1 Genuine Ancient Greek coin Mesembria Apollonia Maroneia Amphipolis URANOPOLIS

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Date:350BC
Year:100 BC
Composition:Bronze
Historical Period:Greek (450 BC-100 AD)
Era:Ancient

One original ancient Greek coin of:Random coin of Greek city.Each bid will receive one Random coin from the lot pictured. Original glossy green brown patina. 9-16mm. in diameter. Rare and interesting coin as pictured. Authenticity guaranteed.!! Founded by Athenians in 436 B.C. to protect their mining interests in the north, Amphipolis surrendered to the Spartan general Brasidas in 424. The city preserved its independence until 357 when it was captured by Philip II, King of Macedon. You are bidding on the exact item pictured, provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee of Authenticity. Helmeted Athena with the cista and Erichthonius in his serpent form. Roman, first century (Louvre Museum) In Greek religion and mythology , Athena or Athene, also referred to as Pallas Athena/Athene , is the goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, civilization, law and justice, just warfare, mathematics, strength, strategy, the arts, crafts, and skill. Minerva is the Roman goddess identified with Athena. Marble Greek copy signed “Antiokhos”, a first century BC variant of Phidias ‘ fifth-century Athena Promachos that stood on the Acropolis Athena is also a shrewd companion of heroes and is the goddess of heroic endeavour. She is the virgin patroness of Athens . The Athenians founded the Parthenon on the Acropolis of her namesake city, Athens (Athena Parthenos), in her honour.[4] Athena’s veneration as the patron of Athens seems to have existed from the earliest times, and was so persistent that archaic myths about her were recast to adapt to cultural changes. In her role as a protector of the city (polis), many people throughout the Greek world worshiped Athena as Athena Polias (Ἀθηνᾶ ÃŽ ολιάÃ�‚ “Athena of the city”). The city of Athens and the goddess Athena essentially bear the same name,[5] “Athenai” meaning “[many] Athenas”. Origin traditions The Greek philosopher Plato (429–347 BC) identified her with the Libyan deity Neith [citation needed], the war goddess and huntress deity of the Egyptians since the ancient Pre-Dynastic period, who was also identified with weaving . This is sensible, as some Greeks identified Athena’s birthplace, in certain mythological renditions, as being beside Libya’s Triton River in North Africa.[6] Scholar Martin Bernal created the controversial[7][8] Black Athena Theory to explain this associated origin by claiming that the conception of Neith was brought to Greece from Egypt, along with “an enormous number of features of civilization and culture in the third and second millennia.”[9] Patroness Athenian tetradrachm representing the goddess Athena Athena as the goddess of philosophy became an aspect of the cult in Classical Greece during the late 5th century BC.[10] She is the patroness of various crafts, especially of weaving , as Athena Ergane, and was honored as such at festivals such as Chalceia . The metalwork of weapons also fell under her patronage. She led battles (Athena Promachos or the warrior maiden Athena Parthenos)[11] as the disciplined, strategic side of war, in contrast to her brother Ares, the patron of violence, bloodlust and slaughterâ€â€�”the raw force of war”.[12] Athena’s wisdom includes the cunning intelligence (metis) of such figures as Odysseus . Not only was this version of Athena the opposite of Ares in combat, it was also the polar opposite of the serene earth goddess version of the deity, Athena Polias.[11] Athena appears in Greek mythology as the patron and helper of many heroes, including Odysseus , Jason , and Heracles . In Classical Greek myths, she never consorts with a lover, nor does she ever marry,[13] earning the title Athena Parthenos. A remnant of archaic myth depicts her as the adoptive mother of Erechtheus /Erichthonius through the foiled rape by Hephaestus .[14] Other variants relate that Erichthonius, the serpent that accompanied Athena, was born to Gaia : when the rape failed, the semen landed on Gaia and impregnated her. After Erechthonius was born, Gaia gave him to Athena. Though Athena is a goddess of war strategy, she disliked fighting without purpose and preferred to use wisdom to settle predicaments.[15] The goddess only encouraged fighting for a reasonable cause or to resolve conflict. As patron of Athens she fought in the Trojan war on the side of the Achaeans. Mythology Birth Olympian version After he swallowed her pregnant mother, Metis , Athena is “born” from Zeus’ forehead as he grasps the clothing of Eileithyia on the right â€â€�black-figured amphora , 550–525 BC, Louvre. Although Athena appears before Zeus at Knossos â€â€�in Linear B , as a-ta-na po-ti-ni-ja, “Mistress Athena”[16]â€â€�in the Classical Olympian pantheon , Athena was remade as the favorite daughter of Zeus, born fully armed from his forehead.[17] The story of her birth comes in several versions. In the one most commonly cited, Zeus lay with Metis, the goddess of crafty thought and wisdom, but he immediately feared the consequences. It had been prophesied that Metis would bear children more powerful than the sire,[18] even Zeus himself. In order to forestall these dire consequences, after lying with Metis, Zeus “put her away inside his own belly;” he “swallowed her down all of a sudden.”[19] He was too late: Metis had already conceived. Eventually Zeus experienced an enormous headache; Prometheus , Hephaestus , Hermes , Ares, or Palaemon (depending on the sources examined) cleaved Zeus’s head with the double-headed Minoan axe, the labrys . Athena leaped from Zeus’s head, fully grown and armed, with a shoutâ€â€� “and pealed to the broad sky her clarion cry of war. And Ouranos trembled to hear, and Mother Gaia…” (Pindar, Seventh Olympian Ode). Plato, in the Laws , attributes the cult of Athena to the culture of Crete , introduced, he thought, from Libya during the dawn of Greek culture. Classical myths thereafter note that Hera was so annoyed at Zeus for having produced a child that she conceived and bore Hephaestus by herself . Plato, in Cratylus (407B) gave the etymology of her name as signifying “the mind of god”, theou noesis. The Christian apologist of the 2nd century Justin Martyr takes issue with those pagans who erect at springs images of Kore , whom he interprets as Athena: “They said that Athena was the daughter of Zeus not from intercourse, but when the god had in mind the making of a world through a word (logos) his first thought was Athena”.[20] Other origin tales Some origin stories tell of Athena having been born outside of Olympus and raised by the god Triton. Fragments attributed by the Christian Eusebius of Caesarea to the semi-legendary Phoenician historian Sanchuniathon , which Eusebius thought had been written before the Trojan war , make Athena instead the daughter of Cronus , a king of Byblos who visited ‘the inhabitable world’ and bequeathed Attica to Athena.[21] Sanchuniathon’s account would make Athena the sister of Zeus and Hera, not Zeus’ daughter. Pallas Athena The major competing tradition regarding Athena’s parentage involves some of her more mysterious epithets : Pallas, as in the ancient-Greek ÃŽ αλλάÃ�‚ Άθήνη (also Pallantias) and Tritogeneia (also Trito, Tritonis, Tritoneia, Tritogenes). A distant archaic separate entity named Pallas is invoked as Athena’s father, sister, foster sister, companion, or opponent in battle. Pallas is often a nymph, a daughter of Triton (a sea god), and a childhood friend of Athena.