The Delphic Sibyl was a prophetess associated with early religious practices in

Ancient Greece Ancient Greece () was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity (), that comprised a loose collection of culturally and linguistically r ...

and is said to have been venerated from before the Trojan Wars as an important

oracle An oracle is a person or thing considered to provide insight, wise counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. If done through occultic means, it is a form of divination. Descript ...

. At that time

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 ...

was a place of worship for

Gaia In Greek mythology, Gaia (; , a poetic form of ('), meaning 'land' or 'earth'),, , . also spelled Gaea (), is the personification of Earth. Gaia is the ancestral mother—sometimes parthenogenic—of all life. She is the mother of Uranus (S ...

, the

mother goddess A mother goddess is a major goddess characterized as a mother or progenitor, either as an embodiment of motherhood and fertility or fulfilling the cosmological role of a creator- and/or destroyer-figure, typically associated the Earth, sky, ...

connected with fertility rituals that are thought to have existed throughout the ancient Mediterranean world. As needed to maintain the religious tradition, the role of

sibyl The sibyls were prophetesses or oracles in Ancient Greece. The sibyls prophet, prophesied at holy sites. A sibyl at Delphi has been dated to as early as the eleventh century BC by Pausanias (geographer), PausaniasPausanias 10.12.1 when he desc ...

would pass to another priestess at each site. The Delphic Sibyl was dated to as early as the eleventh century BC by Pausanias in his writings from the second century AD about local traditions. This Sibyl would have predated

Pythia Pythia (; ) was the title of the high priestess of the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo at Delphi. She specifically served as its oracle and was known as the Oracle of Delphi. Her title was also historically glossed in English as th ...

, the oracle and priestess of Apollo during the period of the religious traditions of

Archaic Greece Archaic Greece was the period in History of Greece, Greek history lasting from to the second Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BC, following the Greek Dark Ages and succeeded by the Classical Greece, Classical period. In the archaic period, the ...

, who is dated to the eighth century BC. Throughout the ancient Mediterranean world, there were several prophetic women called

Sibyl The sibyls were prophetesses or oracles in Ancient Greece. The sibyls prophet, prophesied at holy sites. A sibyl at Delphi has been dated to as early as the eleventh century BC by Pausanias (geographer), PausaniasPausanias 10.12.1 when he desc ...

s who were associated with religious centers. The Sibyl of

Dodona Dodona (; , Ionic Greek, Ionic and , ) in Epirus in northwestern Greece was the oldest Ancient Greece, Hellenic oracle, possibly dating to the 2nd millennium BCE according to Herodotus. The earliest accounts in Homer describe Dodona as an oracle ...

, was dated to the second millennium BC by

Herodotus Herodotus (; BC) was a Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus (now Bodrum, Turkey), under Persian control in the 5th century BC, and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria, Italy. He wrote the '' Histori ...

. A

famous among the Greek colonists living near

Naples, Italy Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

, was located at

Cumae Cumae ( or or ; ) was the first ancient Greek colony of Magna Graecia on the mainland of Italy and was founded by settlers from Euboea in the 8th century BCE. It became a rich Roman city, the remains of which lie near the modern village of ...

and she had a strong influence upon the Romans. Delphi was well known in these ancient times and was a location at which the Sibyls were venerated. Pausanias claimed that this Sibyl was "born between man and goddess, daughter of sea monsters and an immortal

nymph A nymph (; ; sometimes spelled nymphe) is a minor female nature deity in ancient Greek folklore. Distinct from other Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature; they are typically tied to a specific place, land ...

".Pausanias 10.12.3 He said that the Sibyl came from the

Troad The Troad ( or ; , ''Troáda'') or Troas (; , ''Trōiás'' or , ''Trōïás'') is a historical region in northwestern Anatolia. It corresponds with the Biga Peninsula ( Turkish: ''Biga Yarımadası'') in the Çanakkale Province of modern Tur ...

before the

Trojan War The Trojan War was a legendary conflict in Greek mythology that took place around the twelfth or thirteenth century BC. The war was waged by the Achaeans (Homer), Achaeans (Ancient Greece, Greeks) against the city of Troy after Paris (mytho ...

