Dodona Archaeological Site

Τhe oracle

The archaeological site of Dodoni lies in the valley below Mount Tomaros. It was a religious center related to the cult of Zeus and the oldest oracle in Greece according to Herodotus and the references by Homer in his epics. Α small prehistoric settlement had been developed οn the site since the Bronze Age. The earliest cult was dedicated to the Great Goddess, a deity of euphoria and fertility, connected to tree worship and divination. The new religion of Zeus merged with the old one and the God of The Sky was worshiped as a couple with the chthonic goddess, who was thenceforth called Dione. The extent of the influence of the sanctuary is attested by the votive offerings that pilgrims from various regions of Greece offered.

The giving of oracles was carried out through the interpretation of sounds -natural or not- related to the sacred oak, such as the rustling of its leaves, the murmuring of the water that gushed from its roots, or the cooing of the pigeons nested in its branches. Furthermore, from the sound produced by the bronze cauldrons that were placed on its trunk, or the Corfu scourge, the famous bronze structure dedicated to the sanctuary by the citizens of Corfu in the 4th century BC. Pilgrims’ questions were recorded on lead tablets, numerous of which have been found, that constitute a source of valuable information about the political history of ancient Greece, society and law, language, as well as everyday life and human feelings.