Listed 100 (total found 131) sub titles with search on: Information about the place for wider area of: "ILIA Prefecture WEST GREECE" .
BASSAE (Ancient sanctuary) ILIA
OLYMPIA (Ancient sanctuary) ILIA
In the western Peloponnese,
in a peaceful, idyllic valley, between Kronos Hill and the confluence of the rivers
Alpheios and Kladeos, there
flourished in ancient times one of the most important pan-Hellenic sanctuaries:
the Sanctuary of Olympia. At this Sanctuary, apart from rituals performed for
healing, games called Olympic were also established from a very early period and,
with the passage of time, attracted the attention of all the Greeks. With the
Olympic Games, the ideal of noble rivalry found its complete expression and for
many centuries forged the unity and peace of the Greek world. Hence the Sanctuary
where they took place was recognized as one of the greatest pan Hellenic centers.
History-The legend
It has not yet been established when people first began worshipping
at Olympia. However, archaeological finds show that the area was at least settled
from the 3rd millennium B.C. It is also known that the first Sanctuary was the
Gainon, which was found at the foot of Kronos hill and was dedicated to Gaia (Earth),
the wife of Ouranos (Heaven). That was also, as it is said, the most ancient oracle
of Olympia (Pausanias V, 14, 10).
Later, Kronos - the youngest son of Gaia and Ouranos - having deposed
his father, was worshipped at Olympia with his wife, Rhea. According to Pausanias
(V, 7 ,6) the people of that time, who were also called the people of the Golden
Age, built a shrine to Kronos at Olympia. Besides, on the summit of Kronos Hill,
which took this name from Kronos, there was an altar to the god, where the so-called
"Basilai" every year made sacrifices in his honour (Pausanias VI, 20,
1).
In the course of the centuries came new gods. According to myth, Kronos
swallowed his male children fearing that they might depose him, as he had deposed
Ouranos. He has devoured two children, Poseidon and Hades, when Zeus was born.
Then Rhea, having given Kronos a stone bound in swaddling clothes to swallow,
handed the new-born child to five Cretan brothers, the Daktyloi of Isa or Kouretes,
to conceal him and bring him up in Crete.
When Zeus came of age, he asked Metis for help to overthrow Kronos.
Metis gave Kronos some medicine to drink and so made him vomit the two children
whom he had devoured. Then Zeus, helped by his two brothers and three sisters,
Hera, Hestia and Demeter, deposed Kronos after a terrible conflict lasting ten
years, which is known as the Titanomachia (Battle between the Gods and the Titans).
Since the Olympian gods prevailed, from then on the Sanctuary of Olympia
became the Sanctuary of Zeus. So in a series of local myths, Zeus was associated
with Olympia and the Games. One of these local myths says that the five Cretan
brothers, the Kouretes, to whom Rhea had entrusted his guardianship, came from
Crete to Olympia, where Zeus was weaned on the milk of Amalthea by the nymphs.
At Olympia, the eldest of the five brothers, Hercules - not Hercules the son of
Amphitrion and Alkmene - arranged foot races among his brothers and honored the
winner with a crown of wild olive, which grew abundantly in the valley. Even Hercules
called these games "Olympic" and appointed that they should take place
every fifth year, since he and his brothers numbered five (Pausanias V,7, 6-9).
Other local myths also say that Zeus fought with Kronos at Olympia usurping the
leadership and that he himself established the games because he overcame Kronos.
It is also said that other gods competed at Olympia and that Apollo beat Ares
at Boxing and outran Hermes (Pausanias V, 7, 10).
According to tradition, Aethlios, the first king of Elis was also
an organiser of the games. Aethlios was succeeded by his son Endymion, who in
turn organised races at Olympia among his sons Paeon, Aetolus and Epeios, in order
to leave his kingdom to the winner.
Pelops too, after he beat King Oinomaos of Pisa in a chariot race
and married the King's daughter Hippodameia, once again arranged at Olympia games
in honor of Zeus, which it was said were the most memorable of all those which
had been celebrated up till then. When Aueias reigned over Elis,
Hercules - son of Amhitrion and Alkmene - came to clean his stables. After the
contest, however, Augeias refused to give Hercules the cattle, which he had promised.
Then Hercules marched against Augeias, and after conquering Elis, he arranged
games at Olympia in honour of Zeus. At these games, it is said that he himself
was distinguished in wrestling and in the pankration. Finally, games at Olympia
were also arranged by Oxylos, the King of Elis. After the reign of Oxylos however,
the games were forgotten until the time of Iphitos, the great King of Elis (Pausanisas
V, 8, 1-5).
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ALFIOS (River) ILIA
Alpheius (Alpheios: Rufea, Rufia or Rofia, and River of Karitena),
the chief river of Peloponnesus, rises in the SE. of Arcadia on the frontiers
of Laconia, flows in a westerly direction through Arcadia and Elis, and after
passing Olympia falls into the Ionian Sea. The Alpheius, like several other rivers
and lakes in Arcadia, disappears more than once in the limestone mountains of
the country, and then emerges again, after flowing some distance underground.
Pausanias (viii. 54. § 1, seq., 44. § 4) relates that the source of the Alpheius
is at Phylae, on the frontiers of Arcadia and Laconia; and that, after receiving
a stream rising from many small fountains, at a place called Symbola, it flows
into the territory of Tegea, where it sinks underground. It rises again at the
distance of 5 stadia from Asea, close to the fountain of the Eurotas. The two
rivers then mix their waters, and after flowing in a common channel for the distance
of nearly 20 stadia, they again sink underground, and reappear,- the Eurotas in
Laconia, the Alpheius at Pegae, the Fountains, in the territory of Megalopolis
in Arcadia. Strabo (p. 343) also states that the Alpheius and Eurotas rise from
two fountains near Asea, and that, after flowing several stadia underground, the
Eurotas reappears in the Bleminatis in Laconia, and the Alpheius in Arcadia. In
another passage (p. 275) Strabo relates, that it was a common belief that if two
chaplets dedicated to the Alpheius and the Eurotas were thrown into the stream
near Asea, each would reappear at the sources of the river to which it was destined.
This story accords with the statement of Pausanias as to the union of the waters
from the two fountains, and their course in a common channel. The account of Pausanias
is confirmed in many particulars by the observations of Colonel Leake and others.
The river, in the first part of its course, is now called the Saranda, which rises
at Krya Vrysi, the ancient Phylace, and which receives, a little below Krya Vrysi,
a stream formed of several small mountain torrents, by which the ancient Symbola
is recognised. On entering the Tegeatic plain, the Saranda now flows to the NE.;
but there are strong reasons for believing that it anciently flowed to the NW.,
and disappeared in the Katavothra of the marsh of Taki. (Leake, Peloponnesiaca,
p. 112, seq.) The two reputed sources of the Alpheius and Eurotas are found near
the remains of Asea, at the copious source of water called Franyovrysi; but whether
the source of the Alpheius be really the vent of the lake of Taki, cannot be decided
with certainty. These two fountains unite their waters, as Pausanias describes,
and again sink into the earth. After passing under a mountain called Tzimbanu,
the Alpheius reappears at Marmara, probably Pegae. (Leake, Morea, vol. iii. p.
37, seq.)
Below Pegae, the Alpheius receives the Helisson (Elisson: River of
Davia), on which Megalopolis was situated, 30 stadia from the confluence. Below
this, and near the town of Brenthe (Karitena), the Alpheius flows through a defile
in the mountains, called the pass of Lavdha. This pass is the only opening in
the mountains, by which the waters of central Arcadia find their way to the western
sea. It divides the upper plain of the Alpheius, of which Megalopolis was the
chief place, from the lower plain, in which Heraea was situated. (Leake, Morea,
vol. ii. p. 19, seq.) Below Heraea, the Alpheius receives the Ladon (Ladon), which
rises near Cleitor, and is celebrated in mythology as the father of Daphne. The
Ladon is now called Rufea, Reufia or Rofia, by which name the Alpheius is called
below its junction with the Ladon. In the upper part of its course the Alpheius
is usually called the River of Karitena. Below the Ladon, at the distance of 20
stadia, the Alpheius receives the Erymanthus (Erumanthos), rising in the mountain
of the same name, and forming the boundary between Elis and the territories of
Heraea in Arcadia. After entering Elis, it flows past Olympia, forming the boundary
between Pisatis and Triphylia, and falls into the Cyparissian gulf in the Ionian
sea. At the mouth of the river was a temple and grove of Artemis Alpheionia. From
the pass of Lavdha to the sea, the Alpheius is wide and shallow: in summer it
is divided into several torrents, flowing between islands or sandbanks over a
wide gravelly bed, while in winter it is full, rapid, and turbid. Its banks produce
a great number of large plane-trees. (Leake, Morea, vol. ii. p. 67, Peloponnesiaca,
p. 8.)
Alpheius appears as a celebrated river-god in mythology; and it was
apparently the subterranean passage of the river in the upper part of its course
which gave rise to the fable that the Alpheius flowed beneath the sea, and attempted
to mingle its waters with the fountain of Arethusa in the island of Ortygia in
Syracuse. (Dict. of Biogr. art. Alpheius.) Hence Ovid calls the nymph Arethusa,
Alpheias. (Met. v. 487.) Virgil (Aen. x. 179) gives the epithet of Alpheae to
the Etruscan city of Pisae because the latter was said to have been founded by
colonists from Pisa in Elis, near which the Alpheius flowed.
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
ALIFIRA (Ancient city) ILIA
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
ALISSION (Ancient city) ILIA
Alesiaeum (Alesiaion), called Aleisium (Aleision)) by Homer. A town of Pisatis,
situated upon the road leading across the mountains from Elis to Olympia. Its
site is uncertain.
AMFIDOLIA (Ancient city) ILIA
Amphidoli (Amphidoloi), a town in Pisatis in Elis, which gave its
name to the small district of Amphidolis or Amphidolia (Amphidolis, Amphidolia).
The town of Marganeae or Margalae was situated in this district. The site of Amphidoli
is uncertain, but their territory probably lay to the west of Acroreia. (Xen.
Hell. iii. 2. 30; Strab. pp. 341, 349; Leake, Pelponnesiaca, p. 219.)
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
ARINI (Ancient city) ILIA
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
ARPINA (Ancient city) ANCIENT OLYMPIA
Harpinna: Eth. Harpinaios. A town of Pisatis (Elis) situated on the
right bank of the Alpheius, on the road to Heraea, at the distance of 20 stadia
from the hippodrome of Olympia. (Lucian, de Mort. Peregr. 35.) Harpina is said
to have been founded by Oenomaus, who gave it the name of his mother. The ruins
of the town were seen by Pausanias. According to Strabo, Harpina stood upon the
stream Parthenius; according to Pausanias, upon one called Harpinates. The ruins
of the town stand upon a ridge a little northward of the village of Miraka: there
are two small rivulets on either side of the ridge, of which the eastern one appears
to be the Parthenius, and the western the Harpinates. (Strab. viii. pp. 356, 3571
; Paus. vi. 20. § 8; Steph. B. s. v.)