[22] In every case, Athena kills Pallas, accidentally, and thereby gains the name for herself. In one telling, they practice the arts of war together until one day they have a falling out. As Pallas is about to strike Athena, Zeus intervenes. With Pallas stunned by a blow from Zeus, Athena takes advantage and kills her. Distraught over what she has done, Athena takes the name Pallas for herself. When Pallas is Athena’s father the events, including her birth, are located near a body of water named Triton or Tritonis . When Pallas is Athena’s sister or foster-sister, Athena’s father or foster-father is Triton , the son and herald of Poseidon . But Athena may be called the daughter of Poseidon and a nymph named Tritonis, without involving Pallas. Likewise, Pallas may be Athena’s father or opponent, without involving Triton.[23] On this topic, Walter Burkert says “she is the Pallas of Athens, Pallas Athenaie, just as Hera of Argos is Here Argeie.[24] For the Athenians, Burkert notes, Athena was simply “the Goddess”, hÄ“ theós, certainly an ancient title. Athena Parthenos: Virgin Athena Athena never had a consort or lover and is thus known as Athena Parthenos , “Virgin Athena”. Her most famous temple, the Parthenon , on the Acropolis in Athens takes its name from this title. It is not merely an observation of her virginity, but a recognition of her role as enforcer of rules of sexual modesty and ritual mystery. Even beyond recognition, the Athenians allotted the goddess value based on this pureness of virginity as it upheld a rudiment of female behavior in the patriarchal society. Kerenyi’s study and theory of Athena accredits her virginal toponym to be a result of the relationship to her father Zeus and a vital, cohesive piece of her character throughout the ages.[25] This role is expressed in a number of stories about Athena. Marinus of Neapolis reports that when Christians removed the statue of the Goddess from the Parthenon , a beautiful woman appeared in a dream to Proclus , a devotee of Athena, and announced that the “Athenian Lady” wished to dwell with him.[26] Erichthonius Hephaestus attempted to rape Athena, but she eluded him. His semen fell to the earth and impregnated the soil, and Erichthonius was born from the Earth, Gaia . Athena then raised the baby as a foster mother.[27] Athena puts the infant Erichthonius into a small box (cista) which she entrusts to the care of three sisters, Herse , Pandrosus , and Aglaulus of Athens. The goddess does not tell them what the box contains, but warns them not to open it until she returns. One or two sisters opens the cista to reveal Erichthonius, in the form (or embrace) of a serpent . The serpent, or insanity induced by the sight, drives Herse and Aglaulus to throw themselves off the Acropolis .[28] Jane Harrison (Prolegomena) finds this to be a simple cautionary tale directed at young girls carrying the cista in the Thesmophoria rituals, to discourage them from opening it outside the proper context. Another version of the myth of the Athenian maidens is told in Metamorphoses by the Roman poet Ovid (43 BC – 17 AD); in this late variant Hermes falls in love with Herse. Herse, Aglaulus, and Pandrosus go to the temple to offer sacrifices to Athena. Hermes demands help from Aglaulus to seduce Herse. Aglaulus demands money in exchange. Hermes gives her the money the sisters have already offered to Athena. As punishment for Aglaulus’s greed, Athena asks the goddess Envy to make Aglaulus jealous of Herse. When Hermes arrives to seduce Herse, Aglaulus stands in his way instead of helping him as she had agreed. He turns her to stone.[29] With this mythic origin, Erichthonius became the founder-king of Athens, and many beneficial changes to Athenian culture were ascribed to him. During this time, Athena frequently protected him. Medusa and Tiresias In a late myth, Medusa , unlike her sister Gorgons, came to be viewed by the Greeks of the 5th century as a beautiful mortal that served as priestess in Athena’s temple. Poseidon liked Medusa, and decided to rape her in the temple of Athena, refusing to allow her vow of chastity to stand in his way.[30] Upon discovering the desecration of her temple, Athena changed Medusa’s form to match that of her sister Gorgons as punishment. Medusa’s hair turned into snakes, her lower body was transformed also, and meeting her gaze would turn any living man to stone. In the earliest myths, there is only one Gorgon , but there are two snakes that form a belt around her waist. In one version of the Tiresias myth, Tiresias stumbled upon Athena bathing, and he was struck blind by her to ensure he would never again see what man was not intended to see. But having lost his eyesight, he was given a special giftâ€â€�to be able to understand the language of the birds (and thus to foretell the future). Lady of Athens Athena competed with Poseidon to be the patron deity of Athens, which was yet unnamed, in a version of one founding myth . They agreed that each would give the Athenians one gift and that the Athenians would choose the gift they preferred. Poseidon struck the ground with his trident and a salt water spring sprang up; this gave them a means of trade and waterâ€â€�Athens at its height was a significant sea power, defeating the Persian fleet at the Battle of Salamis â€â€�but the water was salty and not very good for drinking.[31] Athena, however, offered them the first domesticated olive tree . The Athenians (or their king, Cecrops ) accepted the olive tree and with it the patronage of Athena, for the olive tree brought wood, oil, and food. Robert Graves was of the opinion that “Poseidon’s attempts to take possession of certain cities are political myths” which reflect the conflict between matriarchal and patriarchal religions.[31] Other sites of cult Athena also was the patron goddess of several other Greek cities, notably Sparta, where the archaic cult of Athena Alea had its sanctuaries in the surrounding villages of Mantineia and, notably, Tegea . In Sparta itself, the temple of Athena Khalkíoikos (Athena “of the Brazen House”, often latinized as Chalcioecus) was the grandest and located on the Spartan acropolis; presumably it had a roof of bronze. The forecourt of the Brazen House was the place where the most solemn religious functions in Sparta took place. Tegea was an important religious center of ancient Greece,[32] containing the Temple of Athena Alea . The temenos was founded by Aleus , Pausanias was informed.[33] Votive bronzes at the site from the Geometric and Archaic periods take the forms of horses and deer; there are sealstone and fibulae . In the Archaic period the nine villages that underlie Tegea banded together in a synoecism to form one city.[34] Tegea was listed in Homer ‘s Catalogue of Ships as one of the cities that contributed ships and men for the Achaean assault on Troy . Athena and Herakles on an Attic red-figure kylix , 480–470 BC. Counselor Later myths of the Classical Greeks relate that Athena guided Perseus in his quest to behead Medusa . She instructed Heracles to skin the Nemean Lion by using its own claws to cut through its thick hide. She also helped Heracles to defeat the Stymphalian Birds , and to navigate the underworld so as to capture Cerberus . In The Odyssey , Odysseus ‘ cunning and shrewd nature quickly won Athena’s favour. In the realistic epic mode, however, she largely is confined to aiding him only from afar, as by implanting thoughts in his head during his journey home from Troy. Her guiding actions reinforce her role as the “protectress of heroes” or as mythologian Walter Friedrich Otto dubbed her the “goddess of nearness” due to her mentoring and motherly probing.