ΧΑΪΔΑΡΙ ΧΑΪΔΑΡΙ - ΣΥΝΑΝΤΗΣΗ ΜΕ ΤΗΝ ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑ | Page 70

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gate to the monastery is the ancient threshold to the
sanctuary.
The architectural remains suggest a late Classical
construction date for the sanctuary. In view of the poor
data, it is only possible to state that the sanctuary
existed in the 2nd century AD, during Pausanias’ visit and
was destroyed by Alaric and his Visigoths in 395 AD,
along with the Eleusinian sanctuary.
in weddings and funerary rituals for single persons. Clay
figurines depict Satyrs, Pan, Aphrodite and other females.
The excavator attributes the cult to the protector of
nature, the woods and the shepherds, namely Pan and
his companions. Similar caves to Pan have been located
elsewhere in Attica too.
Artefacts date the cult to the 5th century BC only, which
explains Pausanias’ ingorance of the site. The cave was
inhabited by Byzantine hermits and was used as a stable
in Ottoman times.
The Cave of Pan in Daphni
A sacred cave on the steep slope of Poikilo, behind the
Daphni Monastery, was first located by D. Kampouroglou
and excavated by I. Traulos. The cave is 11.5 m deep, 7.8
m wide and funnel-shaped. Its entrance - to the north
- had been blocked by an ancient rubble wall, which
nevertheless left an opening. A terrace wall created a
small court in front of the entrance. The interior had only
one short partition wall and a few rectangular carvings
on the floor. Remains indicate that the cave walls had
been plastered.
Movable finds (pottery, ashes, bones) suggest ritual
burning of offerings and the sacrifice of small animals.
Most potsherds come from loutrophoroi, vessels used
The Sanctuary of Aphrodite at Skaramangas
Pausanias mentions a temple of Aphrodite, located
today in Aphaia Skaramanga, a neighbourhood of
Chaidari, about 1.5 km west of the Daphni Monastery. The
monument was located via the many niches carved on
the Aigaleo mountain slope, also noted by the French
author Gustave Flaubert (1821-1880) on Christmas 1850.
The sanctuary of Aphrodite was also a basic stop of
the Eleusinian procession. D. Kampouroglou, the first
excavator of the site found statuettes of Aphrodite and
other gods, some reflecting the art of the school of
Pheidias. He also located traces of a stoa, an altar, living
Section of the Pan cave at Daphni (Archaeologiki Efimeris 1936-37, p. 395 fig. 3).