Aigeira ( Greek : Αιγείρα ) ( IPA: [eˈʝira] , Ancient Greek : Αἰγείρα or Αἴγειρα, Latin : Aegeira ) is a town and a former municipality in northeastern Achaea , West Greece , Greece . Since the 2011 local government reform it has been a municipal unit of the Aigialeia municipality, with an area of 103.646 km . The municipal unit stretches from the Gulf of Corinth , where the town of Aigeira is located, to the mountains in the south. The town of Aigeira is 26 km (16 mi) southeast of Aigio , 55 km (34 mi) northwest of Corinth and 55 km (34 mi) east of Patras .
105-575: (Redirected from Ampelokipi ) Ampelokipoi (Greek: Αμπελόκηποι) may refer to the following places in Greece: Ampelokipoi, Achaea , part of Aigeira , Achaea Ampelokipoi, Athens , a section in the north of the municipality of Athens Ampelokipoi, Thessaloniki , a suburb and former municipality of the Thessaloniki Urban Area Ampelokipoi, Zakynthos ,
210-424: A 𐀐𐀫𐀯𐀊 , ke-ro-si-ja , (later γερουσία gerousia ), but Palmer believes that it was an organization of "bronze smiths". The land was held by the wanax, by the damos, and by individual land owners. It seems that people lived in small family groups or clans around the main citadel. Occupying a lower rung of the social ladder were the slaves, do-e-ro , ( cf. δοῦλος , doúlos ). These are recorded in
315-507: A 'lower town', approximately 12,000m in area, centred on the acropolis and occupied over numerous chronological phases in LH IIIC. The distributions of finds of pottery, particularly pithoi , led excavators to conclude that this was a settlement composed of households, characterised by the storage and production of goods as well as feasting. A 'cult room' for religious purposes also dates to this period. Evidence of pottery practices suggests
420-589: A capital city on the level of Thebes and Knossos. During LHIIIB, Mycenae's political, military and economic influence likely extended as far as Crete , Pylos in the western Peloponnese, and to Athens and Thebes . Mycenae was among the numerous Aegean sites destroyed as part of the Bronze Age Collapse around 1200 BC. The causes of these destructions are unknown, but proposed explanations include enemy attack, internal strife, and natural disasters such as earthquakes. Unlike many other sites, Mycenae
525-569: A degree of cultural continuity with the pre-destruction era, with characteristic Mycenaean shapes continuing to be manufactured. Tombs associated with Aigeira have been found dating to the early part of Late Helladic III, including chamber tombs excavated by the Greek archaeologist Nikolaos Verdelis in 1956 at Lykovouno/Derveni, approximately 1.2 km southeast of the settlement. In LH IIIC, these tombs continued to be re-used, but some innovations in funerary practice are observed: instead of re-opening
630-707: A lower plateau, approximately 150m to the east of the acropolis. Patterns of settlement around the Gulf of Corinth in the Final Neolithic show a few 'main sites' and a much greater number of apparently transient settlements, used only briefly before abandonment. In the Early Helladic period (beginning around 3100 BCE), settlements appear to become more permanent, being used over multiple chronological phases, and to be involved in more intense contacts between each other, particularly maritime exchange. While there
735-526: A major power during LHI (c. 1550 – c. 1450 BC) and is believed to have become the main centre of Aegean civilisation through the fifteenth century to the extent that the two hundred years from c. 1400 BC to c. 1200 BC (encompassing LHIIIA and LHIIIB) are known as the Mycenaean Age. The Minoan hegemony ended c. 1450 and there is evidence that Knossos was occupied by Mycenaeans until it too was destroyed c. 1370 BC. From then on, Mycenaean expansion throughout
840-432: A member of Mycenae's ruling dynasty. Certain archaeological features in the palatial centers like the architectural uniformity, the uniformity of the administrative system, the uniformity in pottery, the imperial language and some large scale projects (drainage systems, harbours, roads etc.) indicate that large parts of Greece may have fallen under the sway of a single king, with various degrees of control over local vassals:
945-503: A number of palaces and fortifications appear to be part of a wider kingdom. For instance, Gla , located in the region of Boeotia, belonged to the state of nearby Orchomenos. The palace of Mycenae probably ruled over a territory two to three times the size of the other palatial states in Bronze Age Greece. Its territory would have also included adjacent centers, including Tiryns and Nauplion , which could plausibly be ruled by
1050-528: A provincial official. (Homer mentions many basilees in Ithaca ). The land possessed by the king is usually called 𐀳𐀕𐀜 , te-me-no ( τέμενος , " témenos "), a word that survived in classical Greece (the temenos placed by Hephaestus on the shield of Achilles is called "royal"). In classical times the word has a religious connotation . Other important landowners were the 𐀨𐀷𐀐𐀲 , ra-wa-ke-ta ("lāwāgetas"), literally translated as "the leader of
1155-473: A residence for foreign diplomatic delegations. It was used until the 1st century BCE, by which point it had been extended and modified multiple times and occupied a surface area around 1,000 m . Around 280 BCE, the theatre was built, along with an adjacent naiskos . Throughout the Hellenistic period, the area of the theatre became the central point for public building, and further structures, including
SECTION 10
#17327905155911260-505: A situation not dissimilar from the contemporary Hittite world, although the archaeological evidence remains ambiguous. A loose confederacy of city-states under the king of Mycenae, Agamemnon , is mentioned by Homer in Iliad . Much of the Mycenaean religion survived into classical Greece in their pantheon of Greek deities , but it is not known to what extent Greek religious belief
