Directly above the Theatre of Dionysos, steps lead to the Asclepion, a temple that was built around a sacred spring. The worship of Asclepius, the physician son of Apollo, began in Epidavros and was introduced to Athens in 429 BC, when plague was sweeping the city – people sought cures here.
Beneath the Asclepion is the Stoa of Eumenes, a colonnade built by Eumenes II, King of Pergamum (197–159 BC), as a shelter and promenade for theatre audiences.
