This post is based primarily on Don's notes, occasionally supplemented with MT's notes from our cruise in August 2022. When information from other sources is added—for further explanation to readers or to satisfy our own curiosity—that is set off in a text box (as this one).
Most of the photos that accompany this post are from Don’s camera (with a caption indicating the time it was taken); those from MT’s iPhone are indicated by “MT” placed at the beginning of the photo caption. Photos from any other source (such as the public domain Wikimedia Commons), occasionally used for clarification, indicate that source in the caption.
Most of the photos that accompany this post are from Don’s camera (with a caption indicating the time it was taken); those from MT’s iPhone are indicated by “MT” placed at the beginning of the photo caption. Photos from any other source (such as the public domain Wikimedia Commons), occasionally used for clarification, indicate that source in the caption.
The Viking Daily newsletter, which would be delivered to our stateroom every evening, showed today's weather forecast as "Sunny 93̊°F."
We woke at 6 am. Room Service breakfast came at 6:45.
At 8 am, we went to the Star Theater on Deck 2, which was the meeting place for our optional shore excursion "Ancient Corinth & Canal." We
had originally scheduled the included shore excursion “Panoramic Athens & Archaeological Museum." since we had options for times in the afternoon (after a long air trip the day before.) However, this was exactly the same excursion we had taken during our stop in Athens on our "Empires of the Mediterranean" cruise in August, 2019. So, at the last date possible, we had decided to try Corinth instead, even if it meant getting up much earlier.
The My
Viking Journey web site described the 4.75-hour Ancient Corinth & Canal
shore excursion as follows:
“Important Archaeological Sites and a Famous Waterway -- Vestiges of its importance can be seen in the many archaeological sites that dot the old city. Join your knowledgeable guide on a walking tour to see iconic landmarks such as the monolithic Doric columns of the Temple of Apollo, the 15,000-capacity ancient theater and the imposing Acrocorinth, a hilltop fortress that had protected the city from antiquity to the 19th century. Afterward, board your motor coach for a short drive to the famous Corinth Canal; plans to build a canal through the Isthmus of Corinth predate the Romans, but the 4-mile long waterway carved through steep limestone was not completed until the late 19th century. After a short stop for photos, you will continue back to your awaiting ship.”
“Important Archaeological Sites and a Famous Waterway -- Vestiges of its importance can be seen in the many archaeological sites that dot the old city. Join your knowledgeable guide on a walking tour to see iconic landmarks such as the monolithic Doric columns of the Temple of Apollo, the 15,000-capacity ancient theater and the imposing Acrocorinth, a hilltop fortress that had protected the city from antiquity to the 19th century. Afterward, board your motor coach for a short drive to the famous Corinth Canal; plans to build a canal through the Isthmus of Corinth predate the Romans, but the 4-mile long waterway carved through steep limestone was not completed until the late 19th century. After a short stop for photos, you will continue back to your awaiting ship.”
We were assigned to tour group 7 with our guide Dimitra who was an archaeologist. As we left Piraeus on the bus to Corinth, she pointed out go other ports, the first for ferries to nearby islands and the second for cargo ships. We passed Megara, which she said was once important enough to have its own colonies, including one that is now Istanbul.
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Modern Megara (By O.Mustafin - Own work, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=60614799).
Megara is a historic town in the northern section of the isthmus of Corinth. In ancient times, Megara was a city-state, similar to Corinth, ruled by its own king and having its own coinage. Megara was one of the four districts of Attica, embodied by the four mythic sons of King Pandion II, of whom Nicos was the ruler of Megara. Megara was also a trade port, its people using their ships and wealth to gain leverage over armies of neighboring peoples. Like all the Greek city-states, the Megarians loved to establish new towns as colonies. They sailed around the Mediterranean, trading with other Greek city-states and looking for places to establish new outposts. In the 7th century BC, settlers from Megara founded the city of Byzantium, which the Roman Emperor Constantine renamed as Constantinople in 330 AD. It was renamed Istanbul in 1930, under the Republic of Turkey.