1365-506: A survey of the urban area and investigated, inter alia , the water supply and public spaces of the city. Georg Ladstätter lead the excavations from 1998, with continued focus on the water supply and on domestic buildings. Since 2002, excavations have been under the jurisdiction of the Austrian Archaeological Institute at Athens . In 2007, the so-called 'prehistoric layer' was uncovered and defined, providing
1470-609: A temple dedicated to the goddess Tyche , were added. To this period also belong the 2nd-century-BCE fragments of a colossal statue of Zeus, sculpted by the Athenian sculptor Eucleides, now held in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens and once displayed in a temple of Zeus. Other temples in the upper town included a temple of Apollo and temples of Artemis Agrotera and of Aphrodite Urania , and of
1575-525: A time of great growth, with the size of the settlement increasing by as much as fourteen times, perhaps owing to money from the Achaean League. The city was re-fortified in this period with a circuit wall, which encompassed around 50 ha. Excavations in the later 20th century uncovered a building complex, known as the 'guest house', dating approximately to the mid-4th century BCE. This building included mosaic flooring and has been suggested to have been
1680-492: A village on Zakynthos [REDACTED] Topics referred to by the same term This disambiguation page lists articles about distinct geographical locations with the same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ampelokipoi&oldid=1075266816 " Category : Place name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
1785-737: Is Mycenaean, nor how much is a product of the Greek Dark Ages or later. Moses I. Finley detected only few authentic Mycenaean beliefs in the 8th-century Homeric world, but Nilsson suggested that the Mycenaean religion was the mother of the Greek religion . From the history traced by Nilsson and Guthrie , the Mycenaean pantheon consisted of Minoan deities, but also of gods and goddesses who appear under different names with similar functions in East and West. Many of these names appearing in
1890-411: Is a great deal of evidence for social and cultural continuity at Aigeira between the Final Neolithic and Early Helladic, particularly as concerns patterns of food production and consumption, there are also signs of technological development, particularly in higher-temperature ceramic production, the use of flax or double fibres in textiles, and possibly the addition of arsenic to copper in metallurgy. In
1995-618: Is believed they were never able to hold substantial roles of power in the civilizations. The particular positions held and responsibilities performed within Mycenae's social structure are not well understood. According to the traditional view, Mycenae or any other palatial center of mainland Greece was not an empire, and the mainland consisted of independent city-states. This view has in recent years, however, been challenged by various specialists, such as Jorrit Kelder and, most recently, Birgitta Eder and Reinhard Jung . Kelder pointed out that
2100-406: Is currently in charge of the site. In 1999, a scientific committee for Mycenae was created and numerous projects for the preservation, improvement, and stabilization of both archaeological sites have been completed by this scientific body. The committee also sought to improve visitor access to the monuments at the locations by laying out walkways and establishing information stations. It appears that
2205-477: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Aigeira The archaeological site of ancient Aigeira is located approximately 6 km (3.7 mi) from the modern town. It is an important site for the Mycenaean and later periods, with particularly extensive remains from the Hellenistic period. It has been excavated since 1916 by archaeologists from
SECTION 20
#17327905155912310-519: Is located about 120 kilometres (75 miles) south-west of Athens ; 11 kilometres (7 miles) north of Argos ; and 48 kilometres (30 miles) south of Corinth . The site is 19 kilometres (12 miles) inland from the Saronic Gulf and built upon a hill rising 900 feet (274 metres) above sea level. In the second millennium BC, Mycenae was one of the major centres of Greek civilisation, a military stronghold which dominated much of southern Greece, Crete ,
2415-479: Is the substantial fortification wall constructed on the eastern side of the new settlement – the only such structure known from this period on the Greek mainland, and one of only two contemporary examples known in the Aegean (alongside Naxos ). Unusually for Aegean sites in this period, LH IIIC appears to have been a time of sustained occupation, growth and prosperity: excavations between 2011 and 2016 found evidence of
2520-544: The Austrian Archaeological Institute at Athens . Settlement at Aigeira is known from the Middle Neolithic and Final Neolithic, beginning around 5500 BCE. The first settlement was situated on the acropolis , and has furnished evidence of pottery, including vessels likely used in the production of cheese. A small quantity of obsidian blades, using material from Melos , have also been found from this period. Some evidence of Neolithic settlement has been found on
2625-518: The Circle B graves , which were found at a later date, although Circle B are the earlier graves, dated c. 1650 BC to c. 1550 BC and entirely within MHIII. Circle A is dated to the sixteenth century BC, including the transition from Middle to Late Helladic IA (LHIA; c. 1550 – c. 1500 BC). The contents of Circle B are less wealthy than those of Circle A. Pottery material spanning the entire Early Helladic
