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Athens and the sacred places of Greece

Where Epicurus, Plato, Aristotle and Zeno taught, and where the Greeks went to consult an oracle, be healed or be initiated.

11 min read · Updated 11 November 2026 · Last checked 11 November 2026

How to use the maps #

Each map has numbered markers. Select a marker, or an item in the list beneath it, and the details appear. The tick boxes show or hide a kind of place. The two maps work with the keyboard, and the full list under each map is there whatever your browser does with the script.

Treat every position as ‘near here’. The coordinates were entered by hand from published locations and were not surveyed or checked on the ground. Each entry says how sure it is, and the Garden of Epicurus is shown with a dashed outline because nobody knows where it stood. The maps draw coastlines from public-domain Natural Earth data. The Athens map also shows modern roads, parks and metro stations from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database Licence), drawn in grey and green for orientation only, with the names of metro stations, main streets and a few modern landmarks. On the map of Greece, the modern towns and Mount Olympus are there for orientation too. Both maps are drawn into the page itself and make no requests to any map service, so nothing about your visit is sent anywhere.

Classical and Hellenistic Athens #

The philosophical schools of Athens were not in the city centre. Plato’s Academy and Aristotle’s Lyceum were gymnasia outside the walls, and the Garden of Epicurus lay on the road between the city’s north-western gate and the Academy.1 Only the Stoics took their name from a place inside the city, the Painted Stoa on the Agora.2 The map shows how close together these places were: the Academy and the Lyceum are about 4 km apart.3

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Map of central Athens showing the philosophical schools and the main civic and sacred landmarks Eight numbered markers. Plato’s Academy lies to the north-west, Aristotle’s Lyceum to the east, and the Agora, the Stoa of Attalos, the Painted Stoa, the Acropolis and the Kerameikos in between. The Garden of Epicurus is marked with a dashed outline because its site is not known. 23.71°E 23.72°E 23.73°E 23.74°E 37.98°N 37.99°N 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Central Athens. Markers are numbered as in the list below; circles are philosophical schools and squares are civic and sacred landmarks. The grey roads, green parks and small rings (metro stations) are modern, from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL) and are there for orientation only; ancient streets and walls are not shown. Distances are true and every position is approximate.

Select a marker to see its details here.

  1. Plato’s Academy Ἀκαδημία

    Philosophical schools · traditionally from about 387 BCE

    A grove and gymnasium outside the city walls to the north-west, named for the hero Hekademos. Plato taught here, and the school he founded took its name from the place. Some remains lie in a park today.45

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 37.9944°N, 23.7083°E.

  2. Aristotle’s Lyceum Λύκειον

    Philosophical schools · Aristotle’s school from 335 BCE (traditional)

    A sanctuary of Apollo Lykeios and a gymnasium on the eastern side of the city, where Aristotle taught after returning to Athens in 335 BCE. A large building found in 1996 beside Rigillis Street has been identified by its excavator as a palaestra of the Lyceum.67

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 37.9752°N, 23.7458°E.

  3. The Garden of Epicurus (site not known) Κῆπος

    Philosophical schools · bought about 307/306 BCE

    Epicurus bought a house with a garden just outside the city, on the road from the Dipylon gate to the Academy. The exact site has not been found, so this marker is a placeholder halfway along that road and should not be taken as a find-spot. Epicurus’ own house was in the district of Melite, south of the Agora.891011

    Uncertain: the real site is not known. 37.9865°N, 23.7097°E.

  4. The Painted Stoa (Stoa Poikile) Στοὰ ποικίλη

    Philosophical schools · built in the fifth century BCE; Zeno taught here from the early third

    A colonnade on the north side of the Agora, famous for its paintings. Zeno of Citium taught Stoicism here, and the Stoics took their name from it. The marker is on the north side of the Agora, not at a surveyed point.1213

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 37.9760°N, 23.7222°E.

  5. The Ancient Agora Ἀγορά

    Civic and sacred landmarks · from the sixth century BCE

    The civic, commercial and social centre of ancient Athens, on the north-west slope of the Acropolis. American School of Classical Studies excavations began in 1931 and continue.14

    A known site, but the point is still approximate. 37.9750°N, 23.7225°E.

