About Didyma
Didyma was primarily a major sanctuary belonging to Miletus rather than an independent city, renowned for Apollo's oracle. With enormous columns, an unusual open courtyard and a sacred spring, its unfinished Temple of Apollo remains one of antiquity's grandest monuments.
History
The cult at Didyma has early roots. The connection between Miletus and the Branchidae, who administered the sanctuary, strengthened its political influence. The Archaic temple suffered during the Persian attack of 494 BCE. After Alexander, work began on a much larger Hellenistic temple, but centuries of construction never brought it to completion. Roman emperors supported the sanctuary, and processions continued along the Sacred Way from Miletus. A church was built inside the temple in late antiquity; earthquakes and subsequent settlement altered the site.
Highlights and principal structures
- Temple of Apollo
- Open adyton courtyard
- Oracular spring
- Monumental stairways
- Medusa relief
- Miletus–Didyma Sacred Way
Historical period
Archaic–Hellenistic–Roman