From Marathon to Athens: The Egyptian Sanctuary in Ancient Greece

My first encounter with Ancient Greece was when I was around five or six years old, staring up at a screen watching Disney’s 'Hercules', a title that these days I wish I could correct to 'Heracles'. Anyway, the scene where the young hero walks into the temple of Zeus, the lanterns flicker, and the statue comes to life was always my favourite, and I never forgot the sense of awe it left me with. Fast forward to age twenty-eight, a whole Greek pottery collection, mythological library, and a fourteen thousand word dissertation on Homer’s Iliad later, and I finally got the chance to go to Greece.

The dominant Ancient Greek presence in my home office.

This blog series will cover each of the sites I was able to visit during my week-long trip to Marathon/Athens. Each post will cover a different site or location, and not only the historical or mythological significance, but also how it felt to be there. This is by no means a historical lecture on the history of every column or bronze statue, but a record of my own experience, so that I, too, can process my time in these incredible sites.

After arriving at Athens international airport, my first glimpse of the Grecian countryside was during a winding taxi ride through the mountains, past the famous Mount Pentelicus, from which the marble for the Parthenon was quarried. Along the way, the driver pointed out all the blackened tree stumps and areas where the soil was barren from recent fires. But despite the number of scorch marks littered across the hillsides, all I could see was the beauty all around, the wild poppies growing on the side of slopes, the roads curling all the way down to the sea.

Eventually, our scenic glimpse of Attica came to an end, and we arrived at our hotel in Nea Makri. For most people, the first day of a trip is an opportunity to get used to the surroundings and explore the hotel and its amenities, but the moment I arrived, I dumped my bags in the hotel reception, checked my watch, and made my way to the beachfront, hoping I would not be too late to see the first archaeological site of my trip, the Sanctuary of the Egyptian Gods at Brexiza.

An unusual site to find in Ancient Greece, the sanctuary and accompanying baths were built in 160 AD by Roman senator Herodes Atticus between the Marathon beachfront and the wetlands of Brexiza. Herodes Atticus was Greek by birth, held particular influence in the Roman Empire under Emperors Hadrian and Marcus Aurelius. The Athenian inherited a vast fortune from his father and used it to construct sites such as the Egyptian Sanctuary and an amphitheatre on the southwest slope of the Acropolis.

The Odeon of Herodes Atticus, built in 161 AD as a memorial to his late wife.

Before arriving in Greece, the Sanctuary of the Egyptian Gods in Brexiza was one of the sites I had most anticipated, largely because of how peculiar it seemed. To find the various links between Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece is not too difficult a task. There are the conquests of Alexander the Great, whose vast Macedonian Empire conquered Persia and made him the Pharaoh of Egypt. Then there are parallels and similarities between the respective Gods and Goddesses, with Isis often compared to Demeter, Osiris with Dionysus, and the King of the Olympian Gods, Zeus, famously referred to as Zeus Amun at the Oracle of Siwa in the Libyan Desert, during Alexander's visit in 331 BCE.

As you first walk into the site through the tall green metal gate, past the attendant’s booth, you are immediately welcomed by the remains of the old bathhouse and its impressive, rounded corridor. Yet despite the impressive architecture and elaborate details, the first thing that struck me about this site was its sense of scale and weight. I do not mean that there were gigantic structures or towering monuments, but rather the vastness of the grounds, the sprawling marshland, the clear view of the mountains beyond, and the sense of the ocean hidden behind natural walls of bamboo.

Marathon Beach

As you walk away from the Roman baths down a long stretch of grass, you are welcomed by the imposing presence of the statues of Isis and Osiris on either side of an old gateway, leading you into the heart of the sanctuary. Both of the remarkable figures are replicas, with the original monuments, as well as all the other artefacts found in the sanctuary, being housed in the Archaeological Museum of Marathon, which I visited later in my trip. Seeing the genuine artefacts, as well as the remains of marble archways from the site, really illustrate the grandeur and sense of luxury the site promoted.

Isis (Left) & Osiris (Right).

This photo and the ones below are just some of the artefacts found at the site, now housed in the Archaeological Museum of Marathon. Seeing the regal marble entranceways, elaborate sculptures, and statues really illustrates the grandeur the site must have imposed in its day.

Statue of Antinous-Osiris by the sanctuary porch.

Statue of the God Horus depicted as a falcon.

Egyptian Sphinx, a smiling figure starkly contrasting the sphinx depicted in Greek Mythology.

Damaged head of Herodes Atticus, found near the Tumulus of the Athenians, housed today in the Marathon Archaeological Museum,

The Sanctuary of the Egyptian Gods at Brexiza remains one of the most unique sites I encountered, and I visited twice during my trip simply to take it all in. If you ever get the chance, walk slowly around the grounds and take in the presence of the mountains ahead, and the proximity of the sea behind.

In my next post, I will be moving from 161 AD back to 490 BCE, exploring the different sites connected to the Battle of Marathon.

Brexiza Wetland