Description of the attraction
Not far from the ancient city of Paphos are the ruins of an ancient temple complex called Asklepion, which was dedicated to the god of healing and medicine, Asclepius.
According to legend, Asclepius was given birth by a mortal woman, and he was an ordinary person, despite the fact that Apollo himself was considered his father. Little Asclepius was raised by the centaur Chiron, since Apollo ordered to kill his mother - his beloved - for treason. Subsequently, in the art of healing, Asclepius reached such heights that he even knew how to raise the dead. It was thanks to this exceptional talent for healing people that after his death he was resurrected and was awarded immortality, turning into a god. Asclepius was highly revered both in ancient Greece and in Rome.
Thanks to the efforts of archaeologists who discovered the ruins of the temple, now you can easily imagine what this once huge structure looked like many centuries ago. The temple complex in Paphos included several buildings, the main of which consisted of a series of terraces located one above the other. There was a large courtyard around it. At the very top of the central building was the main temple, where the sanctuary of Asclepius was. In addition, the middle terraces were converted into the Temple of Apollo, which was also highly revered by the inhabitants of ancient Paphos.
In addition to the fact that these two gods were worshiped in Asklepion, the temple was also a kind of educational and medical center: people came there for medical help, there was also a "school" where those wishing to study medicine.
Also, many scientists associate the Asklepion temple with the legendary ancient Greek doctor Hippocrates, believing that it was in his honor, and not Asclepius, that this temple was built.
