Hyrmine (Elis)

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37°53′11″N21°08′08″E / 37.886492°N 21.135668°E / 37.886492; 21.135668 Hyrmine (Ancient Greek : Ὑρμίνη) [1] or Hyrmina (Ὕρμινα) or Hormina (Ὅρμινα) was a town of ancient Elis upon the coast. It is mentioned by Homer in the Catalogue of Ships of the Iliad as one of the towns of the Epeii. [2] It appears to have been regarded as one of the most ancient of the Epeian towns, since Pausanias repeats the legend that it had been founded by Actor, the son of Hyrmine, who was a daughter of Epeius, and describes the town as between the cape of Cyllene near Araxus, near the frontier with Achaea. [3] In the time of Strabo the town had disappeared, but its site was marked by a rocky promontory near Cyllene, called Hormina or Hyrmina. [4] [5]

Hyrmine is located near the castle of Chlemoutsi. [6] [7]

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Cleonae or Kleonai was a city in ancient Peloponnesus, described by writers of the Roman period as a city of Argolis, but never included in the Argeia or territory of Argos, in the flourishing period of Greek history. Cleonae was situated on the road from Argos to Corinth, at the distance of 120 stadia from the former city, and 80 stadia from the latter. There was a narrow pass through the mountains, called Tretus, leading from Argos to Cleonae. Cleonae stood in a small plain upon a river flowing into the Corinthian Gulf a little westward of Lechaeum. In its territory was Mount Apesas, now Mount Phoukas, connected with the Acrocorinthus by a rugged range of hills. Both Strabo and Pausanias describe Cleonae as a small place; and the former writer, who saw it from the Acrocorinthus, says that it is situated upon a hill surrounded on all sides by buildings, and well walled, so as to deserve the epithet given to it by Homer in the Catalogue of Ships in the Iliad – ἐϋκτιμένας Κλεωνάς. Statius also speaks of "ingenti turritae mole Cleonae."

Helos, also Hele (Ἕλη), was a town of ancient Laconia, situated east of the mouth of the Eurotas, close to the sea, in a plain which, though marshy near the coast, is described by Polybius as the most fertile part of Laconia. In the earliest times it appears to have been the chief town on the coast, as Amyclae was in the interior; for these two places are mentioned together by Homer in the Catalogue of Ships in the Iliad. Helos is said to have been founded by Heleius, the youngest son of Perseus. On its conquest by the Dorians its inhabitants were reduced to slavery; and, according to a common opinion in antiquity, their name became the general designation of the Spartan bondsmen, helots, but the name of these slaves (εἵλωτες) probably signified captives, and was derived from the root of ἑλεῖν. In the time of Strabo Helos was only a village; and when it was visited by Pausanias, it was in ruins. Helos is also mentioned by Thucydides, Xenophon, and Stephanus of Byzantium.

Pylus or Pylos was 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 Pineus. Strabo, in a corrupt passage, assigns to it the same situation, and places it in the neighbourhood of Scollium or Mount Scollis. Pausanias says that it was 80 stadia from the city of Elis. Diodorus gives 70 stadia as the distance, and Pliny the Elder 12 Roman miles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pheneus</span> Town in the northeast of ancient Arcadia

Pheneus or Pheneos was a town in the northeast of ancient Arcadia. Its territory, called Pheniatis, was bounded on the north by that of the Achaean towns of Aegeira and Pellene, east by the Stymphalia, west by the Cleitoria, and south by the Caphyatis and Orchomenia. This territory is shut in on every side by lofty mountains, offshoots of Mount Cyllene and the Aroanian chain; and it is about 7 miles (12 km) in length and the same in breadth. Two streams descend from the northern mountains, and unite their waters about the middle of the valley; the united river bore in ancient times the name of Olbius and Aroanius. There is no opening through the mountains on the south; but the waters of the united river are carried off by subterranean channels (katavóthra) in the limestone rocks, and, after flowing underground, reappear as the sources of the river Ladon. In order to convey the waters of this river in a single channel to the katavóthra, the inhabitants at an early period constructed a canal, 50 stadia in length, and 30 feet in breadth. This great work, which was attributed to Heracles, had become useless in the time of Pausanias, and the river had resumed its ancient and irregular course; but traces of the canal of Heracles are still visible, and one bank of it was a conspicuous object in the valley when it was visited by William Martin Leake in 1806. The canal of Heracles, however, could not protect the valley from the danger to which it was exposed, in consequence of the katavóthra becoming obstructed, and the river finding no outlet for its waters. The Pheneatae related that their city was once destroyed by such an inundation, and in proof of it they pointed out upon the mountains the marks of the height to which the water was said to have ascended. Pausanias evidently refers to the yellow border which is still visible upon the mountains and around the plain: but in consequence of the great height of this line upon the rocks, it is difficult to believe it to be the mark of the ancient depth of water in the plain, and it is more probably caused by evaporation; the lower parts of the rock being constantly moistened, while the upper are in a state of comparative dryness, thus producing a difference of colour in process of time. It is, however, certain that the Pheneatic plain has been exposed more than once to such inundations. Pliny the Elder says that the calamity had occurred five times; and Eratosthenes related a memorable instance of such an inundation through the obstruction of the katavóthra, when, after they were again opened, the water rushing into the Ladon and the Alpheius overflowed the banks of those rivers at Olympia. The account of Eratosthenes has been confirmed by a similar occurrence in modern times. In 1821 the katavóthra became obstructed, and the water continued to rise in the plain till it had destroyed 7 to 8 square miles of cultivated country. Such was its condition till 1832, when the subterraneous channels again opened, the Ladon and Alpheius overflowed, and the plain of Olympia was inundated. Other ancient writers allude to the katavóthra and subterraneous course of the river of Pheneus.