  6. The Stoa of Attalos Στοὰ Ἀττάλου

    Civic and sacred landmarks · built 159–138 BCE

    A two-storey Hellenistic colonnade with shops, given to Athens by Attalos II of Pergamon. It was rebuilt in 1952–56 and now houses the Museum of the Ancient Agora, so the building you see today is a reconstruction.15

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 37.9748°N, 23.7237°E.

  7. The Acropolis and the Parthenon Ἀκρόπολις

    Civic and sacred landmarks · Parthenon built in the fifth century BCE

    The rock above the city, with its temples. The Acropolis was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.1617

    A known site, but the point is still approximate. 37.9715°N, 23.7267°E.

  8. Kerameikos and the Dipylon gate Κεραμεικός

    Civic and sacred landmarks · gate in the city walls built in the 470s BCE

    The potters’ quarter and burial ground in the north-west of the city, with the large Dipylon gate in the walls. The road to Plato’s Academy began here.18

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 37.9783°N, 23.7112°E.

Greek sacred places #

Nine sanctuaries chosen to show the range of ancient Greek religion: oracles, the great festivals, mystery cults, healing, and temples of a single god. It is a small selection and leaves out many important places. Several of these sites are UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and the year of inscription is given where it is.19

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Map of Greece showing nine ancient sacred places Nine numbered markers: the oracles at Delphi and Dodona, the festival sites at Olympia and Delos, the mystery sanctuaries at Eleusis and Samothrace, the healing sanctuary at Epidaurus, and the temples at Bassae and Sounion. 20.0°E 21.0°E 22.0°E 23.0°E 24.0°E 25.0°E 26.0°E 38.0°N 39.0°N 40.0°N GREECE IONIAN SEA AEGEAN SEA 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Greece and the Aegean. Markers are numbered as in the list below, with a different shape for each kind of place. Every position is approximate.

Select a marker to see its details here.

  1. Delphi Δελφοί

    Oracles · sanctuary of Apollo; a main Panhellenic sanctuary

    At the foot of Mount Parnassus, the site of the Temple of Apollo and the oracle. The Greeks thought of it as the ‘navel of the world’. It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.2021

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 38.4825°N, 22.5010°E.

  2. Dodona Δωδώνη

    Oracles · one of the oldest Greek oracle sites

    In Epirus, a sanctuary of Zeus where priests are said to have read the future from the rustling of a sacred oak.22

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 39.5466°N, 20.7871°E.

  3. Olympia Ὀλυμπία

    Games and festivals · Games traditionally from 776 BCE

    The sanctuary of Zeus in the western Peloponnese, with temples of Zeus and Hera and the buildings of the Olympic Games, which were held here every four years. Inscribed by UNESCO in 1989.2324

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 37.6384°N, 21.6300°E.

  4. Delos Δῆλος

    Games and festivals · sacred island of Apollo

    In Greek myth the island where Apollo was born. It has no permanent residents today and is an open archaeological site. Inscribed by UNESCO in 1990.2526

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 37.3963°N, 25.2678°E.

  5. Eleusis Ἐλευσίς

    Mystery cults · centre of the Eleusinian Mysteries

    West of Athens, the sanctuary of Demeter and Persephone. Its Telesterion was the central building of the Eleusinian Mysteries.27

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 38.0423°N, 23.5393°E.

  6. Samothrace: Sanctuary of the Great Gods Μεγάλοι Θεοί

    Mystery cults · in use from the seventh century BCE

    On an island in the north-east Aegean, a sanctuary of the Great Gods where people were initiated into a mystery cult. The Greek Ministry of Culture describes it as dedicated to mysterious deities since the seventh century BCE.2829

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 40.4999°N, 25.5258°E.

  7. Epidaurus: Sanctuary of Asklepios Ἐπίδαυρος

    Healing · healing sanctuary of Asklepios

    A sanctuary of the healing god Asklepios, with temples and buildings for the sick, and a famous theatre. UNESCO says it gives insight into the healing cults of Greek and Roman times. Inscribed in 1988.3031

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 37.5968°N, 23.0788°E.

