It’s a place of towering mountain ranges, luxuriant forests, and rushing rivers. Lying on the shores of the Ionian Sea in north-west Greece, Epirus is one of the lesser-known and more rugged regions of the country. Yet it was a fertile cradle of human life that gave rise to great cities whose remains now lie scattered across its mountain tops and woodlands. Theatres stood at the heart of their civic and spiritual lives, and while most of them were built in the 4th and 3rd centuries BC, each is extraordinary in its own way. Now Epirus’ ancient theatres are being excavated and restored. Soon they’ll be admired again, near to their original splendour in their wild and enchanting surroundings.
Dodona makes an excellent start to a tour of the ancient theatres of Epirus. An easy drive 15km south-west of Epirus’ pretty, lakeside capital of Ioannina, Dodona lies cradled in a narrow valley on the emerald slopes of Mount Tomaros. This is truly ancient territory, first settled during the Bronze Age. Homer suggests that the area was occupied by the Hellopes or Helloi, a clan of priests whose name, judging by Aristotle, may well have given rise to the word ‘Hellene’. Grassy fields line the path that leads to the theatre, which appears quite suddenly as you round a bend. Bathed in the golden glow of the morning sun, it’s an awe-inspiring sight. Larger than the famed theatre at Epidaurus, with a capacity of 18,000, it fans out around a hillside, its 56 tiers soaring skywards some 24m high.
We have Pyrrhus (c.319-272 BC), the king of Epirus, to thank for the theatre. A renowned soldier and keen builder, Pyrrhus took a special interest in Dodona, which had long been hallowed ground. In its early days, Dodona gained fame for its oracle, which conveyed messages from Zeus. Homer has Odysseus report that he consulted the Dodona oracle on how best to return home after the Trojan War. The oracular message was communicated through a range of cryptic means: first through the flight of birds, then the rustling of the leaves of the sacred oak tree, and, later on, the sound of vibrating copper cauldrons. Later, and not surprisingly, more straightforward methods were used. Pilgrims posed questions to the oracle on lead tablets, and its answers were written on their reverse sides. Many of these tablets survive, presenting more than 4,000 inscriptions – some questions, some answers – that speak to concerns about business, magic, travel, health, and family between the 6th and 2nd century BC.
