Listed 100 (total found 105) sub titles with search on: Information about the place for wider area of: "ALBANIA Country BALKANS" .
AMANTIA (Ancient city) ILLYRIA
Amantia (Amantia: Eth. Amantieus, Steph. B. s. v.; Amantinos, Ptol.
ii. 16. § 3; Amantinus, Plin. iv. 10. s. 17. § 35; Amantianus, Caes. B.C. iii.
12; Amantes, Etym. M. s. v.; Amantes, Plin. iii. 23. s. 26. § 45), a town and
district in Greek Illyria. It is said to have been founded by the Abantes of Euboea,
who, according to tradition, settled near the Ceraunian mountains, and founded
Amantia and Thronium. From hence the original name of Amantia is said to have
been Abantia, and the surrounding country to have been called Abantis. (Steph.
B. s. v. Abantis, Amantia; Etym. M. s. v. Amantes; Paus. v. 22. § 3.) Amantia
probably stood at some distance from the coast, S. of the river Aous, and on a
tributary of the latter, named Polyanthes. (Lycophr. 1043.) It is placed by Leake
at Nivitza, where there are the remains of Hellenic walls. This site agrees with
the distances afforded by Scylax and the Tabular Itinerary, the former of which
places Amantia at 320 stadia, and the latter at 30 Roman miles from Apollonia.
Ptolemy speaks of an Amantia on the coast, and another town of the same name inland;
whence we may perhaps infer that the latter had a port of the same name, more
especially as the language of Caesar (B.C. iii. 40) would imply that Amantia was
situated on the coast. Amantia was a place of some importance in the civil wars
between Caesar and Pompey; and it continued to be mentioned in the time of the
Byzantine emperors. (Caes. B.C. iii. 12, 40; Cic. Phil. xi. 1. 1; Leake, Ancient
Greece, vol. i. p. 375, seq.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited July 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ANTIGONIA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
Antigoneia (Antigoneia, Anrigonia, Anti. gonea, Liv.: Eth. Antigoneus,
Antigonensis). A town of Epirus in the district Chaonia, on the Aous and near
a narrow pass leading from Illyria into Chaonia. (Ta par Antigoneian stena, Pol.
ii. 5, 6; ad Antigoneam fauces, Liv. xxxii. 5.) The town was in the hands of the
Romans in their war with Perseus. (Liv. xliii. 23.) It is mentioned both by Pliny
(iv. 1) and Ptolemy (iii. 14. § 7).
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited July 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ANTIPATRIA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
Antipatria or -ea, a town of Illyricum situated on the right bank
of the Apsus, in a narrow pass. (Liv. xxxi. 27; Leake, Northern Greece, vol. i.
p. 361.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited July 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
APOLLONIA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
Apollonia (Pollina, or Pollona), a city of Illyria, situated 10 stadia
from the right bank of the Aous, and 60 stadia from the sea (Strab. vii. p. 316),
or 50 stadia according to Scylax. It was founded by the Corinthians and Corcyraeans
in the seventh century before the Christian era, and is said to have been originally
called Gylaceia (Gulakeia), from Gylax, the name of its oecist. (Thuc. i. 26;
Scymnus, 439, 440; Paus. v. 21. § 12, 22. § 3; Strab.; Steph. B. s. v.) Apollonia
soon became a flourishing place, but its name rarely occurs in Grecian history.
It is mentioned in the civil wars between Caesar and Pompey, as a fortified town
with a citadel; and the possession of it was of great importance to Caesar in
his campaign against Pompey in Greece. (Caes. B.C. iii. 12, seq.) Towards the
end of the Roman republic it was celebrated as a seat of learning; and many of
the Roman nobles were accustomed to send their sons thither for the purpose of
studying the literature and philosophy of Greece. It was here that Augustus spent
six months before the death of his uncle summoned him to Rome. (Suet. Aug. 10;
Vell. Pat. ii. 59.) Cicero calls it at this period urbs magna et gravis. Apollonia
is mentioned by Hierocles (p. 653, ed. Wesseling) in the sixth century; but its
name does not occur in the writers of the middle ages. The village of Aulon, a
little to the S. of Apollonia, appears to have increased in importance in the
middle ages, as Apollonia declined. According to Strabo, the Via Egnatia commenced
at Apollonia, and according to others at Dyrrhachium; the two roads met at Clodiana.
There are scarcely any vestiges of the ancient city at the present day. Leake
discovered some traces of walls and of two temples; and the monastery, built near
its site, contains some fine pieces of sculpture, which were found in ploughing
the fields in its neighbourhood. (Leake, Northern Greece, vol. i. p. 368, seq.;
Tafel, De Via Fgnatia, p. 14, seq.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited July 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ARNISSA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
nbsp; Arnissa (Arnissa), a town of Macedonia in the province Eordaea, probably
in the vale of O' strovo, at the entrance of the pass over the mountains which
separated Lyncestis from Eordaea. (Thuc. iv. 108 ; Leake, Northern Greece, vol.
iii. p. 315, seq.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited July 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
CHIMARA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
Chimaera (Chimaira: Khimara), a town of Epeirus in the district Chaonia,
now gives its name to the Acroceraunian mountains, at the foot of which it stands.
At Khimara may be seen several pieces of Hellenic work, which serve as foundations
to some of the modern houses. (Plin. iv. 1; Procop. de Aedif. iv. 4; Leake, Northern
Greece, vol. i. pp. 7, 82, 89, seq.)
DALMATIA (Ancient country) ALBANIA
DURRES (Town) ALBANIA
Dyrrhachium (Durrhachion, Steph. B.; Ptol. iii. 13. § 3, viii. 12.
§ 3: Eth. Durrhachios, Durrhachenos, Dyrrachinus), a city on the coast of Illyricum
in the Ionic gulf, which was known in Grecian history as Epidamnus. (Epidamnos,,
Strab. vii. p. 316.)
It is doubtful under what circumstances the name was changed to that
of Dyrrhachium under which it usually appears in the Latin writers. Some have
affirmed that the Romans, considering the word Epidamnus to be of ill omen, called
it Dyrrhachium from the ruggedness of its situation. (Plin. iii. 23; Pomp. Mela,
ii. 3. § 12.) The latter word is, however, of Greek and not of Latin origin, and
is used by the poet Euphorion of Chalcis. (Steph. B. s. v.) Strabo applied the
name to the high and craggy peninsula upon which the town was built, as does also
the poet Alexander. (Steph. B. s. v.) And as Dyrrhachium did not exactly occupy
the site of ancient Epidamnus (Paus. vi. 10. § 2), it probably usurped the place
of the earlier name from its natural features.
