The Treasury of the Sicyonians is one of the buildings within the sanctuary of Apollo in

Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), was an ancient sacred precinct and the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient Classical antiquity, classical world. The A ...

. It has a long and complicated history. The treasury itself replaced two former buildings, namely the tholos and the

monopteros A monopteros (Ancient Greek: , from: μόνος, 'only, single, alone', and , 'wing'), also called a monopteron or cyclostyle, is a circular colonnade supporting a roof but without any walls.Curl, James Stevens (2006). ''Oxford Dictionary of Archi ...

, built by the same city at an earlier stage within the 6th century. The earlier buildings were related to the Orthagorids of

Sicyon Sicyon (; ; ''gen''.: Σικυῶνος) or Sikyōn was an ancient Greek city state situated in the northern Peloponnesus between Corinth and Achaea on the territory of the present-day regional unit of Corinthia. The ruins lie just west of th ...

and particularly to the victories of the tyrant

Cleisthenes of Sicyon Cleisthenes ( ; ) was the tyrant of Sicyon from , who aided in the First Sacred War against Kirrha that destroyed that city in 595 BC. He was also said to have organized a successful war against Argos because of his anti- Dorian feelings. After ...

in the course of the

First Sacred War The First Sacred War, or Cirraean War, was fought between the Amphictyonic League of Delphi and the city of Kirrha. At the beginning of the 6th century BC the Pylaeo-Delphic Amphictyony, controlled by the Thessalians, attempted to take hold of t ...

and their replacement probably marks the change in tide in Sicyonian politics.

Description

The Sicyonian Treasury is in fact a generic name, signifying three different buildings of the 6th century BC.

The Tholos

The Tholos of the Sicyonians was probably the oldest construction, dating to ca 580 BC, and built right after the

at the instigation of the tyrant of Sicyon

Cleisthenes Cleisthenes ( ; ), or Clisthenes (), was an ancient Athenian lawgiver credited with reforming the constitution of ancient Athens and setting it on a democratic footing in 508 BC. For these accomplishments, historians refer to him as "the fath ...

, who was the most prominent leader in that war. It measured 6.3 meters at the base and 3.54 meters at the floor level and was surrounded by a colonnade consisting of 13

Doric columns The Doric order is one of the three orders of ancient Greek and later Roman architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian. The Doric is most easily recognized by the simple circular capitals at the top of t ...

and a Doric

architrave In classical architecture, an architrave (; , also called an epistyle; ) is the lintel or beam, typically made of wood or stone, that rests on the capitals of columns. The term can also apply to all sides, including the vertical members, ...

. The

cella In Classical architecture, a or naos () is the inner chamber of an ancient Greek or Roman temple. Its enclosure within walls has given rise to extended meanings: of a hermit's or monk's cell, and (since the 17th century) of a biological cell ...

was circular, made of ashlar masonry with a single door. The height of the walls was 4.04 meters. The shape of its roof is conjectural as nothing has been preserved.

The Monopteros

The Monopteros of the Sicyonians, as signified by its name, was a relatively small building (4×5 meters) with a single row of 14 columns (pteron). The columns were monolithic, i.e. they consisted of single blocks of limestone, and measured 2.78 meters in height; they supported the roof directly, without any intervening walls. The architrave was decorated with a frieze with scenes in relief, inspired by heroic themes. The discovery of these sculptures buried under the Treasury of the late sixth century helped scholars date the monopteros to ca. 560 BC. The building looked more like a shelter and thus it led to the conjecture that it hosted a precious and fragile

ex-voto An ex-voto is a votive offering to a saint or a divinity, given in fulfillment of a vow (hence the Latin term, short for ''ex voto suscepto'', "from the vow made") or in gratitude or devotion. The term is usually restricted to Christian example ...

, possibly the chariot with which Cleisthenes won at the first

Pythian Games The Pythian Games () were one of the four Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece. Founded circa the 6th century BCE, the festival was held in honor of the god Apollo and took place at his sanctuary in Delphi to commemorate the mytho-historic slayin ...

of 582 BC. The sculptures of the

metope A metope (; ) is a rectangular architectural element of the Doric order, filling the space between triglyphs in a frieze , a decorative band above an architrave. In earlier wooden buildings the spaces between triglyphs were first open, and ...

s of the monopteros constitute excellent specimens of archaic reliefs. They are inspired by mythology: the journey of

Phrixus In Greek mythology Phrixus (; also spelt Phryxus; means "standing on end, bristling") was the son of Athamas, king of Boeotia, and Nephele (a goddess of clouds). He was the older brother of Helle (mythology), Helle and the father of Argus (Gree ...

and Helle, the Argonauts' expedition, the abduction of

Europa Europa may refer to: Places * Europa (Roman province), a province within the Diocese of Thrace * Europa (Seville Metro), Seville, Spain; a station on the Seville Metro * Europa City, Paris, France; a planned development * Europa Cliffs, Alexan ...

Zeus Zeus (, ) is the chief deity of the List of Greek deities, Greek pantheon. He is a sky father, sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus. Zeus is the child ...

, the Dioskouroi, the hunt of the

Calydonian boar The Calydonian boar hunt is one of the great heroic adventures in Greek legend. It occurred in the generation prior to that of the Trojan War, and stands alongside the other great heroic adventure of that generation, the voyage of the Argonauts, ...

. The metopes were painted over in bright colours, creating a strong decorative impression.

The Treasury

The actual treasury was built in the Doric order and was

distyle in antis In classical architecture, distyle in antis denotes a temple with the side walls extending to the front of the porch and terminating with two antae, the pediment being supported by two columns or sometimes caryatids. This is the earliest ty ...

, with vestibule and

. It measured 8.27×6.24 meters and lay on a foundation made of porous stone quarried in

Corinthia Corinthia (; ) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the modern regions of Greece, region of Peloponnese (region), Peloponnese. It is situated around the city of Corinth, in the north-eastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Ge ...

. Its orientation was the same as that of the

Siphnian Treasury The Siphnian Treasury was a building at the Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek cult centre of Delphi, erected to host the offerings of the polis, or city-state, of Sifnos, Siphnos. It was one of a number of treasuries lining the "Sacred Way", the proc ...

to which it was probably contemporary (ca. 525 BC). The monument was visible from the entrance to the sanctuary. Historians believe that it was constructed by the demos of Sicyon when the Orthagorids were forced to demise, in order to mark the change in Sicyonian politics. Despite the fact that the two former buildings were deliberately destroyed, their architectural members were not dispersed or reused, but rather buried under the foundations of the Treasury.Nenna, M.-D., Laroche, D., 1990,"Le trésor de Sicyone et ses fondations", BCH 114, pp. 241–284

References

Bibliography

*Bommelaer, J.-F., Laroche, D., 1991, Guide de Delphes. Le site, pp. 119–122. *Nenna, M.-D., Laroche, D., 1990,"Le trésor de Sicyone et ses fondations", BCH 114, pp. 241–284

External links

*Didier Laroche's homepage: http://didier.laroche.pagesperso-orange.fr/tresor_Sicyoniens.html {{Authority control Ancient Greek buildings and structures in Delphi Sicyon Buildings and structures completed in the 6th century BC