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
DYSPONTION (Ancient city) PYRGOS
Duspontion: Eth. Duspontieus. An ancient town, in the territory of Pisa, said
to have been founded by a son of Oenomaus, is described by Strabo as situated
in the plain on the road from Elis to Olympia. It lay north of the Alpheius, not
far from the sea, and probably near the modern Skaphidi. Being destroyed by the
Eleians in their war with the Pisatae, its inhabitants removed to Apollonia and
Epidamnus.
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
EFYRA ILIAKI (Ancient city) ILIA
Ephyra, Ephure. A town of Elis, situated upon the river Selleeis, and the
ancient capital of Augeias, whom Hercules. conquered. (Hom. Il. ii. 659, xv. 531)
Strabo describes Ephyra as distant 120 stadia, from Elis, on the road to Lasion,
and says that on its site or near it was built the town of Oenoe or Boeonoa. (Strab.
viii. p. 338, where, for the corrupt keimene te epithalassiona, we ought to read,
with Meineke, keimene te epi Lasiona...) Stephanus also speaks of an Ephyra between
Pylos and Elis, Pylos being the town at the junction of the Ladon and the Peneius.
(Steph. B. s. v. Ephura.) From these two accounts there can be little doubt that
the Ladon, the chief tributary of the Peneius, is the Selleeis, which Strabo describes
as rising in Mount Pholoe. Curtius places Ephyra near the modern village of Klisura
which lies on the Ladon, about 120 stadia from Elis, by way of Pylos. Leake supposes,
with much less probability, that the Selleeis is the Peneius, and that Ephyra
was the more ancient name of Elis.
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
EPITALION (Ancient city) ILIA
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
EPY (Ancient city) ILIA
(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
FIAS (Ancient city) ILIA
Phea (hai Pheiai, Hornm. Il. vii. 135, Od. xv. 297; Pheia, Thuc. Strab;
Phea, Steph. B. s. v.: Eth. Pheates, Steph. B.). A city of Elis in the Pisatis,
situated upon the isthmus connecting the promontory Ichthys (C. of Katakolo) with
the mainland. Strabo erroneously speaks of two promontories upon this part of
the coast; one called Pheia, from the name of the neighbouring town, and another
more to the south, of which he has not given the name. (Strab. viii. 343.) Pheia
is mentioned by Homer, who places it near the Iardanus, which is apparently the
mountain torrent north of Ichthys, and which flows into the sea on the northern
side of the lofty mountain Skaphidi. (Hom. l. c.) Upon a very conspicuous peaked
height upon the isthmus of Ichthys are the ruins of a castle of the middle ages,
called Pontikokastro, built upon the remains of the Hellenic walls of Pheia. On
either side of Ichthys are two harbours; the northern one, which is a small creek,
was the port of Pheia; the southern one is the broad bay of Katakolo, which is
now much frequented, but was too open and exposed for ancient navigation. The
position of these harbours explains the narrative of Thucydides, who relates that
in the first year of the Peloponnesian War (B.C. 431), the Athenian fleet, having
sailed from Methone in Messenia, landed at Pheia (that is, in the bay of Katakolo),
and laid waste the country; but a storm having arisen, they sailed round the promontory
Ichthys into the harbour of Pheia. In front of the harbour was a small island,
which Polybius calls Pheias (Strab. l. c.; Polyb. iv. 9). About a mile north of
the small creek at Pontikokastro, there is a harbour called Khortus, which Leake
is disposed to identify with the port mentioned by Thucydides, on the ground that
the historian describes it not as the port of Pheia, but as a harbour in the district
Pheia (ton en te Phgeiai limena but we think it more probable that the historian
intended the creek at the foot of Pontikokastro. In any case Pheia stood on the
isthmus of Ichthys, and neither at Khortus nor at the mouth of the torrent of
Skaphidi, at one or other of which spots Pheia is placed by Boblaye, though at
neither are there any ancient remains.think it more probable that the historian
intended the creek at the foot of Pontikokastro. In any case Pheia stood on the
isthmus of Ichthys, and neither at Khortus nor at the mouth of the torrent of
Skaphidi, at one or other of which spots Pheia is placed by Boblaye, though at
neither are there any ancient remains.
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
FIGALIA (Ancient city) ILIA
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.
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FRIXA (Village) ILIA
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.)
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FRIZA (Ancient city) SKILOUNTA
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.
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HERAKLIA (Ancient city) ILIA
An ancient place of Pisatis in Elis, but a village in the time of Pausanias, was
distant 40 or 50 stadia from Olympia. It contained medicinal waters issuing from
a fountain sacred to the Ionic nymphs, and flowing into the neighbouring stream
called Cytherus or Cytherius, which is the brook near the modern village of Bruma.
ILIA (Ancient country) GREECE
Elis (he Elis, Dor. Alis, whence Alis in Plant. Capt. Prol. 9, 26;
acc. Elida of the country, Eiln of the town generally, in Lat. Elin and Elidem.
The word was originally written with the digamma Phalis, perhaps connected with
vallis, and signifying originally, a hollow. The country was also called he Eleia,
Thuc. ii. 25, Polyb. v. 102; he Eleion chora, Polyb. iv. 77; Eliorum ager, Plin.
iv. 5. s. 6. Eth. and Adj. Eleios, Aleios, Phaleion on coins, Elius, Eleus, Alius,
Plaut. Capt. Prol. 24.; Eliades, Steph. B. s. v.; Eleiakos, Eliakos).
Elis, in its widest signification, was the country on the western
coast of Peloponnesus between Achaia and Messenia, extending from the promontory
Araxus and the river Larissus on the north to the river Neda on the south, and
bounded on the east by the Arcadian mountains and on the west by the Ionian sea.
(Strab. viii. p. 336.) It included three distinct districts, Elis Prroper
or Hollow Elis, the northern portion, extending from the river Araxus to
the promontory Ichthys; Pisatis the middle portion, from the
promontory Ichthys to the river Alpheius; and Triphylia the southern
portion, from the Alpheius to the Neda. Elis Proper was divided into two parts,
the plain of the Peneius, and the mountainous country in the interior, called
Acroreia: the name of Hollow Elis (he koile Elis Thuc. ii. 25) appears to have
been originally given to the plain of the Peneius to distinguish it from the mountainous
district of the Acroreia; but since Hollow Elis was the larger and more fertile
part, this name came to be given to the whole of the northern territory, to distinguish
it from the dependent districts of Pisatis and Triphylia.
Those of the ancient geographers, who represented Peloponnesus as
consisting of only five divisions, made Elis and Arcadia only one district. (Paus.
v. 1. § 1.) In fact Elis may be looked upon as a kind of offshoot of Arcadia,
since it embraces the lower slopes of the mountains of Erymanthus, Pholoe and
Lycaeus, which sink down gradually towards the Ionian sea. Elis has no mountain
system of its own, but only hills and plains. It contains more fertile land than
any other country of Peloponnesus; the rich meadows of the plain of the Peneius
were celebrated from the earliest times; and even the sandy hills, which separate
the plains, are covered with vegetation, since they are exposed to the moist westerly
winds. Thus the land with its green hills and fertile plains forms a striking
contrast to the bare and precipitous rocks on the eastern coast. Hence Oxylus
is said to have conducted the invading Dorians by the more difficult way through
Arcadia, lest they should see the fertile territory of Elis, which he had designed
for himself. (Paus. v. 4. § 1; Polyb. iv. 73.)
The coast of Elis is a long and almost unbroken sandy level, and would
have been entirely destitute of natural harbours, if a few neighbouring rocks
had not become united by alluvial deposits with the mainland. In this way three
promontories have been formed,--Araxus, Chelonatas, Ichthys,--which interrupt
the uniformity of the coast, and afford some protection for vessels. Of these
the central and the largest is Chelonatas, running a considerable way into the
sea, and forming on either side one end of a gulf. The northern gulf bears the
name of Cyllene, and is bounded at its northern extremity by the promontory Araxus.
The southern gulf is called the Chelonatic, and is bounded at its southern extremity
by the promontory Ichthys, which also forms the commencement of the great Cyparissian
gulf.
The sandy nature of the coast interrupts the natural outlet of the
numerous smaller rivers, and absorbs them before they reach the sea. The sea also
frequently breaks over the coast; and thus there is formed along the coast a series
of lagoons, which are separated from the sea only by narrow sand-banks. Along
the Cyllenian bay there are two such lagoons; and the whole Elean coast upon the
Cyparissian bay is occupied by three almost continuous lagoons. This collection
of stagnant water renders the coast very unhealthy in the summer months; and the
vast number of gnats and other insects, which are generated in these marshes,
makes it almost impossible to live near the sea. The modern harbour of Kunupeli
has derived its name from the gnats, which abound in the neighbourhood (Kounoupeli
from Kounoupion==konoph); and even in antiquity the Eleans invoked Zeus and Hercules
to protect them from this plague. (Zeus apomuios, Paus. v. 14. § 1; comp. Aelian,
H. An. v. 17.) These lagoons, however, supply the inhabitants with a vast abundance
of fish. In the summer months, when the fish are very numerous on the coast, a
small opening is made through the narrow sand-banks; and the lagoons thus become
soon filled with fish, which are easily taken. They are dried and salted on the
spot, and are exported in large quantities. This fishery was probably carried
on in ancient times also, since we find Apollo worshipped among the Eleans under
the epithet of Opsophagos. (Polemon. p. 109. ed. Preller.)
The physical peculiarities of Elis are not favourable to its becoming
an independent state. In fact no country in Greece is so little protected against
hostile attacks. The broad valley of the Alpheius runs, like a highway, through
the centre of Elis: the mountains, which form its eastern boundaries, are a very
slight defence, since they are only the offshoots of still higher mountains; while
the towns and villages on the flat coast lie entirely exposed to an enemy's fleet.
But these natural obstacles to its independence were more than compensated by
the sacred character attaching to the whole land in consequence of its possessing
the temple of the Olympian Zeus on the banks of the Alpheius. Its territory was
regarded as inviolable by the common law of Greece; and though its sanctity was
not always respected, and it was ravaged more than once by an invading force,
as we shall presently see, it enjoyed for several centuries exemption from the
devastations of war. Thus, instead of the fortified places seen in the rest of
Greece, Elis abounded in unwalled. villages and country houses; and the valley
of the Alpheius in particular was full of various sanctuaries, and consecrated
spots, which gave the whole country a sacred appearance. The prosperity of the
country continued down to the time of Polybius, who notices its populousness and
the fondness of its inhabitants for a country life. (Strab. viii. pp. 343, 358;.
Polyb. iv. 73, 74.) The prosperity of Elis was also much indebted to the expenditure
of the vast number. of strangers, who visited the country once in four: years
at the festival of the Olympian Zeus.