Epidamnus was founded on the isthmus of an outlying peninsula on the
sea-coast of the Illyrian Taulantii, about 627 B.C., as is said (Euseb. Chron.),
by the Corcyraeans, yet with some aid, and a portion of the settlers, from Corinth;
the leader of the colony, Phaleus, belonging to the family of the Heraclidae,
according to the usual practice, was taken from the mother-city Corinth. (Thuc.
i. 24-26.) Hence the Corinthians acquired a right to interfere, which afterwards
led to important practical consequences. Owing to its favourable position upon
the Adriatic, and fertile territory, it soon acquired considerable wealth, and
was thickly peopled.
The government was a close oligarchy; a single magistrate, similar
to the Cosmopolis at Opus, was at the head of the administration. The chiefs of
the tribes formed a kind of council, while the artisans and tradesmen in the town
were looked upon as slaves belonging to the public. In process of time, probably
a little before the Peloponnesian War, in. testine dissensions broke up this oligarchy.
The original archon remained, but the phylarchs were replaced by a senate chosen
on democratical principles. (Arist. Pol. ii. 4. § 13, iii. 11. § 1, iv, 33. §
8, v. 1. § 6, v. 3. § 4; Muller, Dor. vol. ii. p. 160, trans.; Grote, Greece,
vol. iii. p. 546.) The government was liberal in the admission of resident aliens;
but all individual dealing with the: neighbouring Illyrians was forbidden, and
the traffic was carried on by means of an authorised selling agent, or Poletes.
(Plut. Quaest. Graec. c. 29, p. 297; Aelian, V.H. xiii. 16.) The trade was not
however confined to the inland tribes, but extended across from sea to sea, even
before the construction of the Egnatian Way, and an Inscription (Boeckh, Corp.
Inscr. No. 2056) proclaims the gratitude of Odessus in the Euxine sea towards
a citizen of Epidamnnus.
The dispute respecting this city between Corinth and Corcyra was occasioned
by a contest between the oligarchical exiles, who had been driven out by an internal
sedition, and the Epidamnian democracy, in which the Corinthians supported the
former. The history of this struggle has been fully given by Thucydides (l. c.),
in consequence of its intimate connection with the origin of the Peloponnesian
War, but we are left in ignorance of its final issue. Nor is anything known of
its further history till 312 B.C., when, by the assistance of the Corcyraeans,
Glaucias, king of the Illyrians, made himself master of Epidamnus. (Diod. xix.
70, 78.) Some years afterwards it was surprised by a party of Illyrian pirates;
the inhabitants, on recovering from their first alarm, fell upon their assailants,
and succeeded in driving them from the walls. (Polyb. ii. 9.) Not long after,
the Illyrians returned with a powerful fleet, and laid siege to the town; but
fortunately for the city, the arrival of the Roman consul compelled the enemy
to make a hasty retreat. Epidamnus from this time placed itself under the protection
of the Romans, to whose cause it appears to have constantly adhered, both in the
Illyrian and Macedonian wars. (Polyb. ii. 11; Liv. xxix. 12, xliv. 30.)
At a later period, Dyrrhachium, as it was then called, and a free
state (Cic. ad Fam. xiv. 1), became the scene of the contest between Caesar and
Pompeius. The latter moved from Thessalonica, and threw himself before Dyrrhachium;
the Pompeians entrenched themselves on the right bank of the Apsus, so effectually
that Caesar was obliged to take up his position on the left, and resolved to pass
the winter under canvass. This led to a series of remarkable operations, the result
of which was that the great captain, in spite of the consummate ability he displayed
in the face of considerable superiority in numbers and position, was compelled
to leave Dyrrhachium to Pompeius, and try the fortune of war upon a second field.
(Caesar, B.C. iii. 42-76; Appian, B.C. ii. 61; Dion Cass. xli. 49; Lucan vi.29-63.)
Dyrrhachium sided with M. Antonius during the last civil wars of the Republic,
and was afterwards presented by Augustus to his soldiers (Dion Cass. ii. 4), when
the Illyrian peasants learned the rudiments of municipal law from the veterans
of the empire. The inhabitants, whose patron deity was Venus (Catull. Carm. xxxiv.
11), were, if we may believe Plautus (Menaechm. act ii. sc. i. 30-40), a vicious
and debauched race. The city itself, under the Lower Roman Empire, became the
capital of the new province, Epirus Nova (Marquardt, Handbuch der Rom. Alt. p.
115), and is mentioned by the Byzantine historians as being still a considerable
place in their time (Cedren. p. 703; Niceph. Callist. xvii. 3). Gibbon (Decline
and Fall, vol. v. pp. 345-349; comp. Le Beau, Bas Empire, vol. xv. pp. 133-145)
has told the story of the memorable siege, battle, and capture of Dyrrhachium,when
the Norman Robert Guiscard defeated the Greeks and their emperor Alexius, A.D.
1081-1082. The modern Durazzo represents this place; the surrounding country is
described as being highly attractive, though unhealthy. (Albanien, Rumelien, und
die Oesterreichisch Montenegrische Granze, Jos. Muller, Prag. 1844, p. 62.) There
are a great number of autonomous coins belonging to this city, none however under
the name of Epidamnus, but always with the epigraph DUR, or more rarely DURA,
the type, as on the coins of Corcyra, a cow suckling a calf; on the reverse, the
gardens of Alcinous. (Eckhel, vol. ii. p. 155.)
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
EKATOMBEDON (Ancient city) ALBANIA
Hecatompedum (Hekartompedon, Ptol. iii. 14. § 7), a town in the interior
of Chaonia in Epeirus; probably situated in the vale of the Sukha, above Libokhovo.
(Leake, Travels in Northern, Greece, vol. iv. p. 120.)
EPIDAMNOS (Ancient city) ALBANIA
Durrhachion, Eth. Durrhachios, Durrhachenos, Dyrrachinus. A city on
the coast of Illyricum in the Ionic gulf, which was known in Grecian history as
EPIDAMNUS (Epidamnos, Strab. vii. p. 316.)
