Listed 6 sub titles with search on: Information about the place for wider area of: "MARSEILLE Town FRANCE" .
OLVIA (Ancient city) FRANCE
Olbia (Olbia: Eth. Olbiopolites, and Olbianos). Stephanus (s. v. Olbia)
speaks of one city of this name as a Ligurian city, by which he means the Olbia
on the Ligurian coast of Gallia; for the name Olbia appears to be Greek. Mela
(ii. 5), who proceeds from east to west in enumerating the cities on the Mediterranean
coast of Gallia, places Olbia between Forum Julii (Frejus) and Massilia (Marseille).
The order of place is this: Forum Julii, Athenopolis, Olbia, Taurois, Citharistes,
Massilia. Strabo (iv. p. 184), who proceeds from west to east in his enumeration
of the cities of this coast, mentions Massilia, Tauroentium, Olbia, and Antipolis,
and Nicaea. He adds that the port of Augustus, which they call Forum Julii, is
between Olbia and Antipolis (Antibes). The Massaliots built Olbia, with the other
places on this coast, as a defence against the Salyes and the Ligures of the Alps.
(Strab. p. 180.) Ptolemy (ii. 10. § 8) places Olbia between the promontory Citharistes
(Cap Cicier) and the mouth of the river Argenteus (Argents), west of Frejus. There
is nothing that fixes the site of Olbia with precision; and we must accept D'Anville's
conjecture that Olbia was at a place now called Eoube, between Cap Combe and Breganson.
Forbiger accepts the conjecture that Olbia was at St. Tropez, which he supports
by saying that Strabo places Olbia 600 stadia from Massilia; but Strabo places
Forum Julii 600 stadia from Massilia.
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
MASSALIA (Ancient city) FRANCE
called by the Greeks Massalia (Marseilles). A Greek city in
Gallia Narbonensis, on the coast of the Mediterranean, in the country of the Salyes,
founded by the Phocaeans of Asia Minor about B.C. 600. It was situated on a promontory,
connected with the mainland by a narrow isthmus, and washed on three sides by
the sea. Its excellent harbour (Lacydon) was formed by a small inlet of the sea,
about half a mile long and a quarter of a mile broad. This harbour had only a
narrow opening, and before it lay an island, where ships had good anchorage. At
an early period the Massilienses cultivated the friendship of the Romans, to whom
they always continued faithful allies. Massilia was for many centuries one of
the most important commercial cities in the ancient world, and founded a number
of other towns, such as Antipolis (Antibes) and Nicaea (Nice). In wealth and power
it even excited the jealousy of Carthage, which led to a war between the two cities,
in which the Massilienses won a naval victory. Because of its friendship for Rome,
the Romans left it independent with its own constitution and government, which
was aristocratic or oligarchic, the city being ruled by a Senate of 600 called
Timuchi, who acted through smaller councillors. In the civil war between Caesar
and Pompey (B.C. 49) it espoused the cause of the latter, but after a protracted
siege, in which it lost its fleet, it was obliged to submit to Caesar. Its inhabitants
had long paid attention to literature and philosophy; and under the early emperors
it became one of the chief seats of learning, to which the sons of many Romans
resorted in order to complete their studies.
This text is cited Oct 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Situated on the coast, E of the Rhone delta, Massalia was founded
in 600 B.C. by Greek colonists from Phokaia, in Asia Minor. The marriage between
Phokis, leader of the Greeks, and Gyptis, the daughter of the Ligurian king Nannus,
sealed the agreement that made the settlement possible.
A favored base for the trade in rare metals, the city rapidly grew
prosperous, and set up outposts in Spain (Ampurias, Hemeroskopion, Mainake), Languedoc
(Agde), on the Ligurian coast (Monaco, Antibes), and in Corsica (Aleria). Becoming
perhaps less prosperous in the 5th c. owing to the expansion of Carthage, it flourished
once again after Pytheas' exploration of the British Isles and the Baltic (end
of the 4th c.). In the Hellenistic period Massalia supported Rome against the
Barcides and increased its territorial domain with the help of the Roman generals.
