The temple of Apollo in Ancient Corinth

The temple on the plateau of the rocky hill of the archaeological site of ancient Corinth is identified with the temple of the god Apollo mentioned in the sources. The original temple, dating from the early 7th to the early 6th century BC, was constructed of stone, brick, and wooden beams, with a roof made of terracotta tiles. It was likely a simple construction without external columns, although some suggest it had a peristyle. Around the middle of the 6th century BC, a new Doric-style temple was built on the site of the previous destroyed one. The new temple had a peristyle with six columns on the narrow sides and fifteen on the long sides, oriented along the East-West axis. The building consisted of a pronaos and an opisthodomos, with two columns in antis, and a cella with two rooms, separated by a transverse solid wall, with a possible intermediate opening. The western room is identified as a treasury. Two rows of columns ran through the two rooms of the cella but were removed during the Roman period when the temple underwent significant renovation. Part of the eastern wing was destroyed due to the construction of the residence of the Ottoman Bey of Corinth. Pictured: The Temple of Apollo in ancient Corinth in 1890. ©Municipal Photography Museum of Kalamaria ‘Christos Kalemkeris’.