It is doubtful under what circumstances the name was changed to that
of DYRRHACHIUM under which it usually appears in the Latin writers. Some have
affirmed that the Romans, considering the word Epidamnus to be of ill omen, called
it Dyrrhachium from the ruggedness of its situation. (Plin. iii. 23; Pomp. Mela,
ii. 3. § 12.) The latter word is, however, of Greek and not of Latin origin, and
is used by the poet Euphorion of Chalcis. (Steph. B.) Strabo applied the name
to the high and craggy peninsula upon which the town was built, as does also the
poet Alexander. (Steph. B.) And as Dyrrhachium did not exactly occupy the site
of ancient Epidamnus (Paus. vi. 10. § 2), it probably usurped the place of the
earlier name from its natural features.
Epidamnus was founded on the isthmus of an outlying peninsula on the
sea-coast of the Illyrian Taulantii, about 627 B.C., as is said (Euseb. Chron.),
by the Corcyraeans, yet with some aid, and a portion of the settlers, from Corinth;
the leader of the colony, Phaleus, belonging to the family of the Heraclidae,
according to the usual practice, was taken from the mother-city Corinth. (Thuc.
i. 24-26.) Hence the Corinthians acquired a right to interfere, which afterwards
led to important practical consequences. Owing to its favourable position upon
the Adriatic, and fertile territory, it soon acquired considerable wealth, and
was thickly peopled.
The government was a close oligarchy; a single magistrate, similar
to the Cosmopolis at Opus, was at the head of the administration. The chiefs of
the tribes formed a kind of council, while the artisans and tradesmen in the town
were looked upon as slaves belonging to the public. In process of time, probably
a little before the Peloponnesian War, in. testine dissensions broke up this oligarchy.
The original archon remained, but the phylarchs were replaced by a senate chosen
on democratical principles. (Arist. Pol. ii. 4. § 13, iii. 11. § 1, iv, 33. §
8, v. 1. § 6, v. 3. § 4; Muller, Dor. vol. ii. p. 160, trans.; Grote, Greece,
vol. iii. p. 546.) The government was liberal in the admission of resident aliens;
but all individual dealing with the: neighbouring Illyrians was forbidden, and
the traffic was carried on by means of an authorised selling agent, or Poletes.
(Plut. Quaest. Graec. c. 29, p. 297; Aelian, V.H. xiii. 16.) The trade was not
however confined to the inland tribes, but extended across from sea to sea, even
before the construction of the Egnatian Way, and an Inscription (Boeckh, Corp.
Inscr. No. 2056) proclaims the gratitude of Odessus in the Euxine sea towards
a citizen of Epidamnnus.
The dispute respecting this city between Corinth and Corcyra was occasioned
by a contest between the oligarchical exiles, who had been driven out by an internal
sedition, and the Epidamnian democracy, in which the Corinthians supported the
former. The history of this struggle has been fully given by Thucydides, in consequence
of its intimate connection with the origin of the Peloponnesian War, but we are
left in ignorance of its final issue. Nor is anything known of its further history
till 312 B.C., when, by the assistance of the Corcyraeans, Glaucias, king of the
Illyrians, made himself master of Epidamnus. (Diod. xix. 70, 78.) Some years afterwards
it was surprised by a party of Illyrian pirates; the inhabitants, on recovering
from their first alarm, fell upon their assailants, and succeeded in driving them
from the walls. (Polyb. ii. 9.) Not long after, the Illyrians returned with a
powerful fleet, and laid siege to the town; but fortunately for the city, the
arrival of the Roman consul compelled the enemy to make a hasty retreat. Epidamnus
from this time placed itself under the protection of the Romans, to whose cause
it appears to have constantly adhered, both in the Illyrian and Macedonian wars.
(Polyb. ii. 11; Liv. xxix. 12, xliv. 30.)
At a later period, Dyrrhachium, as it was then called, and a free
state (Cic. ad Fam. xiv. 1), became the scene of the contest between Caesar and
Pompeius. The latter moved from Thessalonica, and threw himself before Dyrrhachium;
the Pompeians entrenched themselves on the right bank of the Apsus, so effectually
that Caesar was obliged to take up his position on the left, and resolved to pass
the winter under canvass. This led to a series of remarkable operations, the result
of which was that the great captain, in spite of the consummate ability he displayed
in the face of considerable superiority in numbers and position, was compelled
to leave Dyrrhachium to Pompeius, and try the fortune of war upon a second field.
(Caesar, B.C. iii. 42-76; Appian, B.C. ii. 61; Dion Cass. xli. 49; Lucan, vi.
29-63.) Dyrrhachium sided with M. Antonius during the last civil wars of the Republic,
and was afterwards presented by Augustus to his soldiers (Dion Cass. ii. 4), when
the Illyrian peasants learned the. rudiments of municipal law from the veterans
of the empire. The inhabitants, whose patron deity was Venus (Catull. Carm. xxxiv.
11), were, if we may believe Plautus (Menaechm. act ii. sc. i. 30-40), a vicious
and debauched race. The city itself, under the Lower Roman Empire, became the
capital of the new province, Epirus Nova (Marquardt, Handbuch der Rom. Alt. p.
115), and is mentioned by the Byzantine historians as being still a considerable
place in their time (Cedren. p. 703; Niceph. Callist. xvii. 3). Gibbon (Decline
and Fall, vol. v. pp. 345-349; comp. Le Beau, Bas Empire, vol. xv. pp. 133-145)
has told the story of the memorable siege, battle, and capture of Dyrrhachium,when
the Norman Robert Guiscard defeated the Greeks and their emperor Alexius, A.D.
1081-1082. The modern Durazzo represents this place; the surrounding country is
described as being highly attractive, though unhealthy. (Albanien, Rumelien, und
die Oesterreichisch Montenegrische Granze, Jos. Muller, Prag. 1844, p. 62.) There
are a great number of autonomous coins belonging to this city, none however under
the name of Epidamnus, but always with the epigraph DUR, or more rarely DURA,-the
type, as on the coins of Corcyra, a cow suckling a calf; on the reverse, the gardens
of Alcinous. (Eckhel, vol. ii. p. 155.)
