Abae
Ἄβαι | |
 The archaeological site | |
  Abae Shown within Greece | |
| Alternative name | Kalapodi |
|---|---|
| Location | Ancient Phocis |
| Coordinates | 38°38′13.46″N22°53′44.81″E/ 38.6370722°N 22.8957806°E |
Abae(Ancient Greek:Ἄβαι,Abai)[1][i]was an ancient town in the northeastern corner ofancient Phocis,inGreece,near the frontiers of theOpuntian Locrians,said to have been built by theArgiveAbas,son ofLynceusandHypermnestra,and grandson ofDanaus.This bit of legend suggests an origin or at least an existence in theBronze Age.Its protohistory supports a continued existence inIron-Ageantiquity. It was famous for itsoracleofApolloAbaeus,[2]one of those consulted byCroesus,king ofLydia,[3][4][5]andMardonius,among others.[6]The site of the oracle was rediscovered atKalapodiand excavated in modern times. The results confirm an archaeological existence dating from the Bronze Age, as is suggested by the lore.
History[edit]
Before the Persian invasion, the temple was richly adorned with treasuries and votive offerings.[7]It was twice destroyed by fire; the first time by thePersiansin the invasion ofXerxesin their march through Phocis (480 BCE), and a second time by theBoeotiansin theSacred or Phocian Warin 346 BCE. It was rebuilt byHadrian.[8]Hadrian caused a smaller temple to be built near the ruins of the former one. In the new temple there were three ancient statues in brass of Apollo,Leto,andArtemis,which had been dedicated by the Abaei, and had perhaps been saved from the former temple. The ancientagoraand the ancient theatre still existed in the town in the time ofPausanias.According to the statement ofAristotle,as preserved byStrabo,Thraciansfrom the Phocian town of Abae immigrated toEuboea,and gave to the inhabitants the name of Abantes.[9][10][11][12]
Oracle[edit]
Despite destruction of the town, the oracle was still consulted, e.g. by theThebansbefore theBattle of Leuctrain 371 BCE.[5][13]The temple, along with the village of the same name, may have escaped destruction during the Third Sacred War (355–346 BCE), due to the respect given to the inhabitants;[14]however, it was in a very dilapidated state when seen by Pausanias in the 2nd century CE,[15]though some restoration, as well as the building of a new temple, was undertaken by Emperor Hadrian.[16]
The sanctity of the shrine ensured certain privileges to the people of Abae,[17]and these were confirmed by the Romans. The Persians did not reflect this opinion and would destroy all the temples that they overcame, Abae included. The Greeks pledged not to rebuild them as a memorial of the ravages of the Persians.[18]
Among the most exciting recent archaeological discoveries in Greece is the recognition that the sanctuary site near the modern village ofKalapodiis not only the site of the oracle of Apollon at Abae, but that it was in constant use for cult practices from earlyMycenaeantimes to the Roman period. It is thus the first site where the archaeology confirms the continuity ofMycenaeanand Classical Greek religion, which has been inferred from thepresence of the namesof Classical Greek divinities onLinear Btexts fromPylosandKnossos.[ii]
The fortified site described below, originally identified as Abae by ColonelWilliam Leakein the 19th century, is much more likely to be that of the Sanctuary ofArtemisatHyampolis:
"Thepolygonalwalls of the acropolis may still be seen in a fair state of preservation on a circular hill standing about 500 ft. [150 m] above the little plain ofExarcho;one gateway remains, and there are also traces of town walls below. The temple site was on a low spur of the hill, below the town. An early terrace wall supports a precinct in which are astoaand some remains of temples; these were excavated by theBritish School at Athensin 1894, but very little was found. "[19]
The oracle was mentioned in Oedipus Rex.[20]
Attribution[edit]
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Smith, William,ed. (1854–1857). "Abae".Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography.London: John Murray.
Notes[edit]
- ^The ancient history of the site is derived from references in ancient works. There is no continuous history. These references are called fragments. The Topos Text Project has undertaken to collect these fragments, combined with archaeological information, on various topics of ancient history. It has found at least 19 on Abae:"Apollo of Abae (phthiotis) 19 Kalapodi".Topos Text.Retrieved22 September2020.For example, one fromStephanus of Byzantium.Ethnica.Vol.s.v. Abae. states that Abae is "a city of the Phokians, where there is a sanctuary of Apollo. This was the oracle before the one in Delphi." The s.v. stands for sub verso, "under the heading."
