Εμφανίζονται 57 τίτλοι με αναζήτηση: Πληροφορίες για τον τόπο στην ευρύτερη περιοχή: "ΟΛΥΜΠΙΑ Επαρχία ΗΛΕΙΑ" .
ΑΝΔΡΙΤΣΑΙΝΑ (Κωμόπολη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Διασχίζοντας μια περιοχή με πολλά πεύκα, ελιές, κυπαρίσσια και ιτιές
και περνώντας από έναν ενδιαφέροντα αρχαιολογικό χώρο στο χωριό Πλατιάνα,
φθάνουμε στην Ανδρίτσαινα, μια πόλη που είναι γνωστή στο πανελλήνιο για δυο πολύ
σημαντικά στοιχεία της. Τον
ναό του Επικούρειου Απόλλωνα, το σημαντικότερο ίσως δείγμα αρχαίου ναού μετά
την Ακρόπολη των Αθηνών,
που διατηρείται σχεδόν ακέραιος μέχρι σήμερα, αλλά επί του παρόντος δέχεται τις
απαραίτητες επισκευές των αρχαιολόγων, και τη Βιβλιοθήκη της Ανδρίτσαινας που
αποτελεί ένα από τα σημαντικότερα στοιχεία πολιτιστικής κληρονομιάς της Ελλάδας,
με χιλιάδες τόμους σπάνιων λογοτεχνικών έργων.
Η Ανδρίτσαινα υπήρχε πριν από τη Φραγκοκρατία, αλλά επί Τουρκοκρατίας
εξελίχθηκε σε σημαντικό κέντρο του Ελληνισμού, με τον αμιγώς ελληνικό πληθυσμό
της και το σχολείο που λειτουργεί εκεί από το 1796. Σήμερα μπορεί να είναι μια
όμορφη επαρχιακή κωμόπολη, που διατηρεί ωστόσο τον απόηχο του περασμένου μεγαλείου
της στα όμορφα πέτρινα αρχοντικά της και τις παλιές εκκλησίες της.
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Δεκέμβριο 2004 από την ακόλουθη ιστοσελίδα, με φωτογραφία, της Γενικής Γραμματείας Περιφέρειας Δυτικής Ελλάδας/a>
ΖΑΧΑΡΩ (Κωμόπολη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Zacharo is a market town enveloped in pines and olive, trees bordered
by an enormous stretch of beach with white sand and sparkling water.
The soil is fertile here, the land blessed, the fields endless.
Every corner is cultivated with vines, olive groves, corn, wheat,
vegetables.
Every place iswell tended, nothing is wild.
It's nice to fall asleep next to a threshing floor or on a sandy beach.
Heading north you come to Kaiafas,
a well known spa, and the islet of Agia Ekaterini, in the middle of a small harbour.
On the eastern shore, the famous mineral waters gush from two caves
formed by crevices in the rocks.
The place is strangely beautiful, delightful, though the odor of the
springs does detract somewhat.
Legend maintains that the centaur Nessus washed his wound here after
being struck by Herakles' poisonous arrow, and that is why the water smells. Kaiafas
is not only sulphurous springs, however; it is also pine trees, sand and sea and
a long, long shore.
This text is cited December 2004 from the West Greece Region General Secretariat URL below, which contains image.
ΚΑΪΑΦΑΣ (Ιαματικές πηγές) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Τα Λουτρά Καϊάφα βρίσκονται σε πανέμορφη περιοχή περίπου 5.200 στρεμμάτων
με 3,5 χλμ. αιγιαλό, στη νοτιοδυτική πλευρά της Πελοποννήσου,
25 χλμ. από τον αρχαιολογικό
χώρο της Ολυμπίας. Ο συνδυασμός δάσους, λίμνης, θάλασσας και θερμών ιαματικών
λουτρών προσδίδει μοναδικά χαρακτηριστικά στην ιδιοκτησία. Αξίζει να σημειωθεί
ότι η περιοχή Καϊάφα είναι χαρακτηρισμένη ως ιδιαιτέρου φυσικού κάλλους και περιλαμβάνεται
στον εθνικό κατάλογο της Natura 2000.
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Δεκέμβριο 2004 από την ακόλουθη ιστοσελίδα, με φωτογραφία, της Γενικής Γραμματείας Περιφέρειας Δυτικής Ελλάδας/a>
ΑΙΠΥ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
(Aipn: Eth. Aiphutes). A town in Elis, so called from its lofty situation, is
mentioned by Homer, and is probably the same as the Triphylian town Epeium (Epeion,
Epion, Aiphion), which stood between Macistus and Heraea. Leake places it on the
high peaked mountain which lies between the villages of Vrina and Smerna, about
6 miles in direct distance from Olympia. Boblaye supposes it to occupy the site
of Hellenista, the name of some ruins on a hill between Platiana and Barakou.
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited May 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΑΛΙΦΕΙΡΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Aliphera, Paus.; Aliphera, Liv.; Alipheipa, Polyb.: Eth. Alipheraios, on coins
Adipheipeon, Aliphiraeus, (Plin. iv. 6. s. 10. § 22). A town of Arcadia, in the
district Cynuria, said to have been built by Alipherus, a son of Lycaon, was situated
upon a steep and lofty hill, 40 stadia S. of the Alpheius and near the frontiers
of Elis. A large number of its inhabitants removed to Megalopolis upon the foundation
of the latter city in B.C. 371; but it still continued to be a place of some importance.
It was ceded to the Eleans by Lydiades, when tyrant of Megalopolis; but it was
taken from them by Philip in the Social War, B.C. 219, and restored to Megalopolis.
It contained temples of Asclepius and Athena, and a celebrated bronze statue by
Hypatodorus of the latter goddess, who was said to have been born here. There
are still considerable remains of this town on the hill of Nerovitza, which has
a tabular summit about 300 yards long in the direction of E. and W., 100 yards
broad, and surrounded by remains of Hellenic walls. At the south-eastern angle,
a part rather higher than the rest formed an acropolis: it was about 70 yards
long and half as much broad. The walls are built of polygonal and regular masonry
intermixed.
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited May 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΑΡΗΝΗ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
A town mentioned by Homer as belonging to the dominions of Nestor.
and situated near the spot where the Minyeius flows into the sea. (Hom. Il. ii.
591, xi. 723.) It also occurs in the Homeric Hymn to Apollo (423), in conjunction
with other towns on the western coast of Peloponnesus. According to Pausanias
(iv. 2. § 4, 3. § 7), it was built by Aphareus, who called it after Arene, both
his wife and his sister by the same mother. It was commonly supposed in later
times that Arene occupied the site of Samos or Samia in Triphylia, near the mouth
of the Anigrus, which was believed to be the same as the Minyeius. (Strab. viii.
p. 346; Paus. v. 6. § 2.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited June 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΒΩΛΑΞ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Bolach. A town of Triphylia in Elis, which surrendered to Philip in the Social
War. Its site is uncertain; but Leake, judging from similarity of name, places
it at Volantza, a village on the left bank of the Alpheius, about four miles above
its mouth.
