Landscape and the Cosmos in the Apolline Rites of Delphi, Delos and Dreros, Efrosyni Boutsikas
Review
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Earlier work has argued that the time for the consultation of Apollo’s oracle in
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13 Delphi was signalled by the heliacal rising of the constellation of Delphinus.1 This
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14 paper tests this idea in three ways: firstly, by applying it to the timing of known
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15 rituals and sacrifices that took place outside Delphi in preparation for the de-
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16 parture of processions sent to Delphi for the annual oracular consultation;
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17 secondly, the paper investigates the foundation myth and landscape of the
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18 sanctuary of Apollo in Delos in association with the timing of the major cult rites,
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19 as well as the landscape of the Cretan sanctuary of Apollo in Dreros. The aim is to
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20 investigate whether the landscape and positioning of the key structures in these
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21 sanctuaries can be associated with specific astronomical observations of Del-
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22 phinus, which could have signalled the arrival of key moments in the year of
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23 religious significance in the sanctuaries in question. Finally, the timing of major
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24 festivals held in Delphi, Athens, Delos and Dreros is plotted against the timing of
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25 the major phases of Delphinus in order to infer whether these cult rites can be
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26 associated with the movement of the constellation.