- ^See reports of the excavations of the German Archaeological Institute in Archaeological Reports for 2008/9 43-45, Archaeological Reports for 2007/8 47-49, Archaeological Reports for 2006/7 41-43, Archaeological Reports for 2005/6 68-69, Archaeological Reports for 2004/5 55-56.
References[edit]
- ^Avery 1962,p. 1
- ^Schmitz 2013,p. 1
- ^Herodotus 1920,p. 53
- ^Hesychius & Schmidt 1867,p. 2
- ^abPausanias 1898,p. 439
- ^Bell 1989,p. 1
- ^Herodotus 2003,p. 33
- ^Smith 2011,p. 1
- ^Pausanias(1918)."35.1".Description of Greece.Vol. 10. Translated byW. H. S. Jones;H. A. Ormerod. Cambridge, Massachusetts; London: Harvard University Press; William Heinemann – viaPerseus Digital Library.et seq.
- ^Herodotus.Histories.Vol. 1.46, 8.134, 33.
- ^Diodorus Siculus.Bibliotheca historica(Historical Library).Vol. 16.530.
- ^Strabo.Geographica.Vol. pp. 423, 445.Page numbers refer to those ofIsaac Casaubon's edition.
- ^Henderson 2000,p. 351
- ^Henderson 2000a,p. 381
- ^Pausanias 1898,p. 440
- ^Hoiberg 2010,p. 7
- ^Bilco 1882,p. 172
- ^Henderson 2000a,p. 581
- ^One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911). "Abae".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 1 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 6.
- ^Sophocles,Oedipus Tyrannus897
Reference bibliography[edit]
- Avery, Catherine A., ed. (1962). "Abae".The New Century Classical Handbook.New York, NY: Appleton-Century-Crofts, Inc.LCCN62-10069.
- Bell, Robert E. (1989).Place-Names in Classical Mythology.Santa Barbara, CA:ABC-CLIO.ISBN978-0874365078.
- Bilco, J. (1882)."Lettre du roi Philippe aux habitants d'Abae".Bulletin de Correspondance Hellénique.6:171–175.doi:10.3406/bch.1882.4191.
- Henderson, Jeffrey, ed. (2000) [1926].Pausanian Description of Greece.Vol. II: Books III-V. Translated by W. H. S. Jones; H. A. Ormerod. Cambridge, UK: Harvard University Press.ISBN0-674-99207-5.
- Henderson, Jeffrey, ed. (2000a) [1935].Pausanian Description of Greece.Vol. IV: Books VIII §22 — X. Translated by W. H. S. Jones; H. A. Ormerod. Cambridge, UK: Harvard University Press.ISBN0-674-99328-4.
- Herodotus(1920).Herodotus.Vol. I: Books I and II. Translated by Godley, A. D. London, UK: William Heinemann.ISBN9780674991316.
- Herodotus(2003) [1939]. Powell, J. Enoch (ed.).Herodotus, Book VIII(in Ancient Greek). London, UK: Duckworth Publishers.ISBN978-0862920043.
- Hesychius;Schmidt, Mauricius (1867)."Ἄβαι".Hesychii Alexandrini lexicon(in Ancient Greek) (2nd ed.). Sumptibus Hermanni Dufftii (Libraria Maukiana).
- Hoiberg, Dale H., ed. (2010). "Abae".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 1: A-ak Bayes (15th ed.). Chicago, Illinois: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.ISBN978-0-85229-961-6.LCCN2002113989.
- Pausanias(1898).Pausanias's Description of Greece.Vol. V. Translated by Frazer, J. G. London, UK: Macmillan and Company, Limited.
- Schmitz, Leonhard (2013) [1867]."Abaeus".In Smith, William (ed.).Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.Cambridge Library Collection - Classics. Vol. 1: Abaeus - Dysponteus. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.ISBN978-1108060820.Archived fromthe originalon 2008-07-14.
- Smith, William(2011) [1850]."Abæ".A new classical dictionary of biography, mythology, and geography, partly based on the "Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology".Nabu Press.ISBN978-1172756001.
External links[edit]
- German Archaeological Institute(German)
- 10-part documentary series(German)
- Excavation archiveof theBritish School at AthensandFrench School at Athens(English and French)
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