ΕΠΙΤΑΛΙΟΝ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Epitalion: Eth. Epitalieus. A town of Triphylia in Elis, near the
coast and a little south of the river Alpheius. It was identified with the Homeric
Thryon (Thruon) or Thryoessa (Thruoessa), a town in the dominions of Nestor, which
the poet describes as a place upon a lofty hill near the ford of the river Alpheius
(Hom. Il. ii. 592, xi. 710, Hymn. in Apoll. 423; Strab. viii.). Epitalium was
an important military post, because it commanded the ford of the Alpheius and
the road leading along the coast. Like the other dependent townships of Triphylia,
it revolted from Elis when Agis, the Spartan king, invaded the country in B.C.
401; and when Agis returned home, after ravaging Elis, he left a garrison in Epitalium.
(Xen. Hell. iii. § § 25, 29.) The town was taken by Philip in the Social War,
B.C. 218. (Polyb. iv. 80; Steph. B. s. v. Epitalion.) It appears to have occupied
the height of Agulenitza.
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited May 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΘΕΙΣΟΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΑΝΔΡΙΤΣΑΙΝΑ
Eth. Theisoates. A town of Arcadia, in the district Cynuria or Parrhasia,
on the northern slope of Mt. Lycaeus, called after the nymph Theisoa, one of the
nurses of Zeus. Its inhabitants were removed to Megalopolis upon the foundation
of the latter city. Leake places it at the castle of St. Helen above Lavdha. Ross
discovered some ancient remains N. of Andritzana, which he conjectures may be
those of Theisoa.
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited June 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΛΕΠΡΕΟΝ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
to Lepreon, Lepreos, Leprion, Eth. Lepreates. The chief town of Triphylia
in Elis, was situated in the southern part of the district, at the distance of
100 stadia from Samicum, and 40 stadia from the sea. (Strab. viii.) Scylax and
Ptolemy, less correctly, describe it as lying upon the coast. Triphylia is said
to have been originally inhabited by the Cauconians, whence Lepreum is called
by Callimachns (Hymn. in Jov. 39) Kaukonon ptoliethon. The Caucones were afterwards
expelled by the Minyae, who took possession of Lepreum. (Herod. iv. 148.) Subsequently,
and probably soon after the Messenian wars, Lepreum and the other cities of Triphylia
were subdued by the Eleians, who governed them as subject places. The Triphylian
cities, however, always bore this yoke with impatience; and Lepreum took the lead
in their frequent attempts to shake off the Eleian supremacy. The greater importance
of Lepreum is shown by the fact that it was the only one of the Triphylian towns
which took part in the Persian wars. (Herod. ix. 28.) In B.C. 421 Lepreum, supported
by Sparta, revolted from Elis (Thuc. v. 31); and at last, in 400, the Eleians,
by their treaty with Sparta, were obliged to relinquish their authority over Lepreum
and the other Triphylian towns. (Xen. Hell. iii. 2. 25) When the Spartan power
had been broken by the battle of Leuctra (B.C. 371), the Spartans endeavoured
to recover their supremacy over Lepreum and the other Triphylian towns; but the
latter protected themselves by becoming members of the Arcadian confederacy, which
had been recently founded by Epaminondas. (Xen. Hell. vi. 5. 2, seq.) Hence Lepreum
is called an Arcadian town by Scylax and Pliny, the latter of whom erroneously
speaks both of a Leprion in Elis (iv. 5. s. 6), and of a Lepreon in Arcadia (iv.
5. s. 10). Pausanias also states that the Lepreatae in his time claimed to be
Arcadians; but he observes that they had been subjects of the Eleians from ancient
times,--that as many of them as had been victors in the public games were proclaimed
as Eleians from Lepreus,--and that Aristophanes describes Lepreus as a city of
the Eleians. (Paus. v. 5. § 3.) After the time of Alexander the Eleians again
reduced the Triphylian cities, which therefore were obliged to join the Aetolian
league along with the Eleians. But when Philip, in his war with the Aetolians,
marched into Triphylia, the inhabitants of Lepreum rose against the Eleian garrison
in their town, and declared in favour of Philip, who thus obtained possession
of the place. (Polyb. iv. 77, 79, 80.) In the time of Pausanias the only monument
in Lepreum was a temple of Demeter, built of brick. In the vicinity of the town
was a fountain named Arene. (Paus. v. 5. § 6.) The territory of Lepreum was rich
and fertile. Chora eudaimon, (Strab. viii.)
The ruins of Lepreum are situated upon a hill, near the modern village
of Strovitzi. These ruins show that Lepreum was a town of some size. A plan of
them is given by the French Commission, which is copied in the work of Curtius.
They were first described by Dodwell. It takes half an hour to ascend from the
first traces of the walls to the acropolis, which is entered by an ancient gateway.
The towers are square; one of them is almost entire, and contains a small window
or arrow hole. A transverse wall is carried completely across the acropolis, by
which means it was anciently divided into two parts. The foundation of this wall,
and part of the elevation, still remain. Three different periods of architecture
are evident in this fortress. The walls are composed of polygons: some of the
towers consist of irregular, and others of rectangular quadrilaterals. The ruins
extend far below the acropolis, on the side of the hill, and are seen on a flat
detached knoll.
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited June 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΜΑΚΙΣΤΟΣ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Macistus. Macistum, Makistos, to Makiston: Eth. Makistios. A town of Triphylia,
in Elis, said to have been also called Platanistus (Platanistous, Strab. viii.
p. 345.) It was originally inhabited by the Paroreatae and Caucones, who were
driven out by the Minyae. (Strab. l. c.; Herod. iv. 148.) It was afterwards subdued
by the Eleians, and became one of their dependent townships. In the time of Strabo,
it was no longer inhabited (viii. p. 349). Macistus was situated upon a lofty
hill in the north of Triphylia, and appears to have been the chief town in the
north of the district, as Lepreum was in the south. That Macistus was in the north
of Triphylia appears from several circumstances. Strabo describes its territory,
the Macistia, as bordering upon Pisatis. (Strab. viii. p. 343.) Agis, in his invasion
of the territory of Elis, in B.C. 400, when he entered Triphylia through the Aulon
of Messenia, was first joined by the Lepreatae, next by the Macistii, and then
by the Epitalii on the Alpheius. (Xen. Hell. iii. 2. 25) Stephanus places Macistus
to the westward of the Lepreatis (Steph. B. s. v.); but this is obviously an error,
as Arcadia bordered upon the Lepreatis in that direction. Macistus would appear
to have been in the neighbourhood of Samicum upon the coast, as it had the superintendence
of the celebrated temple of the Samian Poseidon at this place. (Strab. viii. p.
343.) From these circumstances there can be little doubt that Macistus was situated
upon the heights of Khaiaffa.