Hollow Elis is more extensive and more fertile than the two
subject districts (hai perioikides poleis) of Pisatis and Triphylia. It consists
of a fertile plain, drained by the river Peneius (Peneios) and its tributary the
Ladon (Ladon). The Peneius rises in Mount Erymanthus between two lofty summits,
and flows at first between the ravine of Berbini, and afterwards in a north-westerly
direction till it reaches a more open valley. The Ladon, called Selleeis by Homer,
rises a little more to the south; it also flows at first through a narrow ravine,
and falls into the Peneius, just where it enters the broader valley. The united
stream continues its course through this valley, till at the town of Elis it emerges
near its mouth into the extensive plain of Gastuni, which is the name now generally
given to the river throughout its whole course. The river Gastuni now flows into
the sea to the south of the promontory of Chelonatas, but there is reason for
believing that the main branch at least of the Peneius originally flowed into
the sea north of the Chelonatas. This appears from the order of the names in Ptolemy
(iii. 16. § § 5, 6), who enumerates the promontory Araxus, Cyllene, the mouths
of the Peneius, and the promontory Chelonitis, as well as from the statement of
Strabo (viii. p. 338) that the Peneius flows into the sea between Chelonatas and
Cyllene. Moreover, the legend of Hercules cleansing the stables of Augeias by
diverting the course of the Peneius would seem to show that even in ancient times
the course of the stream had been changed either by artificial or by natural means;
and there are still remains of some ancient channels near the southern end of
the Cyllenian gulf.
The plain of Gastuni is still celebrated for its fertility, and produces
flax, wheat, and cotton. In antiquity, as we learn from Pausanias (v. 5. § 2),
Elis was the only part of Greece in which byssus (a species of fine flax) grew.
This byssus is described by Pausanias (l. c.) as not inferior to that of the Hebrews
in fineness, but not so yellow; and in another passage (vi. 26. § 6) he remarks
that hemp and flax and byssus are sown by all the Eleians, whose lands are adapted
for these crops. The vine was also cultivated with success, as is evident from
the especial honour paid to Dionysus in the city of Elis, and from the festival
called Thyia, in which three empty jars spontaneously filled with wine. (Paus.
vi. 26. § 1.) Elis still contains a large quantity of excellent timber; and the
road to Achaia along the coast passes through noble forests of oaks. The rich
pastures of the Peneius were favourable to the rearing of horses and cattle. Even
in the earliest legends Augeias, king of the Epeians in Elis, is represented as
keeping innumerable herds of oxen; and the horses of Elis were celebrated in the
Homeric poems (Od. iv. 634, xxi. 346). It was said that mules could not be engendered
in Elis in consequence of a divine curse (Herod. iv. 30; Paus. v. 5. § 2); but
this tale probably arose from the fact of the Eleian mares being sent into Arcadia,
in order to be covered by the asses of the latter country, which were reckoned
the best in all Greece.
Pisatis (he Pisthtis)
is the lower valley of the Alpheius.
Triphylia (Triphulia)
is the smallest of the three divisions of Elis
Towns in Elis
1. In Hollow Elis.
Upon the coast, proceeding southwards from the promontory of Araxus, Hyrmine,
Cyllene. From the town of
Elis a road led northward
to Dyme in Achaia
passing by Myrtunium (or
Myrsinus) and Buprasium East
of Elis and commanding the entrance to the Acroreia
or highlands of Elis was Pylos,
at the junction of the Peneius
and Ladon. South of Pylos
on the Ladon was the Homeric Ephyra
afterwards called Oenoe.
North of Pylos in the mountainous country on the borders of Achaia was Thalamae
East of Pylos and Ephyra, in the Acroreia, were Lasion,
Opus, Thraustus
(or Thraestus), Alium. Eupagium
2. In Pisatis.
Upon the Sacred Way leading from Elis to Olympia, Letrini
and Dyspontium Upon
the coast, the town and harbour of Pheia.
On the road across the mountains from Elis to Olympia, Alesiaeum,
Salmone, and Heracleia;
and in the same. neighbourhood, Margana
(or Margalae) and Ampidoli.
Olympia lay on the right
bank of the Alpheius, nearly
in the centre of the country: it was properly not a town, but only a collection
of sacred buildings. A little to the east of Olympia was Pisa
and further east Harpinna.
3. In Triphylia.
Upon the road along the coast, Epitalyum
(the Homeric Thryon), Samicum,
Pyrgi. A road, led from
Olympia to Lepreum, on which were Pylos
and Macistus. Lepreum
in the southern part of Triphylia was the chief town of the district. Between
these two roads was Scillus
where Xenophon resided. On the Alpheius to the east of Olympia was Phrixa
and southwards in the interior were Aepy
(afterwards called Epeium), Hypana,
Typaneae. The position
of Bolax
and Styllagium is uncertain.
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ILIS (Ancient city) ILIA
Elis. The position of the city of Elis was the best that could have been
chosen for the capital of the country. Just before the Peneius emerges from the
hills into the plain, the valley of the river is contracted on the south by a
projecting hill of a peaked form, and nearly 500 feet in height. This hill was
the acropolis of Elis, and commanded as well the narrow valley of the Peneius
as the open plain beyond. It is now called Kaloskopi, which the Venetians translated
into Belvedere. The ancient city lay at the foot of the hill, and extended across
the river, as Strabo says that the Peneius flowed through the city (viii. p. 337);
but since no remains are now found on the right or northern bank, it is probable
that all the public buildings were on the left bank of the river, more especially
as Pausanias does not make any allusion to the river in his description of the
city. On the site of the ancient city there are two or three small villages, which
bear the common name of Paleopoli.
Elis is mentioned as a town of the Epeii by Homer (Il. ii. 615); but
in the earliest times the two chief towns in the country appear to have been Ephyra
the residence of Augeias, in the interior, and Buprasium on the coast. Some writers
suppose that Ephyra was the more ancient name of Elis, but it appears to have
been a different place, situated upon the Ladon. Elis first became a place of
importance upon the invasion of Peloponnesus by the Dorians. Oxylus and his Aetolian
followers appear to have settled on the height of Kaloskopi as the spot best adapted
for ruling the country. From this time it was the residence of the kings, and
of the aristocratical families who governed the country after the abolition of
royalty. Elis was the only fortified town in the country; the rest of the inhabitants
dwelt in unwalled villages, paying obedience to the ruling class at Elis.
Soon after the Persian wars the exclusive privileges of the aristocratical
families in Elis were abolished, and a democratical government established. Along
with this revolution a great change took place in the city of Elis. The city appears
to have been originally confined to the acropolis; but the inhabitants of many
separate townships, eight according to Strabo, now removed to the capital, and
built round the acropolis a new city, which they left undefended by walls, relying
upon the sanctity of their country. (Diod. xi. 54; Strab. viii. p. 336; Xen. Hell.
iii. 2. 27) At the same time the Eleians were divided into a certain number of
local tribes; or if the latter existed before, they now acquired for the first
time political rights. The Hellanodicae, or presidents of the Olympic games, who
had formerly been taken from the aristocratical families, were now appointed,
by lot, one from each of the local tribes; and the fluctuating number of the Hellanodicae
shows the increase and decrease from time to time of the Eleian territory. It
is probable that each of the three districts into which Elis was divided, - Hollow
Elis, Pisatis, and Triphylia, - contained four tribes. This is in accordance with
the fourfold ancient division of Hollow Elis, and with the twice four townships
in the Pisatis. Pausanias in his account of the number of the Hellanodicae says
that there were 12 Hellanodicae in Ol. 103, which was immediately after the battle
of Leuctra, when the Eleians recovered for a short time their ancient dominions,
but that being shortly afterwards deprived of Triphylia by the Arcadians, the
number of their tribes was reduced to eight. (Paus. v. 9. § § 5, 6.)
When Pausanias visited Elis, it was one of the most populous and splendid
cities of Greece. At present nothing of it remains except some masses of tile
and mortar, several wrought blocks of stone and fragments of sculpture, and a
square building about 20 feet on the outside, which within is in the form of an
octagon with niches. With such scanty remains it would be impossible to attempt
any reconstruction of the city, and to assign to particular sites the buildings
mentioned by Pausanias (vi. 23 - 26).
Strabo says (viii. p. 337) that the gymnasium stood on the side of
the river Peneius; and it is probable that the gymnasium and agora occupied the
greater part of the space between the river and the citadel. The gymnasium was
a vast inclosure surrounded by a wall. It was by far the largest gymnasium in
Greece, which is accounted for by the fact that all the athletae in the Olympic
games were obliged to undergo a month's previous training in the gymnasium at
Elis. The inclosure bore the general name of Xystus, and within it there were
special places destined for the runners, and separated from one another by plane-trees.
The gymnasium contained three subdivisions, called respectively Plethrium, Tetragonum,
and Malco: the first so called from its dimensions, the second from its shape,
and the third from the softness of the soil. In their Malco was the senate-house
of the Eleians, called Lalichium from the name of its founders: it was also used
for literary exhibitions.
The gymnasium had two principal entrances, one leading by the street
called Siope or Silence to the baths, and the other above the cenotaph of Achilles
to the agora and the Hellanodicaeum. The agora was also called the hippodrome,
because it was used for the exercise of horses. It was built in the ancient style,
and, instead of being surrounded by an. unin terrupted, series of stoae or colonnades,
its stoae were separated, from one another by streets. The southern stoa, which
consisted of a triple row of Doric columns, was the usual resort of the Hellanodicae
during the day. Towards one end of this stoa to the left was the Hellanodicaeon,
a building divided from. the agora by a street, which was the official residence
of the Hellanodicae, who received here instruction in their duties for ten months
preceding the.festival. There was another stoa in the agora called the Corcyraean
stoa, because it had been built out of the tenth of some spoils taken from the
Cor. cyraeans. It consisted of two rows of Doric columns, with a partition wall
running between them: one side was open to the agora, and the other to a temple
of Aphrodite Urania, in which was a statue of the goddess in gold and ivory by
Pheidias. In the open part of the agora Pausanias mentions the temple of Apollo
Acacesius, which was the principal temple in Elis, statues of Helios and Selene
(Sun and Moon), a temple of the Graces, a temple of Silenus, and the tomb of Oxylus.
On the way to the theatre was the temple of Hades, which was opened only once
in the year.
The theatre must have been on the slope of the acropolis: it is described
by Pausanias as lying between the agora and the Menius, which, if the name is
not corrupt, must be the brook flowing down from the heights behind Paleopoli.
Near the theatre was a temple of Dionysus, containing a statue of this god by
Praxiteles.
On the acropolis was a temple of Athena, containing a statue of the
goddess in gold and ivory by Pheidias. On the summit of the acropolis are the
remains of a castle, in the walls of which Curtius noticed some fragments of Doric
columns which probably belonged to the temple of Athena.
In the immediate neighbourhood of Elis was Petra, where the tomb of
the philosopher Pyrrhon was shown. (Paus. vi. 24. § 5.)
