I am currently writing an essay about the contribution the city of Delphi has on the understanding of the past and one thing I need mention is a historical debate of at least 2 different perspectives or interpretations of either the site or an artefact found there. E.g the palace of Knossos possibly having a different purpose as what was originally thought.
In my research I haven't found anything that has substantial sources or reasoning. Some include:
How the Pythia was chosen/ who she was. Some believe young virgin, others over 50 and others think that she was once young but became old because she was violated and kidnapped etc. This would be ok except I am unable to find reliable sources
Who the Charioteer of Delphi was. He was wearing clothes which was supposedly unusual for the time period which meant he might not have been noble - it wasn't appropriate to show a household servant nude. But others think athletes could only be noble.
What gases caused the oracle to act hysterical? Would be perfect however after asking my teacher it is too scientific instead of historical. However accounts of how she acted still might work.
The main issue I have had is finding professional opinions (preferably archaeologists or historian) about the 'debate'. So all sources are welcome and I am happy to read however online articles/ papers/ pdfs are the best.
Any help will be greatly appreciated and I hope that I haven't broken any of the homework help rules - if so I am happy to edit or change/ delete the question.
Hi - we as mods have approved this thread, because while this is a homework question, it is asking for clarification or resources, rather than the answer itself, which is fine according to our rules. This policy is further explained in this Rules Roundtable thread and this META Thread.
As a result, we'd also like to remind potential answerers to follow our rules on homework - please make sure that your answers focus appropriately on clarifications and detailing the resources that OP could be using.
Additionally, while users may be able to help you out with specifics relating to your question, we also have plenty of information on /r/AskHistorians on how to find and understand good sources in general. For instance, please check out our six-part series, "Finding and Understanding Sources", which has a wealth of information that may be useful for finding and understanding information for your essay.