Macistus
Encyclopedia
Macistus or Makistos is a term derived from Doric Greek
meaning tallest or greatest.
, who had a temple in the neighbourhood of the town of Macistus in Triphylia, Elis
(Peloponnese
). Macistus was also a son of Athamas
and brother of Phrixus
, from whom the town of Macistus in Triphylia
was believed to have derived its name.
Doric Greek
Doric or Dorian was a dialect of ancient Greek. Its variants were spoken in the southern and eastern Peloponnese, Crete, Rhodes, some islands in the southern Aegean Sea, some cities on the coasts of Asia Minor, Southern Italy, Sicily, Epirus and Macedon. Together with Northwest Greek, it forms the...
meaning tallest or greatest.
Mythology
Makistios was an epithet of HeraclesHeracles
Heracles ,born Alcaeus or Alcides , was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, foster son of Amphitryon and great-grandson of Perseus...
, who had a temple in the neighbourhood of the town of Macistus in Triphylia, Elis
Elis
Elis, or Eleia is an ancient district that corresponds with the modern Elis peripheral unit...
(Peloponnese
Peloponnese
The Peloponnese, Peloponnesos or Peloponnesus , is a large peninsula , located in a region of southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth...
). Macistus was also a son of Athamas
Athamas
The king of Orchomenus in Greek mythology, Athamas , was married first to the goddess Nephele with whom he had the twins Phrixus or Frixos and Helle. He later divorced Nephele and married Ino, daughter of Cadmus. With Ino, he had two children: Learches and Melicertes...
and brother of Phrixus
Phrixus
In Greek mythology, Phrixus or Frixos or Phryxus was the son of Athamas, king of Boiotia, and Nephele . His twin sister Helle and he were hated by their stepmother, Ino. Ino hatched a devious plot to get rid of the twins, roasting all of Boeotia's crop seeds so they would not grow. The local...
, from whom the town of Macistus in Triphylia
Triphylia
Triphylia was an area of the ancient Peloponnese. Strabo and Pausanias both describe Triphylia as part of Elis, and it fell at times under the domination of the city of Elis, but Pausanias claims they reckoned themselves Arcadian, not Elean. They fell under the rule of Elis in the 8th century BC,...
was believed to have derived its name.