Tholos of Delphi

The circular wall of the cella, the central chamber of the building, was also crowned by a similar frieze, metopes, and triglyphs, but to a lesser extent.

Inside, a stone bench was positioned on which stood ten Corinthian style pilasters, all of them attached to the concave surface of the wall.

High reliefs ascribed the figures of the metopes, which contributed to being easily detached from the plates and be reused as building material and tomb covers in the early Christian years after they were smoothed over again.

Following strenuous and time-consuming efforts of specialists who attempted to agglutinate the fragments around the monument, we can today have at least an incomplete picture of its original form and the stylistic and decorative elements of its relief representations.

Despite their fragmentary nature, the architectural reliefs on the Dome of Delphi reveal the great skill of their creators, as regards both the treatment of materials – especially marble – and catching details with vitality and excellent anatomical accuracy.