The city of Epidaurus dates back all the way to Mycenaean times in the 16th century BC, though nearly all of the ruins on the site today are of Greek original in the 6th century BC. Throughout this history, the site was used as a medical sanctuary to treat those that had fallen ill anywhere in the surrounding area (more on the process of treatment later). This theater was part of the healing process where shows and games took place semiregularly, with the Festival of Asclepius (more on him later too) occurring every four years as well. What is interesting about this building is the accoustics of the linestone are magnificent; if you stand on that center dot in the middle of the circular orchestra (where the Altar of Dionysis once stood), all 14,000 people in the seats can hear a coin drop to the ground. Quite amazing if you ask me!
Like I said before, the city was used as a tranquil center for medical healing, asking for the grace of the gods to overcome their illness. This medical process had to be done in a place surrounded by beauty, which this place sure has a lot of.
Step 1 of healing: Cleansing
Every patient that comes here is washed thoroughly using the water from the naturally occurring hot and cold water springs (another reason why this site was selected for the sanctuary). According to later Greek scientists and medical professionals, the hot and cold baths help restore the body's natural balance in temperature and the central elements (fire, water, earth, and air). The Greek bath is located behind this main square out of frame.
Step 2: Offerings
Here is the foundation of the Temple of Asclepius, the demigod of medicine. It was at this location (and the temples of Artemis and Apollo on site) where people would make offerings to their gods in the form of the sculpture of the body part that was giving them trouble, in the hopes the issues could be corrected.
Steps 3-4: Speaking with a Priest and Sleep
To continue the theme of psychological medicine, patients were put into a positive state of mind before they were sent off to bed in this dormatory, made up of four square courtyards with patient rooms surrounding them. These resting periods were the time when the gods told the patients what the best course of action would be to cure the illness. The patient would have to then tell the priest what images they saw in their dreams to begin treatment.
More often than not, treatments for illnesses were conducted by the patients themselves and not a doctor (unless it required a simple surgery or something). Most commonly, people were required to take part in exercise programs here at the stadium to get well again (other games were held here every four years like the Olympic Games). Another example of how the medical professionals used the mind over the physical body to heal patients.
Here are a few examples of Epidarius medical tools, as excavated by the French.
Here is a reproduction of a statue of Ascelpius, the Greek father of medicine. He was supposedly born to Apollo and the mortal Koronis, making him half human and half god. By the end of his life though, he had created a following of students interested in the study of healing and supposedly bringing the dead back to life. Unfortunately, this upset the balance between what is godlike and what is human, so Zeus struck down a lightning bolt on his head and killed him. However, his sanctuary and devotion to medicine lived on long after his death.
And now for the HIGHLIGHTS!
Being statues in Epidaurus...
Big thanks to Alyson and Rebecca for their presentations on Epidaurus and the transition of Greek medicine from a religion to a science. Wonderful job!
Jared and I eating a fish eye... It tasted fine, but the eye itself is a hard, chalky ball that takes like next to nothing.
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Here is a Mycenaean bridge structure. Notice the corbel vaulting here and the cyclopean masonry, both essential features to these people.
The civilization of Lerna comes from the early Bronze Age, known on the mainland as the Hellandic period. The town shows evidence that it originate just after the Neolithic period at a time where small, fortified towns were beginning to crop up.
Here is the plan of the city. It is quite small, but there is still a bunch to see!
These two photos were taken from inside the "House of Tiles" on the site. This house, which might have been a palace for the ruling family, is in the style of a corridor house with one hallway on either side of the home. The stone foundation and mud brick walls, which you can see clearly here, supported a second story (the stairs on the bottom). This home got its name because of its roof; it may be the earliest home on the mainland of Greece with this kind of tiled roof. Not bad for a 5000 year old structure.
See the stone foundation of these fortification walls? They are the same setup as those walls in Troy, called herring bone architecture. The reason for these? Protection from earthquakes and others invaders (the tiles were added in the modern day for preservation reasons).
Here is apsisal building from the Middle Bronze age, which was build up about 10 feet higher than the older city walls.
ECGT signing off!
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