Opus ( grc, Ὀποῦς) was a town in the mountainous district of Acroreia in

ancient Elis Elis () or Eleia ( el, Ήλιδα, Ilida, grc-att, Ἦλις, Ēlis ; Elean: , ethnonym: ) is an ancient district in Greece that corresponds to the modern regional unit of Elis. Elis is in southern Greece on the Peloponnese, bounded on th ...

, taken by the

Spartans 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 ...

, when they invaded Elis at the close of the

Peloponnesian War The Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC) was an ancient Greek war fought between Athens and Sparta and their respective allies for the hegemony of the Greek world. The war remained undecided for a long time until the decisive intervention of th ...

Diodorus Siculus Diodorus Siculus, or Diodorus of Sicily ( grc-gre, Διόδωρος ; 1st century BC), was an ancient Greek historian. He is known for writing the monumental universal history ''Bibliotheca historica'', in forty books, fifteen of which su ...

writes that the Spartans, under command of

Pausanias of Sparta Pausanias ( grc-gre, Παυσανίας) was the Agiad King of Sparta; the son of Pleistoanax. He ruled Sparta from 445 BC to 427 BC and again from 409 BC to 395 BC. He was the leader of the faction in Sparta that opposed the imperialist policy c ...

, marched against Elis with 4,000 men in 402 BCE, and that Opus (along with Alium, Eupagium, Thraustus, and

Lasion Lasion ( gr, Λασίων or Λασιών) was the chief town of the mountainous district of Acroreia in ancient Elis proper, situated upon the frontiers of Arcadia near Psophis. Lasion was a frequent object of dispute between the Arcadians and E ...

) was one of the towns subdued.

Xenophon Xenophon of Athens (; grc, wikt:Ξενοφῶν, Ξενοφῶν ; – probably 355 or 354 BC) was a Greek military leader, philosopher, and historian, born in Athens. At the age of 30, Xenophon was elected commander of one of the biggest Anci ...

mentions an Arcadian raid into Elis and took several towns of Acroreia around 365 BCE.

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 ...

says that the inhabitants of Opus were related to those of the

Locrian Opus Opus ( grc, Ὀποῦς, Opoûs or Ὀπόεις) was an ancient Greek city that was the chief city of a tribe of Locri, who were called from this place the Opuntian Locrians, and the territory, the Opuntian Locris. It was located on the coa ...

. The

Scholiast Scholia (singular scholium or scholion, from grc, σχόλιον, "comment, interpretation") are grammatical, critical, or explanatory comments – original or copied from prior commentaries – which are inserted in the margin of th ...

Pindar Pindar (; grc-gre, Πίνδαρος , ; la, Pindarus; ) was an Ancient Greek lyric poet from Thebes. Of the canonical nine lyric poets of ancient Greece, his work is the best preserved. Quintilian wrote, "Of the nine lyric poets, Pindar is ...

mentions a river Opus in Elis. Its site has not been located, also some suggest it may be the ruins near modern Gartsiko.

References

Populated places in ancient Elis Former populated places in Greece Lost ancient cities and towns {{ancientElis-geo-stub