[35] It is not until he washes up on the shore of an island where Nausicaa is washing her clothes that Athena arrives personally to provide more tangible assistance. She appears in Nausicaa’s dreams to ensure that the princess rescues Odysseus and plays a role in his eventual escort to Ithaca. Athena appears in disguise to Odysseus upon his arrival, initially lying and telling him that Penelope, his wife, has remarried and that he is believed to be dead; but Odysseus lies back to her, employing skillful prevarications to protect himself.[36] Impressed by his resolve and shrewdness, she reveals herself and tells him what he needs to know in order to win back his kingdom. She disguises him as an elderly man or beggar so that he cannot be noticed by the suitors or Penelope, and helps him to defeat the suitors. She also plays a role in ending the resultant feud against the suitors’ relatives. She instructs Laertes to throw his spear and to kill the father of Antinous, Eupeithes. Judgment of Paris Aphrodite is being surveyed by Paris, while Athena (the leftmost figure) and Hera stand nearby. El Juicio de Paris by Enrique Simonet , ca. 1904 All the gods and goddesses as well as various mortals were invited to the marriage of Peleus and Thetis (the eventual parents of Achilles ). Only Eris , goddess of discord, was not invited. She was annoyed at this, so she arrived with a golden apple inscribed with the word καλλίÃ�Æ’Ã�„ῃ (kallistÄ“i, “for the fairest”), which she threw among the goddesses. Aphrodite, Hera, and Athena all claimed to be the fairest, and thus the rightful owner of the apple. The goddesses chose to place the matter before Zeus, who, not wanting to favor one of the goddesses, put the choice into the hands of Paris, a Trojan prince. After bathing in the spring of Mount Ida (where Troy was situated), the goddesses appeared before Paris. The goddesses undressed and presented themselves to Paris naked, either at his request or for the sake of winning. Paris is awarding the apple to Aphrodite, while Athena makes a face. Urteil des Paris by Anton Raphael Mengs , ca. 1757 Still, Paris could not decide, as all three were ideally beautiful, so they resorted to bribes. Hera tried to bribe Paris with control over all Asia and Europe , while Athena offered wisdom, fame and glory in battle, but Aphrodite came forth and whispered to Paris that if he were to choose her as the fairest he would have the most beautiful mortal woman in the world as a wife, and he accordingly chose her. This woman was Helen , who was, unfortunately for Paris, already married to King Menelaus of Sparta . The other two goddesses were enraged by this and through Helen’s abduction by Paris they brought about the Trojan War . Roman fable of Arachne The fable of Arachne is a late Roman addition to Classical Greek mythology [37] but does not appear in the myth repertoire of the Attic vase-painters. Arachne’s name simply means spider (αÃ��άÃ�‡Î½Î·). Arachne was the daughter of a famous dyer in Tyrian purple in Hypaipa of Lydia , and a weaving student of Athena. She became so conceited of her skill as a weaver that she began claiming that her skill was greater than that of Athena herself. Athena gave Arachne a chance to redeem herself by assuming the form of an old woman and warning Arachne not to offend the deities. Arachne scoffed and wished for a weaving contest, so she could prove her skill. Athena wove the scene of her victory over Poseidon that had inspired her patronage of Athens. According to Ovid’s Latin narrative, Arachne’s tapestry featured twenty-one episodes of the infidelity of the deities, including Zeus being unfaithful with Leda , with Europa , and with Danaë . Athena admitted that Arachne’s work was flawless, but was outraged at Arachne’s offensive choice of subjects that displayed the failings and transgressions of the deities. Finally, losing her temper, Athena destroyed Arachne’s tapestry and loom, striking it with her shuttle. Athena then struck Arachne with her staff, which changed her into a spider. In some versions, the destruction of her loom leads Arachne to hang herself in despair; Athena takes pity on her, and transforms her into a spider. In the aforementioned version, Arachne weaved scenes of joy while Athena weaved scenes of horror. The fable suggests that the origin of weaving lay in imitation of spiders and that it was considered to have been perfected first in Asia Minor . Cult and attributes Athena’s epithets include ΆÃ�„Ã��Ã�…Ã�„Ã�ŽÎ½Î·, Atrytone (= the unwearying), ÃŽ αÃ��θένοÃ�‚, Parthénos (= virgin), and Ή ÃŽ Ã��Ã�ŒÎ¼Î±Ã�‡Î¿Ã�‚, Promachos (the First Fighter, i.e. she who fights in front). In poetry from Homer, an oral tradition of the eighth or seventh century BC, onward, Athena’s most common epithet is glaukopis (γλαÃ�…κÃ�ŽÃ�€Î¹Ã�‚), which usually is translated as, bright-eyed or with gleaming eyes.[38] The word is a combination of glaukos (γλαÃ��κοÃ�‚, meaning gleaming, silvery, and later, bluish-green or gray) and ops (Ã�ŽÃ�ˆ, eye, or sometimes, face). It is interesting to note that glaux (γλαÃ��ξ, “owl”) is from the same root, presumably because of the bird’s own distinctive eyes. The bird which sees well in the night is closely associated with the goddess of wisdom : in archaic images, Athena is frequently depicted with an owl named the Glaucus (or “owl of Athena” and later under the Roman Empire , “owl of Minerva “) perched on her hand. This pairing evolved in tangent so that even in present day the owl is upheld as a symbol of perspicacity and erudition.[4] Unsurprisingly, the owl became a sort of Athenian mascot. The olive tree is likewise sacred to her. In earlier times, Athena may well have been a bird goddess , similar to the unknown goddess depicted with owls, wings, and bird talons on the Burney relief , a Mesopotamian terracotta relief of the early second millennium BC.[citation needed] Other epithets include: Aethyta under which she was worshiped in Megara .[39] The word aithyia (αἴθÃ�…ια) signifies a diver, and figuratively, a ship, so the name must reference Athena teaching the art of shipbuilding or navigation.[40][41] In a temple at Phrixa in Elis, which was reportedly built by Clymenus, she was known as Cydonia.[42] The various Athena subgroups, or cults, all branching from the central goddess herself often proctored various initiation rites of Grecian youth, for example, the passage into citizenship by young men and for women the elevation to the status of citizen wife. Her various cults were portals of a uniform socialization, even beyond mainland Greece.[43] Epithets In the Iliad (4.514), the Homeric Hymns , and in Hesiod ‘s Theogony , Athena is given the curious epithet Tritogeneia. The meaning of this term is unclear. It seems to mean “Triton-born”, perhaps indicating that the sea-deity was her parent according to some early myths.[44] In Ovid’s Metamorphoses Athena is occasionally referred to as “Tritonia”. Another possible meaning may be triple-born or third-born, which may refer to a triad or to her status as the third daughter of Zeus or the fact she was born from Metis, Zeus, and herself; various legends list her as being the first child after Artemis and Apollo, though other legends[citation needed] identify her as Zeus’ first child. The latter would have to be drawn from Classical myths, however, rather than earlier ones. In her role as judge at Orestes’ trial on the murder of his mother, Clytemnestra (which he won), Athena won the epithet Athena Areia. Other epithets were Ageleia and Itonia . The Parthenon , Temple of Athena Parthenos Athena was given many other cult titles. She has the epithet Athena Ergane as the patron of craftsmen and artisans. With the epithet Athena Parthenos (“virgin”) she was especially worshipped in the festivals of the Panathenaea and Pamboeotia where both militaristic and athletic displays took place.