Posted on 08/07/2011 11:09:34 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
...the rituals and divine utterances of Apollo's oracle at Delphi were subjects recorded and commented upon by numerous ancient writers through the centuries, including Pliny the Elder, Diodorus Siculus, Plato, Aeschylus, Cicero, Strabo and Plutarch, a Boeotian native who gained fame in late 1st century AD Rome for his essays and biographies, provides a firsthand account of the oracle at Delphi. As a senior priest who long served in the sanctuary, Plutarch recorded detailed observations of the Pythian priestess's trance-like, occasionally erratic behavior during sacred rituals... a multidisciplinary team of specialists in the late 20th century uncovered tangible proof that affirmed the historical text's remarkable accuracy... Archaeologist John Hale assembled a multidisciplinary team, including a geologist, a chemist and a toxicologist, that re-examined Delphi's landscape and pieced together a fascinating explanation.
Delphi rests on bituminous limestone, with two subterranean faults that meet directly beneath the Apollo temple. Periodic shifting of these faults in antiquity probably created friction and heat that released petrochemicals in the limestone in the form of vapor. Geological coring also revealed a natural spring uphill from the temple, previously attested by Pausanias in the 2nd century AD. Analysis of the water led to the discovery of ethylene, a sweet-smelling gas, which in ancient times must have been a component not only of the local spring but also of the rising vapors. Anesthesiologists previously experimented with ethylene in the mid-20th century, during which they discovered a trance-like state could be induced. Larger doses caused unconsciousness. Occasionally, test patients became incoherent and convulsive. Ethylene gas, then, seems to be the secret behind the Pythian priestess's behavior. Over the last decade, the scientific findings of Hale and his collaborators have revolutionized the understanding of Apollo's oracle at Delphi and reaffirmed the credibility of ancient observers.
(Excerpt) Read more at ekathimerini.com ...
Travel in the Ancient WorldA gifted faker name Alexander founded an oracle in a backwater on the south shore of the Black Sea. Here, for stiff prices, a talking serpent he had rigged up answered questions for the local hayseeds... (p 135)
by Lionel Casson
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This is assuming the smoking crack was real and not special effects and the strange oracular behavior and cryptic utterances weren’t all for show.
One thing is for sure. These operations were huge money spinners.
How much of this is under Washington DC?
There is a lot of gas, but it sure isn't ethylene
In DC, it’s more like, “speak into the magic oracle”...
Over a hundred years ago, during the debunking golden age, a French archaeologist went to Delphi and supposedly dug on the site, disproving once and for all that any of the ancient description was correct.
No one challenged this view for about a century.
Then a geologist from (I think) the Netherlands visited the site for a survey, noted the larger of the two faults ran right directly through the center of the temple (the long axis), and without worrying about a thing, published the results.
He bumped into a prof from the US who told him that had all been disproved long ago, and upbraided the latter by pointing out that he was a geologist who had been on the site for a good while, so how’s about shuttin’ yer trap. (Made that up) He actually said, go see for yourself, it’s clear and obvious, anyone can see it, and you’ll be surprised that no one had noticed it before.
All correct.
The second fault is smaller, and crosses the larger one at approx right angle — right where the pythoness used to sit.
The faults used to have water perking out of them, and releasing the gases (which probably were the force behind the water bubbling out). The identity of the gases was determined by geological studies along the fault lines, approved by the Greek gov’t.
:’) And there was probably a buffet. Hey, temple construction was not cheap.
Her sister huffed half of it. ;’)
(time index set to the Delphi segment)Mysteries of the Ancient World - Myths and Legends (at 43:15)
March 13, 2016 | Questar Entertainment
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