Olympics | Archaeology Going to the Temple of Love

The clincher was a small anchor cut from stone. Digging at the site of the Olympic equestrian center, about 30 km southeast of Athens, archaeologist Michalis Sklavos already knew he was onto something — his team had unearthed a cluster of small clay bowls from around the 4th century B.C. followed by several washbasins which the ancients used, he said, "to cleanse their body before purifying their soul." That indicated the presence of a temple, but it was the stone anchor that revealed what kind of temple it was. It was "clearly an offering to a high priestess by a sailor," which meant his team had discovered a temple of Aphrodite, the goddess of love — one of only three known examples in the world. At these sanctuaries, usually located near ports, priestesses are believed to have administered to visitors' spiritual — and, ahem, physical — needs, free of charge. "These were not brothels," says Sklavos. "It was part of the priestesses' sacred role, their duty to Aphrodite, the goddess of love, to give pleasure to those who walked into her home."

History is never far from the surface in Greece, and the extensive excavations resulting from Olympics projects have been a boon to archaeologists, who under Greek law were required to inspect every site before the bulldozers moved in. Dimitri Skilardi, who led the excavations at the main Olympic complex, estimates it would have taken up to 30 years to match the finds he and his colleagues have uncovered since the Games projects began.

To get the facilities built, archaeologists agreed to allow some lesser sites to be destroyed. Others, like the temple that stands just outside the equestrian ring, will be revisited once the Games are over. Archaeologists also found what they believe to be an ancient two-room sports center right next to the Olympic Stadium — an apt symbol of the link between old and new that these Games represent. However Greece's athletes fare in August, her archaeologists have already struck gold.