The temple of Apollo at Bassae-Phigalia

The temple of Apollo at Bassae-Phigalia, dedicated to Apollo Epikourios, is an example of the evolution of the use of different orders, such as Doric, Ionic and Corinthian. Built in the classical period in the 5th century BC , the temple owes its originality to the primacy of the decorative elements on the architectural features.

Apollo: In the classical period, music, poetry, philosophy, astronomy, mathematics, medicine and science were all under the control of Apollo. He was the enemy of barbarism, he supported and advocated the moderation in all things and the seven strings of the lyre (which were also under his charge) were related to the seven vowels of the Greek alphabet which was given a mystical significance and is employed in therapeutic music.

The temple was dedicated to Apollo by the people of Epikurios Phigalia (Epikurios in Greek means the ‘helpful’, the one who heals the sick) in recognition of the services rendered during the "Black Death" that took place, according to Pausanias, during the Peloponnesian War in 429 BC

In the heart of Arcadia (central part of the Peloponnesus), on a rock platform at 1100m altitude, which gives a panoramic view of all the peaks of the Peloponnese, Messinia in the Achaia, a temple was consecrated by the people of Phigalia (ancient city southwest of Arcadia, a land known by some archaic cults as land 12km from the site of the temple). The work is characterized by an austere provincial flavor on the outside, with emphasis on the Doric style, engraved in a local limestone, rough and dark, in keeping with Peloponnesian tradition.

The discovery of the temple was made in 1765 by Jacques Bocher (assassinated while he was examining the monument). His preliminary drawings are showcased at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. It was not until the nineteenth century that the first excavations began at the instigation of the English: Charles Cockerwell, John Forster and German architect Von Haller Hallerstein. Later, the monument will be included in world heritage sites by Unesco.(Next to the temple we found a higher enclosure containing the remains of a small temple dedicated to Aphrodite).
The originality of this temple, which is instrumental in spreading its fame, is that, probably for the first time in the history of architecture, decorative values of a monument gained precedence over architectural values.

Contrasting architecture: A sober and purely classical exterior; There are two phases of construction: Phase I included a building plan with internal cross-sectional characteristics of the Peloponnesian tradition (450-440 BC).

With its unusual orientation to the north (owing to some worship purposes) and its elongated proportions (14.48 m x 38.24 m on the stylobate and 6x15 Doric columns under strong optical corrections based on the ratio of 2 to 5 between length and width), the Temple of Bassae seems archaic: it is probably owing to the ritual requirements imposed by the devices of ancient places of worship, even more than by the movement of land that could be leveled.

Tags: Apollo Epikourios, Temple of Bassae, Jacques Bocher