Three Notes on Athenian Topography: Tragic and Comic Orestes at the Pythion, Delphinion, and Palladion

Summary The following article brings together two figures with the name of Orestes. One of them is the well-known mythical son of Agamemnon, who, in several Attic tragedies, including the Oresteia , is brought to Athens in the capacity of a suppliant. The other Orestes is known from passages in Aristophanes’ comedies that refer to him as a violent hooligan, and who was infamous in Athens in the late fifth century BCE for his antisocial behavior. I argue that there is a link between the comic and tragic Orestes that is provided by the topography of places they frequented, namely the surroundings of the court at the Palladion and the sanctuary of Apollo Pythios, both located outside the city walls on the right bank of the Ilissos. Another episode of the mythical Orestes’ visit was probably related to the royal seat, which was located close to the Delphinion. As I argue, this took place inside the city wall in the area south of the Olympieion.