Antikes Theater von Aptera, Kreta, Griechenland

Aptera ( or ) or Apteron was an ancient city, now an archaeological site in western

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...

, a kilometre inland from the southern shore of

Souda Bay Souda Bay is a bay and natural harbour near the town of Souda on the northwest coast of the Greece, Greek island of Crete. The bay is about 15 km long and only two to four km wide, and a deep natural harbour. It is formed between the Akr ...

, about 13 km east of

Chania Chania ( el, Χανιά ; vec, La Canea), also spelled Hania, is a city in Greece and the capital of the Chania regional unit. It lies along the north west coast of the island Crete, about west of Rethymno and west of Heraklion. The muni ...

in the municipality of Akrotiri.

History

It is mentioned (A-pa-ta-wa) in

Linear B Linear B was a syllabic script used for writing in Mycenaean Greek, the earliest attested form of Greek. The script predates the Greek alphabet by several centuries. The oldest Mycenaean writing dates to about 1400 BC. It is descended from ...

tablets from the 14th-13th centuries BC. With its highly fortunate geographical situation, the city-state was powerful from

Minoan The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age Aegean civilization on the island of Crete and other Aegean Islands, whose earliest beginnings were from 3500BC, with the complex urban civilization beginning around 2000BC, and then declining from 1450B ...

through

Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...

times, when it gradually declined. However, the Minoan settlement of the Bronze Age was located about 1.5 km away from Aptera, at the place of the modern

Stylos Stylos or Stilos ( el, Στύλος) is a village and part of the Apokoronas municipal unit in the Chania regional unit of the Greek island of Crete. The Greek etymology of the name of the village is 'column' or 'pillar'. No existing topograp ...

settlement. In

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical co ...

, Aptera was the site of the legendary contest between the

Sirens Siren or sirens may refer to: Common meanings * Siren (alarm), a loud acoustic alarm used to alert people to emergencies * Siren (mythology), an enchanting but dangerous monster in Greek mythology Places * Siren (town), Wisconsin * Siren, Wisco ...

and the

Muses In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses ( grc, Μοῦσαι, Moûsai, el, Μούσες, Múses) are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the p ...

, when after the victory of the Muses, the Sirens lost the feathers of their wings from their shoulders, and having thus become white, cast themselves into the sea. The name of the city literally means "without wings", and the neighbouring islands Leucae means "white". Aptera - Akrotiri und Ruine

In the third century BC, Aptera was at war with

Kydonia Kydonia or Cydonia (; grc, Κυδωνία; lat, Cydonia) was an ancient city-state on the northwest coast of the island of Crete. It is at the site of the modern-day Greek city of Chania. In legend Cydonia was founded by King Cydon (), a son ...

,Hogan, 2008 a prominent ancient city on northwestern

. In much of the Greek Archaic Period, Aptera was under the control of

. During the

Lyttian War The Lyttian War was an internal conflict fought from around 220 BC to about 216 BC between two coalitions of Cretan city-states, led by Cnossus and Polyrrhenia respectively. The events of the war are recorded by the historian Polybius. It is c ...

in 220 BC, Aptera was at one time in alliance with Cnossus, but was afterwards compelled by the

Polyrrhenia Polyrrhenia or Polyrrenia ( grc, Πολυρρηνία; modern el, Πολυρρηνία, Polyrrinia), Polyrrhen or Polyrren (Πολύρρην) or Polyren (Πολύρην), or Pollyrrhenia or Pollyrrenia (Πολλύρρηνα),''Periplus of Pseudo- ...

ns to side with them against that city. The port of Aptera according to

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...

was Cisamus. It was destroyed by

earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...

during the 7th century. By the 12th century, a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

of St. John Theologos had been built on the site; it continued in operation until 1964. The site is now maintained by the

Greek Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture and Sports ( el, Υπουργείο Πολιτισμού και Αθλητισμού) is the government department of Greece entrusted with preserving the country's cultural heritage, promoting the arts, and overseeing s ...

, Department of Antiquities. The hilltop, about 150 metres above the sea, commands views of

and the

Akrotiri Peninsula The Akrotiri Peninsula is a short peninsula which includes the southernmost point of the island of Cyprus. It is bounded by Episkopi Bay to the west and Akrotiri Bay to the east and has two capes to the south-west and south-east, known as Cape Zev ...

to the north, the Lefka Ori (White Mountains) to the south, and

Kalives Kalyves () is a large village in Crete, Greece, the main village in the municipal unit of Armenoi. It is now a popular tourist resort that has maintained its Cretan character. It is said that the Kalyves took their name from the makeshift accommo ...

and the Turkish

Izzedin Fortress The Izzeddin Fortress ( el, Φρούριο Ιτζεδδίν; ''Izzeddin'' means "Glory of the Faith") is an Ottoman Empire, Ottoman fortress in Souda Bay, Crete, near the village of Kalami, Aptera, Kalami, best known for its role as a prison for ...

to the east; the city of

is not quite visible to the west. There are several structures within the square monastery enclosure,Taylor, 1863 including a chapel and a two-story block of monks' cells. The surrounding site is notable for a two-part temple from the 5th century BC, a large three-vaulted Roman

cistern A cistern (Middle English ', from Latin ', from ', "box", from Greek ', "basket") is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by t ...

, Roman baths, and parts of several

Doric Doric may refer to: * Doric, of or relating to the Dorians of ancient Greece ** Doric Greek, the dialects of the Dorians * Doric order, a style of ancient Greek architecture * Doric mode, a synonym of Dorian mode * Doric dialect (Scotland) * Doric ...

temples. An ancient theater and a Roman peristyle villa have also been discovered on the site.

History

See also

References

Further reading