Stymfalia
Encyclopedia
Stymphalia is a village and a former municipality in Corinthia
, Peloponnese, Greece
. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Sikyona
, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 2,852 (2001). The seat of the municipality was in Kalianoi, 41 km southwest of the town of Kiato
. The municipality occupies a mountain valley with an average altitude of 600 metres. Mount Kyllene dominates it to the north east, rising to ca. 2400 metres. The largest village is Lafka, but the principal antiquities are just south of the modern village of Stymphalia, a hamlet of ca. 100 inhabitants.
In ancient Greece
, Stymphalos, lying in this valley of northwestern Arcadia
, was renowned as the site of one of the Labors of Hercules, the slaying of the Stymphalian birds
. Hera, whose presence is never far from Heracles
was venerated at the site in an archaic form in which she took three phases, as maiden, matron and even widow. Pindar
mentions an Olympic victor in the mule cart race] (a man called Hagesias) in his sixth Olympian Ode, and urges the members of the choir to venerate their virginal Hera
, who was apparently a survival of pre-Olympian religion. Pausanias mentions a statue of Dromeus, a long distance runner from Stymphalos who won at all the panhellenic games in the mid 5th c. BC. Little else is known from literature of Stymphalos in antiquity. Artemis was the principal divinity of the town and her temple seems still to have been in use in Roman times. One unusual aspect of the goddess is that her sanctuary is referred to in an inscription of the early second c. BC as that of Brauronian Artemis, an Athenian cult. An inscription commemorating Stymphalian hospitality to the people of Elateia was to be set up in the agora of Elateia and the sanctuary of Brauronian Artemis at Stymphalos. Demeter and Hermes are also epigraphically attested.
Anastasios Orlandos excavated parts of the site for the Archaeological Society of Athens between 1924 and 1930. Since 1982, excavations of the site on the north shore of Lake Stymphalia
have been under way, directed by Hector Williams for the University of British Columbia
. Archaeological surveys and excavations have revealed a town refounded in the fourth century BC.the later city was laid out on a grid plan, with six-meter wide roads running north-south every thirty metres, which intersected major east-west avenues at intervals over a hundred metres. Houses have also been identified, and a theatre, a palaestra, a fountain house, several temples and the sanctuary, where an inscription preserving the letters POLIAD... ("of the city") found by Orlandos in 1925, but now lost, seems to indicate Athena Polias
as the divinity worshipped, though no further confirmation has been found. In an annex to the temple several dozen loom weights suggest the further presence of Athena in a weaving workshop.
There are four early Christian cemeteries. Just to the north of the ancient city are the remains of the medieval Cistercian monastery of Zaraka, also partially excavated by the Canadian Institute. There are various other smaller sites scattered around the valley, but as yet there has been no systematic survey of them.
Corinthia
Corinthia is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Peloponnese. It is situated around the city of Corinth, in the north-eastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula.-Geography:...
, Peloponnese, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Sikyona
Sikyona
Sikyona is a municipality in Corinthia, Greece. Population 19,455 . The seat of the municipality is in Kiato. Sikyona takes its name from the ancient city Sicyon, which was located in the same territory.-Municipality:...
, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 2,852 (2001). The seat of the municipality was in Kalianoi, 41 km southwest of the town of Kiato
Kiato
Kiato is a coastal town in Greece that is agricultural-based. The town is located in the northern part of the prefecture of Corinthia in the Peloponnese, Greece. Kiato is located in a sandy area which features lemon trees, orange trees, and other fruit-bearing trees. It has a lot of tourist...
. The municipality occupies a mountain valley with an average altitude of 600 metres. Mount Kyllene dominates it to the north east, rising to ca. 2400 metres. The largest village is Lafka, but the principal antiquities are just south of the modern village of Stymphalia, a hamlet of ca. 100 inhabitants.
History
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
, Stymphalos, lying in this valley of northwestern Arcadia
Arcadia
Arcadia is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Peloponnese. It is situated in the central and eastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. It takes its name from the mythological character Arcas. In Greek mythology, it was the home of the god Pan...
, was renowned as the site of one of the Labors of Hercules, the slaying of the Stymphalian birds
Stymphalian birds
In Greek mythology, the Stymphalian birds were man-eating birds with beaks of bronze and sharp metallic feathers they could launch at their victims, and were sacred to Ares, the god of war. Furthermore, their dung was highly toxic...
. Hera, whose presence is never far from Heracles
Heracles
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...
was venerated at the site in an archaic form in which she took three phases, as maiden, matron and even widow. Pindar
Pindar
Pindar , was an Ancient Greek lyric poet. Of the canonical nine lyric poets of ancient Greece, his work is the best preserved. Quintilian described him as "by far the greatest of the nine lyric poets, in virtue of his inspired magnificence, the beauty of his thoughts and figures, the rich...
mentions an Olympic victor in the mule cart race] (a man called Hagesias) in his sixth Olympian Ode, and urges the members of the choir to venerate their virginal Hera
Hera
Hera was the wife and one of three sisters of Zeus in the Olympian pantheon of Greek mythology and religion. Her chief function was as the goddess of women and marriage. Her counterpart in the religion of ancient Rome was Juno. The cow and the peacock were sacred to her...
, who was apparently a survival of pre-Olympian religion. Pausanias mentions a statue of Dromeus, a long distance runner from Stymphalos who won at all the panhellenic games in the mid 5th c. BC. Little else is known from literature of Stymphalos in antiquity. Artemis was the principal divinity of the town and her temple seems still to have been in use in Roman times. One unusual aspect of the goddess is that her sanctuary is referred to in an inscription of the early second c. BC as that of Brauronian Artemis, an Athenian cult. An inscription commemorating Stymphalian hospitality to the people of Elateia was to be set up in the agora of Elateia and the sanctuary of Brauronian Artemis at Stymphalos. Demeter and Hermes are also epigraphically attested.
Anastasios Orlandos excavated parts of the site for the Archaeological Society of Athens between 1924 and 1930. Since 1982, excavations of the site on the north shore of Lake Stymphalia
Lake Stymphalia
Lake Stymphalia is located in the north-eastern part of the Peloponnese, in the Corinthia prefecture. It is a Wetlands area, a popular farming area. Usually this area around the lake is fairly dry underfoot. In certain weather conditions thousands of small green frogs hide in the damp grass from...
have been under way, directed by Hector Williams for the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
. Archaeological surveys and excavations have revealed a town refounded in the fourth century BC.the later city was laid out on a grid plan, with six-meter wide roads running north-south every thirty metres, which intersected major east-west avenues at intervals over a hundred metres. Houses have also been identified, and a theatre, a palaestra, a fountain house, several temples and the sanctuary, where an inscription preserving the letters POLIAD... ("of the city") found by Orlandos in 1925, but now lost, seems to indicate Athena Polias
Athena
In Greek mythology, Athena, Athenê, or Athene , also referred to as Pallas Athena/Athene , is the goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, civilization, warfare, strength, strategy, the arts, crafts, justice, and skill. Minerva, Athena's Roman incarnation, embodies similar attributes. Athena is...
as the divinity worshipped, though no further confirmation has been found. In an annex to the temple several dozen loom weights suggest the further presence of Athena in a weaving workshop.
There are four early Christian cemeteries. Just to the north of the ancient city are the remains of the medieval Cistercian monastery of Zaraka, also partially excavated by the Canadian Institute. There are various other smaller sites scattered around the valley, but as yet there has been no systematic survey of them.