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
ILLYRIA (Ancient country) ALBANIA
KODRION (Ancient city) ALBANIA
Codrion, a fortified town in Illyria, which surrendered to the Romans
upon the capture of Antipatria, B.C. 200. It was probably near the latter city,
upon the river Apsus. (Liv. xxxi. 27.) It was probably the same town, which is
called Chrysondyon by Polybius (v. 108). (Leake, Northern Greece, vol. iii. p.
326, seq.)
LISSOS (Ancient city) ILLYRIA
Issus (Lissos, Strab. vii. p. 316; Ptol. ii. 16. § 5; Steph. B.; Hierocles;
Peut. Tab.), a town of Illyricum, at the mouth of the river Drilo. Dionysius the
elder, in his schemes for establishing settlements among the Illyrian tribes,
founded Lissus. (Diod. xv. 13.) It was afterwards in the hands of the Illyrians,
who, after they had been defeated by the Romans, retained this port, beyond which
their vessels were not allowed to sail. (Polyb. ii. 12.) B.C. 211, Philip of Macedon,
having surprised the citadel Acrolissus, compelled the town to surrender. (Polyb.
viii. 15.) Gentius, the Illyrian king, collected his forces here for the war against
Rome. (Liv. xliv. 30.) A body of Roman citizens was stationed there by Caesar
(B.C. iii. 26 - 29) to defend the town; and Pliny (iii. 26), who says that it
was 100 M.P. from Epidaurus, describes it as oppidum civium Romanorum. Constantine
Porphyrogeneta (de Adm. Imp. c. 30) calls it Helissos, and it now bears the name
of Lesch. (Leake, Northern Greece, vol. iii. p. 477; Schafarik, Slav. Alt. vol.
ii. p. 275.)
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
ONCHISTOS (Ancient port) ALBANIA
Onchesmus (Onkesmos), a port-town of Chaonia in Epeirus, opposite
the north-western point of Corcyra, and the next port upon the coast to the south
of Panormus. (Strab. vii. p. 324; Ptol. iii. 14. § 2.) It seems to have been a
place of importance in the time of Cicero, and one of the ordinary points of departure
from Epeirus to Italy, as Cicero calls the wind favourable for making that passage
an Onchesmites. (Cic. ad Att. vii. 2) According to Dionysius of Halicarnassus
(Ant. Rom. i. 51) the real name of the place was the Port of Anchises (Anchisou
limen), named after Anchises, the father of Aeneas; and it was probably owing
to this tradition that the name Onchesmus assumed the form of Anchiasmus under
the Byzantine emperors. Its site is that of the place now called the Forty Saints.
(Leake, Northern Greece, vol. i. p. 11.)
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
ORIKON (Ancient city) ALBANIA
Oricum, Oricus (Orikos, Hecat. Fr. 75 ap. Steph. B. s. v.; Herod.
ix. 92; Scyl. p. 10; Polyb. vii. 19; Scymn. 440; Eust. ad Dion. 321; Orikon, Ptol.
iii. 14. § 2; Pomp. Mela, ii. 3. § 12; Plin. iii. 26), a town and harbour of Illyricum,
not far from Apollonia and the mouth of the Aous. Legend ascribes its foundation
to the Euboeans on their return from Troy (Scymn. l. c.); and Apollonius (Argon.
iv. 1216) speaks of the arrival of a party of Colchians at this port; and thus
Pliny (l. c.) calls it a Colchian colony. Oricum is known in history as a haven
frequented by the Romans in their communications with Greece, from its being very
conveniently situated for the passage from Brundusium and Hydruntum. B.C. 214,
the town was taken by Philip V. of Macedonia; but it afterwards fell into the
hands of the Romans and M. Valerius Laevinus, who commanded at Brundusium, with
a single legion and a small fleet. (Liv. xxiv. 40.) After the campaign of B.C.
167, Aemilius Paulus embarked his victorious troops from Oricum for Italy. (Plut.
Aemil. Paul. 29.) Caesar, after he had disembarked his troops at PALAESTE (Lucan
iv.460; comp. Caes. B.C. iii. 6, where the reading Pharsalus or Pharsalia, is
a mistake or corruption of the MSS.), or the sheltered beach of Palasa, surrounded
by the dangerous promontories of the Ceraunian mountains, within one day of his
landing marched to Oricum, where a squadron of the Pompeian fleet was stationed.
(Caes. B.C. iii. 11; Appian, B.C. ii. 54.) The Oricii declared their unwillingness
to resist the Roman consul; and Torquatus, the governor, delivered up the keys
of the fortress to Caesar. The small fleet in which he had brought his forces
over was laid up at Oricum, where the harbour was blocked up by sinking a vessel
at its mouth. Cnaeus, the son of Pompeius, made a spirited attack on this strong.
hold, and, cutting out four of the vessels, burnt the rest. (Caes. B.C. iii. 40.)
It continued as an important haven on the Adriatic. (Hor. Carm. iii. 7. 5; Propert.
Eleg. i. 8, 20; Lucan iii.187.) The [p. 493] name of its harbour was PANORMUS
(Panormos, Strab. vii. p. 316), now Porto Raguseo; while the CELYDNUS (Keludnos,
Ptol. iii. 13. § § 2, 5) is identified with the river of Dlukadhes. It would seem
from Virgil (Aen. x. 136) that Oricum was famous for its turpentine, while Nicander
(Ther. 516) alludes to its boxwood. The town was restored by the munificence of
Herodes Atticus. (Philostr. Her. Att. 5.) To the f. of the mouth of the river
of Dukhades is a succession of lagoons, in the midst of which lies Oricum, on
the desert site now called Erikho, occupied (in 1818) only by two or three huts
among the vestiges of an aqueduct. (Smytb, Mediterranean, p. 46.) The present
name (Iericho, Anna Comn. xiii. p. 389) is accented on the last syllable, as in
the ancient word, and E substituted for O by a common dialectic change. (Pouqueville,
Voyage, vol. i. p. 2,64; Leake, North. Greece, vol. i. pp. 36, 90.) A coin of
Oricus has for type a head of Apollo. (Eckhel, vol. ii. p. 167.)
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
SHKODRA (Town) ALBANIA
Scodra (he Skodra, Ptol. ii. 16. (17.) § 12; Skodrai, Hierocl. p.
