Delphi and Phokis : a Network Theory Approach

Abstract

Delphi was at the centre of a network of relations that extended across the entire Greek world. Connections, however, with the neighbouring territory of Phokis, were weak. Phokis did not enjoy long-term control over the sanctuary, as Elis did at Olympia, and the Phokians had no standing at Delphi any different from any other Greek state. Instead, a second and alternative zone of religious influence and elite display emerged on the other side of Phokis, in the vicinity of Elateia and Kalapodi. By examining the topography and the connectivity associated with sites and sanctuaries in eastern Phokis we can identify then two distinct but complementary zones: Delphi would become a panhellenic shrine precisely because its ties to neighbouring regions were loose and weak. Kalapodi, by contrast was at the centre of highly contested space, a line of fissure between rival local areas that would become three distinct and often antagonistic states: Phokis, Lokris and Boiotia.

Keywords

• Delphi
• Phocid
• network theory
• connectivity