Orneae or Orneai was a town in ancient Argolis, mentioned by Homer in the Catalogue of Ships in the Iliad, which is said to have derived its name from Orneus, the son of Erechtheus. Orneae retained its ancient Cynurian inhabitants, when Argos was conquered by the Dorians. According to Pausanias, it continued independent of Argos for a long time; but it was finally conquered by the Argives, who removed the Orneatae to their own city. Thucydides mentions the Orneatae and Cleonaei as allies (σύμμαχοι) of the Argives in 418 BCE; and the same historian relates that Orneae was destroyed by the Argives in 416 BCE. It might therefore be inferred that the destruction of Orneae by the Argives in 416 BCE is the event referred to by Pausanias. But Herodotus states that Orneae had been conquered by Argos long before; that its inhabitants were reduced to the condition of Perioeci; and that all the Perioeci in the Argeia were called Orneatae from this place. But the Orneatae mentioned by Thucydides could not have been Perioeci, since they are called allies. "The Cynurians," says Herodotus, "have become Doricized by the Argives and by time, being Orneatae and Perioeci." These words would seem clearly to mean that, while the other Cynurians became Perioeci, the Orneatae continued independent, an interpretation which is in accordance with the account of Thucydides.

Haliartus or Haliartos, also known as Ariartus, Ariartos, Hariartus, or Hariartos, was a town of ancient Boeotia, and one of the cities of the Boeotian League. It was situated on the southern side of Lake Copais in a pass between the mountain and the lake. It is mentioned in the Catalogue of Ships in the Iliad by Homer, who gives it the epithet ποιήεις (grassy) in consequence of its well-watered meadows.

Mases was a city in the district Hermionis, on the Argolic peninsula, in ancient Argolis. It is mentioned by Homer as part of Diomedes's kingdom in the Catalogue of Ships in the Iliad, along with Aegina. In the time of Pausanias, it was used as a harbour by Hermione.

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Samicum or Samikon was a town of Triphylia in ancient 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.

Arne was a town of ancient Boeotia, mentioned by Homer, and probably founded by the Boeotians after their expulsion from ancient Thessaly. Pausanias identified this Boeotian Arne with Chaeroneia, Strabo with Acraephium; and others again supposed that it had been swallowed up by the waters of the Lake Copais. Modern scholars locate Arne with the site of archaeological site of Magoula Balomenou. It may be linked to the ancient citadel of Gla.

Oechalia or Oichalia was a town in ancient Messenia, in the plain of Stenyclerus. It was in ruins in the time of Epaminondas, and its position was a matter of dispute in later times. Strabo identified it with Andania, the ancient residence of the Messenian kings, and Pausanias with Carnasium, which was only 8 stadia distant from Andania, and upon the river Charadrus. Carnasium, in the time of Pausanias, was the name given to a grove of cypresses, in which were statues of Apollo Carneius, of Hermes Criophorus, and of Persephone. It was here that the mystic rites of the great goddesses were celebrated, and that the urn was preserved containing the bones of Eurytus, the son of Melaneus.

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Cyllene or Kyllene was a seaport town of ancient Elis, distant 120 stadia from the city of Elis. Cyllene was an ancient place. It is mentioned by Homer as one of the towns of the Epeians; and if we are to believe Dionysius Periegetes, 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, 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.

Alalcomenae or Alalkomenai, or Alalcomenium or Alalkomenion (Ἀλαλκομένιον), was a town in ancient Boeotia, situated at the foot of Mount Tilphossium, a little to the east of Coroneia, and near Lake Copais. It was celebrated for the worship of Athena, who was said to have been born there, and who is hence called Alalcomeneis (Ἀλαλκομενηΐς) in Homer's Iliad. The temple of the goddess stood, at a little distance from the town, on the Triton River, a small stream flowing into Lake Copais. The town was by a hill which Strabo calls Mount Tilphossium. Strabo also records that the tomb of the seer Teiresias, and the temple of Tilphossian Apollo, were located just outside Alalcomenae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mycalessus</span> Town of ancient Boeotia

Mycalessus or Mykalessos was a town of ancient Boeotia, mentioned by Homer in the Catalogue of Ships in the Iliad. It was said to have been so called, because the cow, which was guiding Cadmus and his comrades to Thebes, lowed (ἐμυκήσατο) in this place. In 413 BCE, some Thracians, whom the Athenians were sending home to their own country, were landed on the Euripus, and surprised Mycalessus. They not only sacked the town, but put all the inhabitants to the sword, not sparing even the women and children. Thucydides says that this was one of the greatest calamities that had ever befallen any city. Strabo calls Mycalessus a village in the territory of Tanagra, and places it upon the road from Thebes to Chalcis.

