Asine (; grc, Ἀσίνη) was an ancient

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

city of ancient Argolis, located on the coast. It is mentioned by

Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the '' Iliad'' and the '' Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of ...

in the

Catalogue of Ships The Catalogue of Ships ( grc, νεῶν κατάλογος, ''neōn katálogos'') is an epic catalogue in Book 2 of Homer's ''Iliad'' (2.494–759), which lists the contingents of the Achaean army that sailed to Troy. The catalogue gives the nam ...

in the ''

Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the '' Odys ...

'' as one of the places subject to

Diomedes Diomedes (Jones, Daniel; Roach, Peter, James Hartman and Jane Setter, eds. ''Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary''. 17th edition. Cambridge UP, 2006.) or Diomede (; grc-gre, Διομήδης, Diomēdēs, "god-like cunning" or "advised by ...

, king of Argos. It is said to have been founded by the Dryopes, who originally dwelt on

Mount Parnassus Mount Parnassus (; el, Παρνασσός, ''Parnassós'') is a mountain range of central Greece that is and historically has been especially valuable to the Greek nation and the earlier Greek city-states for many reasons. In peace, it offers ...

. In one of the early wars (740 BCE) between the

Lacedaemonians Sparta (Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referred t ...

and the Argives, the Asinaeans joined the former when they invaded the Argive territory under their king

Nicander Nicander of Colophon ( grc-gre, Νίκανδρος ὁ Κολοφώνιος, Níkandros ho Kolophṓnios; fl. 2nd century BC), Greek poet, physician and grammarian, was born at Claros (Ahmetbeyli in modern Turkey), near Colophon, where his fami ...

; but as soon as the Lacedaemonians returned home, the Argives laid

siege A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characterize ...

to Asine and razed it to the ground, sparing only the temple of the Pythaëus Apollo. The Asinaeans escaped by sea; and the Lacedaemonians gave to them, after the end of the

First Messenian War The First Messenian War was a war between Messenia and Sparta. It began in 743 BC and ended in 724 BC, according to the dates given by Pausanias. The war continued the rivalry between the Achaeans and the Dorians that had been initiated by the ...

, a portion of the Messenian territory, where they built a new town (also named Asine). Nearly ten centuries after the destruction of the city its ruins were visited by Pausanias, who found the temple of Apollo still standing. Its site is located near the modern Tolon. Excavations made from 1922 by Swedish

archaeologists Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsca ...

led by Axel W. Persson (and involving the then Crown Prince Gustav Adolf of Sweden) found the

acropolis An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens, ...

of ancient Asine surrounded by a

Cyclopean wall Cyclopean masonry is a type of stonework found in Mycenaean architecture, built with massive limestone boulders, roughly fitted together with minimal clearance between adjacent stones and with clay mortar or no use of mortar. The boulders typic ...

(much modified in the

Hellenistic era 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 3 ...

) and a Mycenaean era

necropolis A necropolis (plural necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'', literally meaning "city of the dead". The term usually im ...

with many Mycenaean chamber tombs containing skeletal remains and grave goods. Excavations have continued since the 1920s almost continuously under the

Swedish Institute at Athens The Swedish Institute at Athens ( sv, Svenska institutet I Athen; el, Σουηδικό Ινστιτούτο Αθηνών) was founded in 1946 and is one of 19 foreign archaeological institutes operating in Athens, Greece. The Institute is one of ...

.Richard Stillwell, ed. ''Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites'', 1976:
"ASINE Argolid, Greece" The site was last used as a fortified position by Italian troops during the second world war when machine gun nests were built.

Sources

* Swedish Institute at Athens - Asine, Argolid: https://www.sia.gr/en/articles.php?tid=338&page=1

References

Populated places in ancient Argolis Former populated places in Greece Destroyed cities Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Greece Cities in ancient Peloponnese Locations in the Iliad Mycenaean sites in the Peloponnese (region) {{AncientArgolis-geo-stub

See also

Sources

References