2730-574: The Cyclades and parts of southwest Anatolia . The period of Greek history from about 1600 BC to about 1100 BC is called Mycenaean in reference to Mycenae. At its peak in 1350 BC, the citadel and lower town had a population of 30,000 and an area of 32 hectares (79 acres). The first correct identification of Mycenae in modern literature was in 1700, during a survey conducted by the Venetian engineer Francesco Vandeyk on behalf of Francesco Grimani,
2835-626: The Early Helladic (EH, c. 3200–c. 2000 BC) and Middle Helladic (MH, c. 2000–c. 1550 BC) periods. EN Rainbow Ware constitutes the earliest ceramic evidence discovered so far. The population had grown considerably by the Middle Helladic. As elsewhere, a dominant Cretan influence prevailed from c. 1600 BC, the first evidence of this coming from the shaft graves discovered in 1876 by Heinrich Schliemann . Schliemann's shaft graves came to be known as Circle A to distinguish them from
2940-402: The Greek language are also visible at Mycenae and Tiryn, preserved on Linear B tablets. A stringent legal framework was established to safeguard the integrity of the Mycenae and Tiryns sites against vandalism and other forms of damage and disturbance to the remains. The Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports monitors the two archaeological sites. To maintain the quality and conditions of
3045-747: The Hindus , this sky-deity becomes " Dyaus Pita ". In Latin he becomes "Deus Pater" or Jupiter ; we still encounter this word in the etymologies of the words "deity" and "divine". Later in some cults, Zeus is united with the Aegean Great Goddess , who is represented by Hera , in a "holy wedding" ( hieros gamos ). At some point in their cultural history, the Mycenaeans adopted some Minoan goddesses like Aphaea , Britomartis , Diktynna and associated them with their sky-god. Many of them were absorbed by more powerful divinities, and some like
3150-505: The Linear B inscriptions can be found later in classical Greece, like Zeus , Hera , Poseidon , Athena , Hermes , Eileithyia and Dionysos , but the etymology is the only evidence of the cults. There are several reasonable guesses that can be made, however. It seems that originally the Mycenaeans, like many Indo-Europeans , considered divine any object that inherited an internal power ( anima ). Certain religious beliefs were mixed with
3255-480: The Mycenaean Hagia Triada sarcophagus (1400 BC), which combines features of Minoan civilization and Mycenaean style. It seems that the blood of a bull was used for the regeneration of the reappearing dead. Probably most of these cults existed in the Mycenaean period and survived by immemorial practice. A secondary level of importance was the cult of the heroes, which seems to have started in
Ampelokipoi - Misplaced Pages Continue
3360-730: The Provveditore Generale of the Kingdom of the Morea . Vandeyk used Pausanias 's description of the Lion Gate to identify the ruins of Mycenae. In 1999 the archeological site of Mycenae was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List , along with the nearby site of Tiryns , because of its historical importance as the center of the Mycenaean civilization, its outstanding architecture and its testimony to
3465-611: The Roman period in Greece its ruins had become a tourist attraction. The ancient travel writer Pausanias , for example, visited the site and briefly described the prominent fortifications and the Lion Gate, still visible in his time, the second century AD. Pausanias also describes being led to the site by shepherds, showing that the surrounding area was never completely abandoned. The Ministry of Culture, Education, and Religious Affairs
3570-645: The Syrian Goddess . According to Pausanias, Serapis and Isis were also worshipped in the city, pointing to contact with Ptolemaic Egypt . Along with the other members of the Achaean League, Aigeira fought alongside Philip V of Macedon against the Aetolian League in the Social War of 220-217 BCE. In the early stages of the war, in 219 BCE, the city was attacked and temporarily occupied by Aetolian forces, who had set sail from
3675-461: The Tomb of Aegisthus – are dated to LHIIA. Burial in tholoi is seen as replacing burial in shaft graves. The care taken to preserve the shaft graves testifies that they were by then part of the royal heritage, the tombs of the ancestral heroes. Being more visible, all the tholoi had been plundered either in antiquity or in later historic times. At a conventional date of 1350 BC, the fortifications on
3780-432: The chthonic deities, or deities of the earth. Walter Burkert warns: "To what extent one can and must differentiate between Minoan and Mycenaean religion is a question which has not yet found a conclusive answer." He suggests that useful parallels will be found in the relations between Hellenistic and Archaic Greek culture and religion, or between Roman and Etruscan culture. The pantheon also included deities representing
3885-479: The public domain : Smith, William , ed. (1854–1857). "Aegeira". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography . London: John Murray. Mycenae Mycenae ( / m aɪ ˈ s iː n iː / my- SEE -nee ; Mycenaean Greek : 𐀘𐀏𐀙𐀂 ; Ancient Greek : Μυκῆναι or Μυκήνη , Mykē̂nai or Mykḗnē ) is an archaeological site near Mykines in Argolis , north-eastern Peloponnese , Greece . It
3990-509: The vegetation goddesses Ariadne and Helen survived in Greek folklore together with the cult of the "divine child", who was probably the precursor of Dionysos . Athena and Hera survived and were tutelary goddesses, the guardians of the palaces and the cities. In general, later Greek religion distinguishes between two types of deities: the Olympian , or sky, deities (including Zeus), who are now commonly known in some form or another; and