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KYLLINI (Ancient city) ILIA
Kullene. Eth. Kullenios, Kullenheus. The seaport town of Elis, distant
120 stadia from the latter city. (Paus. vi. 26. § 4; Strab. viii. p. 337.) Cyllene
was an ancient place. It is mentioned by Homer as one of the towns of the Epeians
(Il. xv. 518); and if we are to believe Dionysius Periegetes (347), it was the
port from which the Pelasgians sailed to Italy. Pausanias, moreover, mentions
it as visited at an early period by the merchants of Aegina (viii. 5. § 8), and
as the port from which the exiled Messenians after the conclusion of the second
Messenian war, sailed away to found a colony in Italy or Sicily (iv. 23. § 1,
seq.).
Cyllene was burnt by the Corcyraeans in B.C. 435, because it had supplied
ships to the Corinthians. (Thuc. i. 30.) It is again mentioned in 429, as the
naval station of the Peloponnesian fleet, when Phormion commanded an Athenian
squadron in the Corinthian gulf. (Thuc. ii. 84.) Its name occurs on other occasions,
clearly showing that it was the principal port in this part of Peloponnesus. (Thuc.
vi. 89; Died. xix. 66, 87; Polyb. v. 3; Liv. xxvii. 32.) Strabo describes Cyllene
as an inconsiderable village, having an ivory statue of Asclepius by Colotes,
a contemporary of Pheidias. (Strab. viii.) This statue is not mentioned by Pausanias,
who speaks, however, of temples of Asclepius and Aphrodite (vi. 26. § 5).
Cyllene is usually identified with Glarentza, situated upon one of
the capes of the promontory Chelonatas. This is the position assigned to it by
Leake, whose authority we have followed elsewhere; but there are strong reasons
for doubting the correctness of this opinion. There are no ancient remains at
Glarentza; and although this is at present the only port on this part of the coast,
the outline of the latter has been so changed in the course of centuries, that
little reliance can be placed upon this argument. Moreover, Cyllene is clearly
distinguished from the promontory Chelonatas by the ancient writers. Strabo (viii.)
says that the Peneius flows into the sea between the promontories Chelonatas and
Cyllene; and that this is not an error in the text, as Leake supposes, appears
from the order of the names in Ptolemy (iii. 15. § § 5, 6), where we find the
promontory Araxus, Cyllene, the mouths of the Peneius, the promontory Chelonitis.
The river Peneius at present flows into the sea to the south of Chelonatas, but
its ancient course was probably north of this promontory. Accordingly we may perhaps
place Cyllene about half way between Araxus and Chelonatas. This position not
only agrees with the distance of 120 stadia from Elis mentioned by Strabo and
Pausanias, but also with the distances in the Tab. Peuting., which reckons xiv.
M. P. from Dyme to Cyllene, and also xiv. M. P. from Cyllene to Elis. Pliny (iv.
5. s. 6.), likewise separates the promontory Chelonatas from Cyllene. According
to the present text of Pliny, the distance between them is v. M. P. (not ii. as
in some editions); but instead of v. we ought probably to read xv. It appears
from Pliny that the sea between the promontories of Araxus and Chelonatas was
called the bay of Cyllene.
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LASSION (Ancient city) ILIA
The chief town of the mountainous district of Acroreia in Elis proper,
was situated upon the frontiers of Arcadia near Psophis. Curtius places it with
great probability in the upper valley of the Ladon, at the Paleokastro of Kumani,
on the road from the Eleian Pylos and Ephyra to Psophis. Lasion was a frequent
object of dispute between the Arcadians and Eleians, both of whom laid claim to
it. In the war which the Spartans carried on against Elis at the close of the
Peloponnesian War, Pausanias, king of Sparta, took Lasion (Diod. xiv. 17). The
invasion of Pausanias is not mentioned by Xenophon in his account of this war;
but the latter author relates that, by the treaty of peace concluded between Elis
and Sparta in B.C. 400, the Eleians were obliged to give up Lasion, in consequence
of its being claimed by the Arcadians. (Xen. Hell. iii. 2. 30) In B.C. 366 the
Eleians attempted to recover Lasion from the Arcadians; they took the town by
surprise, but were shortly afterwards driven out of it again by the Arcadians.
(Xen. Hell. vii. 4. 13, seq.; Diod. xv. 77.) In B.C. 219 Lasion was again a fortress
of Elis, but upon the capture of Psophis by Philip, the Eleian garrison at Lasion
straightway deserted the place. (Polyb. iv. 72, 73.) Polybius mentions (v. 102)
along with Lasion a fortress called Pyrgos, which he places in a district named
Perippia.
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LEPREON (Ancient city) ILIA
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.
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LETRINI (Ancient city) PYRGOS
Letrinoi, Letrina. A town of Pisatis in Elis, situated near the sea,
upon the Sacred Way leading from Elis to Olympia, at the distance of 180 stadia
from Elis, and 120 from Olympia. It was said to have been founded by Letreus,
a son of Pelops. (Paus. vi. 22. § 8.) Together with several of the other dependent
townships of Elis, it joined Agis, when he invaded the territories of Elis; and
the Eleians were obliged to surrender their supremacy over Letrini by the peace
which they concluded with the Spartans in B.C. 400. (Xen. Hell. iii. 2. 25, 30.)
Xenophon speaks of Letrini, Amphidoli, and Marganeis as Triphylian places,
although they were on the right bank of the Alpheius; and if there is no corruption
in the text, which Mr. Grote thinks there is , the word Triphylian must be used
in a loose sense to signify the dependent townships of Elis. The Letrinaiai guai
are mentioned by Lycophron (158). In the time of Pausanias nothing remained of
Letrini except a few houses and a temple of Artemis Alpheiaea. Letrini may be
placed at the village and monastery of St. John, between Pyrgo and the port of
Katakolo, where, according to Leake, among many fragments of antiquity, a part
of a large statue was found some years ago. g remained of Letrini except a few
houses and a temple of Artemis Alpheiaea. Letrini may be placed at the village
and monastery of St. John, between Pyrgo and the port of Katakolo, where, according
to Leake, among many fragments of antiquity, a part of a large statue was found
some years ago.
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MAKISTOS (Ancient city) ILIA
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.)
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MYRSINI (Ancient city) ILIA
Murtountion, called Myrsinus (Mursinos) by Homer, who mentions it
among the towns of the Epeii. It was a town of Elis, and is described by Strabo
as situated on the road from the city of Elis to Dyme in Achaia, at the distance
of 70 stadia from the former place and near the sea. Leake remarks that the last
part of the description must be incorrect, since no part of the road from Elis
to Dyme could have passed by the sea; but Curtius observes that Myrtuntium would
at one time have been near the sea-coast, supposing that the lagoon of Kotiki
was originally a gulf of the sea. The ruin near Kalotikos probably represents
this place.
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OLYMPIA (Ancient sanctuary) ILIA
(he Olumpia). The temple and sacred grove of Zeus Olympius, situated
at a small distance west of Pisa in Peloponnesus. It originally belonged to Pisa,
and the plain, in which it stood, was called in more ancient times the plain of
Pisa; but after the destruction of this city by the Eleians in B.C. 572, the name
of Olympia was extended to the whole district. Besides the temple of Zeus Olympius,
there were several other sacred edifices and public buildings in the sacred grove
and its immediate neighbourhood; but there was no distinct town of Olympia.
The plain of Olympia is open towards the sea on the west, but is surrounded
on every other side by hills of no great height, yet in many places abrupt and
precipitous. Their surface presents a series of sandy cliffs of light yellow colour,
covered with the pine, ilex, and other evergreens. On entering the valley from
the west, the most conspicuous object is a bold and nearly insulated eminence
rising on the north from the level plain in the form of an irregular cone. (Mure,
vol. ii. p. 281.) This is Mount Cronius, or the hill of Cronus, which is frequently
noticed by Pindar and other ancient writers. (par eudeielon Kronion, Pind. Ol.
i. 111; pagos Kronou, Ol. xi. 49; hupseloio petra alibatos Kroniou, Ol. vi. 64;
Kronou par aipun ochthon, Lycophr. 42; ho Kroneios, Xen. Hell. vii. 4. 14; to
oros to Kronion, Paus. v. 21. § 2, vi. 19. § 1, vi. 20. § 1; Ptol. iii. 16. §
14.) The range of hills to which it belongs is called by most modern writers the
Olympian, on the authority of a passage of Xenophon. (Hell. vii. 4. § 14). Leake,
however, supposes that the Olympian hill alluded to in this passage was no other
than Cronius itself; but it would appear, that the common opinion is correct,
since Strabo (viii. p. 356) describes Pisa as lying between the two mountains
Olympus and Ossa. The hills, which bound the plain on the south, are higher than
the Cronian ridge, and, like the latter, are covered with evergreens, with the
exception of one bare summit, distant about half a mile from the Alpheius. This
was the ancient Tyraeus (Tupaion), from which women, who frequented the Olympic
games, or crossed the river on forbidden days, were condemned to be hurled headlong.
(Paus. v. 6. § 7.) Another range of hills closes the vale of Olympia to the east,
at the foot of which runs the rivulet of Miraka. On the west the vale was bounded
by the Cladeus (Kladeos), which flowed from north to south along the side of the
sacred grove, and fell into the Alpheius. (Paus. v. 7. § 1; Kladaos, Xen. Hell.
vii. 4. 29) This river rises at Lala in Mount Pholoe. The Alpheius, which flows
along the southern edge of the plain, constantly changes its course, and has buried
beneath the new alluvial plain, or carried into the river, all the remains of
buildings and monuments which stood in the southern part of the Sacred Grove.
In winter the Alpheius is full, rapid. and turbid; in summer it is scanty, and
divided into several torrents flowing between islands or sandbanks over a wide
gravelly bed. The vale of Olympia is now called Andilalo (i. e. opposite to Lala),
and is uninhabited. The soil is naturally rich, but swampy in part, owing to the
inundations of the river. Of the numerous buildings and countless statues, which
once covered this sacred spot, the only remains are those of the temple of Zeus
Olympius. Pausanias has devoted nearly two books, and one fifth of his whole work,
to the description of Olympia; but he does not enumerate the buildings in their
exact topographical order: owing to this circumstance, to the absence of ancient
remains, and to the changes in the surface of the soil by the fluctuations in
the course of the Alpheius, the topography of the plain must be to a great extent
conjectural. The latest and most able attempt to elucidate this subject, is that
of Colonel Leake in his Peloponnesiaca, whose description is here chiefly followed.
Olympia lay partly within and partly outside of the Sacred Grove.
This Sacred Grove bore from the most ancient times the name of Altis (he Altis),
which is the Peloponnesian Aeolic form of alsos. (Paus. v. 10. § 1.) It was adorned
with trees, and in its centre there was a grove of planes. (Paus. v. 27. § 11.)