The Corinth
Canal is a man-made canal that connects the Gulf of Corinth in the Ionian
Sea with the Saronic Gulf in the Aegean Sea. It cuts through the narrow Isthmus
of Corinth and separated the Peloponnese from the Greek mainland. The canal was
dug at sea level and has no locks. The canal was initially proposed in classical
times, first in the 7th century BC, and a failed effort to build it was made in
the 1st century AD. Construction recommenced in 1881, with fresh impetus given
by the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, and was completed in 1893, but its
narrowness and frequent deterioration of the high rock walls limited its
navigability. Severe damage was caused during WWII. The US Army Corps of
Engineers began to clear the canal in 1947 and reopened it for shallow-draft
traffic in 1948. Because the canal is difficult to navigate for large vessels,
it is mostly used by small recreational boats.
Sunday, August 21, 2022, 9:38 AM - Corinth Canal (horizontal).
9:39 AM - Corinth Canal (vertical).
Around 10 am, we arrived at Corinth and headed for the archaeological site.
Corinth is the successor to an ancient city and is a
former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, in south-central Greece. The
modern city is located 3 km (2 miles) northeast of the ancient city. The site
was occupied from before 3000 BC. Historical references begin with the early 8th
century BC. The city participated in the Persian Wars and Peloponnesian War as
an ally of Sparta. In 146 BC, Corinth was completely destroyed by the Roman
army. As a newly rebuilt Roman colony in 44 BC, Corinth flourished and became
the administrative capital of the Roman province of Achaea. The current city
was founded as Nea Korinthos (New Corinth) in 1858 after an earthquake destroyed
the existing settlement of Corinth, which had developed in and around the site
of ancient city-state of Corinth (now known as Ancient Corinth). In 1928, an
earthquake devastated the new city, which was rebuilt on the same site. In
1933, there was a great fire, and the new city was rebuilt again.
As our bus neared the
archaeological site, we got our first glimpse of the Acrocorinth fortress.
10:02 AM - Acrocorinth through bus window.
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Acrocorinth:
Main gate of Venetian fortress from the west (By MM - Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=737499.)
Acrocorinth (Greek: Akrokorinthos, meaning “Upper Corinth) is the acropolis of Ancient Corinth. It is a monolithic rock overlooking the ancient city. With its secure water supply, the fortress was repeatedly used as a last line of defense in southern Greece because it commanded the Isthmus of Corinth, repelling foes from entry by land into the Peloponnesian Peninsula. It was continuously occupied from archaic times to the early 19thth century.
The Acrocorinth was one of the three fortresses garrisoned by the Macedonians to secure their control of the Greek city-states. It was further heavily fortified during the Byzantine Empire. After it was defended against the Crusaders for 3 years, it became a fortress of the Frankish Principality of Achaea, the Venetians, and the Ottoman Turks.
MT 10:04 AM - Ancient Corinth: Acrocorinth through bus window.
10:10 AM - Ancient Corinth: ruins of Fountain of Glauke, with Archaeological Museum and Acrocorinth in background; we passed this on our way from the bus to the museum and would learn more about it at the end of our tour.
10:12 AM - Ancient Corinth: Don's ticket.
10:18 AM - Ancient Corinth: parts of statues in Archaeological Museum.
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Ancient
Corinth: plan of the archaeological site (By Chabe01 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=116475564).
10:26 AM - Ancient Corinth: three (shortened) columns of Temple E with Corinthian capitals, with sign in right foreground.
MT 10:27 AM - Ancient Corinth: three (shortened) columns of Temple E with Corinthian capitals (mild telephoto 41 mm).
10:27 AM - Ancient Corinth: two of those columns with Corinthian capitals (telephoto 109 mm).
10:28 AM - Ancient Corinth: sign about "Temple E" with those columns: first and last paragraphs of English text at bottom center read:
"Standing 9.00 m above the Forum, Temple E occupied as prominent a place in the Roman city as the Temple of Apollo.
. . . . . [text about two phases of construction, in Doric style in early 1st century AD, then radically altered, in the Corinthian order]
"From Pausanias's description, the temple appears to have been dedicated to Octavia, the sister of Augustus, although modern scholars have offered alternative suggestions."
10:28 AM - Ancient Corinth: more Corinthian capitals.