It is worthy of notice that Pausanias and Polybius mention only Samicum,
and Xenophon only Macistus. This fact, taken in connection with the Macistians
having the superintendence of the temple of the Samian Poseidon, has led to the
conjecture that upon the decay of Samos upon the coast, the Minyans built Macistus
upon the heights above; but that the ancient name of the place was afterwards
revived in the form of Samicum. The Macistians had a temple of Hercules situated
upon the coast near the Acidon. (Strab. viii. p. 348.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited June 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΠΥΛΟΣ ΤΡΙΦΥΛΙΑΚΗ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Pulos: Eth. Pulios. A town in Triphylia, mentioned only by Strabo,
and surnamed by him Triphuliakos, Arkadikos, and Lepreatikos. He describes it
as situated 30 stadia from the sea, on the rivers Mamathus and Arcadicus, west
of the mountain Minthe and north of Lepreum (viii. p. 344). Upon the conquest
of the Triphylian towns by the Eleians, Pylus was annexed to Lepreum (viii. p.
355). Leake observes that the village Tjorbadji, on the western extremity of Mount
Minthe, at the fork of two branches of the river of Ai Sidhero, seems to agree
in every respect with Strabo's description of this town. (Peloponnesiaca, p. 109.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited June 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΣΑΜΙΚΟΝ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Samikon: Eth. Samikeus. A town of Triphylia in Elis, situated near
the coast about half-way between the mouths of the Alpheius and the Neda, and
a little north of the Anigrus. It stood upon a projecting spur of a lofty mountain,
which here approaches so near the coast as to leave only a narrow pass. From its
situation commanding this pass, it is probable that a city existed here from the
earliest times; and it was therefore identified with the Arene of Homer (Il. ii.
591, xi. 723), which the poet places near the mouth of the Minyeius, a river supposed
to be the same as the Anigrus. According to Strabo the city was originally called
Samos, from its being situated upon a hill, because this word formerly signified
heights, Samicum was at first the name of the fortress, and the same name was
also given to the surrounding plain. (Strab. viii. pp. 346, 347; Paus. v. 5. §
3.) Pausanias speaks (v. 6. § 1) of a city Samia, which he apparently distinguishes
from Samicum; but Samicum is the only place mentioned in history. Samicum was
occupied by the Aetolian Polysperchon against the Arcadians, and was taken by
Philip, B.C. 219. (Paus. v. 6. § 1; Polyb. iv. 77, 80.) The ruins of Samicurn
are found at Khaiaffa (written Chaiappa), which is only the name of the guarded
pass. The ruined walls are 6 feet thick, and about 1 1/2 mile in circumference.
They are of the second order of Hellenic masonry, and are evidently of great antiquity.
The towers towards the sea belong to a later age.
Near Samicumn upon the coast was a celebrated temple of the Samian
Poseidon, surrounded by a grove of wild olives. It was the centre of the religious
worship of the six Triphylian cities, all of whom contributed to its support.
It was under the superintendence of Macistus, the most powerful of the Triphylian
cities. (Strab. viii. pp. 344, 346, 347.) In a corrupt passage of Strabo this
temple is said to be 100 stadia equidistant from Lepreum and the Annius (tou Anniou);
for the latter name we ought to read Alpheius and not Anigrus, as some editors
have done.
In the neighbourhood of Samicum there were celebrated medicinal springs,
which were said to cure cutaneous diseases. Of the two lagoons which now stretch
along the coast, the larger, which extends as far as the mouth of the Alpheius,
begins at the northern foot of the hill upon which Samicum stands; the southern
extends along the precipitous sides of the hill, which were called in antiquity
the Achaean rocks. (Strab viii. p. 347.) The river Anigrus flows into the latter
of these lagoons, and from thence flows out into the sea. The lagoon is deep,
being fed with subterraneous sources; in summer it is said to be very fetid, and
the air extremely unwholesome. Strabo relates that the waters of the lake were
fetid, and its fish not eatable, which he attributes to the Centaurs washing their
wounds in the Anigrus. Pausanias mentions the same circumstances; and both writers
describe the efficacy of the water in curing cutaneous diseases. There were two
caves, one sacred to the Nymphs Anigrides (Anigrides, Paus.; Anigriades, Strab.),
and the other to the Atlantides; the former was the more important, and is alone
mentioned by Pausanias. It was in the cave of the Anigrides that the persons who
were going to use the waters first offered up their prayers to the Nymphs. (Strab.
viii. p. 346, seq.; Paus. v. 5. § § 7 - 11.) These two caves are still visible
in the rocks; but they are now accessible only by a boat, as they are immediately
above the surface of the lake. General Gordon, who visited these caverns in 1835,
found in one of them water distilling from the rock, and bringing with it a pure
yellow sulphur.
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited June 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΣΚΙΛΛΟΥΣ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Skillous: Eth. Skillountios. A town of Triphylia, a district of Elis,
situated 20 stadia south of Olympia. In B.C. 572 the Scilluntians assisted Pyrrhus,
king of Pisa, in making war upon the Eleians; but they were completely conquered
by the latter, and both Pisa and Scillus were razed to the ground. (Paus. v. 6.
§ 4, vi. 22. § 4.) Scillus remained desolate till about B.C. 392, when the Lacedaemonians,
who had a few years previously compelled the Eleians to renounce their supremacy
over their dependent cities, colonised Scillus and gave it to Xenophon, then an
exile from Athens. Xenophon resided here more than twenty years, but was expelled
from it by the Eleians soon after the battle of Leuctra, B.C. 371. He has left
us a description of the place, which he says was situ-ated 20 stadia from the
Sacred Grove of Zeus, on the road to Olympia from Sparta, It stood upon the river
Selinus, which was also the name of the river flowing by the temple of Artemis
at Ephesus, and like the latter it abounded in fish and shell-fish. Here Xenophon,
from a tenth of the spoils acquired in the Asiatic campaign, dedicated a temple
to Artemis, in imitation of the celebrated temple at Ephesus, and instituted a
festival to the goddess. Scillus stood amidst woods and meadows, and afforded
abundant pasture for cattle; while the neighbouring mountains supplied wild hogs,
roebucks, and stags. (Xen. Anab. v. 3. 7 - 13.) When Pausanias visited Scillus
five centuries afterwards the temple of Artemis still remained, and a statue of
Xenophon, made of Pentelic marble. (Paus. v. 6. § 5, seq.; comp. Strab. viii.
pp. 344, 387; Plut. de >Exsil. p. 603.) There are no remains to identify Scillus,
but there can be no doubt that it stood in the woody vale, in which is a small
village called Rasa, and through which flows a river falling into the Alpheius
nearly opposite the Cladeus. (Leake, Morea, vol. ii. p. 213, seq., Peloponnesiaca,
p. 9; Boblaye, Recherches, &c. p. 133; Curtius, Peloponnesos, vol. ii. p.
91.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited June 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΣΤΥΛΑΓΓΙΟΝ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Stullangion, Stullagion, Eth. Stullagios, Stullagieus. A town of Triphylia in
Elis of uncertain site, which surrendered to Philip in the Social War.