4095-532: The 'lower town' previously occupied in LH IIIC. Some partial fortifications are known from the Archaic period, covering an area of around 3.5 hectares . In the Iliad , Aigeira was known as Hyperesia. In the 2nd century CE, Pausanias recorded a story of how the town came to change its name: The present name was given to [Aigeira] by the Ionian settlers for the following reason. A hostile band of Sicyonians
4200-466: The 12th century, as attested by finds of coins and pottery; a new conduit for water was built at some point during this period. Some time in the medieval period, the site was re-fortified with a perimeter wall incorporating many ancient spolia , which likely dates to approximately the 11th-12th centuries. Around 1900, the so-called 'Houses of the Raisin-Pickers' were built, using spolia from
4305-489: The 3rd century CE, a massive seismic uplift left the harbour structures approximately four metres above sea level, rendering the port unusable; this event may be connected with a third-century earthquake which destroyed the city itself. Aigeira underwent a period of decline in the 4th and 5th century CE, with an apparent fall in population and the conversion of many formerly public buildings and temples into workshops. The acropolis continued to be occupied until at least
Ampelokipoi - Misplaced Pages Continue
4410-470: The 4th century, the nearby town of Aigai appears to have been abandoned or become depopulated, and its citizens incorporated into the citizen body of Aigeira. Perhaps in commemoration of this, the coins of Aigeira began to use the symbol of a goat, previously used in the coinage of Aigai, and continued to do so throughout the Classical and Hellenistic periods. The Hellenistic period appears to have been
4515-452: The Aegean was unhindered until the massive disruption of society in the first half of the twelfth century (LHIIIC), which ended Mycenaean civilisation and culminated in the destruction of Mycenae itself c. 1150 BC. Outside the partial circuit wall, Grave Circle B , named for its enclosing wall, contained ten cist graves in Middle Helladic style and several shaft graves, sunk more deeply, with interments resting in cists. Richer grave goods mark
4620-524: The Archaic Period. A Mycenaean contingent fought at Thermopylae and Plataea during the Persian Wars . In 468 BC, however, troops from Argos captured Mycenae, expelled the inhabitants and razed the fortifications. Mycenae was briefly reoccupied in the Hellenistic period, when it could boast a theatre (located over the Tomb of Clytemnestra ). The site was subsequently abandoned, and by
4725-557: The Austrian Archaeological Institute in Vienna. Walter discovered the Hellenistic theatre, as well as three naiskoi in the area. In 1972, excavations resumed under Wilhelm Alzinger , who led them until 1988. Alzinger's excavations focused on the acropolis, the theatre, the ruins of the temple of Zeus and the space between the theatre and the temple of Zeus. Several further naiskoi were discovered near
4830-616: The EH II period, the acropolis site was abandoned, and settlement moved to a low-lying and more fertile site at Kassaneva, close to the Krios river. The acropolis was re-occupied in the Middle Helladic period: little evidence of this phase survives, though what does exist points to new cultural connections with the western Peloponnese. Relatively little is known of Aigeira for most of the Late Helladic period. Aigeira has been proposed as
4935-457: The Mycenaean and Tiryn sites, archaeological study is conducted methodically and systematically. The Greek Antiquities Law No 3028/2002, on the ‘Conservation of Antiquities and Cultural Heritage in General’, governs the preservation and protection of the sites. Ministerial Decree No 2160 of 1964 created and safeguarded the limits of Mycenae in addition to the sites themselves. The acropolis and
5040-485: The Mycenaean era. These were great men of the past who were exalted to honor after death, because of what they had done. According to an old Minoan belief, beyond the sea there was an island called Elysion , where the departed could have a different but happier existence. Later, the Greeks believed that there could live in human form only heroes and the beloved of the gods. The souls of the rest would drift unconsciously in
5145-511: The Mycenaean state was ruled by kings identified by the title 𐀷𐀙𐀏 , wa-na-ka ("wanax") in the Linear B inscriptions at Knossos and Pylos . The wanax had the supreme authority and was represented by a number of officials. In the Homeric poems, the word form is anax ( ἄναξ ), often translated in English as "lord". Some inscriptions with a list of offerings indicate that the king
5250-572: The Telestas are religious officials while others believe they were given land in return for services. Under the Telestas is believed to be the Hequetia, who are believed to be either military workers or warriors or companions of the king. Under the Hequetia are the general laborers which includes artisans, farmers, fisherman, and more. At the bottom of the social hierarchy slaves, which are commonly believed to be women. Even when women were not slaves it
5355-482: The acropolis and other surrounding hills were rebuilt in a style known as Cyclopean because the blocks of stone used were so massive that they were thought in later ages to be the work of the one-eyed giants known as the Cyclopes . Within these walls, much of which can still be seen, successive monumental palaces were built. The final palace, remains of which are currently visible on the acropolis of Mycenae, dates to
SECTION 50