Pindar likewise describes it as well wooded (Pisas eudendron ep Alpheo alsos,
Ol. viii. 12). The space of the Altis was measured out by Hercules, and was surrounded
by this hero with a wall. (Pind. Ol. xi. 44.) On the west it ran along the Cladeus;
on the south its direction may be traced by a terrace raised above the Alpheius;
on the east it was bounded by the stadium. There were several gates in the wall,
but the principal one, through which all the processions passed, was situated
in the middle of the western side, and was called the Pompic Entrance (he Pompike
eisodos, Paus. v. 15. § 2). From this gate, a road, called the Pompic Way, ran
across the Altis, and entered the stadium by a gateway on the eastern side.
1. The Olympieium, Olympium, or temple of Zeus Olympius. An oracle of the
Olympian god existed on this spot from the most ancient times (Strab. viii. p.
353), and here a temple was doubtless built, even before the Olympic games became
a Pan-Hellenic festival. But after the conquest of Pisa and the surrounding cities
by the Eleians in B.C. 572, the latter determined to devote the spoils of the
conquered cities to the erection of a new and splendid temple of the Olympian
god. (Paus. v. 10. §§ 2, 3.) The. architect was Libon of Elis. The temple was
not, however, finished till nearly a century afterwards, at the period when the
Attic school of art was supreme in Greece, and the Parthenon on the Athenian Acropolis
had thrown into the shade all previous works of art. Shortly after the dedication
of the Parthenon, the Eleians invited Pheidias and his school of artists to remove
to Elis, and adorn the Olympian temple in a manner worthy of the king of the gods.
Pheidias probably remained at Olympia for four or five years from about B.C. 437
to 434 or 433. The colossal statue of Zeus in the cella, and the figures in the
pediments of the temple were executed by Pheidias and his associates. The pictorial
embellishments were the work of his relative Panaenus. (Strab. viii. p. 354) Pausanias
has given a minute description of the temple (v. 10); and its site, plan, and
dimensions have been well ascertained by the excavations of the French Commission
of the Morea. The foundations are now exposed to view; and several fine fragments
of the sculptures, representing the labours of Hercules, are now in the museum
of the Louvre. The temple stood in the south-western portion of the Altis, to
the right hand of the Pompic entrance. It was built of the native limestone, which
Pausanias called poros, and which was covered in the more finished parts by a
surface of stucco, which gave it the appearance of marble. It was of the Doric
order, and a peripteral hexastyle building. Accordingly it had six columns in
the front and thirteen on the sides. The columns were fluted, and 7ft. 4in. in
diameter, a size greater than that of any other existing columns of a Grecian
temple. The length of the temple was 230 Greek feet, the breadth 95, the height
to the summit of the pediment 68. The roof was covered with slabs of Pentelic
marble in the form of tiles. At each end of the pediment stood a gilded vase,
and on the apex a gilded statue of Nike or Victory; below which was a golden shield
with the head of Medusa in the middle, dedicated by the Lacedaemonians on account
of their victory over the Athenians at Tanagra in B.C. 457. The two pediments
were filled with figures. The eastern pediment had a statue of Zeus in the centre,
with Oenomaus on his right and Pelops on his left, prepared to contend in the
chariot-race; the figures on either side consisted of their attendants, and in
the angles were the two rivers, Cladeus to the right of Zeus, and Alpheius to
his left. In the western pediment was the contest of the Centaurs and the Lapithae,
Peirithous occupying the central place. On the metopes over the doors at the eastern
and western ends the labours of Hercules were represented. In its interior construction
the temple resembled the Parthenon. The cella consisted of two chambers, of which
the eastern contained the statue, and the western was called the Opisthodomus.
The colossal statue of Zeus, the master-work of Pheidias, was made of ivory and
gold. It stood at the end of the front chamber of the cella, directly facing the
entrance, so that it at once showed itself in all its grandeur to a spectator
entering the temple. The approach to it was between a double row of columns, supporting
the roof. The god was seated on a magnificent throne adorned with sculptures,
a full description of which, as well as of the statue, has been given in another
place. Behind the Opisthodomus of the temple was the Callistephanus or wild olive
tree, which furnished the garlands of the Olympic victors. (Paus. v. 15. § 3.)
2. The Pelopium stood opposite the temple of Zeus, on the other side of
the Pompic way. Its position is defined by Pausanias, who says that it stood to
the right of the entrance into the temple of Zeus and to the north of that building.
It was an enclosure, containing trees and statues, having an opening to the west.
(Paus. v. 13. § 1.)
3. The Heraeum was the most important temple in the Altis after that of
Zeus It was also a Doric peripteral building. Its dimensions are unknown. Pausanias
says (v. 16. § 1) that it was 63 feet in length; but this is clearly a mistake,
since no peripteral building was so small; and the numerous statues in the cella,
described by Pausanias, clearly show that it must have been of considerable dimensions.
The two most remarkable monuments in the Heraeum were the table, on which were
placed the garlands prepared for the victors in the Olympic contests, and the
celebrated chest of Cypselus, covered with figures in relief, of which Pausanias
has given an elaborate description (v. 17-19). We learn from a passage of Dion
Chrysostom (Orat. xi. p. 163), cited by Leake, that this chest stood in the opisthodomus
of the Heraeum; whence we may infer that the cella of the temple consisted of
two apartments.
4. The Great Altar of Zeus is described by Pausanias as equidistant from
the Pelopium and the Heraeum, and as being in front of them both. (Paus. v. 13.
§ 8.) Leake places the Heraeum near the Pompic entrance of the Stadium, and supposes
that it faced eastward; accordingly he conjectures that the altar was opposite
to the backfronts of the Pelopium and the Heraeum. The total height of the altar
was 22 feet. It had two platforms, of which the upper was made of the cinders
of the thighs sacrificed on this and other altars.
5. The Column of Oenomaus stood between the great altar and the temple
of Zeus. It was said to have belonged to the house of Oenomaus, and to have been
the only part of the building which escaped when it was burnt by lightning. (Paus.
v. 20. § 6.)
6. The Metroum, or temple of the Mother of the Gods, was a large Doric
building, situated within the Altis (Paus. v. 20. § 9.) It is placed by Leake
to the left of the Pompic Way nearly opposite the Heraeum.
7. The Prytaneium is placed by Pausanias within the Altis, near the Gymnasium,
which was outside the sacred enclosure (v. 15. § 8.)
8. The Bouleuterion, or Council-House, seems to have been near the Prytaneium.
(Paus. v. 23. § 1, 24. § 1.) 9. The Philippeium, a circular building, erected
by Philip after the battle of Chaeroneia, was to the left in proceeding from the
entrance of the Altis to the Prytaneium. (Pans. v. 17. § 4, v. 20. § 10.)
10. The Theecoleon, a building belonging to the theekoloi or superintendents
of the sacrifices (Paus. v. 15. § 8). Its position is uncertain. 11. The Hippodamium,
named from Hippodameia, who was buried here, was within the Altis near the Pompic
Way. (Paus. vi. 20. § 7.)
12. The temple of the Olympian Eileithyia (Lucina) appears to have stood
on the neck of Mount Cronius. (Paus. vi. 20. § 2.)
13. The Temple of the Olympian Aphrodite was near that of Eileithyia. (Paus.
vi. 20. § 6.)
14. The Thesauri or Treasuries, ten in number, were, like those at Delphi,
built by different cities, for the reception of their dedicatory offerings. They
are described by Pausanias as standing to the north of the Heraeum at the foot
of Mount Cronius, upon a platform made of the stone poros (Paus. vi. 19. § 1).
15. Zanes, statues of Zeus, erected from the produce of fines levied upon
athletae, who had violated the regulations of the games. They stood upon a stone
platform at the foot of Mount Cronius, to the left of a person going from the
Metroum to the Stadium. (Paus. v. 21. § 2.) 16. The Studio of Pheidias,
which was outside the Altis, and near the Pompic entrance. (Paus. v. 15. § 1.)
17. The Leonidaeum, built by Leonidas, a native, was near the Studio of
Pheidias. Here the Roman magistrates were lodged in the time of Pausanias (v.
15. §§ 1, 2).
18. The Gymnasium, also outside the Altis, and near the northern entrance
into it. (Paus. vi. 21. § 2.) Near the Gymnasium was (19) the Palaestra.
20 and 21. The Stadium and the Hippodrome were two of the most important
sites at Olympia, as together they formed the place of exhibition for all the
Olympic contests. Their position cannot be determined with certainty; but as they
appear to have formed a continued area from the circular end of the Stadium to
the further extremity of the Hippodrome, the position assigned to them by Leake
is the most probable. He places the circular end of the Stadium at the foot of
the heights to the NE. of the summit of Mount Cronius, and the further end of
the Hippodrome on the bank of the Alpheius.
The Stadium is described by Pausanias as a mound of earth, upon which
there was a seat for the Hellanodicae, and over against it an altar of marble,
on which sat the priestess of Demeter Chamyne to behold the games. There were
two entrances into the Stadium, the Pompic and the Secret. The latter, through
which the Hellanodicae and the agonistae entered, was near the Zanes; the former
probably entered the area in front of the rectilinear extremity of the Stadium.
(Paus. vi. 20. § 8, seq.) In proceeding towards the Hippodrome from that part
of the Stadium where the Hellanodicae sat was the Hippaphesis or starting place
of the horses (he aphesis ton hippon). In form it resembled the prow of a ship,
the embolus or beak being turned towards the racecourse. Its widest part adjoined
the stoa of Agnaptus. At the end of the embolus was a brazen dolphin standing
upon a pillar. Either side of the Hippaphesis was more than 400 feet in length,
and contained apartments, which those who were going to contend in the horse-races
obtained by lot. Before the horses a cord was extended as a barrier. An altar
was erected in the middle of the prow, on which was an eagle with outstretched
wings. The superintendent of the race elevated this eagle by means of machinery,
so as to be seen by all the spectators, and at the same time the dolphin fell
to the ground. Thereupon the first barriers on either side, near the stoa of Agnaptus,
were removed, and then the other barriers were withdrawn in like manner in succession,
until all the horses were in line at the embolus.
One side of the Hippodrome was longer than the other, and was formed
by a mound of earth. There was a passage through this side leading out of the
Hippodrome; and near the passage was a kind of circular altar, called Taraxippus
(Taraxippos), or the terrifier of horses, because the horses were frequently seized
with terror in passing it, so that, chariots were broken. There was a similar
object for frightening horses both at the Corinthian Isthmus and at Nemea, in
consequence of which the difficulty of the race was increased. Beyond the Taraxippus
were the terminal pillars, called nussai, round which the chariots turned. On
one of them stood a brazen statue of Hippodameia about to bind the taenia on Pelops
after his victory. The other side of the Hippodrome was a natural height of no
great elevation. On its extremity stood the temple of Demeter Chamyne. (Paus.
vi. 20. § 15-v. 21. § 1.) The course of the Hippodrome appears to have been two
diauli, or four stadia. (Dromou de eisi tou hippiou mekos men diauloi duo, Paus.
vi. 16. § 4.) Mure, indeed (vol. ii. p. 327), understands mekos in this passage
to refer to the length of the area; but Leake (Peloponnesiaca, p. 94) maintains,
with more probability, that it signifies the length of the circuit.