[45] With the epithet Athena Promachos she led in battle (see Promachos ). With the epithet Athena Polias (“of the city”), Athena was the protector of not only Athens but also of many other cities, including Argos , Sparta , Gortyn , Lindos , and Larisa . She was given the epithet Athena Hippeia or Athena Hippia (“horse”), as the inventor of the chariot , and was worshiped under this title at Athens, Tegea and Olympia . As Athena Hippeia she was given an alternative parentage: Poseidon and Polyphe , daughter of Oceanus .[46][47] In each of these cities her temple frequently was the major temple on the acropolis.[48] Athena often was equated with Aphaea , a local goddess of the island of Aegina , located near Athens , once Aegina was under Athenian’s power. The Greek historian Plutarch (46–120 AD) also refers to an instance during the Parthenon’s construction of her being called Athena Hygieia (“healer”): A strange accident happened in the course of building, which showed that the goddess was not averse to the work, but was aiding and co-operating to bring it to perfection. One of the artificers, the quickest and the handiest workman among them all, with a slip of his foot fell down from a great height, and lay in a miserable condition, the physicians having no hope of his recovery. When Pericles was in distress about this, the goddess [Athena] appeared to him at night in a dream, and ordered a course of treatment, which he applied, and in a short time and with great ease cured the man. And upon this occasion it was that he set up a brass statue of Athena Hygeia, in the citadel near the altar, which they say was there before. But it was Phidias who wrought the goddess’s image in gold, and he has his name inscribed on the pedestal as the workman of it.[49] In classical times the Plynteria , or “Feast of Adorning�, was observed every May, it was a festival lasting five days. During this period the Priestesses of Athena, or “Plyntrides�, performed a cleansing ritual within “the Erecththeum�, the personal sanctuary of the goddess. Here Athena’s statue was undressed, her clothes washed, and body purified. In Arcadia , she was assimilated with the ancient goddess Alea and worshiped as Athena Alea . In Classical art The Athena Giustiniani , a Roman copy of a Greek statue of Pallas Athena with her serpent, Erichthonius Classically, Athena is portrayed wearing a full- length chiton , and sometimes in armor, with her helmet raised high on the forehead to reveal the image of Nike . Her shield bears at its centre the aegis with the head of the gorgon (gorgoneion) in the center and snakes around the edge. It is in this standing posture that she was depicted in Phidias ‘s famous lost gold and ivory statue of her, 36 m tall, the Athena Parthenos in the Parthenon . Athena also often is depicted with an owl sitting on one of her shoulders.[50] The Mourning Athena is a relief sculpture that dates around 460 BC and portrays a weary Athena resting on a staff. In earlier, archaic portraits of Athena in Black-figure pottery , the goddess retains some of her Minoan-Mycenaean character, such as great bird wings although this is not true of archaic sculpture such as those of Aphaean Athena , where Athena has subsumed an earlier, invisibly numinousâ€â€�Aphaeaâ€â€�goddess with Cretan connections in her mythos. Other commonly received and repeated types of Athena in sculpture may be found in this list . Apart from her attributes, there seems to be a relative consensus in late sculpture from the Classical period, the 5th century onward, as to what Athena looked like. Most noticeable in the face is perhaps the full round strong, masculine chin with a high nose that has a high bridge as a natural extension of the forehead. The eyes typically are somewhat deeply set. The unsmiling lips are usually full, but the mouth is depicted fairly narrow, usually just slightly wider than the nose. The neck is somewhat long. The net result is a serene, serious, somewhat aloof, and very masculine beauty. Name, etymology, and origin Athena had a special relationship with Athens , as is shown by the etymological connection of the names of the goddess and the city. The citizens of Athens built a statue of Athena as a temple to the goddess, which had piercing eyes, a helmet on her head, attired with an aegis or cuirass , and an extremely long spear. It also had a crystal shield with the head of the Gorgon on it. A large snake accompanied her and she held the goddess of victory in her hand. Bust of Athena in the Glyptothek Athena is associated with Athens , a plural name because it was the place where she presided over her sisterhood, the Athenai, in earliest times: Mycenae was the city where the Goddess was called Mykene, and Mycenae is named in the plural for the sisterhood of females who tended her there. At Thebes she was called Thebe, and the city again a plural, Thebae (or Thebes, where the “s” is the plural formation). Similarly, at Athens she was called Athena, and the city Athenae (or Athens, again a plural).”[51] Whether her name is attested in Eteocretan or not will have to wait for decipherment of Linear A . Günther Neumann has suggested that Athena’s name is possibly of Lydian origin;[52] it may be a compound word derived in part from Tyrrhenian “ati”, meaning mother and the name of the Hurrian goddess “Hannahannah” shortened in various places to “Ana”[citation needed]. In Mycenaean Greek , at Knossos a single inscription A-ta-na po-ti-ni-ja /Athana potniya/ appears in the Linear B tablets from the Late Minoan II-era “Room of the Chariot Tablets”; these comprise the earliest Linear B archive anywhere.[53][54] Although Athana potniya often is translated Mistress Athena, it literally means “the potnia of At(h)ana”, which perhaps, means the Lady of Athens;[55] Any connection to the city of Athens in the Knossos inscription is uncertain.[56] We also find A-ta-no-dju-wa-ja /Athana diwya/, the final part being the Linear B spelling of what we know from Ancient Greek as Diwia (Mycenaean di-u-ja or di-wi-ja): divine Athena also was a weaver and the deity of crafts (see dyeus ).[57] In his dialogue Cratylus , the Greek philosopher Plato , 428/427 BC – 348/347 BC, gives the etymology of Athena’s name, based on the view of the ancient Athenians: That is a graver matter, and there, my friend, the modern interpreters of Homer may, I think, assist in explaining the view of the ancients. For most of these in their explanations of the poet, assert that he meant by Athena “mind” [nous] and “intelligence” [dianoia], and the maker of names appears to have had a singular notion about her; and indeed calls her by a still higher title, “divine intelligence” [Theian noesis], as though he would say: This is she who has the mind better than others. Nor shall we be far wrong in supposing that the author of it wished to identify this Goddess with moral intelligence [en ethei noesin], and therefore gave her the name etheonoe; which, however, either he or his successors have altered into what they thought a nicer form, and called her Athena. â€â€�Plato, Cratylus, 407b Thus for Plato her name was to be derived from Greek ἈθεονÃ�ŒÎ±, Atheonóaâ€â€�which the later Greeks rationalised as from the deity’s (theos) mind (nous). Plato noted that the Egyptian citizens of Sais in Egypt worshipped a goddess whose Egyptian name was Neith ;[58] and they identified her with Athena. (Timaeus 21e), (Histories 2:170–175). Some authors[citation needed] believe that, in early times, Athena was either an owl herself or a bird goddess in general: in Book 3 of the Odyssey , she takes the form of a sea-eagle . These authors argue that she dropped her prophylactic owl-mask before she lost her wings. “Athena, by the time she appears in art,” Jane Ellen Harrison had remarked, “has completely shed her animal form, has reduced the shapes she once wore of snake and bird to attributes, but occasionally in black-figure vase-paintings she still appears with wings.”