Listed 34 sub titles with search on: Information about the place for wider area of: "KARDITSA Prefecture THESSALIA" .
ARNI (Ancient city) KARDITSA
Eth. Arnaios. The chief town of the Aeolian Boeotians in Thessaly,
which was said to have derived its name from Arne, a daughter of Aeolus. (Paus.
ix. 40. § 5.) The town was said to have been founded three generations before
the Trojan war. (Diod. iv. 67.) According to Thucydides (i. 12) the Aeolian Boeotians
were expelled from Arne by the Thessalians sixty years after the Trojan war, and
settled in the country called Boeotia after them; but other writers, inverting
the order of events, represent the Thessalian Arne as founded by Boeotians, who
had been expelled from their country by the Pelasgians. (Strab. ix. pp. 401, 411,
413 ; Steph. B. s. v.) Muller has brought forward many reasons for believing that
in the Aeolian Boeotians occupied the centre of Thessaly, and nearly the same
district as the Thessaliotis of later times; and his views are confirmed by Leake's
discovery of the site of Cierium (Kierion), which, according to Stephanus B. was
identical with Arne, and which must be placed at Mataranga, between the Epineus
or Apidanus, and a tributary of the latter river, probably the ancient Curalius.
This 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
ITHOMI (Ancient city) KARDITSA
Eth. ithometes, Ithomaios. A town of Histiaeotis in Thessaly, described
by Homer as the rocky Ithome, is placed by Strabo within a quadrangle formed by
the four cities, Tricca, Metropolis, Pelinnaeum, and Gomphi. It probably occupied
the site of the castle which stands on the summit above the village of Fandri.
Leake observed, near the north-western face of the castle, some remains of a very
ancient Hellenic wall, consisting of a few large masses of stone, roughly hewn
on the outside, but accurately joined to one another without cement.
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
KTIMENI (Village) KARDITSA
Ctimene (Ktimene), a town in Thessaly, on the borders of Dolopia and
Phthia, near the lake Xynias. (Apoll. Rhod. i. 67.) The town called Cymene in
the present text of Livy (xxxii. 13) is probably a corruption of Ctimene. Stephanus
B. mentions a tradition, that Ctimene had been given by Peleus to Phoenix (s.
v. Ktimene). (Leake, Northern Greece, vol. iv. p. 517.)
MITROPOLIS (Ancient city) KARDITSA
Eth. Metropolites. A town of Histiaeotis in Thessaly, described by
Stephanus B. (s. v.) as a town in Upper Thessaly. Strabo says (ix. p. 438), that
Metropolis was founded by three insignificant towns, but that a larger number
was afterwards added, among which was Ithome. He further says, that Ithome was
within a quadrangle, formed by the four cities Tricca, Metropolis, Pelinnaeum,
and Gomphi. The position of Metropolis is also determined by its being on Caesar's
march from Gomphi to Pharsalus. (Caes. B C. iii. 81; Appian, B.C. ii. 64; Dion
Cass. xli. 51.) It was taken by Flamininus on his descending into this part of
Thessaly, after the battle of the Aous, B.C. 198. (Liv. xxxii. 15.) We learn from
an inscription that the territory of Metropolis adjoined that of Cierium (the
ancient Arne), and that the adjustment of their boundaries was a frequent subject
of discussion between the two peoples. Metropolis is mentioned in the sixth century
by Hierocles, and continued to exist in the middle ages under the name of Neo-Patrae
(Neai Patrai, Constant. de Them. ii. p. 50, ed. Bonn). The remains of Metropolis
are placed by Leake at the small village of Paleokastro, about 5 miles SW. of
Kardhitza. The city was of a circular form, and in the centre of the circle are
the vestiges of a circular citadel, part of the wall of which still exists in
the yard of the village church of Paleokastro, where is a collection of the sculptured
or inscribed remains found upon the spot within late years. Among other sculptures
Leake noticed one in low relief, representing a figure seated upon a rock, in
long drapery, and a mountain rising in face of the figure, at the foot of which
there is a man in a posture of adoration, while on the top of the mountain there
are other men, one of whom holds a hog in his hands. Leake conjectured with great
probability that the seated figure represents the Aphrodite of Metropolis, to
whom Strabo says (l. c.) that hogs were offered in sacrifice. (Leake, Northern
Greece, vol. iv. p. 506.)
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
PIRASSIA (Ancient city) KARDITSA
Asterium (Asterion: Eth. Asteriotes), a town of Thessaly, mentioned
by Homer, who speaks of Asterium and the white summits of Titanus. (Asterion Titanoio
te leuka karena, II. ii. 735.) Asterium was said to be the same city as Peiresia
or Peiresiae (Steph. B. s. v. Asterion), which is described by Apollonius Rhodius
(i. 35) as placed near the junction of the Apidanus and Enipeus, and by the author
of the Orphica as near the confluence of the Apidanus and Enipeus. (Orphic. Argon.
