What to See at Ancient Corinth
The Temple of Apollo, the Roman forum, the Lechaion Road, the Peirene Fountain, the Bema and the on-site museum — a concierge guide to the ruins of the ancient city.
The Archaeological Site of Ancient Corinth gathers the monumental heart of one of the great cities of the ancient world in a compact, walkable site. The must-see monuments are the Temple of Apollo, one of the earliest Doric temples in mainland Greece; the Roman forum with its shops and civic buildings; the marble-paved Lechaion Road; the monumental Peirene Fountain; and the Bema, the platform linked to the Apostle Paul. The Archaeological Museum of Ancient Corinth on the site, included in your ticket, holds the finds. Above rises the separate citadel of Acrocorinth. This guide walks you through the key monuments, the museum, and what to prioritise on a first visit.
What are the must-see monuments at Ancient Corinth?
The must-see monuments at Ancient Corinth centre on the Temple of Apollo and the great Roman forum below it. The temple, built in the mid-6th century BC, is the oldest and most striking structure on the site: seven of its massive monolithic columns still stand on a low rise, silhouetted against the rock of Acrocorinth and visible from across the ruins. Spread below is the forum, the civic square of the Roman city refounded by Julius Caesar, ringed by the foundations of shops, temples and public buildings. From the forum the marble Lechaion Road runs north, the Peirene Fountain rises at its edge, and the Bema — the platform linked to the Apostle Paul — stands at its centre. Walking among these is the essential experience of Ancient Corinth, best done in a cool early hourly slot before the coach groups arrive.
Beyond the headline monuments, several features reward a slower look. Scattered across the site are the remains of temples, basilicas, shops and fountains that fleshed out the busy Roman city, and interpretive signs help you trace the plan of the forum and its surroundings. The Archaeological Museum of Ancient Corinth, on the site and included in your ticket, gathers the sculpture, mosaics, pottery and everyday finds that give the ruins faces and detail. Above it all looms Acrocorinth, the fortified citadel on its rock — a separate site, but a constant dramatic backdrop. Our concierge recommendation is to walk the forum and the Temple of Apollo first, take in the Lechaion Road, the Peirene Fountain and the Bema, then finish in the museum, allowing about one and a half to two hours for the whole site.
What is the Temple of Apollo?
The Temple of Apollo is the supreme monument of Ancient Corinth and its enduring emblem. Built in the mid-6th century BC, it is one of the earliest Doric temples of mainland Greece and among the oldest stone temples in the country still standing to any height. What makes it remarkable is its columns: each is a monolith, carved from a single block of the local limestone rather than assembled from stacked drums, then finished in fine stucco and painted, as was usual for temples of the age. Stocky, closely spaced and powerfully proportioned, the seven surviving columns show the massive, archaic character of early Doric architecture before the more slender forms of the classical era, and they dominate the site from their low rise above the forum.
The temple's survival is part of its power. It came through the Roman destruction of Corinth in 146 BC and was incorporated into the rebuilt Roman city, remaining a landmark at the heart of the colony while much of the surrounding city was levelled or quarried away. Standing beneath the columns today, you look out over the Roman forum spread below and can trace the layout of the ancient city, with the great rock of Acrocorinth rising behind. For many visitors this is where the whole site comes into focus. Our concierge recommendation is to walk right up to the temple to appreciate the scale of the monolithic columns and the view they command, ideally in the soft light of an early or late hourly slot when the stone glows.
What are the forum, the Lechaion Road and the Peirene Fountain?
The Roman forum is the great open square at the heart of Ancient Corinth, the civic and commercial centre of the city refounded by Julius Caesar. Laid out on a grand scale, it was ringed by shops, temples, basilicas and administrative buildings, and lined with statues and monuments, where the business and public life of the Roman colony played out. Rows of small shop foundations and the bases of colonnades still mark its edges, and walking across it gives a strong sense of the scale and ambition of the rebuilt city. From the forum's northern side, the Lechaion Road — a broad, marble-paved avenue flanked in Roman times by colonnades and shops — led down toward the port of Lechaion on the Corinthian Gulf, the ceremonial approach by which travellers entered the city.
At the edge of the forum stands the Peirene Fountain, the most famous of Corinth's many springs and one of its symbols. Fed by a natural spring that still flows, Peirene supplied the city with water from the earliest times and was rebuilt over the centuries into a monumental fountain house, its arched chambers and basins elaborated under the Romans. In legend the spring was linked to the winged horse Pegasus, the emblem that Corinth stamped on its coins. The cool, shaded arches of the fountain, set into the rock, make a welcome contrast to the open ground of the forum and vividly show how central a reliable water supply was to the life and wealth of the ancient city. Our concierge recommendation is to follow the Lechaion Road down from the forum and pause at Peirene for its shade and its history.
