The Asclepieion of Kos

Text and photographs by Mrs. Alexandra Katsivelaki

Here on Kos, there is a cypress covered hill where ancient springs flow and herbs grow in abundance. There, in that sacred grove, Apollo, the father of Asclepios, was worshiped as a healing God. In the 4th century BC. after the foundation of the city of Kos, his son became the adorable health's Savior. This lovely spot served as the ground where the Aesclepieion was built and used as a Temple, Clinic and University. Here, in the early sanctuary, Hippocrates received his initial training and established his Medical school. The location carries all the blessing of Aesclepios' divine treatments and Hippocrates' wisdom. It still echoes down through the centuries all the expectations and hopes of thousands of devout visitors, irrepsective of race and distance, who came here over a period of 700 hundred years long.

The Asclepieion of Kos during the Hellenistic period (restoration)