Aliphera ( grc, Ἀλίφηρα) or Alipheira (Ἀλίφειρα) was a town of

ancient Arcadia Arcadia ( el, Ἀρκαδία) is a region in the central Peloponnese. It takes its name from the mythological character Arcas, and in Greek mythology it was the home of the gods Hermes and Pan. In European Renaissance arts, Arcadia was celebrat ...

, in the district Parrhasia, said to have been built by Alipherus, a son of Lycaon. It was situated upon a steep and lofty hill, 40

stadia Stadia may refer to: * One of the plurals of stadium, along with "stadiums" * The plural of stadion, an ancient Greek unit of distance, which equals to 600 Greek feet (''podes''). * Stadia (Caria), a town of ancient Caria, now in Turkey * Stadi ...

(about 8 km) south of the Alpheius, and the same distance from Heraea, and near the frontiers of

Elis Elis or Ilia ( el, Ηλεία, ''Ileia'') is a historic region in the western part of the Peloponnese peninsula of Greece. It is administered as a regional unit of the modern region of Western Greece. Its capital is Pyrgos. Until 2011 it was ...

. It was a member of the

Arcadian League The Arcadian League ( grc, ) was a league of city-states in ancient Greece. It combined the various cities of Arcadia, in the Peloponnese, into a single state. The league was founded in 370 BC, taking advantage of the decreased power of Sparta, w ...

. A large number of its inhabitants removed to

Megalopolis A megalopolis () or a supercity, also called a megaregion, is a group of metropolitan areas which are perceived as a continuous urban area through common systems of transport, economy, resources, ecology, and so on. They are integrated enoug ...

upon the foundation of the latter city in 371 BCE; but it still continued to be a place of some importance. It was ceded to the Eleans by Lydiades, when tyrant of Megalopolis (224 BCE); but it was taken from them by

Philip V of Macedon Philip V ( grc-gre, Φίλιππος ; 238–179 BC) was king ( Basileus) of Macedonia from 221 to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of the Roman Republic. He would lead Macedon ag ...

in the Social War, in 219 BCE after a long siege, and restored to Megalopolis. Later it joined the

Achaean League The Achaean League (Greek: , ''Koinon ton Akhaion'' "League of Achaeans") was a Hellenistic-era confederation of Greek city states on the northern and central Peloponnese. The league was named after the region of Achaea in the northwestern Pel ...

and minted its own currency.Αρχαίες πόλεις πέριξ της Ολυμπίας = ''Ancient Cities Other Than Olympia'', Vasilis Taktikos, Athanasios Kourmatzi, Vasiliki Taktikou, Anadrasi

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

2002 Later, the city was subject to the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

. When

Pausanias Pausanias ( el, Παυσανίας) may refer to: *Pausanias of Athens, lover of the poet Agathon and a character in Plato's ''Symposium'' *Pausanias the Regent, Spartan general and regent of the 5th century BC *Pausanias of Sicily, physician of th ...

visited it in the 2nd century, the town contained temples of

Asclepius Asclepius (; grc-gre, Ἀσκληπιός ''Asklēpiós'' ; la, Aesculapius) is a hero and god of medicine in ancient Religion in ancient Greece, Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology. He is the son of Apollo and Coronis (lover of ...

and

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of ...

, and a celebrated bronze statue by Hypatodorus of the latter goddess, who was said to have been born here. Its site is located near the modern

Alifeira Alifeira ( el, Αλίφειρα) is a mountain village and a former Communities and Municipalities of Greece, municipality in Elis (regional unit), Elis, West Greece, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality And ...

, which was renamed to reflect association with the ancient town. The first excavations were done by

Anastasios Orlandos Anastasios Orlandos ( el, Αναστάσιος Ορλάνδος, 23 December 1887 – 6 October 1979) was a Greek architect and historian of architecture. Biography A descendant of Ioannis Orlandos, Anastasios was born and died in Athens. He s ...

in 1932. In the ancient city the temples of Athena and Asclepius, the acropolis, the cemetery wall and some buildings have been found.

References

Populated places in ancient Arcadia Former populated places in Greece Arcadian city-states Parrhasia Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Greece {{AncientArcadia-geo-stub