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Pristine 4th-Century BCE 'Temple of the Titan Phoebe' with Unique Astronomical Alignments Uncovered in Ancient Phocis, Greece

📅 April 1, 2026 📰 Heritage Daily
Pristine 4th-Century BCE 'Temple of the Titan Phoebe' with Unique Astronomical Alignments Uncovered in Ancient Phocis, Greece

A team of Greek and French archaeologists has discovered a pristine 4th-century BCE temple dedicated to the Titan Phoebe, grandmother of Apollo, in the remote Phocis region. The temple is notable for its rare circular floor plan and a series of narrow vertical slits in the roof that allowed sunlight to strike the central altar only during the lunar cycles associated with the Titaness.

Excavations have yielded high-quality marble statues of celestial bodies and silver ritual plates engraved with star charts. Experts suggest that the temple functioned as a specialized astronomical sanctuary where priestesses observed the movements of the moon and stars to calculate the dates for major Panhellenic festivals and agricultural cycles.

Original source: Heritage Daily