#17327905155915460-407: The ancient city, which appears by this time to have been in use as a large quarry. Early excavations at Aigeira were often partial and patchily recorded. In the late 19th century, the Greek archaeologist Valerios Stais uncovered an inscription bearing part of Diocletian 's Edict on Maximum Prices , issued in 301 CE, though he did not record either the precise circumstances or the location of
5565-435: The beliefs of the local populations as it appears in the old cults of isolated Arcadia , which survived up to classical Greece . In these cults, Poseidon appears usually as a horse, representing the river spirit of the underworld, as usually happens in northern European folklore. The precursor goddesses of Demeter and Persephone are closely related with springs and animals, and especially with Poseidon and Artemis , who
5670-627: The burials as possibly regal. Mounds over the top contained broken drinking vessels and bones from a repast, testifying to a more than ordinary farewell. Stelae surmounted the mounds. A walled enclosure, Grave Circle A , included six more shaft graves, with nine female, eight male, and two juvenile interments. Grave goods were more costly than in Circle B. The presence of engraved and inlaid swords and daggers , with spear points and arrowheads, leaves little doubt that warrior chieftains and their families were buried here. Some art objects obtained from
5775-417: The center of a wall to the side of the hearth, allowing an unobstructed view of the ruler from the entrance. Frescos adorned the plaster walls and floor. The room was accessed from a courtyard with a columned portico. A grand staircase led from a terrace below to the courtyard on the acropolis. In the temple built within the citadel, a scarab of Queen Tiye of Egypt , who was married to Amenhotep III ,
5880-507: The centre of one of two putative Mycenaean states in Achaia, but no signs of palatial structures or administration have been found at the site, making it difficult to argue that Aigeira was the centre of the sort of state apparatus seen in contemporary palatial centres like Mycenae or Pylos . Indeed, the relatively low level of monumentality found in tombs and buildings at this period suggests that local elites, while undoubtedly evidenced from
5985-471: The chambers and interring new bodies, rectangular trenches, known as 'dormitories', were dug into the floors of the tombs. Like many Aegean sites, Aigeira was abandoned at the end of the Bronze Age , following the destruction of the site at the end of LH IIIC Middle. Occupation began again in the second half of the 8th century BCE, likely associated with the sanctuary at the site, and included areas of
6090-467: The club merged with the local football team of the neighbour town of Akrata forming a new club under the name A.E. Aigeiras/Akratas. Aigeira is also home to non-league amateur football club Panaigeiratikos. The Greek National Road 8A ( E65 Corinth - Patras) and the Corinth-Patras railway run through the town. [REDACTED] This article incorporates text from a publication now in
6195-559: The corpses were lightly exposed to fire in order to preserve them. Mycenaean religion certainly involved offerings and sacrifices to the deities, and some have speculated that their ceremonies involved human sacrifice based on textual evidence and bones found outside tombs. In the Homeric poems, there seems to be a lingering cultural memory of human sacrifice in King Agamemnon 's sacrifice of his daughter, Iphigenia ; several of
6300-489: The development of Ancient Greek civilization . The Lion Gate, the Treasury of Atreus and the walls of Mycenae and Tiryns are examples of the noteworthy architecture found in Mycenae and Tiryns. The structures and layouts of these discoveries exemplify the creative talent of the time. Greek architecture and urban planning have been significantly influenced by the Mycenaean civilization. Mycenae and Tiryns, which stand as
6405-505: The end of LHIIIB around 1200 BC, another, final extension to the citadel was undertaken. The wall was extended again on the northeast, with a sally port and also a secret passage through and under the wall, of corbelled construction, leading downwards by some 99 steps to a cistern carved out of rock 15 m below the surface. It was fed by a tunnel from a spring on more distant higher ground. Already in LHIIIA:1, Egypt knew *Mukana by name as
SECTION 60
#17327905155916510-406: The end of the second millennium BC, when the Mycenaean palaces collapsed, it seems that Greek thought was gradually released from the idea that each man was a servant to the gods, and sought a "moral purpose". It is possible that this procedure started before the end of the Mycenaean age, but the idea is almost absent or vague in the Homeric poems, where the interference of the gods is not related to
6615-493: The fall of the Mycenaean civilization and the end of the Greek Dark Ages, the original Mycenaean religion persisted and adapted until it finally emerged in the stories of human devotion, apostasy, and divine capriciousness that exists in the two great epic poems of Homer . Classical Greek myths assert that Mycenae was founded by Perseus , grandson of king Acrisius of Argos , son of Acrisius's daughter, Danaë and
6720-594: The finds. During his survey of the Peloponnese in 1836, William Martin Leake discovered the remains of the harbour at a small cove then known as Mavra Litharia, but they attracted little archaeological attention until the 1990s. In 1904, Hans Schrader acquired objects from a Mycenaean grave with 'Aigeira' listed as the find-spot, but the excavation that produced these has gone unrecorded. The first formal excavations took place in 1916 and 1925 under Otto Walter and
6825-509: The first proof of habitation at Aigeira before the Bronze Age. From 2011 until 2018, excavations took place in the theatre, under the direction of Walter Gauss. The municipal unit of Aigeira is subdivided into the following communities: The town is home to the Aigeira Municipal Stadium , which features an artificial turf pitch and a gravel running track. Its major soccer team is A.O. Thyella Aigeiras. Since July 2018
