Peirasia

Peirasia (Ancient Greek: Πειρασία) or Peiresia, was an ancient Greek polis (city-state), located in the tetrad of Thessaliotis in western Thessaly, close to the confluences of Apidanus and Enipeus. In mythological sources, it is often connected with Asterium, the home of Asterion, one of the Argonauts.[1] The site of Peirasia has recently been securely identified[2] with the archaeological remains at Ermitsi[3] in the region of Karditsa.

Peirasia
Πειρασία
The site of Peirasia at modern Ermitsi
Shown within Greece
Alternative nameAsterium
LocationErmitsi
RegionKarditsa (regional unit), Greece
Coordinates39°25′13″N 22°06′11″E
TypeSettlement
History
CulturesAncient Greece
Site notes
ArchaeologistsLeonidas Hatziangelakis
Websitehttp://odysseus.culture.gr/h/3/gh352.jsp?obj_id=20626

Until the find at Ermitsi of stamped roof-tiles bearing the inscription (P)eirasi(eōn) ("of the Peirasieans"),[4] the site of Peirasia was generally assumed to be at Vlochos[5] or Sykeona.[6] The site at Ermitsi is that of a large multi-period tell or magoula, upon the present village is located. Excavations on and around the tell by the Ephorate of Antiquities of Karditsa have yielded finds of the Neolithic until the Hellenistic period.[7] The layout of the ancient settlement is unknown as it is nearly completely covered by modern buildings and houses.

Peirasia struck coins in the 4th century BC, depicting Athena Itonia on the obverse, and a horseman on the reverse, with the legend Peirasieōn.[8][6]

References

  1. Apollonius of Rhodes. Argonautica. I.35.
  2. Stamatopoulou, Maria (2012). "Thessaly (Prehistoric to Roman)". Archaeological Reports. 58: 75–95. doi:10.1017/S0570608412000142.
  3. http://listedmonuments.culture.gr/monument.php?code=6939
  4. Hatziangelakis, Leonidas (1993). "Ερμήτσι". Αρχαιολογικόν Δελτίον Χρονικά. 48 (Β'2): 244.
  5. "Peirasia". Realencyclopädie der classischen Altertumswissenschaft. J. B. Metzler. 1937.
  6. Jean-Claude Decourt, Thomas Heine Nielsen & Bruno Helly (2004). "Thessaly and Adjacent Regions". In Mogens Herman Hansen & Thomas Heine Nielsen (ed.). An inventory of Archaic and Classical poleis. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 700. ISBN 0-19-814099-1.
  7. Leonidas Hatziaggelakis (2012). "ΛΔ' Εφορεία Προϊστορικών και Κλασσικών αρχαιοτήτων". In Maria Vlazaki (ed.). 2000–2010: Από το ανασκαφικό έργο των εφορείων αρχαιοτήτων (PDF). Athens: Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Tourism. p. 162.
  8. Pendleton, Elizabeth J. (2008). "The coinage of Peirasia". Schweizerische numismatische Rundschau. 87: 45–56. doi:10.5169/seals-179255.


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