It fortified Saint-Blaise and created a trading post at Olbia. Independent until
the 1st c. A.D., Massalia was governed by a body of 600 councillors, and strict
laws in the Ionian tradition. The city also kept its original religion with the
cults of Artemis of the Ephesians, Apollo Delphinios, Kybele, and Leukothea, and
ancient festivals such as the Anthesteria and Thargelia. Silver and bronze coins
were struck with the effigies of Artemis and Apollo. In 49 B.C., after siding
with Pompey, Massalia was besieged and forced to open its gates to Caesar and
his lieutenant, Trebonius; yet under Roman rule it remained relatively independent.
Christianized fairly early, the city preserved its Greek language until the 5th
c. A.D., and remained an active cultural and commercial center.
The ancient city was N of the Lacydon (the Old Port); it straddled
the rocky spur that now borders on the Eglise St. Laurent and the Hotel-Dieu.
Strabo (4.1.2) writes that the temples of Artemis and Apollo stood on this ridge.
Several traces of archaic occupation have been located: at the Eglise de la Major;
at the Fort St. Jean, where many sherds of Attic, Corinthian, Aiolian, and East
Greek wares have been found under the 18th c. embankments. The earliest of these
date from the period when the city was founded. After WW II an ancient theater
in the Greek style, a few tiers of which are still standing, was found S of the
Old Port, and a dock area of the Roman period with dolia still lodged in the ground
(Musee des Docks Romains). A Sanctuary of Kybele has been located: some 40 stelai--archaic
naiskoi with the effigy of the seated goddess--were found in the old Rue Negrel.
A fortified rampart encircled the city, passing around the Butte des
Carmes to the E, from behind the Old Port to the S to the bay of La Joliette to
the NW. Excavations near the Bourse confirmed this line, at least for the period
from the 3d c. B.C. on, and Caesar (BCiv.) and Lucan (Pharsalia) describe such
a rampart.
The necropoleis lay outside the city walls, S of the Old Port (excavations
at the careening basin and lighthouse), E of the city (Rue du Tapis Vert), and
along the ancient road leading N to Aix.
The principal remains now visible are on the Bourse site. To the E
and S the tongue of land on which the ancient port stood has been excavated, together
with a sturdy quay made of squared stones that still show the line of the ancient
water level. This construction apparently dates from the 1st c. B.C. Near the
quay to the S are the foundations of a warehouse from the 2d c. A.D., a huge shed
with interior pillars. The bases of dolia that were stored there have been found
in situ. Near the tip of this tongue of land was found a large square basin made
of ashlar dating from the 1st c. A.D. It collected water for the ships; this came
from a nearby spring, perhaps the spring which gave the Lacydon its name. The
Rome road ended N of the basin; one of its milestones has been found.
This road entered the city on the axis of the present-day Grande Rue,
through a gate flanked by two square towers. Only the foundations of one tower
remain, but the other still retains part of its facade. Between the towers were,
first, the axial gate, then, toward the city, two identical gates. The line follows
that of a road paved with hard Cassis stone in the Roman period, which bears the
marks of chariot wheels.
Both the gate and the towers probably date from the 2d c. A.D. The
fortification adjoining at this point was built in the same period and of the
same pink stone from Cap Couronne. To the S, near the present-day Palais de la
Bourse, can be seen some curtain walls (now worn down, although their plan is
still discernible) and the S tower (the best preserved of the towers) where one
can still see the loop-holes from which catapults were fired. To the N near what
is now the Butte des Carmes are some curtain walls with several embrasures and
a well-preserved bastion. Its facing was erroneously called Crinas' wall. At the
base of this wall can be seen the trademarks of the Greek contractors who delivered
the stone.
In front of this fortification, in the S section, is the broken line
of a forewall partly built of reused blocks; most of it was erected in the Late
Empire. Behind the fortification, on the other hand, can be seen the remains of
some white limestone foundations belonging to an earlier Hellenistic structure;
they are now buried in the embankment.
Some remains have been found S of the city, at the Abbaye de Saint
Victor. The mediaeval buildings were superimposed on a quarry of the Hellenistic
period, and on an ancient monument, a necropolis, and some Early Christian churches.