Styra was a town of ancient Euboea, on the west coast, north of Carystus, and nearly opposite the promontory of Cynosura in Attica. The town stood near the shore in the inner part of the bay, in the middle of which is the island Aegileia, now called Stouronisi. Styra is mentioned by Homer along with Carystus in the Catalogue of Ships in the Iliad. Its inhabitants were originally Dryopians, though they denied this origin, and claimed to be descended from the deme of Steiria in Attica. In the First Persian War (490 BCE) the Persians landed at Aegileia, which belonged to Styra, the prisoners whom they had taken at Eretria. In the Second Persian War (480-479 BCE) the Styrians fought at the battles of Artemisium, Salamis, and Plataeae. They sent two ships to the naval engagements, and at Plataeae they and the Eretrians amounted together to 600 men. They afterwards became the subjects of Athens, and paid a yearly tribute of 1200 drachmae. The Athenian fleet was stationed here in 356 BCE. Strabo relates that the town was destroyed in the "Maliac War" by the Athenian Phaedrus, and its territory given to the Eretrians; but as the Maliac War is not mentioned elsewhere, we ought probably to substitute Lamian War for it.

Stymphalus or Stymphalos, or Stymphelus or Stymphelos (Στύμφηλος), or Stymphelum or Stymphelon (Στύμφηλον), or Stymphalum, or Stymphala, was a town in the northeast of ancient Arcadia.

Eira, also known as Hira or Ira (Ἰρά), and Hire or Ire (Ἱρὴ), was a fortified settlement on a mountain of the same name, in the north of ancient Messenia, near the Neda River. During the Second Messenian War the Messenians fortified the place, and Aristomenes defended it for ten years against the Spartans. Pausanias dates the capture of the city by the Lacedaemonians to the first year of the 28th Olympiad (668 BCE). The Arcadians welcomed many Messenians who withdrew thither after the capture of Eira, while the captured Messenian prisoners were converted to helots by the Lacedaemonians, and the rest of Messenians who lived on the coast were exiled to Cyllene, in Elis. Pausanias adds that 297 years after the capture of Eira, in the third year of the 102nd Olympiad (370 BCE), the Messenians regained their territory.

Dorium or Dorion was a town of ancient Messenia, Dorium appears in the Catalogue of Ships in Homer's Iliad, where he mentions it as the place where the bard Thamyris was smitten with blindness, because he boasted that he could surpass the Muses in singing. Strabo says that some persons said Dorium was a mountain, and others a plain; but there was no trace of the place in his time, although some identified it with a place called Oluris (Ὄλουρις) or Olura (Ὄλουρα), in the district of Messenia named Aulon. Pausanias, however, places the ruins of Dorium on the road from Andania to Cyparissia. After leaving Andania, he first came to Polichne; and after crossing the rivers Electra and Coeus, he reached the fountain of Achaia and the ruins of Dorium.

Messa or Messe was one of the nine cities of ancient Laconia enumerated in the Catalogue of Ships, in the Iliad by Homer, who gives it the epithet of πολυτρήρων, 'abounding in pigeons'. Strabo says that the position of Messa was unknown; but Pausanias mentions a town and harbour named Messa, which is identified by most modern scholars with the Homeric town. This Messa is situated on the western coast of Mani, between Hippola and Oetylus; and the cliffs in the neighbourhood are said to abound in wild pigeons.

References

  1. Stephanus of Byzantium. Ethnica. Vol. s.v.
  2. Homer. Iliad . Vol. 2.616.
  3. Pausanias (1918). "1.6". Description of Greece. Vol. 5. Translated by W. H. S. Jones; H. A. Ormerod. Cambridge, Massachusetts; London: Harvard University Press; William Heinemann via Perseus Digital Library., 11
  4. Strabo. Geographica . Vol. viii, p. 341. Page numbers refer to those of Isaac Casaubon 's edition.
  5. Pliny. Naturalis Historia . Vol. 4.5.6.
  6. Richard Talbert, ed. (2000). Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World . Princeton University Press. p. 58, and directory notes accompanying. ISBN   978-0-691-03169-9.
  7. Lund University. Digital Atlas of the Roman Empire.

PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain :  Smith, William, ed. (1854–1857). "Hyrmine". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography . London: John Murray.