[59] Some Greek authors[who?] have derived natural symbols from the etymological roots of Athena’s names to be aether, air, earth, and moon. This was one of the primary developments of scholarly exploration in the ancient world.[60] Post-classical culture A neoclassical variant of Athena Promachos stands in front of the Austrian Parliament Building in Vienna. A brief summary of Athena’s evolution of myriad motifs after her dominance in Greece may be seen as follows: The rise of Christianity in Greece largely ended the worship of Greek deities and polytheism in general, but she resurfaced in the Middle Ages as a defender of sagacity and virtue so that her masculine warrior status was still intact. (She may be found on some family crests of nobility.) During the Renaissance she donned the mantle of patron of the arts and human endeavor and finally although not ultimately, Athena personified the miracles of freedom and republic during the French Revolution. (A statue of the goddess was centered on the Place de la Revolution in Paris.)[4] For over a century a full-scale replica of the Parthenon has stood in Nashville, Tennessee , which is known as the Athens of the South. In 1990, a gilded 41 feet (12.5 m) tall replica of Phidias’ statue of Athena Parthenos was added. The state seal of California features an image of Athena (or Minerva) kneeling next to a brown grizzly bear.[61] Athena is a natural patron of universities: she is the symbol of the Darmstadt University of Technology , in Germany, and the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro , in Brazil. Her image can be found in the shields of the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters and the Faculty of Sciences of the National Autonomous University of Mexico , where her owl is the symbol of the Faculty of Chemistry. At Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania a statue of Athena (a replica of the original bronze one in the arts and archaeology library) resides in the Great Hall. It is traditional at exam time for students to leave offerings to the goddess with a note asking for good luck, or to repent for accidentally breaking any of the college’s numerous other traditions. Athena’s owl also serves as the mascot of the college, and one of the college hymns is “Pallas Athena”. Pallas Athena is the tutelary goddess of the international social fraternity Phi Delta Theta .[62] Her owl is also a symbol of the fraternity.[62] The title character in Edgar Allan Poe ‘s The Raven famously sits upon “a Bust of Pallas”. Athena’s Helmet is the central feature on the United States Military Academy crest . Athena is reported as a source of influence for feminist theologians such as Carol P. Christ . Jean Boucher ‘s statue of the seated skeptical thinker Ernest Renan , shown to the left, caused great controversy when it was installed in Tréguier, Brittany in 1902. Renan’s 1862 biography of Jesus had denied his divinity, and he had written the “Prayer on the Acropolis” addressed to the goddess Athena. The statue was placed in the square fronted by the cathedral. Renan’s head was turned away from the building, while Athena, beside him, was depicted raising her arm, which was interpreted as indicating a challenge to the church during an anti-clerical phase in French official culture. The installation was accompanied by a mass protest from local Roman Catholics and a religious service against the growth of skepticism and secularism .[63] Athena has been used numerous times as a symbol of a republic by different countries and appears on currency as she did on the ancient drachma of Athens. Athena (Minerva) is the subject of the $50 1915-S Panama-Pacific commemorative coin . At 2.5 troy oz (78 g) gold, this is the largest (by weight ) coin ever produced by the U.S. Mint . This was the first $50 coin issued by the U.S. Mint and no higher was produced until the production of the $100 platinum coins in 1997. Of course, in terms of face-value in adjusted dollars, the 1915 is the highest denomination ever issued by the U.S. Mint. Athena was depicted on the obverse of the Greek 100 drachmas banknote of 1978-2001.[64] Another recent example is the 60 Years of the Second Republic commemorative coin issued by Austria in 2005. Athena is depicted in the obverse of the coin, representing the Austrian Republic. She appears briefly in Disney’s Hercules , but has a more dominant role in the television series. Athena is an active character in Marvel Comics ‘ main continuity, the Marvel Universe , most recently in the Incredible Hercules series. She acts as a guide to Hercules and his sidekick, boy genius Amadeus Cho . Athena appears in Rick Riordan ‘s Percy Jackson & the Olympians book series. Her daughter, born from her head as she was from Zeus’s, demigod Annabeth Chase is one of the principal characters. Annabeth’s father found her (Annabeth) lying in a golden cradle at the doorstep. The Roman name for Athena is Minerva. In the video game Assassin’s Creed II, Minerva appears in an ancient vault underneath the Vatican at the end of the game. She explains the origin of mankind within the story to the game’s main protagonist, Desmond Miles, through his ancestor, Ezio Auditore. Athena appears in the television series Stargate SG-1 when she kidnaps Vala Mal Doran to gain information on the Clava Thessara Infinitas (The Key to Infinite Treasure). Masculinity and feminism Athena had an “androgynous compromise” that allowed her traits and what she stood for to be attributed to male and female rulers alike over the course of history (such as Marie de’ Medici, Anne of Austria, Christina of Sweden, and Catherine the Great) J.J. Bachofen advocated that Athena was originally a maternal figure stable in her security and poise but was caught up and perverted by a patriarchal society; this was especially the case in Athens. The goddess adapted but could very easily be seen as a god. He viewed it as “motherless paternity in the place of fatherless maternity” where once altered, Athena’s character was to be crystallized as that of a patriarch.[66] Whereas Bachofen saw the switch to paternity on Athena’s behalf as an increase of power, Freud on the contrary perceived Athena as an “original mother goddess divested of her power”. In this interpretation, Athena was demoted to be only Zeus’s daughter, never allowed the expression of motherhood. Still more different from Bachofen’s perspective is the lack of role permanency in Freud’s view: Freud held that time and differing cultures would mold Athena to stand for what was necessary to them.