Argos

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Argos Άργος
A view of Argos showing the remains of the ancient theatre
Location
Argos
Coordinates	37°37′N 22°43′E / 37.617°N 22.717°E / 37.617; 22.717Coordinates: 37°37′N 22°43′E / 37.617°N 22.717°E / 37.617; 22.717
Time zone:	EET/EEST (UTC+2/3)
Elevation (center):	42 m (138 ft)
Government
Country:	Greece
Periphery:	Peloponnese
Prefecture:	Argolis
Mayor:	Vasilios Mpoures
Population statistics (as of 2001[1])
City
- Population:	24,239
Municipality
- Population:	29,228
- Area:	138.138 km² (53 sq mi)
- Density:	212 /km² (548 /sq mi)
Codes
Postal:	21200
Telephone:	2751
Auto:	AP
Website
www.argos.gr

Argos (Greek: Ἄργος, Árgos, IPA: [ˈaɾɣos]) is a city in Greece in the Peloponnese near Nafplion, which was its historic harbour, named for Nauplius.

Contents 1 Name 2 History 2.1 Ancient Argos 2.2 Medieval Argos 2.3 Modern Argos 3 Greek mythology on film 4 Notable people 5 See also 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Name

The region of Argos is called the Argolis, Argolid, or Argeia. The inhabitants of Argos were called Ἀργεῖοι or Argīvī in Latin, rendered Argives in English.

The name might be of pre-Greek ("Pelasgian") derivation; the name of its acropolis, Larissa certainly is. Aitiology derives it from a mythological founder, Argos son of Zeus and Niobe (see also Danaus).

[edit] History

[edit] Ancient Argos

A Neolithic settlement was located near the central sanctuary of Argolis, removed 45 stadia from Argos, closer to Mycenae. The temple was dedicated to "Argivian Hera". The main festival of that temple was the Hekatombaia, one of the major festivals of Argos itself. Walter Burkert (Homo necans, p. 185) connected the festival to the myth of the slaying of Argus Panoptes by Hermes. There have been speculations that Hermes' epitheton Argeiphontes, which was understood as "Argus-slayer" very early, is in fact related to the adjective argós "shimmering" or "quick", from a root arg- (PIE *arǵ-, hence also argyros, silver), with a meaning "shining brightly" or similar, and only secondarily connected with the toponym or mythological Argus.

Argos was a major stronghold of Mycenaean times, and along with the neighboring acropoleis of Mycenae and Tiryns became very early settlements because of their commanding positions in the midst of the fertile plain of Argolis.

In Homeric times it belonged to a follower of Agamemnon and gave its name to the surrounding district; the Argolid which the Romans knew as Argeia. The importance of Argos was eclipsed by nearby Sparta after the 6th century BC.

Because of its refusal to fight or send supplies in the Greco-Persian Wars, Argos was shunned by most other city-states.^{[citation needed]} Argos remained neutral or the ineffective ally of Athens during the 5th century BC struggles between Sparta and Athens.

The Mythological kings of Argos are (in order): Inachus, Phoroneus, Argus, Triopas, Agenor, Iasus, Crotopus, Pelasgus (aka Gelanor), Danaus, Lynceus, Abas, Proetus, Acrisius, Perseus, Megapénthês, Argeus, and Anaxagoras. An alternative version (supplied by Tatiānus^[2]) of the original 17 consecutive kings of Argōs includes Apis, Argios, Kriasos, and Phorbas between Argus and Triopas, explaining the apparent unrelation of Triopas to Argus.

After the original 17 kings of Argos, there were three kings ruling Argos at the same time (see Anaxagoras), one descended from Bias, one from Melampus, and one from Anaxagoras. Melampus was succeeded by his son Mantius, then Oicles, and Amphiaraus, and his house of Melampus lasted down to the brothers Alcmaeon and Amphilochus.

Anaxagoras was succeeded by his son Alector, and then Iphis. Iphis left his kingdom to his nephew Sthenelus, the son of his brother Capaneus.

Bias was succeeded by his son Talaus, and then by his son Adrastus who, with Amphiaraus, lead the disastrous Seven Against Thebes. Adrastus left the kingdom to his son, Aegialeus, who was subsequently killed in the war of the Epigoni. Diomedes, grandson of Adrastus through his daughter Deipyle, replaced Aegialeus and was King of Argos during the Trojan war. This house lasted longer than those of Anaxagoras and Melampus, and eventually the kingdom was reunited under its last member, Cyanippus, son of Aegialeus, following the exile of Diomedes.

Argos was apparently abandoned during the Greek Dark Ages, after the reign of Cyanippus, and remained in disrepair until it was rebuilt in the Middle Ages, nearly 2000 years later.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Medieval Argos

In the 12th century, a castle was built on Larissa Hill - the site of the ancient Acropolis - called Kastro Larissa. Argos fell to the Crusaders then the Venetians, and was taken by the Ottomans in 1463. Francesco Morosini captured it for Venice in 1686 but it was retaken by the Ottomans in 1715.

At the beginning of the Greek War of Independence, when many petty local republics that were formed in different parts of the country, the "Consulate of Argos" was proclaimed on 26 May 1821, under the Senate of the Peloponnese. It had a single head of state, styled Consul, 28 March 1821 - 26 May 1821: Stamatellos Antonopoulos.

Later, Argos accepted the authority of the unified Provisional Government at the First National Assembly at Epidaurus, and eventually became part of the Kingdom of Greece.

[edit] Modern Argos

The city of Argos is the seat of the province of the same name, one of the three subdivisions of the Argolis prefecture. According to the 2001 Greek census, the city has a population of 27,550. It is the largest city in the prefecture, one of the few prefectures in Greece where the largest city in population is larger than the prefectural capital.

Considerable remains of the city survive and are a popular tourist attraction. Agriculture, however, is the primary economic activity in the area, with citrus fruits the predominant crop. Olives are also popular here.

Argos has a railway station (Kalamata - Tripoli - Corinth), and a junior soccer team. The Argos Archaeological Museum houses ancient artifacts recovered not only from the principal archaeological sites of the city, including the theater and agora but also from Lerna. [1]

[edit] Greek mythology on film

In the film Clash of the Titans, Zeus orders the city of Argos destroyed after Acrisius arranges for his own daughter Danae and her son Perseus, who is also the natural son of Zeus, to be cast into the sea in a wooden chest to drown. Poseidon releases a sea monster known as the Kraken (singular instead of plural in the film), which causes a tidal wave to devastate the city and kill Acrisius. Danae and Perseus survive and end up on Seriphos.

[edit] Notable people

• Pheidon (7th century BC) king
• Ageladas (6th-5th century BC)
• Polykleitos (5th-4th century BC) sculptor
• Polykleitos the Younger (4th century BC) sculptor

[edit] See also

• Communities of Argolis
• Communities of Argos
• Argos (dog) Mythology: Dog of Odysseus

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official site
• The Theatre at Argos, The Ancient Theatre Archive, Theatre specifications and virtual reality tour of theatre

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of the Argolis Prefecture Municipalities Argos • Asini • Asklipieio • Epidaurus • Ermioni • Koutsopodi • Kranidi • Lerna • Lyrkeia • Midea • Mykines • Nafplion • Nea Kios • Nea Tiryntha Communities Achladokampos • Alea • Sterna