MS 500
Decline
A temple sinking into silence
Klaros’ta zaman geriye akar.
Scroll down
MS 180
Roman grandeur
The columns rise again
MÖ 300
Hellenistic age
The voice of the god returns
Where the god once spoke
In the Ahmetbeyli valley of Menderes, Izmir, Klaros was the sanctuary of the city of Colophon and an oracle dedicated to Apollo Clarius.
Counted among the three great oracles of antiquity alongside Delphi and Didyma, Klaros drew delegations from across the Mediterranean. At midnight, through a priest who drank from the sacred spring, pilgrims heard the voice of the god.
EXPLORE
Discover the story, step by step
History
From Proto-Geometric pottery to Roman grandeur and silence.
Timeline →
Mythology
Manto, Mopsus and the oracle heard at midnight.
Legends →
Archaeology
From beneath earth and water to the light: discovery and restoration.
Excavations →
Visit
How to reach the sacred valley and what to see.
Plan →Chronology
Klaros through the ages
From Proto-Geometric pottery to Roman grandeur, the rise of an oracle and its sinking into silence beneath the alluvium.
10th–8th c. BCE
First traces
Pottery found between the altar and the temple shows the valley's sacred role reaches back to the Proto-Geometric age.
7th–6th c. BCE
The oracle is born
The cult of Apollo Clarius is established; first a round, then a great rectangular altar is built.
3rd c. BCE
Hellenistic temple
A monumental Doric temple and a labyrinthine adyton rise, with colossal statues of Apollo, Artemis and Leto.
2nd–3rd c. CE
Roman grandeur
The oracle rivals Delphi and Didyma, with delegations from across the Mediterranean.
4th c. CE onward
Silence
The spread of Christianity and the alluvium of the Ales stream bury the sanctuary for centuries.
The oracle
How the voice of the god was heard
At full moon, a procession with torches and laurel; the underground labyrinth and the sacred spring.
Adyton
Descent into darkness
While pilgrims waited above, only the priest descended into the narrow, vaulted underground chamber.
Sacred spring
Drinking the water
According to Pliny, the priest who drank from the sacred spring gained the gift of prophecy, but paid for it with his years.
Full moon
The night rite
Seven youths and seven maidens entered the temple with torches and laurel; hymns were sung before the altar.
Cella
Before the god
A seated Apollo holding his lyre, with standing Artemis and Leto; marble figures over eight metres tall met the visitor.
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
From today to tomorrow: a cultural bridge built between history and the future.
Supported by Saya Holding
Visit the sacred valley
The oracle of Apollo awaits in Menderes, Izmir.