ΤΥΠΑΝΕΑΙ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Typaneae (Tupaneai, Polyb. Steph. B.; Tumpaneai, Strab.; Tumpaneia,
Ptol.: Eth. Tupaneates), a town of Triphylia in Elis, mentioned by Strabo along
with Hypana. It was taken by Philip in the Social War. It was situated in the
mountains in the interior of the country, but its exact site is uncertain. Leake
supposes it to be represented by the ruins near Platiana; but Boblaye supposes
these to be the remains of Aepy or Aepium, and that Typaneae stood on the hill
of Makrysia. (Strab. viii. p. 343; Polyb. iv. 77-79; Steph. B. s. v. Ptol. iii.
16. § 18; Leake, Morea, vol. ii. p. 82; Boblaye, Recherches, &c. p. 133; Ross,
Reisen im Peloponnes, p. 105; Curtius, Peloponnesos, vol. ii. p. 89.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited September 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΥΠΑΝΑ (Αρχαία κωμόπολη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Hypana (Hupana: Eth. Hupaneus), a town in the interior of Triphylia
in Elis, which surrendered to Philip V. in the Social War. Its inhabitants had
been transferred to Elis when Strabo wrote. Hypana is mentioned along with Typaneae.
Both these towns must have been situated in the mountains of Triphylia, but their
site is uncertain. Leake places Hypana at Alvena in the heights above the maritime
plain of Lepreum; but Boblaye more to the north, at Mundritza, in the hills above
Samicum. (Strab. viii. p. 343; Polyb. iv. 77, 79; Steph. B. s. v.; Ptol. iii.
16. § 18, who calls it Hupaneia; Leake, Morea, vol. ii. p. 85; Boblaye, Recherches,
&c. p. 133; Curtius, Peloponnesos, vol. ii. p. 89.)
ΦΙΓΑΛΕΙΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Phigalia (Pans.); Phigalea (Polyb. iv. 3); Phigaleia (Paus.; Rhianus,
ap. Steph. B. s. v.;), Phialia (Paus.); Phialeia (Polyb.); Eth. Phigaleus, Phialeus,
Phigaleites.
An ancient is town of Arcadia, situated in the south-western corner
of the country, close to the frontiers of Messenia, and upon the right bank of
the Neda, about halfway between the sources and the mouth of this river. The name
Phigalia was more ancient than that of Phialia, but the original name had again
come into use in the time of Pausanias (viii. 39. § 2). The at city was said to
have derived its more ancient name to from Phigalus, a son of Lycaon, its original
founder, and its later name from Phialus, a son of Lycaon, its second founder.
(Paus. l. c.; Steph. B.) In B.C. 659 the inhabitants of Phigalia were obliged
to surrender their city to the Lacedaemonians, but they in recovered possession
of it again by the help of a chosen body of Oresthasians, who, according to an
oracle, perished fighting against the Lacedaemonians, (Paus. viii. 39. § § 4,
5.) In B.C. 375 Phigalia was rent asunder by hostile factions; and the supporters
of the Lacedaemonian party, being expelled from the city, took possession of a
fortress in the neighbourhood named Heraea, from which they made excursions against
Phigalia. (Diod. xv. 40.) In the wars between the Aetolians and Achaeans, Phigalia
became for some time the head-quarters of the Aetolian troops, who from thence
plundered Messenia, till they were at length driven out by Philip of Macedon.
(Polyb. iv. 3, seq., 79, seq.) The Phigaleans possessed several peculiar customs,
respecting which Harmodius of Lepreum wrote a special work. This author relates
that they were given to excess both in eating and drinking, to which their cold
and ungenial climate may perhaps have contributed. (Athen. iv. p. 149, x. p. 442.)
Phigalia was still a place of importance when visited by Pausanias.
He describes it as situated upon a lofty and precipitous hill, the greater part
of the walls being built upon the rocks. There are still considerable remains
of the ancient walls above the modern village of Pavlitza. The city was upwards
of two miles in circumference. The rock, upon which it stood, slopes down towards
the Neda; on the western side it is bounded by a ravine and on the eastern by
the torrent Lymax, which flows into the Neda. The walls are of the usual thickness,
faced with masonry of the second order, and filled in the middle with rubble.
On the summit of the acropolis within the walls are the remains of a detached
citadel, 80 yards in length, containing a round tower at the extremity, measuring
18 feet in the interior diameter. In ancient times a temple of Artemis Soteira
stood on the summit of the acropolis. On the slope of the mountain lay the gymnasium
and the temple of Dionysus Acratophorus; and on the ground below, where the village
of upper Pavlitza stands, was the agora, adorned with a statue of the pancratiast
Arrachion, who lost his life in the Olympic games, and with the sepulchre of the
Oresthasians, who perished to restore the Phigaleans to their native city. (Paus.
viii. 39. § § 5, 6, 40. § 1.) Upon a rock, difficult of access, near the union
of the Lymax and the Neda, was a temple of Eurynome, supposed to be a surname
of Artemis, which was opened only once a year. In the same neighbourhood, and
at the distance of 12 stadia from the city, were some warm baths, traces of which,
according to the French Commission, are visible at the village of Tragoi, but
the waters have long ceased to flow. (Paus. viii. 41. § 4, seq.)
Phigalia was surrounded by mountains, of which Pausanias mentions
two by name, Coilium (to Kotilion) and Elaeum (to Elaiom), the former to the left
of the city, at the distance of 30 stadia, and the latter to the right at the
distance of 30 stadia. As Cotilium lies to the NE. of Phigalia, and Pausanias
in this description seems to have looked towards the east, Mt. Elaeum should probably
be placed on the opposite side of Phigalia, and consequently to the south of the
Neda, in which case it would correspond to the lofty mountain of Kuvela. Mt. Elaeum
contained a cavern sacred to Demeter the Black, situated in a grove of oaks. Of
the position of Mt. Cotilium there is no doubt. On it was situated the temple
of Apollo Epicurius, which was built in the Peloponnesian War by Ictinus, the
architect of the Parthenon at Athens. It was erected by the Phigaleans in consequence
of the relief afforded by Apollo during the plague in the Peloponnesian War, whence
he received the surname of Epicurius. The temple stood in a place called Bassae,
and according to Pausanias excelled all the temples of Peloponnesus, except that
of Athena Alea at Tegea, in the beauty of the stone and the accuracy of its masonry.
He particularly mentions that the roof was of stone as well as the rest of the
building. (Paus. viii. 41. § § 7, 8.) This temple still remains almost entire,
and is next to the Theseium at Athens the best preserved of the temples of Greece.