10:28 AM - Ancient
Corinth: Doric, Ionic, and 3 Corinthian capitals (mild telephoto 68 mm).
MT 10:30 AM - Ancient Corinth: parts of columns with Tuscan, Doric, Ionic, and 3 Corinthian capitals (mild telephoto 68 mm).
10:29 AM - Ancient Corinth: closer view of Acrocorinth from near Temple E (mild telephoto 68 mm).
10:30 AM - Ancient Corinth: sign about capitals, left to right: Tuscan, Doric, Ionic, Pergamine, Corinthian, and Chimaera.
10:31 AM - Ancient Corinth: Corinthian capital.
10:31 AM - Ancient Corinth: another Corinthian capital (MT in background).
10:31 AM - Ancient Corinth: view toward Temple of Apollo.
10:35 AM - Ancient Corinth: Temple of Apollo and arch in northwest shops (mild telephoto 42 mm).
10:36 AM - Ancient Corinth: Temple of Apollo and arch (telephoto 130 mm).
10:35 AM - Ancient Corinth: part of marble pavement in central square (mild telephoto 42 mm).
10:36 AM - Ancient Corinth: shady place, possibly market (mild telephoto 58 mm).
10:38 AM - Ancient Corinth: sign about "The Rostra (Bema) of the Roman Forum"; part of English text at bottom center reads:
"The Rostra was a complex marble structure from the middle of the 1st century A.D., which dominated the face of the terrace of the Upper Forum at Corinth.
. . . . .
"The Rostra was a venue for public ceremonies, from which the assembled citizens were addressed by the proconsul of Corinth. It is thought to have corresponded to the Bema mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles: the Apostle Paul was brought to the Bema by the elders of Corinth's synagogue, who accused him of subversive teaching against the Mosaic law. The proconsul Gallio, however, judged that the teachings did not constitute an offence against Roman law."
10:37 AM - Ancient Corinth: ruins of the Rostra with the sign about "The Rostra (Bema) of the Roman Forum."
10:38 AM - Ancient Corinth: MT and others in square in front of the Rostra, listening to our guide Dimitra, who said this was a square where Paul preached.
00046 10:40 AM - Ancient Corinth: MT and others in square in front of the Rostra, listening to our guide, Dimitra from another angle).
10:43 AM - Ancient Corinth: MT, Dimitra, and others approaching the main street.
10:43 AM - Ancient Corinth: shops on left side of the main street.
10:45 AM - Ancient Corinth: main street with shops on both sides.
10:43 AM - Ancient Corinth: shops on right side of the main street.
10:45 AM - Ancient Corinth: section of a column with hole in center where a stick was inserted to prevent slipping.
10:46 AM - Ancient Corinth: Dimitra with picture of how the Peirene Fouintain (which she called baths) had looked.
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10:46 AM (Cropped) - Ancient Corinth: Dimitra with picture of how the Peirene Fountain had looked.
10:46 AM - Ancient Corinth: the Peirene Fountain.
10:46 AM - Ancient Corinth: sign about the Peirene Fountain; part of the English text at bottom center reads:
"Peirene is one of the most important topoi in the urban landscape of both Greek and Roman Corinth. Human activity is attested in the area from the Neolithic period, and the first efforts in water management date to the Geometric period. The facility was gradually embellished from the Archaic period forward . . .
. . . . .
Peirene was one of the first structures rebuilt after the establishment of the Roman colony. The foundation was now housed within a large rectangular court. The façade of this phase had Doric half-columns between arches framing the earlier antechambers. The second storey was a solid wall with engaged Ionic half-columns.
. . . . .
Following the partial destruction of the earlier phase, perhaps by an earthquake, the east and west apses were added in Late Antiquity and the reused marble columns and their decorative 'onlookers' in front of the façade are Byzantine additions. In later centuries, the ground level rose and the court was occupied by a small chapel and cemetery. Even after the fountain and courtyard were completely buried, the fountain continued to provide water for the village fountains and numerous wells.
"Myth records two origins for the spring. In one, Poseidon's lover Peirene literally dissolved into tears when Artemis killed her son Kenchrias. The other attributes its creation to the hoof print of the winged horse Pegasus when he stamped in irritation on being bridled by Bellerophon."
