isis at sabratha. The temple of poseidon was built in 440 bc, when athens was led by pericles. Furthermore, learn about the temples history from your private driver. The temple of poseidon is about 656 feet 200 meters above sea level. Sounion in the ancient writers homer was the first to refer to sounion odyssey c 278 as the sacred cape of the athenians. Relax just a step away from the temple and enjoy your refreshment or. It was part of the ambitious building project initiated by. Sounion in southern attica, along the dramatic and sweeping coastline, is the location of the temple of poseidon at sounion. The temple of poseidon at sounion is the best halfday trip you can do out of athens with the possible exception of the zoo. Ancient origins articles related to temple of poseidon in the sections of history, archaeology, human origins, unexplained, artifacts, ancient places and myths and legends. Reliving the myth the sanctuary of poseidon at cape sounion.
The temple of poseidon dedicated to the god of the sea. For the ancients, it was a sacred place to make offering and thanks to the potent, quicktempered god of the sea. Sounion, also known as kavos, delivers a unique sense of the greatness of nature. Ancient greeks, especially seamen, believed storms were signs of poseidons wrath, and therefore the temple at cape sounion was a sacred place where sailors and the general population came to offer animal. Make the scenic coastal journey by comfortable airconditioned luxury car or mini van. Cape sounion, home to the god of the sea, is the ideal place to discuss the underlying rivalry between annabeth and percy explore the percy jackson world in person, with poseidons temple at your fingertips beautiful scenic drive along the exquisite athenian riviera while learning all about the mythology surrounding percys fathers home decide on finishing your day with a. Book your tickets online for temple of poseidon, sounio. According to tripadvisor travelers, these are the best ways to experience temple of poseidon. Cape sounion is noted for its temple of poseidon, one of the major monuments of the golden age of athens. Spend some time admiring its position and listening to tales from greek mythology in the company of our expert guide, before the perfect ending. Not far from the city, this temple makes for a wonderful and refreshing day trip. The temple of poseidon at cape sounion waterblogged. Percy jackson tour of cape sounion and temple of poseidon.
It was part of the ambitious building project initiated by perikles, which included other renown temples such as the parthenon and the hephaisteion. The temple of poseidon is an ancient greek temple dramatically perched on the edge of a mountain jutting out into the sea at cape sounion. Theres a nice foldout with a 3d reconstruction, too. Cape sounion temple of poseidon near athens, greece. The temple of poseidon stands where aegeus desperately awaited news of his son. Percy jackson small group tour of the temple of poseidon. During the drive to the temple of poseidon at cape sounion, you will be passing along the athens riviera. Visit the temple of poseidon at cape sounion from athens, without any worries about car hire or public transportation, with this halfday tour. Steep rocks that flow out of the water, an endless light blue horizon and a magnificent temple, the temple of poseidon, the finishing touch of this wonderful art of nature the first time we come across the temple of poseidon in sounion is through the. Perched on the craggy rocks of cape sounio, the temple is enveloped in myth and historic facts dated from antiquity until the. That is why i was kind of embarrassed when i realized i had not been there since i was dragged there by my high school ancient history teacher, the now famous nikos stavrolakis founder of the jewish museum of athens. Cape sounion is a wonderful choice for a half day trip from athens and is a world famous location to watch the sunset.
Its remains are perched on the headland, surrounded on three sides by the sea. Poseidon, the ancient god of the sea is memorialized with a temple at sounion. If your kids are percy jackson fans, then this halfday private tour from athens is an absolute must. Temple of poseidon in sounion university of warwick.
Built in 444 bc same year as the parthenon of marble from nearby agrilesa, it is a vision of gleaming white columns. Travelers can take a bus or halfday tour from athens to see the temple of poseidon at cape sounion, visit from a small sailboat like i did on a sailing greece itinerary with g adventures, or visit before or after a celestyal crystal or celestyal odyssey cruise. In the company of 2 or 3 other likeminded families, you will explore the highlights of the athens riviera, stop for plenty of photos, enjoy a swim, and then head to our final destination. Bust of the 6th duke of devonshire, atop a column from the temple of poseidon, cape sounion, with inscription by george howard, 7th earl of carlisle chatsworth house derbyshire, england dsc03588. On top of this 60 meter cliff stands one of the most important sanctuaries in the region.
Percy jackson temple of poseidon tour sounion trip from. Sounion or sunium was an important ancient greek religious sanctuary sacred to the gods poseidon and athena. Temple poseidon sea god greek mythology lord master cape sounion greece by bk. A perfect day trip from athens to the temple of poseidon. Majestic cape sounion, a strategic point rising above the aegean sea about 70 kilometers away from athens in the southern region of attica, was known by ancient greeks as the sacred cape. Sporadic finds point to the conclusion that the site was inhabited in the prehistoric period but there is no evidence of religious practice in such an early date.
