The glory of the Oracle of Trophonius and the construction of a colossal temple for the worship of Zeus Vasileos (King), the first temple of the god with this surname, justifies the religious influence of Levadeia as a Holy City and its great fame in the known world of that time.

The ruins of the imposing-sized Temple of Zeus Vasileos are located on what may be the western edge of the Sacred Grove of Trophonius on the hill of Prophitis Ellias. Construction began in the 3rd century BC and was finally discontinued in the 2nd century BC, probably due to the gradual decline in the power and importance of the Commonwealth of Boeotia, the extremely high cost of completion, political instability and the successive large military conflicts in the area that marked the era. In honor of Zeus Vasilleos (the King) was celebrated with contests and ceremonies, the so-called “Vasillia”, in memory of the victory of the Boeotians in 371 BC at Lefktra in which the invincible Spartans were defeated.

According to the ambitious plan, the colossal temple was one of the largest ever to be built in Greece. The architectural remains occupy an impressively large area at the top of the hill of Prophet Ellias. The overall dimensions of the temple were 60X23 m. and it had forerunner and nave. The 2nd century AD traveller Pausanias reports that during his visit the temple`s platform and the floor were well preserved. Most of the architectural parts of the temple were made of local hard limestone from the nearby village of Analipsis.

A large building epigraph of the temple is now kept in the Museum of Cheronia. The unfinished temple was finally destroyed along with Levadeia by Syllas, after his victorious battles at Cheronia and Orchomenos in 86 BC. Excavations revealed various doric architectural parts belonging to another temple, perhaps older than the great temple, which was probably dedicated to Cronides Zeus and Hera, according to the reference of Pausanias.

In 1997, under the supervision of the 9st Ephorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities, works began on the cleaning and collection of the architectural parts of the temple, which resulted in the complete revelation of the floor plan of the temple for the first time since its construction. On its northern side, part of the temple`s foundations were uncovered, as well as the largest part of the temple`s platform.