It stands in a glen (whence the name Bassai, Dor. for Besse, Bessai) near the
summit of Mt. Cotilium, in the midst of a wilderness of rocks, studded with old
knotty oaks. An eye-witness remarks that there is certainly no remnant of the
architectural splendour of Greece more calculated to fascinate the imagination
than this temple; whether by its own size and beauty, by the contrast it offers
to the wild desolation of the surrounding scenery, or the extent and variety of
the prospect from its site. (Mure, Tour in Greece, vol. ii. p. 270.) A spring
rises about 10 minutes SW. of the temple, and soon afterwards loses itself in
the ground, as Pausanias has described. North of the temple was the highest summit
of the mountain, which one reaches in 10 minutes' time by a broad road constructed
by the Greeks. This summit was called Cotilum Kotilon), whence the whole mountain
derived the name of Cotilian; here was a sanctuary of Aphrodite, of which there
are still some traces. The grandeur of the ruins of the temple have given to the
whole of the surrounding district the name of the Columns (stous stulous or kolonnais).
The temple is at least two hours and a half from the ruins of the city, and consequently
more than the 40 stadia, which Pausanias mentions as the distance from Phigalia
to Cotilium; but this distance perhaps applies to the nearest part of the mountain
from the city.
In modern times the temple remained long unknown, except to the shepherds
of the country. Chandler, in 1765, was the first who gave any account of it; it
was subsequently visited and described by Gell, Dodwell, and others; and in 1812
the whole temple was very carefully examined by a body of artists and scholars,
who cleared away the ruins of the cella, and thus became acquainted with the exact
form of the interior of the building. The results of these labours are given by
Stackelberg, Der Apollotempel zu Bassa in Arkadien, Rom. 1826. The temple was
a peripteral building of the Doric order. The stone of which it is built is a
hard yellowish-brown limestone, susceptible of a high polish. It faces nearly
north and south, was originally about 125 feet in length and 48 in breadth, and
had 15 columns on either side, and 6 on either front. There were also 2 columns
in the pronaos and 2 in the posticum; so that the total number in the peristyle
was 42, of which 36 are standing. The cella was too narrow to allow of interior
rows of columns as in the Parthenon; but on either side of the cella five fluted
Ionic semi-columns projected from the walls, which supported the timbers of the
hypaethron. The frieze of the cella, representing contests between the Centaurs
and the Lapithae, and between Amazons and Greeks, is now in the British Museum.
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited June 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΦΡΙΖΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΣΚΙΛΛΟΥΝΤΑ
Phrixa (Paus. et alii); Phrixai (Herod. iv. 148): Eth. Phrixaios.
A town of Triphylia in Elis, situated upon the left bank of the Alpheius, at the
distance of 30 stadia from Olympia. (Strab. viii. p. 343; Steph. B. s. v.) It
was founded by the Minyae (Herod. l. c.), and its name was derived from Phaestus.
(Steph. B. s. v. Makistos.) Phrixa is rarely mentioned in history; but it shared
the fate of the other Triphylian cities. (Comp. Xen. Hell. iii. 2. 30; Polyb.
iv. 77, 80.) Its position is determined by Pausanias, who says that it was situated
upon a pointed hill, opposite the Leucanias, a tributary of the Alpheius, and
at a ford of the latter river. (Paus. vi. 21. § 6.) This pointed hill is now called
Paleofanaro, and is a conspicuous object from both sides of the river, whence
the city received the name of Phaestus in later times. (Steph. B. s. v Phaistos.)
The city was in ruins in the time of Pausanias, who mentions there a temple of
Athena Cydonia. Upon the summit of the hill there are still remains of Hellenic
walls.
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited June 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΦΡΙΞΑ (Χωριό) ΗΛΕΙΑ
Phrixa (Phrixa, Paus. et alii; Phrixai, Herod. iv. 148: Eth. Phrixaios),
a town of Triphylia in Elis, situated upon the left bank of the Alpheius, at the
distance of 30 stadia from Olympia. (Strab. viii. p. 343; Steph. B. s. v.) It
was founded by the Minyae (Herod. l. c.), and its name was derived from Phaestus.
(Steph. B. s. v. Makistos.) Phrixa is rarely mentioned in history; but it shared
the fate of the other Triphylian cities. (Comp. Xen. Hell. iii. 2. 30; Polyb.
iv. 77, 80.) Its position is determined by Pausanias, who says that it was situated
upon a pointed hill, opposite the Leucanias, a tributary of the Alpheius, and
at a ford of the latter river. (Paus. vi. 21. § 6.) This pointed hill is now called
Paleofanaro, and is a conspicuous object from both sides of the river, whence
the city received the name of Phaestus in later times. (Steph. B. s. v Phaistos.)
The city was in ruins in the time of Pausanias, who mentions there a temple of
Athena Cydonia. Upon the summit of the hill there are still remains of Hellenic
walls. (Leake, Morea, vol. ii. p. 210; Boblaye, Recherches &c. p. 136; Ross, Reisen
im Peloponnes, p. 108; Curtius, Peloponnesos, vol. ii. p. 90.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited August 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΑΛΙΦΕΙΡΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
A town in Arcadia, on the borders of Elis, south of the river Alpheus.
ΛΕΠΡΕΟΝ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
A town of Elis in Triphylia, situated forty stadia from the sea. Its name was derived from Leprea, daughter of Pyrgeus, or from Lepreus, son of Poseidon, and rival of Heracles, by whom he was slain.
ΜΑΚΙΣΤΟΣ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
A town of Elis, originally called Platanistus.
ΠΥΛΟΣ ΤΡΙΦΥΛΙΑΚΗ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
The name of three towns on the western coast of the Peloponnesus.
(2) In Triphylia, about thirty stadia from the coast, on the river Mamaus, west
of the mountain Minthe, and north of Lepreum.
ΣΚΙΛΛΟΥΣ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
A town of Elis in the district Triphylia, on the river Selinus, twenty stadia south of Olympia. Here Xenophon, when banished from Athens, lived for more than twenty years, and built a sanctuary to Artemis.
ΥΠΑΝΑ (Αρχαία κωμόπολη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
(ta Hupana) and Hypane (Hupane). A town in Elis belonging to the so-called Pentapolis.
ΦΙΓΑΛΕΙΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
A town in the southwest corner of Arcadia, on the frontiers
of Messenia and Elis, which owes its celebrity in modern times to the remains
of a splendid temple in its territory (i. e. at Bassae, some four miles distant),
built in the time of Pericles. The sculptures, in alto-relievo, which ornamented
the frieze in the interior, are now preserved in the British Museum. They represent
the combat of the Centaurs and the Lapithae, and of the Greeks and the Amazons.
The temple is, next to the Theseum at Athens, the most completely preserved architectural
specimen of classic Greek art. It was built by Ictinus, one of the architects
of the Parthenon, of gray stone and white marble. It was originally 125 1/2 feet
long and 48 feet wide.
This text is cited Sep 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΦΡΙΖΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΣΚΙΛΛΟΥΝΤΑ
A town of Elis, on the borders of Pisatis, founded by the Minyae, and traditionally deriving its name from Phrixus.
ΦΡΙΞΑ (Χωριό) ΗΛΕΙΑ
A town of Elis, on the borders of Pisatis, founded by the Minyae, and traditionally deriving its name from Phrixus.