  8. Bassae: Temple of Apollo Epikourios Βάσσαι

    Temples of a god · Temple of Apollo Epicurius

    A temple of Apollo in the mountains of Arcadia. It was the first Greek site to be inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, in 1986.32

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 37.4297°N, 21.9018°E.

  9. Sounion: Temple of Poseidon Σούνιον

    Temples of a god · sanctuary of Poseidon

    On the cape at the southern tip of Attica, a temple dedicated to Poseidon. The Greek Ministry of Culture’s heritage platform lists it as an archaeological site dedicated to the god.33

    Approximate: within a few hundred metres, not surveyed. 37.6502°N, 24.0244°E.

The data #

The points are in two standard GeoJSON files that you can open in any mapping program: athens_plan.geojson and greek_sacred_places.geojson. Each point has a name, the Greek name, a category, a period, a short description, a note on how accurate the position is, the sources, and the date it was last checked. Positions are longitude then latitude, as the GeoJSON standard requires.34

These files are our own compilation, and the descriptions are written in our own words from the sources cited on each entry. They are offered for reading and for your own use. Coordinates for ancient sites differ between sources, so check any you rely on.

Notes

  1. William Morison, 'The Garden of Epicurus', Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Location and Use. ↩
  2. Patrick Comerford, 'The Stoa of Attalos', blog post, 30 August 2017. ↩
  3. The straight-line distance between the two markers, which are themselves approximate. Calculated from the coordinates in the data file. ↩
  4. Edmund Stewart, 'The First Universities? Ancient Greek Philosophical Schools', Antigone (2025). ↩
  5. Tim Whitmarsh, 'The Archaeology of Atheism in Ancient Athens', Biblical Archaeology Review (online). ↩
  6. 'The Lyceum', Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. ↩
  7. Stewart 2025. ↩
  8. Morison, IEP, Location and Use. ↩
  9. Cicero, On Ends (De finibus bonorum et malorum, 45 BCE), 5.1.3. ↩
  10. Diogenes Laertius, Lives of the Eminent Philosophers, Book X (Epicurus), trans. R. D. Hicks (Loeb Classical Library, 1925), 10.10; 10.17. ↩
  11. Whitmarsh. ↩
  12. Hellenic Ministry of Culture and the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, Ancient Agora: Museum of the Stoa of Attalos (visitor guide). ↩
  13. Comerford 2017. ↩
  14. Agora guide. ↩
  15. Agora guide. ↩
  16. 'List of World Heritage Sites in Greece', Wikipedia. ↩
  17. Hellenic Ministry of Culture, Hellenic Heritage platform. ↩
  18. Whitmarsh. ↩
  19. Wikipedia, WHS Greece. ↩
  20. Wikipedia, WHS Greece. ↩
  21. Hellenic Heritage. ↩
  22. AroundUs, 'Archaeological sites in Greece'. ↩
  23. Culture Trip, 'Greece's Most Spectacular UNESCO World Heritage Sites'. ↩
  24. Hellenic Heritage. ↩
  25. Greeka, 'UNESCO sites list of Greece and the islands'. ↩
  26. Elxis, 'UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Greece'. ↩
  27. AroundUs. ↩
  28. Greek City Times, 'Samothrace's Sanctuary of the Great Gods Set for Major Restoration' (18 July 2025). ↩
  29. 'Samothrace temple complex', Wikipedia. ↩
  30. Culture Trip. ↩
  31. Wikipedia, WHS Greece. ↩
  32. Wikipedia, WHS Greece. ↩
  33. Hellenic Heritage. ↩
  34. H. Butler and others, The GeoJSON Format, RFC 7946 (IETF, 2016). ↩

Ancient sources cited

Modern works cited

Cite this page. The Garden, ‘Maps: Athens and the sacred places of Greece’, https://camelmaps.org/garden/heritage-maps.php, last updated 11 November 2026, last checked 11 November 2026. What has changed.

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