656: Eth. Scodrenses, Liv. xlv. 26), one of the snore important towns of Roman
Illyricum (Montenegro), the capital of the Labeates, seated at the southern extremity
of the lake Labeatis, between two rivers, the Clausula on the E., and the Barbanna
on the W. (Liv. xliv. 31), and at a distance of 17 miles from the sea-coast (Plin.
iii. 22. s. 26). It was a very strong place, and Gentius, king of the Illyrians,
attempted to defend it against the Romans, B.C. 168, but was defeated in a battle
under the walls. Pliny erroneously places it on the Drilo (l. c.). At a later
period it became the chief city of the province Praevalitana. It is the present
Scutari, which is also the name of the lake Labeatis. (Wilkinson, Dalmatia and
Montenegro, vol. i. p. 476.)
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
ANTIGONIA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
A town in Epirus at the junction of a tributary with the Aous, and near a narrow pass of the Acroceraunian Mountains.
APOLLONIA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
An important town in Illyria, not far from the mouth of the
Aous, and sixty stadia from the sea. It was founded by the Corinthians and Corcyraeans,
and was equally celebrated as a place of commerce and of learning. Many distinguished
Romans, among others the young Octavius, afterwards the emperor Augustus, pursued
their studies here. Persons travelling from Italy to Greece and the East usually
landed either at Apollonia or Dyrrhacium.
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DALMATIA (Ancient country) ALBANIA
Dalmatia or Delmatia. A part of the country along the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea, included under the general name of Illyricum, and separated from Liburnia on the north by the Titius (Kerka), and from Greek Illyria on the south by the Drilo (Drino), thus nearly corresponding to the modern Dalmatia. The capital was Dalminium or Delminium, from which the country derived its name. The next most important town was Salona, the residence of Diocletian. The Dalmatians were a brave and warlike people and gave much trouble to the Romans. In B.C. 119, their country was overrun by L. Metellus, who assumed, in consequence, the surname Dalmaticus, but they continued independent of the Romans. In B.C. 39, they were defeated by Asinius Pollio, of whose Dalmatic triumph Horace speaks; but it was not till the year 23 that they were finally subdued by Statilius Taurus. They took part in the great Pannonian revolt under their leader Bato ; but after a three years' war were again reduced to subjection by Tiberius, in A.D. 9.
EPIDAMNOS (Ancient city) ALBANIA
The modern Durazzo, formerly called Epidamnus (Epidamnos); a
town in Greek Illyria, on a peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. It was founded by the
Corcyreans and received the name of Epidamnus; but since the Romans regarded this
name as one of bad omen, reminding them of damnum, they changed it into Dyrrhachium.
It was the usual place of landing for persons who crossed over from Brundisium,
and was to that town what Calais is to Dover. Here commenced the great Via Egnatia.
The place was one of much commerce, so that Catullus calls it taberna Hadriae,
"the shop of the Adriatic." During the Civil Wars it was the headquarters
of Pompey, who kept his military stores here. In A.D. 345 it was destroyed by
an earthquake.
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FINIKI (Ancient city) ALBANIA
Now Finiki; a city of Epirus on the coast, in the district Chaonia.
ILLYRIA (Ancient country) ALBANIA
or Illyris, more rarely Illyria (to Illurikon, Illuris, Illuria),
included, in its widest signification, all the land west of Macedonia and east
of Italy and Rhaetia, extending south as far as Epirus, and north as far as the
valleys of the Savus and Dravus, and the junction of these rivers with the Danube.
This wide extent of country was inhabited by numerous Illyrian tribes, all of
whom were more or less barbarous. They were probably of the same origin as the
Thracians. The country was divided into two parts. (1) Illyris Barbara or Romana,
the Roman province of Illyricum, extended along the Adriatic sea from Italy (Istria),
from which it was separated by the Arsia, to the river Drilo, and was bounded
on the east by Macedonia and Moesia Superior, from which it was separated by the
Drinus, and on the north by Pannonia, from which it was separated by the Dravus.
It thus comprehended a part of the modern Croatia, the whole of Dalmatia, almost
the whole of Bosnia, and a part of Albania. It was divided in ancient times into
three districts, according to the tribes by which it was inhabited--Iapydia, the
interior of the country on the north, from the Arsia to the Tedanius; Liburnia,
along the coast from the Arsia to the Titius; and Dalmatia, south of Liburnia,
along the coast from the Titius to the Drilo. The Liburnians submitted at an early
time to the Romans; but it was not till after the conquest of the Dalmatians,
in the reign of Augustus, that the entire country was organized as a Roman province.
From this time the Illyrians, and especially the Dalmatians, formed an important
part of the Roman legion. (2) Illyris Graeca, or Illyria Propria, also called
Epirus Nova, extended from the Drilo, along the Adriatic, to the Ceraunian Mountains,
which separated it from Epirus proper; it was bounded on the east by Macedonia.
It thus embraced the greater part of the modern Albania.
It was a mountainous country, but possessed some fertile land
on the coast. Its principal rivers were the Aous, Apsus, Genusus, and Panyasus.
In the interior was an important lake, the Lychnitis. On the coast there were
the Greek colonies of Epidamnus, afterwards Dyrrhachium, and Apollonia. It was
at these places that the celebrated Via Egnatia commenced, which ran through Macedonia
to Byzantium. The country was inhabited by various tribes--Atintanes, Taulantii,
Parthini, Dassaretae, etc. In early times they were troublesome and dangerous
neighbours to the Macedonian kings. They were subdued by Philip, the father of
Alexander the Great, who defeated and slew in battle their king, Bardylis, in
B.C. 359. After the death of Alexander the Great, most of the Illyrian tribes
recovered their independence. At a later time the injury which the Roman trade
suffered from their piracies brought against them the arms of the Republic. The
forces of their queen, Teuta, were easily defeated by the Romans, and she was
obliged to purchase peace by the surrender of part of her dominions and the payment
of an annual tribute (B.C. 229). The second Illyrian war was finished by the Romans
with the same ease. It was commenced by Demetrius of Pharos, who was guardian
of Pineus, the son of Agron, but he was conquered by the consul Aemilius Paulus
in 219. Pineus was succeeded by Pleuratus, who cultivated friendly relations with
the Romans. His son Gentius formed an alliance with Perseus, king of Macedonia,
against Rome; but he was conquered by the praetor L. Anicius, in the same year
as Perseus (168); whereupon Illyria, as well as Macedonia, became subject to Rome.