ΑΙΠΥ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
One of the six Minyan foundations (Hdt. 4.148), between Heraia and
Makistos (Xen. Hell. 3.2.30), was a natural stronghold in Makistia (Strab. 8.3.24),
continually threatened with Elean domination (Xen. 3.2.30, Polyb. 4.77, 80). There
is considerable uncertainty about the name, Herodotos giving Epion, Xenophon Epeion,
Polybios Aipion, whereas Strabo identifies it with Homeric Aipu (Il. 2.592), thus
including it in Nestor's realm. This identification is unlikely to be correct
and it is perhaps best to follow Xenophon, a near neighbor, and adopt Epeionas
the correct spelling. The location is also uncertain. The usual assumption has
been that Epeion is to be identified with the remains in a place called Eliniko
(now Epio) above Platiana just off the modern road from Andritsena to Pyrgos.
However, good reasons have been advanced for identifying this site with Trypaneae,
and also for placing Epeionat modern Mazi, which is usually identified with ancient
Skillous. Though the former is likely to be correct, it has seemed best here to
retain the traditional identification, and to describe the remains at Eliniko.
The town lies on an exposed hill in a position commanding the entire
area at an altitude of ca. 600 m above sea level, and is unusually long and narrow
(680 x 60-80 m). It is divided into three parts: an upper acropolis area separated
by terrace walls from a lower area still included within the fortification walls,
and a NW extension of the walls which guards a relatively easy approach to the
walls. The acropolis is itself divided into a number of terraces, of which the
highest (to the W) has its own wall, and must have served as the citadel. The
terrace next to the one farthest E contains a theater, while the next seems to
have served as an agora. The main entrance to the town was a gate in the imposing
E wall at its SE corner. The walls all seem of Hellenistic, possibly 3d c., date,
and are very well preserved in parts, particularly in the area of the citadel.
W. F. Wyatt, Jr., ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
ΑΛΙΦΕΙΡΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
The city farthest W in the district of Kynouraioi at the border between
Arkadia and Triphylia, lying on a hill (683 m) about two hours NW of Andritsaina,
near the village of Rongkozio. It was named for Aliphon or Alipheiron, one of
the sons of Lykaon, the son of Pelasgos, the mythical king of Arkadia. The first
evidence of it relates to the worship of Athena in the middle of the 6th c. Later,
in the 4th and 3d c., the city appears to have been joined to the Arkadian League
with the other Arkadian cities, and was brought into the Megalopolitan Synoecism
under whose jurisdiction it remained until 244 B.C. when Lydiadas ceded it to
the Eleians. After that the city began to decline from the height of prosperity
it had reached ca. the beginning of the 3d c. B.C. Alipheira briefly resisted
the advance of Philip V (219 B.C.). After the Macedonian king had conquered it
he installed a garrison: an inscription referring to it has been found. During
the 2d c. it was one of the cities of the Achaian League, but it continued to
dwindle, and by Pausanias time had become a city of no size. Remains of the Christian
period show the area was inhabited even later.
Excavations in 1932-35 uncovered the whole acropolis. The impressive
fortification wall, well constructed of polygonal or rectangular blocks with towers
at intervals, surrounds the steep slope of the hillside except for a part of the
precipitous region which remained unwalled. Besides the circuit wall, the highest
point of the hill (the heights) is also fortified by a wall in the shape of an
irregular quadrangle. One tower is on the S side, where the entrance is; others
on the W face provide greater strength and fortify the terrace where the Precinct
of Athena is located. Here, on a lower level, a terrace wall which is terminated
by towers supports the platform where the temple was built. The temple, which
is preserved to the stylobate, probably replaced an earlier one. It was Doric,
peripteral (6 x 15 columns), without pronaos or opisthodomos (dimensions at the
euthynteria are 10.65 x 29.60 m). It has the characteristics of an Arkadian temple,
such as N-S orientation, similar plan and height of columns, and similar tiles.
Its date--ca. the end of the 6th to the beginning of the 5th c--is indicated by
its definitely archaic features. Among these are the single step krepidoma with
the second step serving as the stylobate, the columns with 16 flutes and with
drums of irregular heights, the annulets below the neck, the elliptical guttai
on the mutules of the geison, the alternating wide and narrow mutules (0.432,
0.335 m), the difference in intercolumniation between the long and short sides,
the existence of angle contraction in the temple, the number of the columns, and
the gorgon antefixes on the lowest cover tiles. The shape of the capitals and
the triglyphs are especially indicative of a date of ca. 500-490 B.C.
Along the front of the temple were uncovered rectangular and triagonal
bases belonging to dedicatory statues as well as a long altar and the end of a
large inscribed statue base, apparently belonging to a colossal bronze statue
of Athena, the work of the Theban sculptor Hypatodoros.
According to Pausanias, the Sanctuary of Asklepios was located on
the low area to the W of the acropolis. The temple, which is a simple rectangular
structure (5.75 x 9.30 m) with a pronaos in antis, has preserved on the axis of
the sanctuary the cubical base of an akrelephantine statue. Directly in front
of the base. two lion-footed slabs were used to support an offering table. The
altar of the temple was rectangular (2.18 x 5.36 m), parallel to the front of
the temple and to the E of it. The orthostates on the euthynteria are preserved,
as are one of the supporting blocks on each end, which bear a painted rosette
on one side and take the shape of a pediment. The altar is dated to the end of
the 4th c. B.C., while the Temple of Asklepios dates ca. 300 B.C. A rectangular
building to the SE of the altar with a peristyle of unfluted columns was perhaps
the healing area of the Asklepieion. The trapezoidal peribolos of the sanctuary
was used in places as a part of the fortification wall of Alipheira.
Remains of the city have been noted inside the fortification wall
at a place forming the suburb outside the heights, although it has been suggested
that this was a fortified strip extending to the SE of the acropolis. Building
foundations have also been found on the NE side of the hill, where were the lower
city and the Fountain of Tritonis (Nerositsa). Finally, the necropolis extends
around the E and W skirts of the hill. Among the funerary monuments one is outstanding
for its size and interest. This is a heroon with a chamber dug in the earth and
rock of the hillside, intended for Sentheas (or Santheas) according to the inscription
on its front. Four other heroa were found, all of them, like the first, from the
Hellenistic period. Tomb 5 differs from the rest in architectural form.
M. Gavrili, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
ΒΑΣΣΑΙ (Αρχαίο ιερό) ΗΛΕΙΑ
A precinct sacred to Apollo Bassitas and site of the famous Doric
Temple of Apollo built in the late 5th c. B.C. it is located 7 km NE of the ancient
city of Phigalia and is contiguous to a second precinct, that of Kotilon, sacred
to Artemis Orthia and Aphrodite. The composite sanctuary (750 m x 350 m) spreads
over the S face of Mt. Kotilios: the precinct of Kotilon (elev. 1226 m) reaches
the peak, Bassai lies below (elev. 1129 m). The god Pan is also attested at the
site and an ancient spring in the SW area may have been sacred to him.
