Arcadian sanctuaries thirty years later: review of research

Abstract

This article presents a review of the research on the sanctuaries undertaken since the 1985 publication of Sanctuaires et cultes d'Arcadie by the present author. In the field, excavations were conducted at known sites and new locations were also explored. The publication of already known monuments allowed for a precise determination of their chronology and history. The identification of the sanctuaries is not based on Pausanias: more than twelve temples are not identifiable with sites described by the Periegetes. The most impressive discovery comes from the excavation of the Altar of Zeus on Mount Lykaion, which revealed an uninterrupted continuation of worship from the Mycenaean period until the end of the Classical era. Elsewhere, progress was made regarding the foundation of the sanctuaries and their dating.