In the new division of the Empire under Constantine, Illyricum formed one of the
great provinces. It was divided into Illyricum Occidentale, which included Illyricum
Propria, Pannonia, and Noricum, and Illyricum Orientale, which comprehended Dacia,
Moesia, Macedonia, and Thrace.
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LISSA (Island) ALBANIA
Issa. The modern Lissa; a small island in the Adriatic Sea, with a town of the same name, off the coast of Dalmatia, said to have derived its name from Issa, daughter of Macareus of Lesbos, who was beloved by Apollo. (Ovid, Met.vi. 124). The island was inhabited by a hardy race of sailors, whose barks (lembi Issaei) were much prized.
ONCHISTOS (Ancient port) ALBANIA
(Onchesmos) or Onchismus (Onchismos). A seaport town of Epirus, opposite Corcyra.
ORIKON (Ancient city) ALBANIA
(Orikon) or Oricus (Orikos). An important Greek town on the coast of Illyria, near the Ceraunian Mountains and the frontiers of Epirus. It was said to have been founded by the Euboeans who were here cast ashore on their return from the Trojan War.
VOUTHROTON (Ancient city) ALBANIA
Now Butrinto; a town of Epirus, a flourishing seaport on a small peninsula, opposite Corcyra.
ILLYRIA (Ancient country) ALBANIA
Region along the coast of the Adriatic
Sea facing Italy spanning
from northwestern Greece
all the way to what is today the Venice
area. The people of Illyria was considered “barbarous” by the Greeks
(that is, not speaking Greek).
Greek settlements were established in the southern part of Illyria,
including the city of Epidamnus,
a colony of Corcyra (itself
a colony of Corinth).
Bernard Suzanne (page last updated 1998), ed.
This text is cited July 2003 from the Plato and his dialogues URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks.
EPIDAMNOS (Ancient city) ALBANIA
ILLYRIA (Ancient country) ALBANIA
AMANTIA (Ancient city) ILLYRIA
On the right bank of the lower Aous, a steep-sided hill is fortified
with a circuit wall ca. 1900 m long. An ancient road enters the city between two
towers of ashlar masonry and foundations of houses are visible inside. Some magistrates
of the city are named on an inscribed block in a house of the modern village.
Religious and funerary reliefs of Hellenistic and Roman times come from the site.
Literary evidence suggests that it was Amantia, the chief city of the Amantes,
who issued coins.
N.G.L. Hammond, 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.
AMANTIA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
The modern city lies on a high ridge between the Gulf of Orikon and
the lower Aous valley, just below a city of the Hellenistic and Roman periods,
ringed by a circuit wall ca. 2200 m long in ashlar style. Residential districts
extended outside the circuit. A late Hellenistic stadium with steps on three sides
has been excavated, and built tombs of Macedonian type have been opened. The site
has yielded fine heads of Alexander and Dodonaean Zeus in marble and limestone,
architectural members, sculptured reliefs, and coins of Hellenistic and Roman
times. The name of this city, situated in the territory of the Amantes, is unknown;
some suppose it to be Amantia, but that city lay probably on the route down the
Aous valley (see Klos).
N.G.L. Hammond, 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.
ANTIGONIA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
A city identified by inscriptions on voting discs, lies above Saraginishte
E of Argyrokastro on a ridge 762 m above sea level. Founded by Pyrinhos and named
after his first wife Antigone, the city had a circuit wall ca. 4000 m long. Chief
inland city of Chaonia, it controlled the fertile Drin valley and traded with
Apollonia down the Aous valley, Korkyra via Onchesmos or Buthinotum, and Dodona
to the S. Its forces could block the pass of the Drin through which the Illyrians
and later the Romans entered Epeiros from the N (Polyb. 2.5.6; 2.6.6; and Livy
32.5.9; 43.23.2). Excavations have revealed towers and gateways of fine ashlar
masonry, public buildings, some 450 coins of the Hellenistic period and evidence
of metalworking in bronze and iron.
N.G.L. Hammond, 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.
ANTIPATRIA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
At the W end of the gorge of the Osum river. The foundations of ancient
fortifications are visible at the foot of a Turkish fort; the city was destroyed,
by Rome in 200 B.C. (Livy 31.27).
N.G.L. Hammond, 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.
APOLLONIA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
An ancient city near the mouth of the Aous river (the Vojussa). The
remains are scattered over the hill of Pojani near a monastery which is said to
have been built on the site of a temple of Apollo on the hill of Sthyllas. In
the monastery a single Doric column is preserved, belonging to a hexastyle temple
of the 5th c. B.C. The necropolis is in the valley of Kryegyata. The founding
of Apollonia, in 588 B.C., is attributed to colonists from Corinth and Kerkyra.
Its location favored its development. Quite early, the city must have defended
itself against incursions by Macedonians and Illyrians as a result of which it
sought an alliance with Rome in 260 B.C., and in 229 it came under Roman protection.
Cicero called it an "urbs gravis et nobilis" and the city had a renowned
school of rhetoric which even Octavian attended.
The walls, ca. 4 km long and well preserved, are constructed of limestone
blocks and fortified with towers. The S side of the acropolis is buttressed by
a beautifully terraced wall of ornamentally bossed stones. A gate with a pointed
arch is set in the walls.
The theater, set apart on the W slopes of the hill of the acropolis,
is identified by limestone blocks with a molding characteristic of theater seats.
A Hellenistic portico at the foot of the acropolis had a wall with
17 arched niches in front of which were Ionic half-columns with limestone capitals.
In another niche, larger than the others, a small rectangular Hellenistic temple,
with angular pilasters, is set. In front of the temple is an elegant altar.
The small odeon or covered theater next to the temple is Roman in
design, rectangular in plan, with a semicircular cavea.
The monument of the public games superintendents is rectangular (19
x 15 m) on the outside, with a portico along the front and with a pedimental roof.