6930-537: The gloomy space of Hades . Gods and men had common origins, but there was an enormous gap between the immortal gods and mortal men. However, certain elements indicate that the Mycenaeans probably believed in a future existence. Two well-preserved bodies were found in Shaft Grave VI, and Wolfgang Helbig believed that an embalming preceded the burial. In the shaft graves discovered by Heinrich Schliemann ,
7035-401: The god Zeus . Having killed his grandfather by accident, Perseus could not, or would not, inherit the throne of Argos. Instead he arranged an exchange of realms with his cousin, Megapenthes , and became king of Tiryns , Megapenthes taking Argos. After that, he founded Mycenae and ruled the kingdoms jointly from there. Perseus married Andromeda and had many sons. His son, Electryon , became
7140-412: The gods were conceived as animals and birds, in a surrounding of animal-headed daemons . Later the gods were revealed in human forms with an animal as a companion or symbol. Some of the old gods survived in the cult of Dionysos ( Satyrs ) and Pan (the goat-god). The Mycenaeans adopted probably from the east a priest-king system and the belief of a ruling deity in the hands of a theocratic society. At
7245-637: The graves are the Silver Siege Rhyton , the Mask of Agamemnon , the Cup of Nestor and weapons both votive and practical. The chemical compositions of the silver objects indicate that the silver was sourced from several locations. Alan Wace divided the nine tholos tombs of Mycenae into three groups of three, each based on architecture. His earliest – the Cyclopean Tomb, Epano Phournos, and
7350-535: The growth of Achaean elites, if not to control them directly. Only a few pieces of pottery are known from the LH IIIB period, mostly found on the terraces below the acropolis, and it is possible that the settlement moved to another location, perhaps nearer the coast, during LH IIIB, returning to its original location early in LH IIIC. In the LH IIIC period, the settlement appears to have been destroyed by fire, and rebuilt soon after. Of particular note in this phase
7455-457: The king was the Lawagetas, believed to be the leader of the army, based on Homer's works. The Lawagetas are thought to have gotten their power by owning the most land. Other opinions think Lawagetas were a sort of prince, having no military power. Under the Lawagetas are numerous craftsmen employed by the Lawagetas. Other groups commonly mentioned in landholding texts are the Telestas. Some think
7560-465: The lord or spouse of the Earth goddess . Athena whose task was to protect the olive-trees is a civic Artemis. The powers of animal nature fostered a belief in nymphs whose existence was bound to the trees and the waters, and in gods with human forms and the heads or tails of animals who stood for primitive bodily instincts. In Arcadia were depicted animal-headed gods, indicating that in the remote past
7665-592: The name of the city is spelled Mykḗnē (Μυκήνη). The later form, Mykē̂nai (Μυκῆναι), was the result of a well-known sound change in Attic - Ionic , which shifted some instances of ā to ē . Mycenae, an acropolis site, was built on a hill 900 feet (274 metres) above sea level, some 19 kilometres (12 miles) inland from the Gulf of Argolis. Situated in the north-east corner of the Argive plain, it easily overlooked
7770-540: The name of their city because of these goats, and at the place where the goat that was most handsome and the leader of the rest had crouched down there they built a temple to Artemis the Huntress, thinking that this stratagem against the Sicyonians would not have occurred to them but for Artemis. Pausanias relates that the old name of 'Hyperesia' continued in use: indeed, he elsewhere records that Icarus of Hyperesia
7875-680: The north wall. One of the few groups of excavated houses in the city outside the walls lies beyond Grave Circle B and belongs to the same period. The House of Shields, the House of the Oil Merchant, the House of the Sphinxes, and the West House. These may have been both residences and workshops. The largest stones including the lintels and gate jambs weighed well over 20 tonnes; some may have been close to 100 tonnes. Somewhat later, toward
7980-454: The officials. Leonard Robert Palmer suggests that the "telestai were the men of telos- the fief holders". The 𐀁𐀤𐀲 , e-qe-ta ( ekwetai , "companions" or "followers") were a group of nobles (aristocrats), who followed the king in peace and war. It seems that they were representatives of the king among military groups and religious personnel. There is also at least one instance of a person, Enkhelyawon at Pylos, who appears titleless in
8085-454: The opposite town of Oeantheia in Locris . A hoard of nearly 600 silver coins, found in the so-called 'guest house' has been conjectured to have been hidden there in the course of this raid. By the 2nd century CE, when Pausanias visited, the city consisted of two parts, both known as 'Aigeira': a port on the Gulf of Corinth and the upper town, 12 stadia (2 km (1.2 mi)) from
8190-407: The people", and sometimes interpreted as a given kingdom's military leader, though this is not confirmed by the inscriptions. Alternatively, he may have been the crown prince or, if one follows the argument of a single Mycenaean state, a local king who was a vassal to the overarching wanax / Great King. Below these two elevated persons, Linear B texts situate the 𐀳𐀩𐀲 , te-re-ta ("telestai"),