These last remains can be seen in the crypt of the modern church, along with some
carved sarcophagi from the 4th and 5th c. A.D. which were found in situ.
Most of the archeological finds made before 1967 are housed in the
Musee Borely in Marseille.
F. Salviat, 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.
OLVIA (Ancient city) FRANCE
Olbia ("the Fortunate") is located near Hyeres, 65 km from
Marseille. According to ancient authors (Pseudo-Skymnos 215; Strab. 4.1.5 and
4.1.9; Ptol. 239.1; Steph. Byz. s.v.), it was one of four large fortified settlements
established by Massilia on the Mediterranean coast E of the Rhone. Like Tauroention,
Antipolis, and Nikaia, it was intended to contain the ascendancy of the Celto-Ligurian
tribes of the confederation of the Salyes. It was founded at the end of the 4th
c. B.C. and may have been taken by the Romans at the time of the siege of Marseille
(49 B.C.). Later it was included within a larger built-up area. It is impossible,
however, to affirm with certitude that this was the Pomponia mentioned by the
Maritime Itinerary and by Pliny. The occupation seems to have lasted until the
Early Christian period. In the Middle Ages the site was occupied by a monastery
(12th to 15th c.).
The location of Olbia, for a long time not known for certain, was
determined by the discovery on the site of a dedication to the Genius Viciniae
Castellanae Olbiensium. Excavations have reconstructed the general features of
the Greek settlement. The founding of Olbia is well dated stratigraphically to
ca. 330-300 (there are no sherds earlier than the 4th c. B.C. and Etrusco-Campanian
black-finish ware predominated). These years correspond to the economic renascence
of Marseille. At this time the town was provided with a strong cyclopean rampart
of large polygonal stones. This was later replaced, or perhaps supplemented, by
a second enceinte of large ashlar (2d c. B.C.). From the beginning the town was
organized according to a rigorous orthogonal plan: the ramparts form a square,
160 m on each side; the S flank is next to the seashore. It was defended by square
towers (which are still in place on the N and W sides). The wall was pierced by
gates of which the main one, to the E, led to the port.
The urban area was divided into quarters by two wide streets, one
E-W 5 m wide, the other N-S 4 m wide. Streets parallel to these axes and 2.20
m wide delimited rectangular blocks 11 m wide (in other words, exactly five times
the width of the streets). There are 36 blocks of dwellings in all, divided into
nine series of four blocks each. The location corresponding to a last series along
the W sector of the ramparts was reserved for a group of buildings arranged around
an interior courtyard. It has only been partially cleared, but it may be supposed
to be public, and probably religious, in character.
The blocks of dwellings and the streets include several Hellenistic
levels. These more or less preserved the original city plan. There are many shops
and private houses, carefully built of small ashlar, an intricate network of streets,
a large square-sectioned well built in opus quadratum with sharp corners. But
the most interesting building is a square monument, 5 m on each side, which leans
directly on the N flank of the oldest rampart. Its nature has been revealed by
a building block bearing the name of the goddess APHRODITES. Under the lowest
floor there appeared well-aligned piles of terracotta cups, bases uppermost. Nearby,
three lead plates were found which carry the inscriptions LVNAE, MERCVRIO, VENERI.
A stone encased in a wall of the same block carries another Greek inscription:
EROS. It follows that this block is religious in function. Curiously, it contains
installations which show that it was also used for crafts: rooms, basins, water
channels. (Could purple have been manufactured under the patronage of the goddess?)
Also to be noted is the inscription METRON, of the 3d or 4th c. B.C., found on
a milestone at the E gate.
The Roman stratum is placed on top of a destruction level dating to
about the middle of the 1st c. B.C. The new built-up area overflowed the original
enclosure and extended beyond the ramparts. The most important monument is a complete
set of baths. Other remains have been noted at various localities, notably those
of port installations on the modern beach of l'Almanarre.
Of the mediaeval level, remains can be seen of a chapel with an apse,
a church and its sacristy, and a cemetery.
C. Goudineau, 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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