Listed 3 sub titles with search on: Information about the place for destination: "LAS Ancient city GYTHIO".
Town mentioned in the Catalogue of Ships (Il. 2.585). Legend gives
it an eponymous founder (Paus. 3.24.10) and adds that it was captured by the Dioskouroi
(Strab. 8.5.4) and that the Heraklidai used its port after their victory. The
importance of this port in historic times is illustrated by the fact that the
Spartan fleet called there in 411 (Thuc. 8.91-92) and that the Lakedaimonians
attacked it in 189 (Livy 3 8.30-31) in order to obtain access to the sea. Under
the Empire, it was sufficiently prosperous to coin money under Septimius Severus,
Caracalla, and Geta.
The site of the Homeric city was supposed to be Mount Asia, which
is identified with the hill of Passava, on which is built a Frankish castle with
large blocks of ancient masonry visible in its walls. But one cannot be sure,
given the absence of any Mycenaean sherds. On the other hand, numerous chance
finds from the Hellenistic and Roman periods have been made on the plain. The
port may have been situated either at Vathi, on the coast, or a little to the
S at Ayeranos, which can be identified as the site of the Arainos mentioned by
Pausanias together with Las.
C. Leroy, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
An ancient town of Laconia, on the east side of the Laconian Gulf, ten stadia from the sea, and south of Gytheum ( Thuc.viii. 91).
La, Eth. Laos. One of the most ancient towns of Laconia, situated
upon the western coast of the Laconian gulf. It is the only town on the coast
mentioned by Scylax between Taenarus and Gythium. Scylax speaks of its port; but,
according to Pausanias, the town itself was distant 10 stadia from the sea, and
40 stadia from Gythium. (Paus. iii. 24. § 6.) In the time of Pausanias the town
lay in a hollow between the three mountains, Asia, Ilium, and Cnacadium; but the
old town stood on the summit of Mt. Asia. The name of Las signified the rock on
which it originally stood. It is mentioned by Homer (Il. ii. 585), and is said
to have been destroyed by the Dioscuri, who hence derived the surname of Lapersae.
(Strab. viii.; Steph. B. s. v. La.) There was also a mountain in Laconia called
Lapersa. (Steph. B. s. v. Lapersa.) In the later period it was a place of no importance.
Livy speaks of it as vicus maritimus (xxxviii. 30), and Pausanias mentions the
ruins of the city on Mt. Asia. Before the walls he saw a statue of Hercules, and
a trophy erected over the Macedonians who were a part of Philip's army when he
invaded Laconia; and among the ruins he noticed a statue of Athena Asia. The modern
town was near a fountain called Galaco (Talako), from the milky colour of its
water, and near it was a gymnasium, in which stood an ancient statue of Hermes.
Besides the ruins of the old town on Mt. Asia, there were also buildings on the
two other mountains mentioned above: on Mt. Ilium stood a temple of Dionysus,
and on the summit a temple of Asclepius; and on Mt. Cnacadium a temple of Apollo
Carneius.
Las is spoken of by Polybius (v. 19) and Strabo under the name of
Asine; and hence it has been supposed that some of the fugitives from Asine in
Argolis may have settled at Las, and given their name to the town. But, notwithstanding
the statement of Polybius, from whom Strabo probably copied, we have given reasons
elsewhere for believing that there was no Laconian town called Asine; and that
the mistake probably arose from confounding Asine with Asia, on which Las originally
stood.
Las stood upon the hill of Passava, which is now crowned by the ruins
of a fortress of the middle ages, among which, however, Leake noticed, at the
southern end of the eastern wall, a piece of Hellenic wall, about 50 paces in
length, and two-thirds of the height of the modern wall. It is formed of polygonal
blocks of stone, some four feet long and three broad. The fountain Galaco is the
stream Turkovrysa, which rises between the hill of Passava and the village of
Karvela, the latter being one mile and a half west of Passava.
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
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