telesterion

[tel-uh-steer-ee-on]

noun

plural

telesteria 

1. (in ancient Greece) a building in which religious mysteries were celebrated.

Word History and Origins

Origin of telesterion¹

< Greek telestḗrion place for initiation, equivalent to teles-, stem of teleîn to fulfill, initiate ( tele- ² ) + -tērion neuter noun suffix denoting place

Example Sentences

The Telesterion took up the greater part of the sacred precinct, which seems merely to have served to keep the profane away from the temple.

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It is now possible to trace its boundaries as extended at various periods, and also many successive stages in the history of the Telesterion, or Hall of Initiation.

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Beyond this, close to the side of the Telesterion, are the foundations of a temple on higher ground; it has been conjectured that this was the temple of Demeter, but there is no evidence that such a building existed in historic times, apart from the Telesterion.

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From the Small Propylaea a paved road of Roman date leads to one of the doors of the Telesterion.

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The Telesterion, or Hall of Initiation, was a large covered building, about 170 ft. square.

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