The drawing at the upper center is a "Reconstruction of the Peirene Fountain in ancient Greek times" and the one at the upper right is a "Reconstruction of the Peirene Fountain in the Roman period" very similar to Dimitra's picture.
10:47 AM - Ancient Corinth: stonework on part of the Peirene Fountain (telephoto 130 mm).
10:47 AM - Ancient Corinth: stone with carving of man in boat.
10:50 AM - Ancient Corinth: Dimitra and MT in foreground; Rostra and Acrocorinth in background.
MT 10:52 AM - Ancient Corinth: MT and Don by Rostra with Acrocorinth in background.
MT 10:52 AM - Ancient Corinth: Don and MT with arch in northwest shops and top of Temple of Apollo behind it.
MT 10:52 AM -
Ancient Corinth: Don and MT with arch in northwest shops and top of Temple of
Apollo behind it.
10:54 AM - Ancient Corinth: view from main street toward Acrocorinth.
10:55 AM - Ancient Corinth: sign for "Road Network" of Archaeological Site; English text at bottom center reads:
"The route of the ancient traveler Pausanias through the Corinthian Forum at the 2nd century A.D., together with the results of the excavations conducted on the site by the American Archaeological School of Athens, give the modern visitor an idea about the main roadways of the ancient city from the classical to the roman period. At the same time, the modern visitor has the opportunity to see the remains of two main roads of the Roman city, the Lechaion and the Kenchraie road.
"The characteristic[s] of the roman urban planning are the large roads (avenues). They cross the city, intersect the center and end in the gates: the so called 'cardo', from north to south and the 'decumanus', from east to west. At the intersection of the main roads was situated the Agora, 'forum', i.e. the roman social and religious center, an open space, bordered by colonnades and monumental buildings."
The red lines are identified on the diagrams at the right are for the "Classical period (second half of the 5thth century B.C.)," the purple lines for the "Hellenistic period (first half of the 2nd century B.C)," and the blue lines for the "Roman period (2nd century A.D.)."
10:56 AM - Ancient Corinth: view toward Temple of Apollo.
10:57 AM - Ancient Corinth: MT, others, and Dimitra, holding picture of how Temple of Apollo looked.
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10:57 AM (Cropped) - Ancient Corinth: Dimitra, holding picture of how Temple of Apollo looked.
11:01 AM - Ancient Corinth: MT still listening to Dimitra, holding picture of how Temple of Apollo looked.
11:05 AM - Ancient Corinth: Temple of Apollo.
11:08 AM - Ancient Corinth: sign for "Temple of Apollo"; English text at bottom center reads:
"The seven standing columns of the Archaic temple are one of the most prominent landmarks of Corinth. Contrary to one's first impression, however, the view from this point is of back of the building. The dedication of the temple to Apollo is deduced from Pausanias' description of Corinth combined with a small plaque which was dedicated to Apollo and fount [found] in the area. Built in the middle of the 6th century B.C. to replace a destroyed 7th century predecessor, the temple is in Doric order and originally had six columns at each end and fifteen along each side. Notable characteristics of its archaic date include the great length of the temple relative to its width, the large monolithic columns, and the squat, widely flaring capitals.
"Although most of the mid-6th century B.C. building has been destroyed, the bedrock preserves cuttings made to receive the foundation blocks and thus allows a reconstruction of the temple's plan. The interior of the temple consists of a porch at either end and a long central part (the cella) divided into two rooms by a cross wall. The traditional reconstruction of the plan makes this cross wall a solid wall and provides access to the western room of the cella through the western door. Alternatively, the cross wall may have been pierced by a doorway, in which case the western room could have served as the inner shrine (an adyton). In any case, two rows of columns ran the length of the building within the interior.
"From the Archaic period, access to the hilltop was up a monumental staircase at the southwest corner of the hill. The Roman period, however, introduced many changes to the area. Access to the temple was now from the west. This change resulted from building activity on the other three sides of the hill which blocked off the earlier staircase and quarried into the sides of the hill. The Romans also carried out radical renovation of the temple itself. The interior columns were removed and some of them were set up in a row near the west end of the South Stoa where they are still standing."