What is the Bema, and its connection to the Apostle Paul?
In the middle of the forum stands the Bema, a raised platform of stone from which Roman officials addressed the people and delivered judgements. It is one of the most visited spots on the whole site because of its place in the New Testament. The Apostle Paul lived and preached in Corinth for around eighteen months in the first century AD, founding one of the most important of the early Christian communities and later writing to it the letters known as the Epistles to the Corinthians. According to the Acts of the Apostles, Paul was brought before the Roman proconsul Gallio and stood before him at the Bema to answer charges brought by his opponents, and Gallio dismissed the case.
This episode gives Ancient Corinth a special significance for visitors interested in early Christianity, and the Bema became a place of Christian veneration in later centuries, with a church built over it in Byzantine times. For historians, the encounter with Gallio also helps date Paul's travels with unusual precision, thanks to a surviving Roman inscription that fixes Gallio's term in office. Standing at the Bema, with the forum around you and the columns of Apollo above, you are at one of the very few places in the world where a specific event from the New Testament can be tied to a monument still visible on the ground. Our concierge recommendation is to seek out the Bema in the forum and take a moment there, whatever your own background — it is a genuinely rare meeting of ancient history and the biblical story.
What is in the Archaeological Museum of Ancient Corinth?
The Archaeological Museum of Ancient Corinth stands within the archaeological site and is included in your ticket, so you can move straight from the ruins to the objects found in them. Built in the 1930s and expanded since, it gathers the finds from more than a century of excavation, much of it carried out by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, which has dug at Corinth since the late 19th century. Arranged around a pleasant central courtyard, its galleries trace the long life of the city from prehistoric and Greek times through its Roman heyday and beyond, and its partly shaded rooms make an ideal escape from the midday sun on the open ruins.
Inside you can see the fine Corinthian pottery for which the city was renowned, Roman sculpture and portrait heads, mosaics, inscriptions, and coins bearing the winged horse Pegasus, along with the small everyday objects that bring the ancient population to life. Displays also illuminate the healing sanctuary of Asklepios and the religious and civic life of the colony. Seeing these finds after walking the forum gives a far fuller picture of the city — the ruins provide the scale and setting, the museum the detail and artistry. Our concierge recommendation is to walk the open monuments first while the light is soft and the ground cool, then finish in the museum, where the objects give names, faces and colour to the great city you have just explored.
Frequently asked
What are the main monuments at Ancient Corinth?
The Temple of Apollo, with its seven surviving 6th-century-BC columns; the Roman forum; the marble Lechaion Road; the Peirene Fountain; and the Bema linked to the Apostle Paul. The on-site Archaeological Museum, included in the ticket, holds the finds.
What is the Temple of Apollo at Corinth?
One of the earliest Doric temples in mainland Greece, built in the mid-6th century BC. Seven of its massive columns still stand, each carved from a single block of limestone. It survived the Roman destruction of the city and remains the emblem of the site.
What is the Peirene Fountain?
The most famous of Corinth's springs, fed by natural water that still flows and rebuilt into a monumental fountain house under the Romans. Linked in legend to the winged horse Pegasus, its shaded arches sit at the edge of the forum.
What is the Bema at Ancient Corinth?
A raised platform in the forum where Roman officials addressed the people. According to the Acts of the Apostles, the Apostle Paul was brought before the proconsul Gallio at the Bema, making it one of the few New Testament sites tied to a visible monument.
Is the site museum included in my ticket?
Yes. The Archaeological Museum of Ancient Corinth is on the site and included in your entry ticket, displaying Corinthian pottery, Roman sculpture, mosaics, inscriptions and everyday finds — an ideal shaded complement to the open-air ruins.
Is Acrocorinth part of what I see here?
No. Acrocorinth, the fortified citadel on the rock above, is a separate site reached by a road up the hill and is not covered by this ticket. Your ticket covers the archaeological site of Ancient Corinth on the lower ground and its museum.
How long do I need to see Ancient Corinth?
Allow about one and a half to two hours to walk the forum, the Temple of Apollo, the Lechaion Road, the Peirene Fountain and the Bema, and to tour the on-site museum. Limited shade means a focused visit in a cool hourly slot is most comfortable.