There is a small vestibule inside and a small cavea with an orchestra. There were
Corinthian columns on the facade and a richly carved cornice. On the architrave,
there is an inscription in Greek which says that the building was constructed
in the Antonine period by Q. Villius Crespinus Furius Proculus, a prytaneus, or
superintendent of the public games, and high priest for life, in honor and memory
of his brother Villius Valerius Furius Proculus, prefect of a cohort in Syria,
tribune of Legio X (or XIV) in Pannonia, and a superintendent designate of the
public games. The plan and structure of the building are quite similar to those
of the bouleuterion of Miletos.
The acropolis had two summits, the major one being to the S. The lower
level of a Greek temple was uncovered there and perhaps a limestone Ionic frieze
found in the vicinity is part of that temple. The frieze has relief figures of
warriors in combat.
A bath complex has been partially excavated near the W section of
the city walls. Two rooms are visible, one of which has a mosaic pavement, as
well as the heating room.
The remains of a gymnasium have been partially excavated about 300
m S of the monastery. It is perhaps the gymnasium mentioned by Strabo which was
destined for other uses in the Roman period. Two archaic antefixes belonged to
an older structure as did a stater struck at Metapontion. It was decorated with
statues and the base was discovered there for a statue of Aphrodite, as is clear
from a Greek inscription on one of its sides which mentions the prytaneus Psillus
and the hieromnemones. During the Hellenistic period, the building was provided
with a terracotta bathing tub set into the pavement, but in the Roman period it
was turned into a home. Coins dating to the 4th c. A.D., have been discovered
there.
Minor monuments include the remains of Roman houses, a triple-opening
triumphal arch, a row of shops along a street, and a large hall in which it is
tempting to recognize a library.
The necropolis, in the valley of Kryegyata, includes Greek tombs dating
to the 6th c. B.C. as well as Roman tombs. The Roman tombs of the Imperial period
are often shaped like small temples.
Various works of art have been found in the area of the ancient city.
The most important is certainly the previously mentioned archaic frieze, coming
perhaps from a temple on the acropolis. In the Louvre is a copy of the Anapauomenos
of Praxiteles; in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna is a copy of the head
of the Ludovisi Ares; and in Tirana is the Meleager of Skopas. The limestone stelai,
which are somewhat reminiscent of Tarentine art works, are the most characteristic,
in form and decoration, and can be considered Apollonian originals. Among Apollonian
works of art is the votive offering dedicated to Olympia for a victory over Thronion.
It is the work of Lykios, the son of Myron.
P. C. Sestieri, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
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ARNISSA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
The first town of the Macedonian kingdom reached after going S through
the Kirli Derven pass into Lynkos. In 524 B.C. the Spartan leader Brasidas, abandoned
by his Macedonian ally, reached Arnissa after a long day that ended with the storming
of the pass (Thuc. 4.128.3). An important Classical site can probably be identified
with Arnissa just E of the S end of the pass, N of the village of Petres and near
its lake. Rectangular foundations, possibly of a defense wall, are visible; several
inscriptions and numerous small objects have been found. There have been no excavations.
Arnissa was still of some importance in Late Roman times, and appears,
misnamed as Larissa, in the Synekdemos of Hierokles (638.11). The village of Ostrovo,
at the head of Lake Ostrovo, has been officially renamed Arnissa, but this cannot
be correct, since it is based on misidentification of the pass into Lynkos. No
ancient name can convincingly be associated with the remains at Ostrovo.
P. A. Mackay, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
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AVLON (Ancient port) ALBANIA
The site is on a low ridge on the coast at the N end of the Gulf of
Valona. Inland is a large lagoon which is joined to the sea on the N of the site
by a channel (aulon); after this channel Bylliace vzas renamed Aulon, the predecessor
of the modern Valona. The site is separated now from the hinterland by a waste
of sandy dunes, but in Roman times it was the terminal port of the Via Egnatia
which ran from the Adriatic coast to Constantinople. Remains of walls survive
on the ridge, along the shore and in the sea where there was once a built quay.
N.G.L. Hammond, 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.
CHAONIA (Ancient country) ALBANIA
A precipitous ridge, overlooking the gorge of the Suhe river, is fortified
with a circuit wall and powerful towers. The site controls the entry from the
Drin valley to the high plateau of Polican, the territory probably of the Omphales,
a Chaonian tribe. It is mentioned by Ptolemy (3.13.5).
N.G.L. Hammond, 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.
CHIMARA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
The name survives from ancient times through a bishopric of Chimara.
The village, situated in a strong position on the lip of a gorge, is set among
the ruined fortifications of the ancient city, which was the capital of the Chaonians
of this rocky, steep coast. A small plain below Chimera has an exposed beach,
and the place was famous for its so-called royal spring of fresh water (Plin.
HN 4.1.4). It was a place of refuge for shipping on the very dangerous Ceraunian
coast.
N.G.L. Hammond, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
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EKATOMBEDON (Ancient city) ALBANIA
Mentioned by Ptolemy (3.14) as an inland city of Chaonia. The site
is defended by cliffs on two long sides and by strong walls of ashlar masonry,
strengthened with towers, on two short sides; the circumference of the defensible
area was some 1700 m. The masonry and the use of bonding cross-walls within the
circuit wall date the site to ca. 295-290 B.C., and it is likely that Pyrrhos
founded it and Antigonea at the same time. The site has great strategic importance:
it commanded the entry from the N into the Drin valley and lay close to the mouth
of the Aous pass (Aoi Stena), leading towards Macedonia. The two rivers join just
N of Lekel.
N.G.L. Hammond, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
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ELEOUS (Ancient city) ALBANIA
Mentioned as an inland Chaonian town by Ptolemy (3.14). It is the
only place in the Drin valley where olives are grown and the ancient name means
"olive town." There are remains of a circuit wall ca. 1400 m long on
a low ridge and of a temple where the Musllm monastery now stands.
N.G.L. Hammond, 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.
EPIDAMNOS (Ancient city) ALBANIA
A city, ca. 30 km W of Tirana, founded in 627 B.C. by Corinth and
Kerkyra. The name Dyrrachion is found on coins; in the Roman period it was prevalent
(changed to Dyrrachium). Since the modern city is built over the ancient town,
it is primarily on the basis of inscriptions and occasional finds that some idea
of its monuments has been formed.
