Thyron ( grc, Θρύον), sometimes
Latinized as Thryum, or Thryoessa (Θρυόεσσα) was a town in
Triphylia
Triphylia ( el, Τριφυλία, ''Trifylia'', "the country of the three tribes") was an area of the ancient Peloponnese. Strabo and Pausanias both describe Triphylia as part of Elis, and it fell at times under the domination of the city of Eli ...
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 ...
, 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 the ...
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 na ...
of 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 ''Odysse ...
'', where the town is noted to be in the dominions of
Nestor. The town is also noted in the
Homeric Hymn to Apollo. Later in the ''Iliad'', the poet describes Thyron was at the ford of the river
Alpheius. In the same passage, Homer calls the town Thryoessa, places it upon a lofty hill, and relates how it withstood a siege by the
Epeii during their war against the Eleans.
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 ...
identified Thyron with the later
Epitalium
Epitalium or Epitalion ( grc, Ἐπιτάλιον) was a town of Triphylia in ancient Elis, near the coast and a little south of the river Alpheius. It was identified with the Homeric Thryon (Θρύον) or Thryoessa (Θρυόεσσα), a town ...
; but the identity is uncertain.
References
Populated places in ancient Elis
Former populated places in Greece
Lost ancient cities and towns
Locations in the Iliad
Triphylia
{{AncientElis-geo-stub