[67] Amphipolis was an ancient Greek city in the region once inhabited by the Edoni people in the present-day periphery of Central Macedonia . It was built on a raised plateau overlooking the east bank of the river Strymon where it emerged from Lake Cercinitis, about 3 m. from the Aegean Sea . Founded in 437 BC, the city was finally abandoned in the 8th century AD. The present municipality Amfipoli, named after the ancient city, occupies the site. Currently, it is a municipality in the Serres Prefecture , Central Macedonia with a population of 3,623 (2001 census). Origins Archaeology has uncovered remains at the site dating to approximately 3000 BC. Due to the strategic location of the site it was fortified from very early. Xerxes I of Persia passed during his invasion of Greece of 480 BC and buried alive nine young men and nine maidens as a sacrifice to the river god. Near the later site of Amphipolis Alexander I of Macedon defeated the remains of Xerxes’ army in 479 BC. Throughout the 5th century BC, Athens sought to consolidate its control over Thrace, which was strategically important because of its primary materials (the gold and silver of the Pangaion hills and the dense forests essential for naval construction), and the sea routes vital for Athens’ supply of grain from Scythia . After a first unsuccessful attempt at colonisation in 497 BC by the Miletian Tyrant Histiaeus , the Athenians founded a first colony at Ennea-Hodoi (‘Nine Ways’) in 465, but these first ten thousand colonists were massacred by the Thracians . A second attempt took place in 437 BC on the same site under the guidance of Hagnon , son of Nicias . The new settlement took the name of Amphipolis (literally, “around the city”), a name which is the subject of much debates about lexicography . Thucydides claims the name comes from the fact that the Strymon flows “around the city” on two sides; however a note in the Suda (also given in the lexicon of Photius ) offers a different explanation apparently given by Marsyas , son of Periander : that a large proportion of the population lived “around the city”. However, a more probable explanation is the one given by Julius Pollux : that the name indicates the vicinity of an isthmus . Furthermore, the Etymologicum Genuinum gives the following definition: a city of the Athenians or of Thrace, which was once called Nine Routes, (so named) because it is encircled and surrounded by the Strymon river. This description corresponds to the actual site of the city (see adjacent map), and to the description of Thucydides. Amphipolis subsequently became the main power base of the Athenians in Thrace and, consequently, a target of choice for their Spartans adversaries. The Athenian population remained very much in the minority within the city. An Athenian rescue expedition led by strategist (and later historian) Thucydides had to settle for securing Eion and could not retake Amphipolis, a failure for which Thucydides was sentenced to exile. A new Athenian force under the command of Cleon failed once more in 422 BC during a battle at which both Cleon and Brasidas lost their lives. Brasidas survived long enough to hear of the defeat of the Athenians and was buried at Amphipolis with impressive pomp. From then on he was regarded as the founder of the city and honoured with yearly games and sacrifices. The city itself kept its independence until the reign of the king Philip II despite several other Athenian attacks, notably because of the government of Callistratus of Aphidnae . Conquest by the Romans In 357 BC, Philip removed the block which Amphipolis presented on the road to Macedonian control over Thrace by conquering the town, which Athens had tried in vain to recover during the previous years. According the historian Theopompus , this conquest came to be the object of a secret accord between Athens and Philip II, who would return the city in exchange for the fortified town of Pydna , but the Macedonian king betrayed the accord, refusing to cede Amphipolis and laying siege to Pydna. After the conquest by Philip II, the city was not immediately incorporated into the kingdom, and for some time preserved its institutions and a certain degree of autonomy. The border of Macedonia was not moved further east; however, Philip sent a number of Macedonians governors to Amphipolis, and in many respects the city was effectively ‘Macedonianized’. Nomenclature, the calendar and the currency (the gold stater , installed by Philip to capitalise on the gold reserves of the Pangaion hills, replaced the Amphipolitan drachma ) were all replaced by Macedonian equivalents. In the reign of Alexander , Amphipolis was an important naval base, and the birthplace of three of the most famous Macedonian Admirals : Nearchus , Androsthenes[6] and Laomedon whose burial place is most likely marked by the famous lion of Amphipolis. Amphipolis became one of the main stops on the Macedonian royal road (as testified by a border stone found between Philippos and Amphipolis giving the distance to the latter), and later on the ‘Via Egnatia’, the principal Roman Road which crossed the southern Balkans. Apart from the ramparts of the low town (see photograph), the gymnasium and a set well-preserved frescoes from a wealthy villa are the only artifacts from this period that remain visible. Though little is known of the layout of the town, modern knowledge of its institutions is in considerably better shape thanks to a rich epigraphic documentation, including a military ordinance of Philip V and an ephebarchic law from the gymnasium. After the final victory of Rome over Macedonia in a battle in 168 BC, Amphipolis became the capital one of the four mini-republics, or ‘merides’, which were created by the Romans out of the kingdom of the Antigonids which succeeded Alexander’s Empire in Macedon. These ‘merides’ were gradually incorporated into the Roman client state, and later province, of Thracia . Revival in Late Antiquity During the period of Late Antiquity , Amphipolis benefited from the increasing economic prosperity of Macedonia, as is evidenced by the large number of Christian Churches that were built. Significantly however, these churches were built within a restricted area of the town, sheltered by the walls of the acropolis . This has been taken as evidence that the large fortified perimeter of the ancient town was no longer defendable, and that the population of the city had considerably diminished. Nevertheless, the number, size and quality of the churches constructed between the fifth and sixth centuries are impressive. Four basilicas adorned with rich mosaic floors and elaborate architectural sculptures (such as the ram-headed column capitals – see picture) have been excavated, as well as a church with a hexagonal central plan which evokes that of the basilica of St. Vitalis in Ravenna . It is difficult to find reasons for such municipal extravagance in such a small town. One possible explanation provided by the historian André Boulanger is that an increasing ‘willingness’ on the part of the wealthy upper classes in the late Roman period to spend money on local gentrification projects (which he terms ‘’évergétisme’’, from the Greek verb εÃ��εÃ��γεÃ�„έÃ�‰,(meaning ‘I do good’) was exploited by the local church to its advantage, which led to a mass gentrification of the urban centre and of the agricultural riches of the city’s territory. Amphipolis was also a diocese under the suffragan of Thessaloniki – the Bishop of Amphipolis is first mentioned in 533 AD. From the reduction of the urban area to the disappearance of the city The Slavic invasions of the late 6th century gradually encroached on the back-country Amphipolitan lifestyle and led to the decline of the town, during which period its