Cape sounion and temple of poseidon halfday smallgroup. Visit the temple of poseidon at cape sounion why athens. Sounion 1443 words 6 pages megan billy professor sarah m. Our halfday small group tour to cape sounion and the temple of poseidon is a mustdo activity for families who love the percy jackson books as much as we do. At cape sounion, 70km south of athens, the temple of poseidon stands on a craggy spur that plunges 65m to the sea. The temple of sounion sits above the beach on a mountain that juts out into the sea and was dedicated to poseidon. One of my favourite days on our recent trip to vouliagmeni and athens, greece started with a spur of the moment decision to rent a car and go exploring. Herodotus 6,87 informs us that the athenians celebrated there a great fouryearly festival. Explore the gem of the place of the temple of poseidon by grabbing the temple of. Today, cape sounion, is a summer community filled with upperclass homes and wealthy vacationers. Archaeological evidence indicates that sounion was a sacred area as far back as the bronze age, but the temple of poseidon visible in our day was built in the middle of the 5th century bce between 444 and 440 bce. This is how we were able to visit the poseidon temple in sounion, greece.
Temple of poseidon sounio 2020 all you need to know. The sanctuary came under the jurisdiction of the deme of sounion which had its centre to the north in the agrilesa valley and gained its wealth from marble and silver. Driving ourselves allows us to stop when we like, go where we want and explore places we wouldnt see otherwise. Temple poseidon sea god greek mythology lord master cape. The romans regarded neptune, poseidons latin counterpart, mainly as a horse god. The ancient greeks knew how to choose a site for a temple. Sounion acquired its religious significance from the 7th century bce and had one temple dedicated to athena and another to poseidon. The original, archaicperiod temple of poseidon on the site, which was built of tufa, was probably destroyed in 480 bc by persian troops during xerxes is invasion of greece. The sanctuary of sounion was the site of periodical festivals, probably at the beginning of winter, which involved games. In ancient times the temple was the last sign of civilization the athenians saw as they sailed away from home and the first as they returned and even now when i sail to the islands on the ferry it is not until we pass the temple that i am offically out of athens.
Experience a half day smallgroup trip with minivan along the picturesque south attica coastal road and visit to the 5th century bc temple of poseidon. Driving along the athens riviera, you will head towards cape sounion, where there is a temple dedicated to percys father the temple of poseidon. The temple he mistakenly identified was the temple of poseidon. Along the way, youll witness all of the places the percy jackson books mention, making the stories and the history of the area come to life. Spectacularly located on a promontory in southern attica, the site is dominated by the temple of poseidon perched on the cliff edge, seventy metres above the sea sounion is the setting for several episodes in greek mythology and is specifically mentioned as a place of religious. Cape sounion also spelled sounio is about 45 miles south of athens, and the drive is quite scenic as it follows the coastline. In greek mythology, poseidon, brother of zeus, was the god of the sea, so it is no wonder that he was highly revered and worshipped in a country with over,500 kilometers of coastline. Poseidons sanctuary is mentioned by the tragedians euripides and sophocles and the comic poet aristophanes. This impressive structure was a symbol of hope and faith in ancient times, marking the end of many perilous sea journeys. Besides the temple of poseidon there are a couple of other greek marvels along the way so do make it a point to see them as well. Archaeological evidence indicates that sounion was a sacred area as far back as the bronze age, but the temple visible in our day was built in the middle of the 5th century bce between 444 and 440 bce.
At 60 meters above sea level, the temple of poseidon was constructed between 444 460 bc and is considered to be a significant monument from the golden age of. It was erected in the middle of the 5th century bc and built to. Still a nice read to understand the history and significance of the site. Byron wrote these lines about the temple of poseidon at cape sounion which he visited during his grand tour carving his name into one of the columns. Other than being a place of worship for citizens all over ancient greece, the temple was particularly visited by sailors, either before departure especially because the sea close to the promontary of sounion was known to be stormy or after their journey, thanking poseidon for his protection by means of dedications andor sacrifices. Our fullday percy jackson athens mythology tour combines visiting the acropolis and acropolis museum in the morning, with an afternoon trip out to cape sounion to see the temple of poseidon at sunset. Cape sounion is the promontory at the southernmost tip of the attic peninsula, 8 kilometres south of the town of lavrio, and 70 kilometres southeast of athens. The temple of poseidon, the ancient greek god of the sea, dominates the southernmost tip of attica, where the horizon meets the aegean sea.
Sounion is a rather small site, so there was less content than some of the others, and most of the photos were of the temple of poseidon from different angles. Large groups of tourists gather at the temple of poseidon each night at sunset to view the amazing colors as the sun fades into the horizon. Temple of poseidon at sounion ancient history encyclopedia. Temple of poseidon at sounion overview the sanctuary at sounion is one of the most important sanctuaries in attica. The site of sounion was later visited by the 19th century english poet, lord byron, who carved his name into one of the columns of the temple of poseidon. Temple of poseidon greece attractions lonely planet.
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