The Column of the Naxians and the Sphinx
One of the most impressive exhibits of the Museum, the Sphinx of Naxos, has both artistic and historical value. Tons of marble from the island of Naxos were transported to Delphi where it was dedicated to the god of light in 570 BC. It served as a guardian within the sanctuary and indirectly represented the power and influence of the island of Naxos.
- the story
Τhe votive offering of the Naxians to Apollo was erected in front of the Polygonal Wall, on a small rock. The monument was composed by a big Ionic column (10 m.) surmounted by a colossal Sphinx. Both made of marble from the island of Naxos.
The base and some vertebrae from the column of the Naxians, where the Sphinx stood
Its solid construction conveyed a sense of motion and vitality. Notably, it was an early example of carving in-the-round, rather than the more common relief carving of that time.
The total height of this impressive monument, was almost thirteen meters! Today the Sphinx and some vertebrae from the column have been transferred to the Museum and are exhibited there. On the site we can see the base and some vertebrae from the column where the Sphinx stood.
The Sphinx was dedicated from the inhabitants of the island of Naxos (one of the richest Cycladic islands at the time) to the Sanctuary of Apollo around 570 B.C. On the round pedestal of the column is engraved an inscription: an honorary resolution of Delphi regarding the Naxians. Re-engraved later on 332 B.C., it mentions the privilege of Promanteia* in accordance with the inhabitants of Naxos by the Sanctuary of Apollo.
ΔΕΛΦΟΙ ΑΠΕΔΩΚΑΝ ΝΑΞΙΟΙΣ ΤΑΝ ΠΡΟΜΑΝΤΗΙΑΝ ΚΑΤΤΑ ΑΡΧΑΙΑ
ΑΡΧΟΝΤΟΣ ΘΕΟΛΥΤΟΥ ΒΟΥΛΕΥΟΝΤΟΣ ΕΠΙΓΕΝΕΟΣ
Delphi accorded the Naxians the right of Promanteia as before, at the time of archon Theolytos and Epigenes the Bouleutes
- the myth
The Sphinx is a mythical creature with the head of a human, the body of a lion, and the wings of an eagle. In Ancient Greece, the sphinx is a treacherous and merciless being with the head of a woman, the haunches of a lion, and the wings of a bird. According to Greek myth, she challenges those who encounter her to answer a riddle, and kills and eats them when they fail to solve the riddle. This deadly version of a sphinx appears in the myth and drama of Oedipus.
A Sphinx on a Attic red figure amphora. Attributed to the Achilles Painter, ca 450 – 440 B.C. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston).
highlight data
The emplacement of the Column of the Naxians inside the Sanctuary of Apollo
Bear in mind that the Sphinx was considered as a funerary monument in ancient times. This is not irrelevant in the case of the Sphinx of the Naxians: according to fondation myth of the Oracle of Apollo, on the very same place were situated the Tomb of Python and the sacred places (temple and oracle) of earlier cults of older deities, as Gaia (Earth).