inhabitants retreated to the area around the acropolis. The ramparts were maintained to a certain extent, thanks to materials plundered from the monuments of the lower city, and the large unused cisterns of the upper city were occupied by small houses and the workshops of artisans. Around the middle of the 7th century AD, a further reduction of the inhabited area of the city was followed by an increase in the fortification of the town, with the construction of a new rampart with pentagonal towers cutting through the middle of the remaining monuments. The acropolis, the Roman baths , and especially the Episcopal basilica were crossed by this wall. The city was probably abandoned in the eighth century, as the last bishop was attested in 787. Its inhabitants probably moved to the neighbouring site of ancient Eion, port of Amphipolis, which had been rebuilt and refortified in the Byzantine period under the name “Chrysopolis�. This small port continued to enjoy some prosperity, before being abandoned during the Ottoman period . The last recorded sign of activity in the region of Amphipolis was the construction of a fortified tower to the north in 1367 by Grand Primicier Jean and the Stratopedarque Alexis to protect the land that they had given to the monastery of Pantokrator on Mount Athos . Archaeology The site was rediscovered and described by many travellers and archaeologists during the 19th century, including E. Cousinéry (1831) (engraver), L. Heuzey (1861), and P. Perdrizet (1894–1899). In 1934, M. Feyel, of the École française d’Athènes , led an epigraphical mission to the site and uncovered the remains of a funeral lion (a reconstruction was given in the, a publication of the EfA which is available on line). However, excavations did not truly begin until after the Second World War. The Greek Archaeological Society under D. Lazaridis excavated in 1972 and 1985, uncovering a necropolis, the rampart of the old town (see photograph), the basilicas, and the acropolis. Dionysus or Dionysos (Greek Διόνυσος) is the ancient Greek god of the grape harvest, winemaking and wine, of ritual madness and ecstasy , was also the driving force behind Greek theater . The god who inspires joyful worship and ecstasy , festivals and celebration is a major figure of Greek mythology and the religion of ancient Greece . He is included as one of the twelve Olympians in some lists. Dionysus is typical of the god of the epiphany , “the god that comes”. He was also known as Bacchus, the name adopted by the Romans and the frenzy he induces, bakkheia. Hailed as an Asiatic foreigner, he was thought to have had strong ties to the East and to Ethiopia in the South. He was also known as the Liberator (Eleutherios), freeing one from one’s normal self, by madness, ecstasy or wine. The divine mission of Dionysus was to mingle the music of the aulos and to bring an end to care and worry. Scholars have discussed Dionysus’ relationship to the “cult of the souls” and his ability to preside over communication between the living and the dead. In Greek mythology, Dionysus is made out to be a son of Zeus and the mortal Semele . He is described as being womanly or “man-womanish”. The retinue of Dionysus was called the thiasus and was composed chiefly of maenads and satyrs . Dionysus is a god of mystery religious rites . In the Thracian mysteries, he wears the bassaris or fox-skin, symbolizing new life. His own rites, the Dionysian Mysteries practiced by maenads and others, were the most secret of all. Many scholars believe that Dionysus is a syncretism of a local Greek nature deity and a more powerful god from Thrace or Phrygia such as Sabazios or Zalmoxis . Contradictions in Dionysus’ origin suggest to some that we are dealing not with the historical memory of a cult that is foreign, but with a god in whom foreignness is inherent. Karl Kerenyi traces him to Minoan Crete , where his Minoan name is unknown but his characteristic presence is recognizable. Clearly, Dionysus had been with the Greeks and their predecessors a long time, and yet always retained the feel of something alien. In Greek mythology , a thyrsus or thyrsos (Greek: θύρσος ) was a staff of giant fennel (Ferula communis) covered with ivy vines and leaves, sometimes wound with taeniae and always topped with a pine cone . These staffs were carried by Dionysus and his followers. Euripides wrote that honey dripped from the thyrsos staves that the Bacchic maenads carried.The thyrsus was a sacred instrument at religious rituals and fêtes. Symbolism The thyrsus, associated with Dionysus (or Bacchus) and his followers, the Satyrs and Maenads , is a symbol of prosperity , fertility , hedonism , and pleasure/enjoyment in general. It has been suggested that this was specifically a fertility phallus , with the fennel representing the shaft of the penis and the pine cone representing the “seed” issuing forth. The thyrsus was tossed in the Bacchic dance: Pentheus: The thyrsus- in my right hand shall I hold it? Or thus am I more like a Bacchanal? Dionysus: In thy right hand, and with thy right foot raise it” Sometimes the thyrsus was displayed in conjunction with a kantharos wine cup, another symbol of Dionysus, forming a male-and-female combination like that of the royal scepter and orb. Literature In the Iliad , Diomedes , one of the leading warriors of the Achaeans , mentions the thyrsus while speaking to Glaucus , one of the Lycian commanders in the Trojan army, about Lycurgus , the king of Scyros : He it was that/drove the nursing women who were in charge/of frenzied Bacchus through the land of Nysa,/and they flung their thyrsi on the ground as/murderous Lycurgus beat them with his ox-/goad. (Iliad, Book VI.132-37) The thyrsus is explicitly attributed to Dionysus in Euripides ‘s play The Bacchae as part of the costume of the Dionysian cult. …To raise my Bacchic shout, and clothe all who respond/ In fawnskin habits, and put my thyrsus in their hands-/ The weapon wreathed with ivy-shoots…” Euripides also writes, “There’s a brute wildness in the fennel-wands-Reverence it well.” (The Bacchae and Other Plays, trans. by Philip Vellacott, Penguin, 1954.) Socrates writes in Phaedo : I conceive that the founders of the mysteries had a real meaning and were not mere triflers when they intimated in a figure long ago that he who passes unsanctified and uninitiated into the world below will live in a slough, but that he who arrives there after initiation and purification will dwell with the gods. For “many,” as they say in the mysteries, “are the thyrsus bearers, but few are the mystics,”–meaning, as I interpret the words, the true philosophers. In Part II of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe ‘s Faust , Mephistopheles tries to catch a Lamia , only to find out that she is an illusion: Well, then, a tall one I will catch…/And now a thyrsus-pole I snatch!