8295-408: The pinnacle of the early phases of Greek civilisation, provided unique witness to political, social and economic growth during the Mycenaean civilization. The accomplishments of the Mycenaean civilisation in art , architecture and technology, which inspired European cultures, are also on display at both locations. These sites are strongly connected to the Homeric epics. The earliest examples of
8400-529: The port. Between around 150 CE and 250 CE, the natural harbour was supplemented with concrete constructions, particularly two breakwaters built in opus caementicium . It is possible that earlier harbour structures existed, since obscured by the Roman construction and later seismic activity. Aigeira continued to be occupied throughout the Roman period, and new structures were built into Late Antiquity, sometimes re-using spolia from older buildings. In
8505-586: The powers of nature and wildlife, who appear with similar functions in the Mediterranean region. The "Mistress of the Animals" ( Potnia Theron ), later called Artemis , may be identified as the Minoan goddess Britomartis /Dictynna. Poseidon is the lord of the sea, and therefore of storms and earthquakes, (the "Earth shaker" in Linear B tablets). He may have functioned as a pre-Hellenic chthonic Zeus,
8610-473: The rightness or wrongness of men's actions. Later, Hesiod uses a lot of eastern material in his cosmology and in the genealogical trees of the gods, and he introduces the idea of the existence of something else behind the gods, which was more powerful than they. The Olympian Pantheon is an ordered system. The Greek divinities live with Zeus at the helm and each is concerned with a recognizable sphere. However, certain elements in some Greek cults indicate
8715-727: The scarab here. Wace's second group of tholoi are dated between LHIIA and LHIIIB: Kato Phournos, Panagia Tholos, and the Lion Tomb. The final group, Group III: the Treasury of Atreus , the Tomb of Clytemnestra and the Tomb of the Genii, are dated to LHIIIB by a sherd under the threshold of the Treasury of Atreus, the largest of the nine tombs. Like the Treasury of Minyas at Orchomenus the tomb had been looted of its contents and its nature as funerary monument had been forgotten. The structure bore
8820-477: The second of the dynasty, but the succession was disputed by the Taphians under Pterelaos , another Perseid, who assaulted Mycenae, lost, and retreated with the cattle. The cattle were recovered by Amphitryon , a grandson of Perseus, but he killed his uncle by accident with a club in an unruly cattle incident and had to go into exile. The throne went to Sthenelus , third in the dynasty, a son of Perseus. He set
8925-414: The start of LHIIIA:2. Earlier palaces must have existed but they had been cleared away or built over. The construction of palaces at that time with a similar architecture was general throughout southern Greece. They all featured a megaron , or throne room, with a raised central hearth under an opening in the roof, which was supported by four columns in a square around the hearth. A throne was placed against
9030-401: The stories of Trojan heroes involve tragic human sacrifice. In the far past, even human beings might be offered to placate inscrutable gods, especially in times of guilty fear. Later sacrifice became a feast at which oxen were slaughtered. Men kept the meat, and gave the gods the bones wrapped in fat. Beyond this speculation we can go no further. Somewhere in the shades of the centuries between
9135-434: The survival of some older cults from a less rationalized world: old cults of the dead, agrarian magic, exorcism of evil spirits, peculiar sacrifices, and animal-headed gods. In the Homeric poems, the avenging Fate was probably originally a daemon acting in parallel with the gods. Later, the cult of Dionysos Zagreus indicates that life-blood of animals was needed to renew that of men. A similar belief may be guessed from
9240-494: The texts as working either for the palace or for specific deities. Archaeological evidence supports the idea that the social hierarchy of Mycenae was a monarchy. The difference in the grave goods shows how the society was clearly separated by class. The king or the wanax was at the top of the hierarchy, who lived in the palaces and made laws for the people. It is believed that the kings came into power not because of great leadership duties, but because of hereditary succession. Below
9345-515: The theatre, including one with a pebble floor mosaic representing an eagle with a serpent, as well as the Tycheion (sanctuary of Tyche ) described by Pausanias. Between 1975 and 1980, much of the 'lower town' was also uncovered. During Alzinger's tenure, Sigrid Deger-Jalkotzy worked on the excavations from 1975 to 1986, primarily analysing and publishing the late Mycenaean pottery. Excavations between 1990 and 1997, under Anton Bammer, focused on
9450-457: The traditional name of "Treasury". The pottery phases on which the relative dating scheme is based (EH, MH, LH, etc.) do not allow very precise dating, even augmented by the few existing C-14 dates due to the tolerance inherent in these. The sequence of further construction at Mycenae is approximately as follows. In the middle of LHIIIB, around 1250 BC or so, the Cyclopean wall was extended on
9555-552: The use of chamber tombs , did not possess the ability to mobilise even relatively small amounts of skilled labour, unlike the contemporary palatial elites elsewhere. Furthermore, the lack of tholos tombs in the vicinity, which are closely associated with palatial elites at other Mycenaean sites, lacks a conclusive explanation: it has been argued that this situation may represent the lack of penetration of palatial social structures and ideology into Achaea, or perhaps that distant centres, such as Mycenae and Aegina , were able to inhibit