The photo at top left is a "View of the temple from the south-west, 1909"; the diagram at the top right is of "Plan of the temple - Archaic period"; center right is "Plan of temple - Roman period (present condition)"; and bottom right is "Elevation of the west side of the Temple (present condition). The crepis, 5 of the 6 columns, and part of the epistyle are preserved."
MT 11:04 AM - Ancient Corinth: MT and Don by Temple of Apollo.
MT 11:06 AM - Ancient Corinth: MT and Don by Temple of Apollo.
11:07 AM - Ancient Corinth: near Temple of Apollo; Fountain of Glauke," where Dimitra said the second wife of Jason tried to wash off a poison cape from the first wife Medea.
A sign for
the “Fountain of Glauke,” which Don did not photograph, has the
following English inscription at bottom center:
“The fountain of Glauke, a large cubic mass of limestone, was formed when the surrounding bedrock was quarried away. Originally, the fountain was contained within a long limestone ridge running west from Temple Hill. Pausanias, who described his visit to Corinth ca. A.D. 150, reports that the fountain received its name from Glauke, daughter of Creon the King of Corinth and the second wife of the hero Jason. Medea, Jason’s first wife, in a fit of jealousy presented Glauke with a cloak infused with poison. After putting on the cloak, Glauke threw herself into the fountain in an unsuccessful attempt to stop the poison from burning her.
“Similar to the Fountain of Peirene, Glauke consists of four large reservoirs fronted by three draw basins and an architectural façade. Although this façade is now largely gone, still visible are the cuttings into which was inserted the parapet which formed the front of the draw basins. . . . Directly to the north of Glauke at the foot of the steps was a small courtyard paved with tiles in the Roman period.
“Unlike all other fountains in Corinth, Glauke does not exploit a natural spring but instead is fed by water piped in from a source somewhere to the south.”
“The fountain of Glauke, a large cubic mass of limestone, was formed when the surrounding bedrock was quarried away. Originally, the fountain was contained within a long limestone ridge running west from Temple Hill. Pausanias, who described his visit to Corinth ca. A.D. 150, reports that the fountain received its name from Glauke, daughter of Creon the King of Corinth and the second wife of the hero Jason. Medea, Jason’s first wife, in a fit of jealousy presented Glauke with a cloak infused with poison. After putting on the cloak, Glauke threw herself into the fountain in an unsuccessful attempt to stop the poison from burning her.
“Similar to the Fountain of Peirene, Glauke consists of four large reservoirs fronted by three draw basins and an architectural façade. Although this façade is now largely gone, still visible are the cuttings into which was inserted the parapet which formed the front of the draw basins. . . . Directly to the north of Glauke at the foot of the steps was a small courtyard paved with tiles in the Roman period.
“Unlike all other fountains in Corinth, Glauke does not exploit a natural spring but instead is fed by water piped in from a source somewhere to the south.”
10:10 AM - Ancient
Corinth: other side of Fountain of Glauke, with Archaeological Museum and
Acrocorinth in background, as we passed this on our way from the bus to the museum
at the beginning of our tour.
MT 10:18 AM - Ancient Corinth: Don with our guide Dimitra at the end of our tour.
Back of the Viking Sky, we ate our tuna lunch at the Pool Grill.
We went to the English Tea in the Wintergarden on Deck 7 from 4-5 pm. They served small sandwiches and pastries with our tea.
MT 4:30 PM – Viking Sky: MT and Don at English Tea.
Then we went to Manfredi's restaurant for our dinner reservation at 6 pm. We shared a table with two other couples. For his first course, Don had Caprese and tomato soup. For his main course, Don ordered "Gnocchi a la Romana," which was the strangest looking gnocchi he had ever seen.
7:15 PM - Viking Sky - Don's Gnocchi a la Romana at Manfredi's restaurant.
At 7:30, we met with a Viking representative to find out about possible future cruises, for which we could get a discount by booking on board. It was inconclusive.
At 8 pm, we went to Team Trivia in the Explorer's Lounge on Deck 7. We got only 8 of 20 questions correct (the winners got 17).
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