One day, her beloved daughter, Persephone or Kore, literally disappeared from the face of the earth, throwing Demeter into deep mourning. The main protagonist is Demeter, the goddess of the earth, of agricultural fertility, responsible for plants bearing fruit and animals bearing offspring. In Greek mythology, Eleusis was a place of unique significance, a location where the fates of gods and humans met and connected. The abduction of Persephone is dramatically shown in this superb wall painting from the Macedonian royal tombs at Vergina/Aigai. The third, uniting the two previous strands, is archaeology, what remains there, what there is to see now.
Arising from that is the second story, history, how the Greeks expressed or commemorated those beliefs and what rites they performed at Eleusis. One, and perhaps the most important, is myth, what the ancient Greeks believed happened at Eleusis and why that mattered to them. Or, to be more exact, a great story made of three interconnected narratives. But there is more to the place: entering its centre, one encounters a quiet early-20th town, the name betraying its very ancient origins: This is Eleusis, one of the most sacred places in the ancient world and one of the key archaeological sites in Greece.Įleusis is one of the many highlights on our Exploring Athens tour, an atmospheric and intriguing place where we have a great story to tell.
Half an hour's drive from central Athens, along the main motorway that links the Greek capital with the south and west of the country, lies the suburb of Elefsina, known today for its petrol refineries, which are the main feature visible when driving by. The paved square outside the sanctuary of Eleusis, with the great propylon (gatehouse) in the middle and the "entrance to the Underworld" in the background.
0 kommentar(er)
