{"id":18373,"date":"2018-09-11T20:44:16","date_gmt":"2018-09-11T19:44:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.roger-pearse.com\/weblog\/?p=18373"},"modified":"2018-09-11T20:44:16","modified_gmt":"2018-09-11T19:44:16","slug":"the-last-oracle-of-delphi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/roger-pearse.com\/weblog\/2018\/09\/11\/the-last-oracle-of-delphi\/","title":{"rendered":"The last oracle of Delphi"},"content":{"rendered":"

The oracle of Apollo at Delphi was perhaps the\u00a0most famous of the Greek oracles.\u00a0 It was\u00a0known throughout the Greek and Hellenistic world.\u00a0 It continued to exist in Roman times, doubtless in a somewhat artificially preserved\u00a0way.\u00a0 But Apollo ceased to speak to men as Christianity took hold, just as the other oracles also fell silent.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The last oracle delivered by the god has in fact come down to us.\u00a0A messenger sent by Julian the Apostate returned with the following oracle.\u00a0 Delivered in hexameters it reads:<\/p>\n

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\u1f14\u03c0\u03b1\u03c4\u03b5 \u03c4\u1ff7 \u03b2\u03b1\u03c3\u03b9\u03bb\u03b5\u0303\u03b9\u0387 \u03c7\u03b1\u03bc\u03b1\u1f76 \u03c0\u1f73\u03c3\u03b5 \u03b4\u03b1\u1f77\u03b4\u03b1\u03bb\u03bf\u03c2 \u03b1\u1f50\u03bb\u1f71.<\/span>
\n\u03bf\u1f50\u03ba\u1f73\u03c4\u03b9 \u03a6\u03bf\u1fd6\u03b2\u03bf\u03c2 \u1f14\u03c7\u03b5\u03b9 \u03ba\u03b1\u03bb\u1f7b\u03b2\u03b1\u03bd, \u03bf\u1f50 \u03bc\u1f71\u03bd\u03c4\u03b9\u03b4\u03b1 \u03b4\u1f71\u03c6\u03bd\u03b7\u03bd,<\/span>
\n\u03bf\u1f50 \u03c0\u03b1\u03b3\u1f70\u03bd \u03bb\u03b1\u03bb\u1f73\u03bf\u03c5\u03c3\u03b1\u03bd, \u1f00\u03c0\u1f73\u03c3\u03b2\u03b5\u03c4\u03bf \u03ba\u03b1\u1f76 \u03bb\u1f71\u03bb\u03bf\u03bd \u1f55\u03b4\u03c9\u03c1.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tell the emperor that the Daidalic hall has fallen.
\nNo longer does Phoebus have his chamber, nor mantic laurel,
\nnor prophetic spring and the speaking water has been silenced.1<\/a><\/sup><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It is, perhaps, a plea for imperial patronage.\u00a0 But the\u00a0brevity of the\u00a0reign of Julian doubtless precluded any such revival.\u00a0 All the same, a law of 424 suggests that the games at Delphi were still being celebrated even then (Cod. Theodosianus 15.5.4), showing that at least some of the original institutions around the temple were still in being, a generation after the edict of Theodosius I which abolished paganism, in law at least.<\/p>\n

The last oracle of Delphi was preserved in the Church History<\/em> of Philostorgius the Arian, who died ca. 426 AD.\u00a0 Philostorgius’ work itself has not survived, but it still existed, in twelve books and two volumes, when Photius reviewed it in his Myriobiblion<\/em> in the 9th century.\u00a0 Photius did more; he wrote an epitome of its contents which has reached us.\u00a0 The modern GCS editor, Bidez, added to this fragments from various sources.<\/p>\n

Philip Amidon has made a translation of this, assembled from various sources, and the full context is worth giving.\u00a0 From book 7:<\/p>\n

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1b [AP 22].\u00a0 When Julian had become master of the Roman Empire, as was said, his keenest desire was to restore paganism. He therefore sent letters to every place ordering that all haste and zeal should be applied to rebuilding the pagan temples and altars.<\/p>\n

[AP 35: Artemius speaks to Julian]. Know therefore that the strength and power of Christ is invincible and unconquerable. You yourself are certainly convinced of this from the oracles that the physician and quaestor Oribasius recently brought you from the Apollo in Delphi. But I will repeat the oracle to you, whether you wish to hear it or not. It runs as follows:<\/p>\n

Go tell the king the wondrous hall is fallen to the ground.
\nNow Phoebus has a cell no more, no laurel that foretells,
\nNo talking spring; the water that once spoke is heard no more.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The edition of Bidez added fragments under each section of the epitome; these are taken from the 9th century\u00a0Artemii Passio<\/em>, the Martyrdom of St Artemius<\/em> by John the Monk, which preserves sections of the text.2<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n

The oracle is also preserved in the Byzantine historian, George Cedrenus.\u00a0 It may be found\u00a0on p.532 of volume 1 of the Bonn edition.\u00a0 Sadly we still await the Australian translation of this useful work.<\/p>\n

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He sent Oribasius his doctor and quaestor to Delphi, to renew the oracle of Apollo.\u00a0 When he arrived and began the work, he received this oracle from the demon: …<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

(Curiously the Latin translation of the oracle in the Bonn edition contains material at the start and end which is not in the Greek; perhaps Bekker, the editor, included a pre-existing paraphrase?)<\/p>\n

Did the oracle speak again?\u00a0 It would be rash to suppose that it did not.\u00a0 But this is the last oracle known to us, and it speaks of the sanctuary fallen and the oracle silent.\u00a0 However much the passing of superstition benefits mankind, to the antiquarian this is a melancholy picture.<\/p>\n\t\t\t