Inscriptions offer evidence on the following monuments: an aqueduct
constructed by Hadrian and restored by Alexander Severus (the inscription comes
from Arapaj, a short distance from Durazzo: CIL III, 1-709); the Temple of Minerva;
the Temple of Diana (CIL III, 1-602), which is perhaps the one mentioned by Appian
(BCiv. 2.60); the equestrian statue of L. Titinius Sulpicianus (CIL III, 1-605);
the library (CIL m, 1-67). The last inscription mentions that for the dedication
of the library 24 gladiators fought in pairs. The conjecture that there was an
amphitheater in the city is confirmed by a passage from the Vita di Skanderbeg
by Marino Barlezio: amphitheatrum mira arte ingenioque constructum.
As a result of occasional discoveries, the following data are available:
a 3d c. mosaic pavement with the representation of a female head found at a depth
of 5 m (the head, surrounded by garlands of vegetables and flowers, brings to
mind those painted on Apulian vases); remains of houses covered by other layers,
the lowest of which, of the Greek era, was found at a depth of 5 m.
Columns with Corinthian capitals and marble facing, discovered on
the nearby hillside at Stani, belong probably to the Temple of Minerva or to the
Capitolium. The necropolis is E of the hills that stand above the city. The Stele
of Lepidia Salvia, a sarcophagus (now at Istanbul) with a scene of the Caledonian
boar hunt, and numerous Roman tombs were found in the necropolis.
P. C. Sestieri, 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.
FINIKI (Ancient city) ALBANIA
According to Polybios, this was the best fortified town of Epeiros.
It rose on a hill shaped like the wrecked keel of a ship, with the village of
Finik at the foot of the hill. The walls, in three sections, are preserved on
the hill: the acropolis walls, the walls of the period of the enlarging of the
acropolis, and the walls of the fortified city. These walls, constructed in ashlar
masonry, employed huge blocks, and in some places rest in the living rock. They
date between the 4th c. and 2d c. B.C. Inside the acropolis are the remains of
Greek and Roman walls. In the village, there are few remains of Greek walls, but
the Roman remains are numerous, incorporated for the most part into modern buildings.
Some are in opus reticulatum and brick, others in opus incertum and can be dated
even to the late Roman period. A small thesauros has been uncovered on the acropolis.
In the Byzantine period it was transformed into a baptistery. Three cisterns,
dating between the 5th c. B.C. and the 3d c. A.D., are recognizable, as are a
few remains of minor buildings.
The necropolis, set on the slopes of the hill, contains tombs, all
of the Hellenistic period, some chest-like in rock slabs and others covered with
tiles.
P. C. Sestieri, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
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KODRION (Ancient city) ALBANIA
To the N of Mt. Tomor. The earliest coins yielded by excavation are
of Philip II of Macedon; the massive circuit wall with a fine gateway dates probably
to the late 4th c. B.C. Names are preserved on tile stamps and amphora seals;
weapons, tools, and fibulas were found. Kodrion figured in the wars between Macedon
and Rome (Livy 31.27.4).
N.G.L. Hammond, ed.
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Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Sep 2002 from
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KROTINE (Ancient city) ALBANIA
A city on a high peak of Mt. Shpiragrit. The acropolis and the residential
area were enclosed by a circuit wall ca. 2400 m long. The city commanded the route
along the E side of the swampy plain of Myzeqija, which led N from Apollonia.
Coins and inscriptions are of the Hellenistic period. The city was occupied by
Demetrius and captured by the Romans in 219 B.C. (Polyb. 3.18 and 7.9.13; cf.
Livy 29.12.3).
N.G.L. Hammond, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Sep 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
LISSOS (Ancient city) ILLYRIA
An important Illyrian city on the left bank of the Drin where it enters
the marshy coastal plain of the Adriatic Sea. The site is a steep-sided high hill,
overlooking the river. There are remains of prehistoric and later settlements
on the hill, but the extensive fortifications date from the late 4th c. B.C.,
the styles of the masonry being polygonal and trapezoidal. Later repairs and additions
were made in the 1st c. s.c.; Caesar (BCiv 3.29.1) mentions them, and an inscription
preserves the names of the magistrates who were in charge of the work. The acropolis
on the hilltop is defended by a circuit wall; the lower town, extending down to
the bank of the river, was itself fortified by a circuit wall appended to that
of the acropolis. Dionysius of Syracuse and later Philip V of Macedon laid claim
to the city (D.S. 15.13.4 and 15.14.2; Polyb. 8.15). In antiquity the main bed
of the Drin lay farther N and Lissos itself was a port of some consequence because
it gave access not only to the hinterland but to the route via the White Drin
into the Central Balkan area. Lissos issued coinage.
N.G.L. Hammond, ed.
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Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
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MAIANDRIA (Ancient city) ALBANIA
On a hill in marshy ground near the coast, inland from Buthrotum,
are remains of a powerful circuit wall with massive well-cut blocks, similar to
that at Phoinike and built probably ca. 325-320 B.C. The name was attributed to
Trojans who settled here en route to Latium. Pliny (HN 4.1.4) mentions it as being
on the coast of Epeiros; it was probably on the Roman road, which followed the
coast.
N.G.L. Hammond, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
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ONCHISTOS (Ancient port) ALBANIA
A port of call on the coast of Epeiros, just N of Santi Quaranta.
Remains of a small Roman theater and of buildings and fortifications of the Late
Roman Empire suggest that it became important only in Roman times. Its position
is indicated by Strabo (7.7.5), and its wind favored Cicero in sailing to Italy
(Att. 7.2.1).
N.G.L. Hammond, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
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ORIKON (Ancient city) ALBANIA
At the head of the Gulf of Valona. The site is a low rocky outcrop
on the coast, approached from the E by a swampy strip of shore and having on the
W an open channel that connects the sea and a lagoon inland of the outcrop; the
channel and the lagoon afforded small ships an excellent harbor, which was improved
by a stone-built quay, still visible under water. Foundations of a circuit wall
with towers can be traced in rock-cuttings, a small theater or odeum has been
excavated, and there are remains of a road from the harbor to the Roman road which
ran S inland of the Ceraunian peninsula. Inscriptions from the area- show that
the Dioscuri, Aphrodite, and Eros were worshiped. Though the fortified area was
small, Orikon was an important port of call on the coasting route and acted as
a market for the hinterland of the Gulf; it issued coinage in the Hellenistic
period. Julius Caesar described the place (BCiv. 3.llf).
N.G.L. Hammond, 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.
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