164.) Leake remarks that both these descriptions may be applied to the hill of
Vlokho, which is situated between the junction of the Apidanus and the Enipeus
and that of the united stream with the Peneius, and at no great distance from
either confluence. There are some ruins at Vlockho, which represent Asterium or
Peiresiae; while the white calcareous rocks of the hill explain and justify the
epithet which Homer gives to Titanus. Strabo (ix. p. 439), who places Titanus
near Arne, also speaks of its white colour. Peiresiae is said by Apollonius to
have been near Mount Phylleium, which Leake supposes to be the heights separated
by the river from the hill of Vlokho. Near Mount Phylleium Strabo (ix. p. 435)
places a city Phyllus, noted for a temple of Apollo Phylleius. Statius (Theb.
iv. 45) calls this city Phylli. The town of Iresiae mentioned by Livy (xxxii.
13), is perhaps a false reading for Peiresiae. (Leake, Northern Greece, vol. iv.
p. 322, seq.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited July 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ITHOMI (Ancient city) KARDITSA
A town of Thessaly, in the vicinity of Metropolis.
MITROPOLIS (Ancient city) KARDITSA
(Metropolis). A town of Thessaly in Histiaeotis, near the Peneus, and between Gomphi and Pharsalus. There were several other cities of this name, one in Phrygia, one in Lydia, and one in Acarnania.
KARDITSA (Municipality) THESSALIA
NEVROPOLI (Settlement) KARDITSA
KARDITSA (Prefecture) THESSALIA
In the following WebPages you can find an interactive map with all the monuments and museums of the Prefecture, with relevant information and photos.
ANGIES (Ancient city) KARDITSA
One of a number of fortresses in the Dolopian mountains between the
Spercheios Valley and the central plain to the N. They are characteristically
small in circuit, generally little more than 200 m; much of the masonry is primitive
and difficult to date. The ancient names are unknown or disputed, the identification
depending largely on Livy's account of the Aitohian expedition in 198 B.C.
There are two sites, one to the S where a flat hilltop is encircled
by a rough polygonal wall, the other to the W where double-faced rubble-filled
walls present the most imposing remains in the area. Stalhin dated them by a coin
of the 3d c. The masonry is of small regular blocks, drafted on the corners of
the towers. Although all the literary references for it are to the 2d c., these
are probably the remains of the city of Angeia, which served at that time as Dolopian
representative at Delphi, replacing Ktimenai as chief city. Delphic representative
in the 4th c., Ktimenai is known to have been an old city, and is probably to
be located at Anodranitsa, the only site in the region where there are traces
of occupation from the end of the Mycenaean period. Its walls are faced with polygonal
masonry and filled with small stones; Bequignon saw two towers. The original sanctuary
of Omphale, known from inscriptions, was near the boundary between Angeia and
Ktimenal.
At Smokovon a double peak was fortified by a rough polygonal wall
with towers, laid out to take advantage of the natural precipices. An ashlar wall
made an interior division, but the lack of house walls suggests the site was used
only in emergencies or by summer herdsmen. At Kydonia there are three circuits
of walls, again making use of natural scarps. In some parts of the innermost circuit
there are as many as five courses preserved of double-faced wall formed of approximately
rectangular blocks; there are traces of at least two towers. There are ashlar
walls defending the long, narrow acropolis SW of Kaitsa, which Stahlin identified
with the 4th c. city Kypaira. Palaiokastro, near Mavrillon, also had ashlar walls,
now largely gone on the N side; Stahlin dated the remains from coins of the 3d
and 2d centuries. At Papa, a relatively large circuit (more than 400 m) of double-faced
polygonal masonry apparently had two gates; coins were found of the 2d and 3d
c. A.D.
M. H. Mcallister, 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.
FILIA (Village) KARDITSA
A small town in ancient Thessaliotis, on the right bank of the river
Sophaditikos (probably ancient Kuarios, Kuralios). It is the site of a recent
excavation (1963-67) of a Sanctuary of Athena, probably the Sanctuary of Athena
Itonias mentioned by Strabo (9.438). Few architectural remains were found, the
most notable being the remains (column drums and architectural fragments) of a
stoa (?) of the Hellenistic period, remains of Roman walls, and the foundations
and mosaic floor of a room of a 2d c. A.D. building. Architectural remains from
the Geometric through Classical periods were virtually nil, leading the excavators
to conjecture an open air shrine. Sherds of the Mycenaean through Roman periods
were found in considerable quantity. The objects of most interest were a large
number of offerings including Mycenaean terracottas, Geometric bronzes similar
to those from Pherai: pins, fibulas, birds on openwork stands, human and animal
figures, and archaic terracotta figurines, some pieces of ivory and gold, and
iron weapons. A marble head of a kouros (early 5th c.) has been found, and earlier
a bronze statuette of Perseus of the same period.
The temple is thought to have belonged to Kierion, the old chief city
of Thessaliotis, identified in antiquity with Arne, the former capital of the
Boiotoi (Steph. Byz. s.v. Arne). Kierion is most probably identified as an ancient
site on a conspicuous hill by the river in the plain near the river Sophaditikos
by the S mahala (quarter) of Mataranga, over 12 km N (downstream) of Philia. Remains
of a wall circuit (Mycenaean?) are to be seen around the top of the hill, and
ancient sherds, tiles, etc. are to be found in the plain below.