In 1812 an expedition led by Cockerell cleared the Temple of Apollo.
Excavations at Kotilon and Bassai and restorations of the Apollo temple have been
conducted intermittently since 1903. Finds show that dedications started ca. 675
B.C. and that the cults then flourished through the 5th c. B.C. By ca. 350 B.C.
activity rapidly declined but persisted into Roman times.
Ca. 625 B.C. temples were constructed for Apollo, Artemis, and Aphrodite.
Evidently, the temples dedicated to Apollo and Artemis were identical in design
and decoration (15 x 7 m, pronaos, cella, akroterion disks, antefixes with heraldic
sphinxes). The pair of Temples to Artemis and Aphrodite (ca. 9 x 6 m) in Kotilon
survived throughout the history of the site; whereas the original structure in
Bassai was the first of four Temples to Apollo. Ca. 575 B.C. Apollo I was rebuilt
and slightly enlarged (cella 12 m x 7 m, adyton 7 m, opisthodomos 3 m) and redecorated
with a new set of architectural terracottas similar in design to those on the
first temple. in 1970 foundations of Apollo II were discovered 10 m S of the present
temple, Apollo IV; the center lines of the earlier and later temples are on approximately
the same N-S axis.
Ca. 500 B.C. a third and large-scale Temple to Apollo was constructed
of local limestone. it was subsequently disassembled and its blocks were reused
in the substructure for Apollo IV of the late 5th c. B.C. Apparently, many essentials
in plan and outward appearance of Apollo IV were in fact derived from Apollo III
of the late archaic period (proportions width to length of 1:2.6, disposition
of 6 x 12 columns and thickened diameters of frontal columns).
Subtle refinements of design and construction in Apollo IV include
a plan which forms an isosceles trapezoid (width of euthynteria is ca. 16 m but
S is slightly wider than N, with both lateral sides exactly equal in length, ca.
40 m); in addition there are outward curvature in the stylobate, precise jointing,
and decoration of all risers of the krepidoma with molded rebates at the lower
edges and raised, stippled panels above. Subtle adjustments were made in column
spacings and column proportions and the Doric shafts are without entasis. Metopes
of the exterior Doric frieze and the two pediments were undecorated by sculpture;
by contrast, a marble roof was trimmed by antefixes and a richly carved and painted
raking sima; and the gables were surmounted by floral akroteria. Within the peristyle
a set of reliefs filled the metopes of the Doric friezes across the pronaos and
opisthodomos (preserved fragments BM 510-19 are all from the S side) and a system
of elaborately carved limestone coffers adorned the ceilings of the pteromata.
The most splendid decoration of the temple was a sculptured frieze
which encircled the interior of the cella, an arrangement which appears in Greek
architecture for the first time at Bassai. The slabs contain scenes of a Centauromachy
(BM 520-30) and an Amazonomachy (BM 531-42). The design of the interior peristyle
is unique: in plan five columns of the ionic order are engaged to each lateral
wall by short spur walls, with the rearmost pair being joined by spurs which run
at 45° to the lateral walls. Between this pair and on the center-line axis of
the cella there was a freestanding column which bore the earliest known capital
of the Corinthian order. Limestone and marble were employed alternately throughout
the interior: bases and shafts in limestone, capitals in marble except for the
ionic capitals in limestone above the diagonal spurs, frieze in marble, geison
in limestone, and coffered ceiling in marble. The adyton and the cella are divided
only by the ionic entablature which is carried across the cella on the Corinthian
column. Within this area a doorway opens to the E. Originally, it was closed to
pedestrian traffic by a permanently fixed grill.
The adyton was also coffered, but the lozenges here differed slightly
in shape from the patterns used for ceilings of the cella and lateral niches.
The cult image stood before the Corinthian column; no indication of
the base remains on the pavement, but in 1812 fragments of an akrolithic statue
(BM 543-44) were found in this part of the cella. The adyton may have served to
house a xoanon from the earlier temples.
No altar has been discovered at Bassai. However, other outlying structures
have been partially uncovered and include a base at the SW coiner of Apollo iV
(perhaps for the 4 m bronze statue of Apollo Epikourios), a stairway in this vicinity,
a rectangular foundation for a building 25 m NW of Apollo IV (perhaps to be identified
as a workshop) and miscellaneous other stretches of walls in lower terraces to
the SW of the temple.
F. A. Cooper, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
ΛΕΠΡΕΟΝ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
About 7 km from the coast, on a steep hill N of Strovitsi village.
The hill falls sharply to the N. It is said to have been founded by Minyans, who
drove out the original Kaukonians (Hdt. 4.148). Although the Triphylians claimed
to be part of Arkadia, Lepreon was dependent upon Elis through much of its history
(Paus. 5.5.3). From the early 4th to the mid 2d c. it was drawn at various times
into the orbits of Sparta, the Arkadian League, Philip V, and, finally, the Achaian
League. In 146 it was permanently assigned to Elis, and was of little importance
in Pausanias' day. Men of Lepreon fought at Plataia (Hdt. 9.28,31; Paus. 5.23.2).
There are considerable remains of the fortified citadel, with several
towers, and an enclosed keep at the NE corner. On the W, traces of a wall descend
towards the valley. The walls include several styles of masonry, but probably
only two periods are represented; the earlier of these may be 4th c. work, but
the remains are mostly Hellenistic.
Rectangular foundations, probably of two temples, have been observed
on the citadel hill. Numerous tombs have been found by peasants in the valley
to the S around Strovitsi; and there is an ancient well below the keep to the
N.
F. E. Winter, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
ΣΑΜΙΚΟΝ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
A few km from Olympia. The ruins of the city have been identified
on a broad upland to the S of Mt. Makistos (or Lapithos). Inhabited by the Epeans
who named it Samos, and then by the Pylians, from whom it took the name Arene,
the city later passed to the Minii who called it Makistos; only under the Eleans
did it retake the original name of Samia or Samikon (cf. Paus. 5.6.1; Ptol. 4.80.12;
Strab. 8.148; Herod. 4.148). It was the seat of the religious confederation of
the six cities of Triphylia, and there was erected a Temple to Poseidon, whose
cult was greatly renowned. A vast wall enclosed the S, where two types of masonry
are found: polygonal blocks already in the 5th c. B.C., which were also used in
several towers; and a trapezoidal technique with squared face, perhaps dating
prior to the 3d c. B.C. In 1825, Fort Klidi (The Key), taking advantage of the
ancient foundations, was erected on the site. A tumulus with pottery from the
Middle Helladic period to Mycenaean II has been found at the NE base of the rocky
hill on which stands Klidi.
N. Bonacasa, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
ΣΚΙΛΛΟΥΣ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
City in Triphylia, 20 stades (3.5 km) S of Olympia, on the Selinus
River (Xen. Anab. 5.3.11; Strab. 8.343; Paus. 5.6.4). The land of Skillous was
fertile, as it is today, and also abounded with game (Xen. Anab. 5.3.7; Paus.
