Among the twelve gods of Olympus, each of whom patronized a particular area of life of the ancient Greeks, concern for marriage and motherhood fell to Hera - wife, and, according to a number of sources, the sister of Zeus himself. This is not to say that this person was distinguished by a quiet and complacent disposition. On the contrary, myths depict her as a jealous, imperious, and sometimes brutal lady. The Temple of Hera in Olympia, whose ruins have become today a kind of tourist Mecca, serves as a monument to her.
Where did the Olympics come to our world?
The Temple of Hera in Olympia, the reconstruction of which was carried out with the participation of UNESCO specialists, is located in that legendary place from where the Olympic Games began their journey across the globe. This is easy to guess from the very name of the city. Also a testament to this is the tradition that guides certainly tell inquisitive tourists.
Once, the god of time Kronos - the absurd and malevolent old man - got angry for something at his young son Zeus. To save the future thunderer from his father's anger, three brothers volunteered to come from Crete. The eldest of them, as it turned out later, was called Hercules. The brothers hid the infant boy in the sacred grove of Altis, and themselves, to kill time, began to compete on the run.
The victory went to Hercules, and he was awarded a wreath of wild olive. Subsequently, the area in which the sacred grove was located was called Olympia, and the innocent fun of the brothers gave rise to the international Olympic movement. In this regard, the temple of Hera in Olympia has become one of the most famous ancient sanctuaries.
Temple worthy of a goddess
The Temple of Hera at Olympia, which has a history of almost three millennia, is today one of the earliest monumental buildings of Ancient Greece. It is located on the southern slope of a hill called Kronius, and is separated from it by a powerful terrace wall. The place for the construction of the sanctuary was chosen in the northwestern part of the very sacred grove Altis, where Hercules won the first Olympic victory.
The ancient Greek writer and geographer Pausanias attributes the erection of this sanctuary to 1096 BC, however, as follows from his composition, we are talking about a different building, which stood on the site of the current ruins. It was also the temple of Hera in Olympia, the description of which draws us a structure, characterized by severity and completeness of lines. It consisted of an internal part called a cella, as well as a pronaos - a small extension in front of the building - a kind of lobby.
The sanctuary turned into a museum
The columns, without which the ancient Greek architects could not imagine their work, were originally made of precious wood, mostly Lebanese cedar, but then replaced by stone. In general, over the many centuries of its existence, the Temple of Hera in Olympia has been rebuilt many times, and today guidebooks report at least six of its famous structures.
This continued until the Romans turned it into a regular museum, where all sorts of historical wonders were brought. We can’t say that they were indifferent to marriage and motherhood, but they had another goddess in this sphere of life - Juno, who pushed into the background the temple of Hera in Olympia. The order, according to which it was built, and this was a vivid example of the classical Corinthian style, only added solidity to the Roman Museum.
Goddess Contests
The Temple of Hera at Olympia witnessed very peculiar rituals performed in honor of the goddess revered by all. Pausanias, for example, tells the story of how, in four years, the sixteen most skillful weavers of Greece gathered in the temple and wove robes for Hera. Between them there was a competition - something like the modern contests "Best in Profession". But the ritual program was not limited to this.
The next stage was the running competition held at the Olympic stadium, called the "Heroes". Only women participated in them. Participants, broken down by age categories, started in groups - from very young girls to ladies of very respectable age. The historian writes that both grandmothers and granddaughters ran, albeit at different distances, but in the same short tunics, not reaching the knees, with loose hair and bare left chest.
Obviously, the goddess really liked this sight, because marriages were made regularly, and the fertility of Greek women could only be envied. The coveted prize awaited the winner of the race - she was awarded half of the sacrificial cow, and was also given the right to decorate the temple of Hera in Olympia with her own figurine with the corresponding inscription. Today, among the ruins of the temple for tourists, theatrical performances are held in memory of those old competitions.
Sculptural decoration of the temple
According to archaeologists, in the center of the temple was a sculpture of Hera herself, seated on a throne. In its original form, it did not reach our days, but from the surviving fragments we can assume that its height reached three meters. A male figure carved in full height was placed next to the throne. Its affiliation is controversial among researchers. According to a number of signs, it could be the image of Zeus - the husband of Hera, but some scholars believe that this is her son Ares.
If it is difficult to judge the artistic merits of this composition in view of the fact that only insignificant fragments have survived from it, then the other statue that has been kept within its walls by the temple of Hera in Olympia is a recognized masterpiece. We are talking about the sculpture of Hermes with the baby Dionysus in the arms of the work of Praxiteles - an outstanding ancient Greek sculptor of the 4th century BC. It is important to note that this work was performed in a single copy and has neither copies nor analogues, as a rule, made by ancient masters.
Collection of works by masters of ancient Sparta
The Temple of Hera in Olympia, the architect of which, to our great regret, remained unknown, during the heyday of Ancient Greece was a rich collection of sculptures made of ivory and gold. We also learn about this from the writings of Pausanias. He was filled with images of celestials who inhabited Olympus and were indispensable heroes of mythology.
Among them one could see the warlike Athena with a helmet and a spear in hand, Horus - the divine lord of the Sun, the sky and the seasons, depicted as a man with a hawk head, as well as beautiful nymphs - Gasperid, the guardians of golden apples, and many others whose the names were familiar to every resident of that era. Most of the works belonged to the masters of warlike Sparta, which refutes the prevailing opinion of the underdevelopment of art among its people.
The Temple of Hera in Olympia was the place where a unique casket was kept, which is not only an outstanding work of decorative art, but also a historical relic. A legend is connected with him, which is mentioned in his writings by another ancient Greek historian Herodotus.
The legend of the lame bride
She says that among the inhabitants of Corinth - a very ancient Greek city - there was a certain girl named Labda, who was the daughter of the local king Amphion. Despite such a high origin, she could not find a decent groom, because she was not only angry and grumpy, but also lame, for which everyone made fun of her.
Of course, she worried, spending days and nights in sobs. As a result, in order not to torment the girl, she was married to a commoner. And on the eve of the wedding, the court oracle publicly predicted that from this marriage a son would be born who would avenge the inhabitants of the city for the tears of his mother.
Vengeful young man
The oracle knew what he was saying, and in due time a boy was born, named Kipsel. The townspeople, who generally blindly believed all sorts of predictions, came in a crowd to the palace to kill the newborn. And here on the scene this very casket made of cedar, decorated with ivory with gold coinage, appears.
It was in him that the desperate mother hid her firstborn, which saved his life. Needless to say, having reached adulthood, ascended the throne and becoming the first Corinthian tyrant, Kipsel lived up to everyone's expectations, flooding the city with streams of blood. The casket, who served the inhabitants of Corinth so badly, was then placed in the temple of Hera as a reminder of what political foresight can lead to.
Ruins - a monument of past greatness
The time, the earthquake that happened in the 4th century, and most importantly, the historical cataclysms witnessed by ancient Hellas, did their job. Today, the temple of Hera at Olympia, the photo of which is presented in the article, is a respectable ruin surrounded by bright southern vegetation. Only the foundation with the remains of a once powerful orthostat opens to the eyes of tourists - a series of vertically laid slabs surrounding the base of the building, and several columns.
Some of them managed to resist and, towering among the ruins, serves as a reminder of former greatness. The rest cover the earth with their debris. The Temple of Hera in Olympia (Greece) was the victim of the most ruthless of the celestials - the god of the time of Kronos.