22. The Theatre is mentioned by Xenophon (Hell. vii. 4. § 31), but it does
not occur in the description of Pausanias. A theatre existed also at the Isthmus
and Delphi, and would have been equally useful at Olympia for musical contests.
Xenophon could hardly have been mistaken as to the existence of a theatre at Olympia,
as he resided more than 20 years at Scillus, which was only three miles from the
former spot. It would therefore appear that between the time of Xenophon and Pausanias
the theatre had disappeared, probably in consequence of the musical contests having
been discontinued.
Besides the buildings already mentioned, there was a very large number
of statues in every part of the Sacred Grove, many of which were made by the greatest
masters of Grecian art, and of which Pausanias has given a minute description.
According to the vague computation of Pliny (xxxiv. 7. s. 17) there were more
than 3000 statues at Olympia. Most of these works were of brass, which accounts
for their disappearance, as they were converted into objects of common utility
upon the extinction of Paganism. The temples and other monuments at Olympia were,
like many others in different parts of Greece, used as materials for modern buildings,
more especially as quarries of stone are rare in the district of Elis. The chiefs
of the powerful Albanian colony at Lala had in particular long employed the ruins
of Olympia for this purpose.
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
PISSA (Ancient city) ANCIENT OLYMPIA
Eth. Pisates, Pisaieus. A town in Peloponnesus, was in the most ancient
times the capital of an independent district, called Pisatis (he Pisatis), which
subsequently formed part of the territory of Elis. It was celebrated in mythology
as the residence of Oenomaus and Pelops, and was the head of a confederacy of
eight states, of which, besides Pisa, the following names are recorded:--Salmone,
Heracleia, Harpinna, Cycesium, and Dyspontium. (Strab. viii. p. 356, seq.) Pisa
had originally the presidency of the Olympic festival, but was deprived of this
privilege by the Eleians. The Pisatans, however, made many attempts to recover
it; and the history of their wars with the Eleians, which were at last terminated
by the destruction of Pisa in B.C. 572, is narrated elsewhere. Although Pisa ceased
to exist as a city from this time, the Pisatans, in conjunction with the Arcadians,
celebrated the 104th Olympic festival, B.C. . 364. Pisa was said to have been
founded by an eponymous hero, Pisus, the son of Perieres, and grandson of Aeolus
(Paus. vi. 22. § 2); but others derived its name from a fountain Pisa. (Strab.
viii. p. 356; Eustath. ad Dionys. Per. 409.) Modern writers connect its name with
Pisos, a low marshy ground, or with Pissa, the name of the black fir or pinetree.
So completely was Pisa destroyed by the Eleians, that the fact of its having existed
was a disputed point in the time of Strabo; and Pausanias found its site converted
into a vineyard (vi. 22. § 1). Its situation, however, was perfectly well known
to Pindar and Herodotus. Pindar frequently identifies it with Olympia (e. g. Ol.
ii. 3); and Herodotus refers to Pisa and Olympia as the same point in computing
the distance from the altar of the twelve gods at Athens (ii. 7). Pisa appears
from Pausanias to have occupied a position between Harpinna and Olympia, which
were only 20 stadia asunder (Lucian, de Mort. Peregr. 35); and the Scholiast on
Pindar (Ol. xi. 51) says that Pisa was only 6 stadia from Olympia. It must therefore
be placed a little east of Olympia, and its acropolis probably occupied a height
on the western side of the rivulet of Miraka, near its junction with the Alpheius.
Strabo says that it lay between the mountains Olympus and Ossa, which can only
have been heights on different sides of the river.
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PISSATIS (Ancient area) ILIA
Pisatis (he Pisthtis) is the lower valley of the
Alpheius. This river, after its long course through Arcadia, enters a fertile
valley in the Pisatis, bounded on either side by green hills, and finally flows
into the sea through the sandy plain on the coast between two large lagunes. North
of the Alpheius. Mount Pholoe, which is an offshoot of Erymanthus, extends across
the Pisatis from east to west, and separates the waters of the Peneius and the
Ladon from those of the Alpheius. (Strab. viii. p. 357.) It terminates in the
promontory, running southwards far into the sea, and opposite the island of Zacynthus.
This promontory was called in ancient times Icthys (Ichthus, Strab. viii. p. 343)
on account of its shape: it now bears the name of Katakolo. It appears to be the
natural boundary of the Pisatis; and accordingly we learn from Strabo that some
persons placed the commencement of the Pisatis at Pheia, a town on the isthmus
of Ichthys, though he himself extends the district as far as the promontory Chelonatas.
(Strab. viii. p. 343.) Mount Pholoe rises abruptly on its northern side towards
the Peneius, but on the southern side it opens into numerous valleys, down which
torrents flow into the Alpheius.
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PYLOS ILIAS (Ancient city) ILIA
Pylus (Pulos: Eth. Pulios). A town in hollow Elis, described by Pausanias
as situated upon the mountain road leading from Elis to Olympia, and at the place
where the Ladon flows into the Peneius (vi. 22. § 5). Strabo, in a corrupt passage,
assigns to it the same situation, and places it in the neighbourhood of Scollium
or Mt. Scollis (metaxu tou PeWeiou kai tou Selleentos ekboles /un>[read kai tes
tou Selleentos emboles] Pulos oikeito, Strab. viii. p. 338). Pausanias says that
it was 80 stadia from Elis. Diodorus (xiv. 17) gives 70 stadia as the distance,
and Pliny (iv. 5. s. 6) 12 Roman miles. According to the previous description,
Pylus should probably be identified with the ruins at Agrapidho-khori, situated
on a commanding position in the angle formed by the junction of the Peneius and
Ladon. This site is distant 7 geographical miles from Elis, which sufficiently
agrees with the 80 stadia of Pausanias. Leake, however, places Pylus further S.,
at the ruins at Kulogli, mainly on the ground that they are not so tar removed
from the road between Elis and Olympia. But the fact of the ruins at Agrapidho-khori
being at the junction of the Peneius and Ladon seems decisive in favour of that
position ; and we may suppose that a road ran up the valley of the Peneius to
the junction of the two rivers, and then took a bend to the right into the valley
of the Ladon. (Leake, Northern Greece, vol. ii. p. 228, Peloponnesiaca, p. 219;
Boblaye, Recherches, &c. p. 122; Curtius, Peloponnesos, vol. ii. p. 39.) The Eleian
Pylus is said to have been built by the Pylon, son of Cleson of Megara, who founded
the Messenian Pylus, and who, upon being expelled from the latter place by Peleus,
settled at the Eleian Pylos. (Paus. iv. 36. § 1, vi. 22. § 5.) Pylus was said
to have been destroyed by Hercules, and to have been afterwards restored by the
Eleians ; but the story of its destruction by Hercules more properly belongs to
the Messenian Pylus. Its inhabitants asserted that it was the town which Homer
had in view when he asserted that the Alpheius flowed through their territory
(Alpheiou, host' euru rheei Pulion dia gaies, Il. v. 545). On the position of
the Homeric Pylus we shall speak presently; and we only observe here, that this
claim was admitted by Pausanias (vi. 22. § 6), though its absurdity had been previously
pointed out by Strabo (viii. p. 350, seq.). Like the other Eleian towns, Pylus
is rarely mentioned in history. In B.C. 402 it was taken by the Spartans, in their
invasion of the territory of Elis (Diod. xiv. 17); and in B.C. 366 it is mentioned
as the place where the democratical exiles from Elis planted themselves in order
to carry on war against the latter city. (Xen. Hell. vii. 4. 16) Pausanias saw
only the ruins of Pylus (vi. 22. § 5), and it would appear to have been deserted
long previously.
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PYLOS TRIFYLIAS (Ancient city) ILIA
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.)
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SALMONI (Ancient city) ILIA
Salmone, Salmonia, Eth. Salmonia, Salmoneites (the form Salmoneites
presupposes a form Salmoneia, which probably ought to be read in Diodorus instead
of Salmonia). An ancient town of Pisatis in Elis, said to have been founded by
Salmoneus, stood near Heracleia at the sources of the Enipeus or Barnichius, a
branch of the Alpheius. Its site is uncertain.
SAMIKON (Ancient city) ILIA
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.
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SKILLOUS (Ancient city) ILIA
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.)
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SKOLLIS (Mountain) ACHAIA
Scollis (Skollis), a mountain between Elis and Achaia, now called Sandameriotiko,
3333 feet high, from which the river Larisus rises, that forms the boundary between
Achaia and Elis. Strabo describes it as adjacent to Mount Lampeia, which was connected
with the range of Erymanthus. (Strab. viii. p. 341.) Strabo also identifies it
with the Olenian Rock of Homer. (Il. ii. 617; Strab. viii. p. 387; Leake, Morea,
vol. ii. pp. 184, 230; Peloponnesiaca, p. 203.)
STYLANGION (Ancient city) ILIA
Stullangion, Stullagion, Eth. Stullagios, Stullagieus. A town of Triphylia in
Elis of uncertain site, which surrendered to Philip in the Social War.
THISSOA (Ancient city) ANDRITSENA
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.
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TYPANEES (Ancient city) ILIA
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.)
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VOLAX (Ancient city) ILIA
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.
VOUPRASSION (Ancient city) ILIA
Bouprasion: Eth. Bouprasieus, Bouprasios. A town of Elis, and the
ancient capital of the Epeii, frequently mentioned by Homer, was situated near
the left bank of the Larissus, and consequently upon the confines of Achaia. The
town was no longer extant in the time of Strabo, but its name was still attached
to a district on the left bank of the Larissus, which appears from Stephanus to
have borne also the name of Buprasius.
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YPANA (Ancient small town) ILIA
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.)
YRMINI (Ancient city) ILIA
Hurmine. A town of Elis, upon the coast, mentioned by Homer as one
of the towns of the Epeii. It appears to have been regarded as one of the most
ancient of the Epeian towns, since it is said to have been founded by Actor, the
son of Hyrmine, who was a daughter of Epeius. In the time of Strabo the town had
disappeared, but its site was marked by a rocky promontory near Cyllene, called
Hormina or Hyrmina. Leake supposes that the town occupied the position of Kastro
Tornese, on the peninsula of Klemutzi; but both Boblaye and Curtius, with more
probability, place it further north, at the modern harbour of Kunupeli, where,
on a projecting point of land, are some ancient ruins.
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ALFIOS (River) ILIA
The chief river of the Peloponnesus, rising in the southeastern
part of Arcadia, flowing through Arcadia and Elis, not far from Olympia, and falling
into the Ionian Sea. In some parts of its course the river flows underground;
and this subterranean descent gave rise to the story about the river-god Alpheus
and the nymph Arethusa. The latter, pursued by Alpheus, was changed by Artemis
into the fountain of Arethusa in the island of Ortygia at Syracuse; but the god
continued to pursue her under the sea, and attempted to mingle his stream with
the fountain in Ortygia.