9660-411: The west slope of the acropolis, which was at least partially enclosed by the earliest circuit wall . In the absence of documents and objects that can be precisely dated, events at Mycenae can be dated only relatively within the constraints of Helladic chronology , which relies on categorisation of stratified material objects, mainly pottery, within an agreed historical framework. Mycenae developed into
9765-406: The west slope to include Grave Circle A. The main entrance through the circuit wall was made grand by the best known feature of Mycenae, the Lion Gate , through which passed a stepped ramp leading past circle A and up to the palace. The Lion Gate was constructed in the form of a "Relieving Triangle" in order to support the weight of the stones. An undecorated postern gate also was constructed through
9870-523: The whole area and was ideally positioned to be a centre of power, especially as it commanded all easy routes to the Isthmus of Corinth . Besides its strong defensive and strategic position, it had good farmland and an adequate water supply. There are only faint traces of Neolithic settlement on the site although it was continuously occupied from the Early Neolithic (EN, c. 5000–c. 4000 BC) through
9975-453: The wider surroundings are also covered by the extension of protection conferred by this ministerial decree. Ministerial Decrees No 102098/4753 of 1956 and 12613/696 of 1991 both provide protection for the Tiryns archaeological site. The name Mukanai is thought not to be Greek but rather one of the many pre-Greek place names inherited by later Greek speakers. Legend has it that the name
10080-417: The written record but whom modern scholars regard as being probably a king. From the existing evidence, it seems that the kingdom was further subdivided into sixteen districts. The 𐀒𐀩𐀮 , ko-re-te was the "governor of the district" and the 𐀡𐀫𐀒𐀩𐀮 , po-ro-ko-re-te was the "deputy". It is possible that these represent koreter and prokoreter . The 𐀅𐀗𐀒𐀫 , da-mo-ko-ro ( damokoros )
10185-400: Was an official appointment but his duties are not very clear. The communal land was held at the hands of 𐀅𐀗 , da-mo (literally, "people", cf. Attic δῆμος , dễmos ), or "plot holders". It seems that the da-mo was a collective body of men, representing the local district and that it had certain power in public affairs. It is suggested that qa-si-re-u had a council of elders,
10290-402: Was connected to the Greek word mykēs (μύκης, "mushroom"). Thus Pausanias ascribes the name to the legendary founder, Perseus , who was said to have named it either after the cap ( mykēs ) of the sheath of his sword or after a mushroom he had plucked on the site. Homer connected the name to the nymph Mycene, the daughter of the river god Inachos of Argos ( Odyssey 2.120). In the Iliad
10395-575: Was discovered 1877 by Panagiotis Stamatakis at a low depth in the sixth shaft grave in Circle A. Further EH and MH material was found beneath the walls and floors of the palace, on the summit of the acropolis and outside the Lion Gate in the area of the ancient cemetery. An EH–MH settlement was discovered near a fresh-water well on top of the Kalkani hill south-west of the acropolis. The first burials in pits or cist graves manifest in MHII (c. 1800 BC) on
10500-482: Was going to invade their land. And they, not thinking themselves a match for the Sicyonians, collected together all the goats [ aiges ] in the country, and fastened torches to their horns, and directly night came on lit these torches. And the Sicyonians, who thought that the allies of the Hyperesians were coming up, and that this light was the campfires of the allied force, went home again: and the Hyperesians changed
10605-401: Was partly rebuilt after this destruction, though it was no longer the centre of a centralised literate bureacuracy. Pottery finds suggest that Postpalatial Mycenae eventually regained some of its wealth, before burning once again. After this period, the site remained sparsely populated until the Hellenistic era. A temple dedicated to Hera was built on the summit of the Mycenaean citadel during
10710-544: Was placed in the Room of the Idols alongside at least one statue of either LHIIIA:2 or B:1 type. Amenhotep III's relations with m-w-k-i-n-u , *Mukana, have corroboration from the inscription at Kom al-Hetan - but Amenhotep's reign is thought to align with late LHIIIA:1. It is likely that Amenhotep's herald presented the scarab to an earlier generation, which then found the resources to rebuild the citadel as Cyclopean and then, to move
10815-421: Was probably divine, but the term "for the king" is usually accompanied by another name. It is possible that a priest-king system was adopted from the East and the title probably indicates that his right to rule was given by the god. The term 𐀣𐀯𐀩𐀄 , qa-si-re-u ( cf. βασιλεύς , " basileús "), which was later used in Greece for "king", was apparently used for the "chief" of any group of people, or for
10920-572: Was proclaimed victor in the 23rd Olympiad in 688 BC; Eusebius refers his name as Icarius., while Cratinus, the winner of the Olympic prize for boys' wrestling in 260 BC, is named as a citizen of 'Aigeira'. Aigeira was a member of the Achaean League during its first period of existence in the early fourth century BCE, and again when it was re-founded in 284 BCE, after collapsing shortly after 323 BCE. During this period, probably early in
11025-467: Was the first nymph . Mycenaean religion was almost certainly polytheistic, and the Mycenaeans were actively syncretistic, adding foreign deities to their pantheon of deities with ease. The Mycenaeans probably entered Greece with a pantheon of deities headed by some ruling sky-deity, which linguists speculate might have been called *Dyeus in early Indo-European . In Greek, this deity would become Zeus (pronounced Zeus or Dias in ancient Greek ). Among
#590409