T. S. Mackay, 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.
ITHOMI (Ancient city) KARDITSA
A town in the Hestiaiotis region, within a rectangle formed by the
fortified cities of Gomphoi, Trikka, Pelinnaion, and Metropolis; it merged with
the last of these in the 4th c. B.C. The site was located by Leake on a ridge
between Metropolis and Gomphoi, now marked by a Byzantine-Turkish castle. The
only remains of the ancient city are the ashlar blocks in the NW part of the fortification
wall.
M. H. Mc Allister, 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.
KTIMENI (Village) KARDITSA
A modern town above the E bank of the Papitsa river (influent to the
Sophaditikos), in mountainous country between the Spercheios valley and the W
Thessalian plain, ca. 9 km E-NE of Lake Xynias. Just to the W of Anodhranista
is a circular fortification wall of polygonal masonry, ca. 4 m thick and ca. 240
m around. The remains of two projecting towers are preserved. A little to the
S of this circuit are short stretches of two walls concentric to it, close together,
which may be terrace walls or the remains of larger circuits. To the S of these
are the remains of a tholos tomb excavated in 1911, which was said to have contained
Geometric sherds and to have dated from the late Mycenaean-8th c. B.C. The finds
have not been published.
T. S. Mackay, 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.
MITROPOLIS (Ancient city) KARDITSA
A city of Hestiaiotis located at the foot of a low spur of the Pindus
Mts., some 9 km SW of Karditsa, in the W Thessalian plain. It was formed from
a synoecism of various towns, perhaps represented by ruins at Pyrgos, Vunesi,
Portitsa. It was one of the corners of the square formed by Trikka, Metropolis,
Pelinna, and Gomphoi (Strab. 9.437-38). It is first heard of in the 4th c. B.C.
and issued coinage ca. 400 to 344 B.C. and again ca. 300 to 200. Its outlying
farms were attacked in 198 B.C. by the Aitolians when it was under Macedonian
control (Livy 32.13.11, see also Sperchieiai, Dhranista) and in the same year
it surrendered to Rome (Livy 32.15.3). It seems to have been prosperous and an
important member of the post 196 B.C. Thessalian League. Justinian renewed its
walls (Procop. De aed. 4.3.5).
The remains of the ancient city (site confirmed by inscriptional evidence)
are few. Modern Mitropolis (formerly Paiaiokastro) occupies the site. The city
wall, poorly preserved, is of rough-faced blocks, ca. 2 m thick, and seems to
be 4th-3d c. B.C. in date. The wall forms a circle some 5 km around, encompassing
an isolated hill in the plain, which in Leake's time at least, had part of a wall
preserved around it. Arvanitopoullos thought there were traces of two narrower
circuits within the outer city wall. In the center of the ancient city, near the
present Church of Haghios Georgios, were in Leake's time assorted architectural
fragments and pieces of sculpture, in part brought from the surrounding fields.
Here in 1911 Arvanitopoullos cleared ca. 10 m of a stereobate without discovering
its full dimensions. He found coins and sherds (now in the Volo Museum) said to
be of the 5th-3d c. B.C. and speculated that the foundation might be of a temple,
specifically the Temple of Aphrodite Kastnia, who was the chief goddess of the
city.
In 1909 at a place called Kalamia, apparently within the (outer?)
wall circuit, a tomb was opened which contained a rich assortment of silver and
bronze vessels and gold jewelry. The jewelry is of the first half of the 2d c.
B.C.; some of the other objects are earlier. Most of the finds were divided between
the Museums at Athens and Volo, but some of the jewelry is in the Hamburg Museum.
Arvanitopoullos excavated some more graves here in 1911. A Roman necropolis on
the road to Karditsa was excavated in the late 1920s.
T. S. Mackay, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Oct 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
Two small fortresses 9.6 km W of Karditsa, on the N slopes of Mt. Korona (131.4 m). They form the SW part of the extensive fortification wall of the ancient town of Metropolis, whose fortification comprised the SE end of the four fortifications of Thessalian Hestiaiotis. Ruins of this surrounding wall can be followed partly for 5 km as far as Gralista, Pyrgos, Portitsa, and Vounesi, up the river Lapardas, where a part of the wall was excavated. The wall at this point was built into a series of projecting and recessed portions. On Mt. Koutra was situated the highest part of the acropolis of Metropolis. The fortress near Portitsa is called Stephane (wreath) because of its round shape.
G. S. Korres, 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.
PIRASSIA (Ancient city) KARDITSA
A city on a rocky hill of white crystalline limestone, on the W bank
of the Enipeus, S of Vlochos. Stephanos Byzantinos identified the city, which
flourished in the 5th and 4th c., with Homeric Asterion, named for the brilliance
of the white rock. Concentric walls of semipolygonal masonry surrounded the acropolis;
they were strengthened by numerous towers and had two gates on the S side.
M. H. Mc Allister, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
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