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ALIFIRA (Ancient city) ILIA
A town in Arcadia, on the borders of Elis, south of the river Alpheus.
ARPINA (Ancient city) ANCIENT OLYMPIA
or Harpinna. A town in Pisatis (Elis) near Olympia, named after a daughter of Asopus.
FIGALIA (Ancient city) ILIA
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.
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FOLOE (Mountain) ILIA
A mountain forming the boundary between Arcadia and Elis; mentioned as one of the abodes of the Centaurs.
FRIXA (Village) ILIA
A town of Elis, on the borders of Pisatis, founded by the Minyae, and traditionally deriving its name from Phrixus.
FRIZA (Ancient city) SKILOUNTA
A town of Elis, on the borders of Pisatis, founded by the Minyae, and traditionally deriving its name from Phrixus.
HERAKLIA (Ancient city) ILIA
A city of Elis, near the centre of the province, to the southeast of Pisa, near the confluence of the Cytherus and Alpheus.
ILIA (Ancient country) GREECE
Elis; Doric, Alis. A district of the Peloponnesus, lying west
of Arcadia. At the period of the Peloponnesian War the name of Elis was applied
to the whole of that northwestern portion of the peninsula situated between the
rivers Larissus and Neda which served to separate it from Achaea and Messenia.
But in earlier times this tract of country was divided into several districts
or principalities, each occupied by a separate clan or people, of whom the Caucones
were probably the most ancient, so that Strabo affirms that, according to some
authors, the whole of Elis once bore the name of Cauconia. Before the siege of
Troy, the Epei, an Elean tribe, are said to have been greatly reduced by their
wars with Heracles, who conquered Augeas their king, and the Pylians commanded
by Nestor. They subsequently, however, acquired a great accession of strength
by the influx of a large colony from Aetolia, under the conduct of Oxylus, and
their numbers were further increased by a considerable detachment of the Dorians
and Heraclidae. Iphitus, descended from Oxylus, and a contemporary of Lycurgus,
re-established the Olympic Games, which, though instituted, as it was said, by
Heracles, had been interrupted for several years. The Pisatae, having remained
masters of Olympia from the first celebration of the festival, long disputed its
possession with the Eleans, but they were finally conquered, when the temple and
the presidency of the games fell into the hands of their rivals. The preponderance
obtained by the latter is chiefly attributable to the assistance they derived
from Sparta, in return for the aid afforded to that State in the Messenian War.
From this period we may date the ascendency of Elis over all the other surrounding
districts hitherto independent. It now comprised not only the country of the Epei
and Caucones, which might be termed Elis Proper, but the territories of Pisa and
Olympia, forming the ancient kingdom of Pelops, and the whole of Triphylia.
The troops of Elis were present in all the engagements fought
against the Persians, and in the Peloponnesian War zealously adhered to the Spartan
confederacy, until the conclusion of the treaty after the battle of Amphipolis,
when an Coins of Elis with Effigies of Zeus. open rupture took place between this
people and the Lacedaemonians, in consequence of protection and countenance afforded
by the latter to the inhabitants of Lepraeum, who had revolted from them (Thuc.
v. 31). Such was the resentment of the Eleans on this occasion that they imposed
a heavy fine on the Lacedaemonians, and prohibited their taking part in the Olympic
Games. They also made war upon Sparta, in conjunction with the Mantineans, Argives,
and Athenians; and it was not till after the unsuccessful battle of Mantinea that
this confederacy was dissolved. The Lacedaemonians, on the other hand, avenged
those injuries by frequent incursions into the territory of Elis, the fertility
of which presented an alluring prospect of booty to an invading army. They were
beaten, however, at Olympia under the command of Agis (Pausan. v. 4); and again
repulsed before the city of Elis, whither they had advanced under Pausanias. At
length the Eleans, wearied with the continual incursions to which their country
was exposed, since it furnished entire subsistence to the army of the enemy, gladly
sued for peace. Not long after, however, we find them again in arms, together
with the Boeotians and Argives, against Sparta. At the battle of Mantinea they
once more fought under the Spartan banners, jealousy of the rising ascendency
obtained by the Thebans having led them to abandon their interests. Pausanias
writes that when Philip acquired the dominion of Greece the Eleans, who had suffered
much from civil dissensions, joined the Macedonian alliance, but refused to fight
against the Athenians and Thebans at Chaeronea, and on the death of Alexander
they united their arms with those of the other confederates, who carried on the
war of Lamia against Antipater and the other commanders of the Macedonian forces.
Some years after, Aristotimus, son of Damaretus, through the assistance of Antigonus
Gonatas, usurped the sovereignty of Elis; but a conspiracy having been formed
against him he was slain at the altar of Zeus Soter, whither he had fled for refuge.
During the Social War the Eleans were the firmest allies of the Aetolians in the
Peloponnesus; and though they were on more than one occasion basely deserted by
that people, and sustained heavy losses in the field as well as from [p. 588]
the devastation of their territory and the capture of their towns, they could
not be induced to desert their cause and join the Achaean League. These events,
described by Polybius, are the last in which the Eleans are mentioned as an independent
people; for, though they do not appear to have taken any part in the Achaean War,
they were included with the rest of the Peloponnesus in the general decree by
which the whole of Greece was annexed to the Roman Empire. Elis was by far the
most fertile and populous district of the Peloponnesus, and its inhabitants are
described as fond of agriculture and rural pursuits (Poly b. iv. 73).
Elis was divided into three districts--Elis Proper, or "Hollow
Elis" (he Koile Elis), Pisatis, and Triphylia. The first of these occupied
the northern section of the country and has already been alluded to; the second,
or Pisatis, was that part of the Elean territory through which flowed the Alpheus
after its junction with the Erymanthus. It derived its name from the city of Pisa;
the third, or Triphylia, formed the southern division.
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INOI (Ancient city) ILIA
A town of Elis.
LEPREON (Ancient city) ILIA
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.
MAKISTOS (Ancient city) ILIA
A town of Elis, originally called Platanistus.
MYRSINI (Ancient city) ILIA
Myrtuntium (Murtountion), called Myrsinus in Homer. A town of the Epeans in Elis, on the road from Elis to Dyme.
PISSA (Ancient city) ANCIENT OLYMPIA
The capital of Pisatis, the middle portion of the province of
Elis, in the Peloponnesus. Pisa itself was situated north of the Alphaeus, at
a very short distance east of Olympia, and, in consequence of its proximity to
the latter place, was frequently identified by the poets with it. The history
of the Pisatae consists of their struggle with the Eleans, with whom they contended
for the presidency of the Olympic Games. The Pisatae obtained this honour in the
eighth Olympiad (B.C. 748), with the assistance of Phidon, tyrant of Argos, and
also a second time in the thirty-fourth Olympiad (B.C. 644), by means of their
own king Pantaleon. In the fifty-second Olympiad (B.C. 572) the struggle between
the two peoples was brought to a close by the conquest and destruction of Pisa
by the Eleans.
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PYLOS ILIAS (Ancient city) ILIA
The name of three towns on the western coast of the Peloponnesus.
(1) In Elis, at the foot of Mount Scollis, and about seventy or eighty stadia
from the city of Elis on the road to Olympia, near the confluence of the Ladon
and the Peneus.
PYLOS TRIFYLIAS (Ancient city) ILIA
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.
SALMONI (Ancient city) ILIA
(Salmone) or Salmonia. A town of Elis, in the district Pisatis, on the river Enipeus, said to have been founded by Salmoneus.
SKILLOUS (Ancient city) ILIA
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.
YPANA (Ancient small town) ILIA
(ta Hupana) and Hypane (Hupane). A town in Elis belonging to the so-called Pentapolis.
EFYRA ILIAKI (Ancient city) ILIA
Ephure. Probably an Aeolic form of Ephora (ephorao, ephoroi), and equivalent to
Epope, 'a watchtower.' This descriptive name was naturally applicable to many
places; and we find no less than eleven of the name enumerated (Pape, Dict.s.v.).
But of these there are but three, or at most four, that come into the Homeric
poems.
(1) The city afterwards called Corinth, Il.2. 570; 6. 152, which of course is
not intended in the present passage:
(2) A town in Thessaly, known in later times as Crannon, cp. Il.13. 301, with
the interpretation of Strabo (9. 442). But for the Ephyra in the Odyssey the question
lies only between
(3) a town in Thesprotia, called later Kichuros ( Il.2. 659), and
(4) an old Pelasgic town in Elis on the river Selleis (Strabo 7. 328; 8. 338).
Nitzsch declares in favour of (3), because in this passage Athena,
in the character of Mentes king of the Taphians, represents Odysseus as having
touched at Taphos on his return (anionta) from Ephyra to Ithaca; and in a direct
line Taphos lies between Thesprotia and Ithaca; but a ship sailing round the Leucadian
promontory to Ithaca would avoid Taphos altogether, and Leucas had not yet been
made into an island by the channel dug across the neck, for Homer calls it akte
epeiroio Od.24. 378.But if, following the Schol. on Ap. Rhod.1. 747, we place
the Taphian isles among the Echinades and so much further S. , we shall get an
equally good argument in favour of the Eleian Ephyra, as Taphos would then lie
between Ephyra and Ithaca. Another argument in favour of the Eleian town is the
mention ( Il.11. 741) of Agamede, daughter of Augeias king of Elis, as a sorceress,
he tosa pharmaka eide hosa trephei eureia chthon, which suits well with the description
here of the androphonon pharmakon and thumophthora pharmaka in Od.2. 329.In the
latter passage, Ephyra is named along with Pylos and Sparta, as if all three places
were in the Peloponnese.
Again, in Il.3. 627, Meges son of Phyleus is said to have been the
leader of the contingent from Dulichium and the Echinades, hai naiousi peren halos
Elidos anta, and in Il.15. 530, Phyleus is described as having bought a corslet,
ex Ephures potamou apo Selleentos. The statement of the Scholiast that Ilus son
of Mermerus was great grandson of Jason and Medea, and was king of Thesprotia,
is given on the authority of Apollodorus. Eustath. also mentions a story which
makes Medea to have lived for a while in Elis; either story doubtless being invented
or acknowledged by those who maintained the claims of the Thesprotian or Eleian
Ephyra respectively. See Buchholz, Hom. Real. 1. 1. p. 90.
PISSA (Ancient city) ANCIENT OLYMPIA
City of Elis,
in northwestern Peloponnese.
The city of Pisa was said to owe its name either to the legendary
hero Pisus, a son of Perieres, king of Messenia,
himself a son of Aeolus, son of Hellen, son of Deucalion, or to Pisa, a daughter
of Endymion, king of Elis
and son (or grandson) of Zeus.