5.6.5). In the 7th and early 6th c. B.C., Skillous, a close friend and ally of
Pisa, which at that time assumed control of the Olympic sanctuary, built the heraion
at Olympia (Paus. 5.16.1). In 570 B.C. the people of Skillous were evicted from
the city after the total defeat of their allies the Pisaians in battle with the
Eleians (Paus. 5.6.4, 6.22.4). In 400 B.C. Skillous was resettled by Sparta. After
the peace of Antalkidas (King's Peace) the city was proclaimed free (Xen. Hell.
6.5.2) but shortly afterwards it came under the control of Sparta. The farm assigned
by Sparta to the Athenian exile, Xenophon, was in the territory of Skillous. Xenophon
erected a shrine there which was a copy of the Temple of Ephesian Artemis (Xen.
Anab. 5.3.7f; Paus. 5.6.4). A short distance from the shrine, Pausanias (5.6.6)
saw the tomb of Xenophon with his statue. In the area of Skillous was also a remarkable
Temple of Skillountian Athena (Strab. 8.343). After the battle of Leuktra (371
B.C.) Skillous again came under Eleian control. Skillous was probably deserted
in the Hellenistic period and for this reason is not mentioned at all by Polybios.
Pausanias, on the road to Olympia after Samikon, mentions the uninhabited remains
of Skillous in the distance to the left; that is, in the area between the present
communities of Krestaina, Makrysia, and Ladikou, where the city must have been.
N. Yalouris, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
The boundaries of the territory of Skillous are not known. To the N, however, they extended to the mountainous area S of Olympia, today known by the name Babes. Apparently the Temple of Skillountian Athena was located there (Strab. 8.343). On the heights of Babes, which even today are fertile, are located 17 settlements: in the areas of Mazi and Phanari, Arnokatarrhako, Gemkovouni, Rhasa, Haghios Elms, Haghios Triphonas, Vageni, Louzi, and Rhethi, notable finds dating from the prehistoric to the Roman period have been made. On the hill of Ainokatarrhako a Doric shrine of Zeus has been uncovered dating to the beginning of the 5th c. B.C. Around the hill a settlement extends for some distance. A section of this, where there are clusters of large houses with roads between, has been excavated. Another Doric temple has been found NE of Arnokatarrhako on the peak of the hill Haghios Elias, just opposite Olympia. In the same area, architectural fragments of other Doric temples (?) have been collected. The remains preserved at the village of Haghios Triphonas at the highest point of Babes belong to monumental building. The remains of the settlement in the area near the town of Mazi are extensive and also monumental. On the hill, Kastro, which dominates this ancient settlement, is preserved a temple of the 4th c. B.C. with pedimental sculptures (on display in the Patras museum). Finally, the remains of a settlement and acropolis near the town of Phanari probably belong to ancient Phrixa. These settlements in Babes perhaps belong to the territory of Skillous at the period of its greatest extent. Ancient sources mention the cities of Phrixa, Aipion, Pyrgos, and Bolax in this area. Three of these may be identified with some probability: Phrixa with the settlement at Phanari, Aipion with the settlement at Mazi, and Pyrgos with the settlement at Arnokatarrhako.
N. Yalouris, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
ΦΙΓΑΛΕΙΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΛΕΙΑ
A polis within the district of Parrhasia. Geographically isolated,
Phigalia was linked historically with S Triphylia (viz., Lepreon) and the upper
Messenian plain. The city (1500 x 2500 m) spreads over an uneven plateau 300 m
above the deep gorge of the Neda river which permitted access to the coast of
Triphylia 15 km to the W. Citizens frequently aided Messenians in their wars and
revolts against Sparta; in reprisal, the Spartans beseiged and occupied Phigalia
several times in the 7th and 6th c. B.C. and between 421 to ca. 414 B.C. and again
ca. 401-395. In Hellenistic times Phigalia was a member of the Aitolian and Achean
Leagues; in the Roman period it went into decline, but has remained continuously
occupied.
The site is unexcavated, but chance finds indicate that the site was
occupied by the Late Bronze Age; considerable remains of the archaic, Classical,
and Roman periods lie exposed. Fortification walls are preserved for a length
of ca. one km along the E and N sides of the acropolis and stand to heights of
10 m in some parts. Stretches of the circuit may date as early as the 5th c. B.C.
but in the mid 4th c. B.C. portions were rebuilt for the addition of square and
circular towers. An outer, but uncharted, circuit of walls exists to the far W
of the city.
In the SE a Hellenistic fountain-house continues to function; nearby,
a Byzantine Chapel of the Panagia is built into the superstructure of an Ionic
building. In the W section a long stoa with shafts of several columns still in
situ delineates one side of an open, level area which appears to be the agora.
Adjacent, a destroyed chapel contains architectural members from a building of
the Classical period. An archaic kouros, found here in 1890, is now at Olympia
and perhaps is to be identified as the victor Arrachion (564 B.C.), described
by Pausanias. A Sanctuary to Athena is on a low hill to the W, overlooking the
agora.
The acropolis of the city (elev. 720 m) lies in the N sector. A Sanctuary
to Artemis Soteirias is on the crown, now occupied by a Church to Haghios Elias.
Chamber tombs line the scarps of surrounding hills. Numerous but unidentified
monuments are scattered throughout the confines of the city. Ancient sources attest
to the existence of a Polemarchion, a theater, a gymnasium, a Temple of Dionysos
Akratophoros, Sanctuaries of Hygeia and Asklepios, and Heroons of the Oresthasions
and Lepreos.
F. A. Cooper, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
Οι Φιγαλείς, που έρεπαν στο γλέντι και στην καλοζωία και ήταν λάτρεις του κρασιού και των ταξιδιών. Είχαν μάλιστα φτιάξει ναό αφιερωμένο στο Διόνυσο τον ακρατοφόρο, το άγαλμα του οποίου έλαμπε κόκκινο μέσα στα αμπέλια, βαμμένο με κινναβάρι (θειούχο υδράργυρο). Στα ρωμαϊκά χρόνια οι Φιγαλείς έκοψαν νομίσματα που εμφάνιζαν τη Νέδα με τη μορφή θεού που κρατάει στα χέρια του υδρία απ' όπου χύνεται νερό. Η πόλη ιδρύθηκε από τον Φίγαλο, γιό του Λυκάωνα, ιδρυτή της Λυκόσουρας. Σήμερα στο χώρο της αρχαίας Φιγαλείας σώζονται ερείπια του αρχαίου ναού της Αρτέμιδος με έναν εντυπωσιακό βωμό. Στη γύρω περιοχή διακρίνονται εύκολα τα τείχη του οχυρωματικού περιβόλου πάνω από τις απότομες πλαγιές και τους λόφους που κάποτε ήταν γεμάτα με τα αμπέλια των Φιγαλείων. Στον αρχαιολογικό χώρο οι ανασκαφές βρίσκονται σε εξέλιξη.
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