, "in wrath with her brother Apollo", lingered for a time at

Samos Samos (, also ; , ) is a Greek island in the eastern Aegean Sea, south of Chios, north of Patmos and the Dodecanese archipelago, and off the coast of western Turkey, from which it is separated by the Mycale Strait. It is also a separate reg ...

, visited Claros and

Delos Delos (; ; ''Dêlos'', ''Dâlos''), is a small Greek island near Mykonos, close to the centre of the Cyclades archipelago. Though only in area, it is one of the most important mythological, historical, and archaeological sites in Greece. ...

, and died in the Troad after surviving nine generations of humans. As religious traditions changed and the cult of Apollo gained prominence at Delphi, it was said that after her "death", she became a wandering voice who still brought tidings of the future to the ears of humans, while wrapped in dark riddles. The Delphic Sibyl experienced a revival in cultural depictions during the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

in the fifteenth century AD and appears prominently among the frescoes of

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (6March 147518February 1564), known mononymously as Michelangelo, was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was inspir ...

Sistine Chapel ceiling The Sistine Chapel ceiling (), painted in fresco by Michelangelo between 1508 and 1512, is a cornerstone work of High Renaissance Renaissance art, art. The Sistine Chapel is the large papal chapel built within the Vatican City, Vatican betwee ...

. This revival is thought to be due to a prophecy by the Delphic Sibyl that is believed to foreshadow the coming of

Christ Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Christianity, central figure of Christianity, the M ...

. In her prophecy a savior is prophesied who will be misjudged and shamed by unbelievers with a crown of thorns.

's rendering of the Delphic Sibyl is located opposite the depiction of the drunkenness of Noah, which also is said to have foreshadowed the shaming of Christ. Male prophets, called Bakis, also existed in the Graeco-Roman world; the most famous Bakis was at

Boeotia Boeotia ( ), sometimes Latinisation of names, Latinized as Boiotia or Beotia (; modern Greek, modern: ; ancient Greek, ancient: ), is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the modern regions of Greece, region of Central Greece (adm ...

References

*Goodrich, Norma Lorre, ''Priestesses'', 1990. * *Mitford, William, ''The History of Greece'', 1784. Cf. Chapter II, Religion of the Early Greeks. *Parke, Herbert William, ''History of the Delphic Oracle'', 1939. *Parke, Herbert William, ''Sibyls and Sibylline Prophecy'', 1988. * Pausanias
''Description of Greece''
(ed. and translated with commentary by Sir

James Frazer Sir James George Frazer (; 1 January 1854 – 7 May 1941) was a Scottish social anthropologist and folkloristJosephson-Storm (2017), Chapter 5. influential in the early stages of the modern studies of mythology and comparative religion. Per ...

), 1913 edition. Cf. v.5 *Potter, David Stone.
Prophecy and history in the crisis of the Roman Empire: a historical commentary on the Thirteenth Sibylline Oracle
', 1990. Cf. Chapter 3. * West, Martin Litchfield, ''The Orphic Poems'', 1983. Cf. especially p. 147.

External links

{{Commons category, Sibyl of Delphi
Suda: Delphic Sibyl
from Suda On-Line. The

Suda The ''Suda'' or ''Souda'' (; ; ) is a large 10th-century Byzantine Empire, Byzantine encyclopedia of the History of the Mediterranean region, ancient Mediterranean world, formerly attributed to an author called Soudas () or Souidas (). It is an ...

is a 10th-century Byzantine encyclopedia, incorporating earlier material.
Tim Spalding, "The Oracle of Delphi and ancient oracles"
An annotated guide.
The Oracle of Apollo
is an online tribute to the magic and mystery of the Delphic Oracle. Sibyls Ancient Greek religion

fr:Oracle grec#Apollon pythien

See also

References

External links