But the most famous legendary king of Pisa was Oenomaus, whose story
is linked to that of Pelops. Oenomaus was the son of Ares and Harpinna, a daughter
of the river-god Asopus. He had a daughter named Hippodamia, who was very beautifull
and, as a result, courted by many young men seeking to marry her. But Oenomaus
was reluctant to let anybody marry his daughter, either because he was himself
in love with her or because of an oracle who would have told him that he would
be killed by his son-in-law. So, he had devised a trial to which he subjected
all suitors of his daughter: they had to beat him in a chariot race to the altar
of Poseidon in Corinth. He
would sacrifice a ram to Zeus before starting the race and let his opponent go
while so doing. But the fact is, his chariot was drawn by godly horses given him
by his father Ares so that they could not be beaten by earthly horses. Besides,
the suitor had to take Hippodamia with him on his chariot, which made it heavier
and could distract him. Anyway, Oenomaus would always catch up on his opponent
and kill him, behead him and nail his head on the door of his palace to deter
future suitors.
It is after twelve suitors had been so defeated and killed that Pelops
came to try his luck. When seeing him, Hippodamia fell in love with him and managed
to obtain from Myrtilus, her father's chariot driver who was also in love with
her, that he sabotage Oenomaus' chariot, which he did by replacing the pins that
were fastening the wheels of the chariot to the axle by fake ones made of wax.
As a result, the chariot broke during the race and Oenomaus, caught in the reins,
was dragged by his horses to his death (unless he was killed by Pelops himself).
Pelops married Hippodamia who became the mother of Atreus, Thyestes
and several other children, and, through Atreus, the grandmother of Agamemnon
and Menelaus, and, through one of her daughters, Astydamia, the grandmother of
Amphitryon, the “earthly” father of Heracles.
Pisa was located near the site of Olympia
where the Olympic games, insituted by Pelops, were held and, as a result, challenged
Elis for the presidence of
the games until it was destroyed by the later around 572 B. C.
Bernard Suzanne (page last updated 1999), ed.
This text is cited July 2003 from the Plato and his dialogues URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks.
ANCIENT OLYMPIA (Municipality) ILIA
VARTHOLOMIO (Municipality) ILIA
ILIA (Prefecture) WEST GREECE
In the following WebPages you can find an interactive map with all the monuments and museums of the Prefecture, with relevant information and photos.
ILIA (Ancient country) GREECE
The country was called Coele Elis from the fact in the case, for the most and best of it was "Coele".(Strabo 8.3.2)
VOUPRASSIA (Municipality) ILIA
AMALIADA (Town) ILIA
Amaliada (ancient: Amalias) is a city in the western Peloponnese,
in Greece. It has 32,090 citizens (of which about 10,000 live in the city and
the rest live within Amalias). It is near the archealogical site of ancient Elis,
which was the city that held the ancient Olympic Games. It is situated on the
valley of Ilia Prefecture
and almost directly south of the Peneus
river, 80 km from Patras,
7 km form Savalia, 5 km from
Kourouta, 28 km from Pyrgos,
291 km from Athens and 5 km
from the Ionian sea. It is
ranked the second largest city in Ilia. It is the westernmost city in the Peloponnese.
It features a city square with beautiful pine trees and a fountain.
Local streets are mainly in grid order, almost running north to south and east
to west. A lake is situated in Amaliada's east side, along with a public stadium
where mainly soccer is played. Amaliada has a hospital in its southeast part and
a monastery named Agia
Frangavilla to its southeast. Amaliada has one train station (located west
of the city square) and two in the municipality.
A street in Amaliada's west side named Hiroshima is mainly dedicated
to the memory of the victims of the Hiroshima bombing before the end of World
War II. Further west are Amaliada's closest beaches of Kourouta and Palouki.
This text is cited December 2004 from the West Greece Region General Secretariat URL below, which contains image.
ANDRAVIDA (Small town) ILIA
It is an agricultural large village, 3 km to the northwest of Pyrgos,
with a population of 3,579 inhabitants. It is situated in a fertile plain. During
the Frankish domination, it was the capital of Moria princedom the brightest and
richest village. It was the episcopal see of the bishop of Olenis.
It was the place where aristocrats from Europe would come to exercise in riding.
The sights are:
The neoclassical house of the Koutsouri family.
The remnants of the Frankish church of Santa Sophia (the sanctum and
two chapels), which was built in 1230 A.D. The coronation of the successors of
the princedom took place in this church.
The Franc church of Santa Sofia.
This is cited December 2004 from the West Greece Region General Secretariat URL below, which contains image.
ANDRITSENA (Small town) ILIA
A mountainous village on a green mountainside, 65 km to the southeast
of Pyrgos, which has got 663
inhabitants. The old stone houses have got tiled roofs. The big central square
is covered by huge plane-trees. It is the place where Panagiotis Anagnostopoulos
- a member of the Society of Friends was born.
The sights are:
A precious library, donation of K. Nikolopoulos. It includes rare
editions of the 16th century from Venice
and the Vatican, archetypes,
papyruses and documents of historic importance. The records of the War of Independence
of 1821 are impressive. There are also archaeological findings (coins, pots etc),
plaster-casts of Apollo's
temple.
The churches of St Theraponta, St Nicholas, St Athanasius and Santa
Barbara as well as the little church of the Archangels date back to the 18th and
19th century.
The ancient Vasses, 15 km to the south of Andritsaina, where the temple
of Apollo looms up in a wild atmosphere, an elevation of 1,130 m. It was constructed
by Iktinos, the architect of Parthenon, and dates back to 420-400 BC. It was built
on the site of another temple by the inhabitants of Figalia.
The ancient mountain of Kotylio, where traces of ancient temples have
been found. They are believed to have been dedicated to Aphrodite and Artemis
(Diana). The view you get from up there is enchanting.
Near Platiana
village, in the northwest of Andritsaina, there are remnants of ancient Aepius.
The imposing remnants of the Isova monastery, built in the 13th century, was dedicated
to the Holy Mother. The monastery was destroyed in 1263 by the Byzantine soldiers.
The main church and the church of St Nicholas are also devastated. These remnants
are the most important of the Franc occupation.
Some remnants of the fortification of ancient Alifira
on a hill. The town of Alifira was one of the most important political centre
of ancient Arcadia. The excavations
in the citadel of ancient Alifira revealed tomb monuments, remnants of some residences
and the Dorian temple of Athina (5th century BC), where the brass statue of the
goddess was put.
The foundations of Aesculapiu's temple were also revealed. The pedestal
of the god's statue was found. It is made of wood and ivory.
This text is cited December 2004 from the West Greece Region General Secretariat URL below, which contains image.
KAIAFAS (Thermal Spring (Natural Spa)) ILIA
Kaiafas lake is situated on the way from Pyrgos
to Kalamata, approximately
20 minutes drive from Pyrgos just before you reach Zaharo.
Kaiafas is a well known spa, its famous mineral waters gush from two caves formed
by crevices in the rocks.
The larger one is called the cave of the Anigrides, the smaller the
Geranion grotto, dwelling places of nymphs since antiquity.
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 Heracles' poison arrow, and that is why the
water smells.
However, Kaiafas is not only sulphurous springs. It is also pine trees,
sand, sea and a long, long shore. It's hard indeed to draw yourself away from
such a sea.
This text is cited December 2004 from the West Greece Region General Secretariat URL below, which contains image.
KATAKOLO (Village) ILIA
A coastal large village, in the area of ancient Fias, whose citadel
was the base of the today's castle. It is Pyrgos’ haven, 13,5 km W. The inhabitants
are 612.
Sights
In the northwest of Katakolo, on St
Andrew’s bay, there is a devastated castle, Ponticokastro. It used to be a
powerful fort of Vilardouini. The castle is built at the site of the citadel of
ancient Fias. Fias was
Ilida 's haven whose remnants are found deep in the sea after the powerful
earthquake of the 6th century.
The Castle was constructed in the Byzantine period and was modified
by the Francs (13th century), who called it Bo Vouar or Bel Vedere. It was repeatedly
destroyed, mainly during the Turkish domination.
This text is cited December 2004 from the West Greece Region General Secretariat URL below, which contains image.
KYLLINI (Village) ILIA
A coastal village with 1,079 inhabitants. It is 43,5 km to the northwest
of Pyrgos. The area has been
populated since the prehistoric times. In the ancient times, it was the haven
of Ileians. It flourished during the Francish domination when it was called Glarenia,
becoming not only an important port, but also a commercial and economic center.
It was named Kyllini after the name of a nearby ancient town. It was surrounded
by powerful walls with battlements and towers.
Today important port for access to the Ionian Islands of Kefallonia
and Zakynthos (Zante)
Loutra Killinis
A famous spa that is touristically developed. There are seven hot
water springs recommended for skin complaints, diseases of the respiratory system
and gout. The permanent residents are not many. It is 41 km to the northwest of
Pyrgos.
This text is cited December 2004 from the West Greece Region General Secretariat URL below, which contains image.
LAMBIA (Village) ILIA
At 800 meters, the settlement of Lambia (Divri) stands out, drenched
in greenery. It consists of seven neighborhoods, each with its own name, church
and fountain.
This text is cited December 2004 from the West Greece Region General Secretariat URL below, which contains image.
PYRGOS (Town) ILIA
Pirgos is the capital of the prefecture of Ilia. The town owes its
name to the presence of a tall tower (pyrgos) erected by loannis Tsernotas (1512-20).
It was known by this name as early as 1687.
Its chief landmarks are the two exquisite neoclassical buildings designed
by Schiller, the Municipal
Market and the Apollo Municipal Theater.
In the evenings the residents of this little town congregate in the
flagstone paved main square lined by cafes and pastry shops. In the narrow alleyways,
small tavernas and grills serve up local delicacies, savory tidbits from Ilia's
fertile soil.
In 1995 the "Olympia Film Festival" started for children
and young people and it takes place every year with great success.
History
The history of the town is the "history of the raisins: itself.
"The raisin issue" was an important one for the area in the first three
decades of the country.
The port in Katakolo
has played an important role in the economic development of the town. Other factors
that contributed to that development were the construction of the railway that
connected Pyrgos with Katakolo, the extensive cultivation of vineyards and the
workers that moved to Pyrgos from Gortinia,
Zakynthos and Cephalonia.
The economic development had a positive effect in the town itself.
The town hall, the neoclassical market by Chiller, the Apollo theatre and some
neoclassical houses were built around that time.
What also contributed to the cultural development of the town were
the newspapers "Patris" (the oldest one in Greece!) and "Avgi",
the magazine "Odysseus" that presented in its pages the famous poets
Elytis, Seferis and Kavafis under the supervision of the poet Takis Sinopoulos,
the broadcasting station and the Public Library.
In the last decades the charity organizations "Agia Filothei"
and "Vasiliada" were set up, the "Latsio Dimotiko Megaro"
was built and the "Apollo" theatre was restored.
This text is cited December 2004 from the West Greece Region General Secretariat URL below, which contains image.
ZACHARO (Small town) ILIA
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.
DYSPONTION (Ancient city) PYRGOS
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