/Only a pine-cone as its head. (7775-7777) Sookie Stackhouse notes the thyrsus carried by the maenad in the 2nd book of The Southern Vampire Mysteries . She idly waved the long wand with the tuft on the end. It was called a thyrsis [sic]; I’d looked maenad up in the encyclopedia. Now I could die educated. (Harris, Charlaine (2006-09-01). “Living Dead in Dallas: A Sookie Stackhouse Novel”} Maroneia (Greek: Μαρώνεια) is a municipality in the Rhodope Prefecture , Greece . Population 7,644 (2001). The seat of the municipality is in Xylagani . In legend, it was said to have been founded by Maron, a son of Dionysus , or even a companion of Osiris . According to Pseudo-Scymnus it was founded by Chios in the first half of the 6th century BC. According to Pliny , its ancient name was Ortagures. It was located on the hill of Aghios Gheorgis, and archaeological findings date it as a much older and as a pure Thracian city. Maroneia was close to the Ismaros mentioned by Homer in the Odyssey . Some scholars identify Maroneia with his Ismaros. Homer has Odysseus plundering the city but sparing Maron, whom he identifies as a priest of Apollo . Maron presents Odysseus with a gift of wine, as well as with gold and silver. In the era of Ancient Greece and Rome , Maroneia was famous for its wine production. The wine was esteemed everywhere; it was said to possess the odor of nectar , and to be capable of mixture with twenty or more times its quantity with water. That the people of Maroneia venerated Dionysus , we learn not just from its famous Dionysian Sanctuary, the foundations of which can still be seen today, but also from the city’s coins. In 200 BC it was taken by Philip V of Macedon , who vented his rage by slaughtering a great number of the city’s inhabitants. The Roman Republic subsequently granted Maroneia to Attalus , King of Pergamon , but almost immediately revoked their gift and declared it a free city. Thrace (demonym Thracian / ənθreɪʃⁱˈ/; Bulgarian : Тракия, Trakiya, Greek : Θράκη, Thráki, Turkish : Trakya) is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe . As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east. The areas it comprises are southeastern Bulgaria (Northern Thrace), northeastern Greece (Western Thrace), and the European part of Turkey (Eastern Thrace). The biggest part of Thrace is part of present-day Bulgaria. In Turkey, it is also called Rumelia . The name comes from the Thracians , an ancient Indo-European people inhabiting Southeastern Europe. The historical boundaries of Thrace have varied. Noteworthy is the fact that, at an early date, the ancient Greeks employed the term “Thrace” to refer to all of the territory which lay north of Thessaly inhabited by the Thracians ,[1] a region which “had no definite boundaries” and to which other regions (like Macedonia and even Scythia ) were added.[2] In one ancient Greek source, the very Earth is divided into “Asia, Libya, Europa and Thracia”.[2] As the knowledge of world geography of the Greeks broadened, the term came to be more restricted in its application: Thrace designated the lands bordered by the Danube on the north, by the Euxine Sea (Black Sea) on the east, by northern Macedonia in the south and by the Illyrian lands (i.e. Illyria ) to the west.[2] This largely coincided with the Thracian Odrysian kingdom , whose borders varied in time. During this time, specifically after the Macedonian conquest, the region’s old border with Macedonia was shifted from the Struma River to the Mesta River .[3][4] This usage lasted until the Roman conquest. Henceforth, (classical) Thrace referred only to the tract of land largely covering the same extent of space as the modern geographical region. In its early period, the Roman province of Thrace was of this extent, but after the administrative reforms of the late 3rd century, Thracia’s much reduced territory became the six small provinces which constituted the Diocese of Thrace . The medieval Byzantine theme of Thrace contained only what today is Eastern Thrace . The largest cities of Thrace are: İstanbul (European side), Plovdiv , Burgas , Stara Zagora , Haskovo , Edirne , Çorlu and Tekirdag . Most of the Bulgarian and Greek population are Christians, while most of the Turkish inhabitants of Thrace are Muslims. Thrace in ancient Greek mythology Ancient Greek mythology provides them with a mythical ancestor, named Thrax , son of the war-god Ares, who was said to reside in Thrace. The Thracians appear in Homer ‘s Iliad as Trojan allies, led by Acamas and Peiros . Later in the Iliad, Rhesus , another Thracian king, makes an appearance. Cisseus , father-in-law to the Trojan elder Antenor , is also given as a Thracian king. Homeric Thrace was vaguely defined, and stretched from the River Axios in the west to the Hellespont and Black Sea in the east. The Catalogue of Ships mentions three separate contingents from Thrace: Thracians led by Acamas and Peiros, from Aenus ; Cicones led by Euphemus , from southern Thrace, near Ismaros ; and from the city of Sestus , on the Thracian (northern) side of the Hellespont, which formed part of the contingent led by Asius . Greek mythology is replete with Thracian kings, including Diomedes , Tereus , Lycurgus , Phineus , Tegyrius , Eumolpus , Polymnestor , Poltys , and Oeagrus (father of Orpheus ). In addition to the tribe that Homer calls Thracians, ancient Thrace was home to numerous other tribes, such as the Edones , Bisaltae , Cicones , and Bistones . Thrace is also mentioned in Ovid’s Metamorphoses in the episode of Philomela , Procne, and Tereus . Tereus, the King of Thrace, lusts after his sister-in-law, Philomela. He kidnaps her, holds her captive, rapes her, and cuts out her tongue. Philomela manages to get free, however. She and her sister, Procne, plot to get revenge, by killing Itys (son of Tereus and Procne) and serving him to his father for dinner. At the end of the myth, all three turn into birds-Procne, a swallow; Philomela, a nightingale; and Tereus, a hoopoe . History Ancient history Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak The indigenous population of Thrace was a people called the Thracians , divided into numerous tribal groups. Thracian troops were known to accompany neighboring ruler Alexander the Great when he crossed the Hellespont which abuts Thrace, and took on the Persian Empire of the day. The Thracians did not describe themselves as such and Thrace and Thracians are simply the names given them by the Greeks.[5] Divided into separate tribes, the Thracians did not manage to form a lasting political organization until the Odrysian state was founded in the 4th century BC. Like Illyrians , Thracian tribes of the mountainous regions fostered a locally ruled warrior tradition, while the tribes based in the plains were purportedly more peaceable. Recently discovered funeral mounds in Bulgaria suggest that Thracian kings did rule regions of Thrace with distinct Thracian national identity. During this period, a subculture of celibate ascetics called the Ctistae lived in Thrace, where they served as philosophers, priests and prophets. Medieval history By the mid 5th century, as the Roman Empire began to crumble, Thracia fell from the authority of Rome and into the hands of Germanic tribal rulers. With the fall of Rome, Thracia turned into a battleground territory for the better part of the next 1,000 years. The eastern successor of the Roman Empire in the Balkans, the Byzantine Empire , retained control over Thrace until the 8th century when the northern half of the entire region was incorporated into the First Bulgarian Empire . Byzantium regained Thrace in the late 10th century and administered it as a theme , until the Bulgarians regained control of the northern half at the end of the 12th century. Throughout the 13th century and the first half of the 14th century, the region was changing in the hands of the Bulgarian and the Byzantine Empire(excl. Constantinopole). In 1265 the area suffered a Mongol raid from the Golden Horde , led by Nogai Khan . In 1352, the Ottoman Turks conducted their first incursion into the region subduing it completely within a matter of two decades and occupying it for five centuries. Modern history With the Congress of Berlin in 1878, Northern Thrace was incorporated into the semi-autonomous Ottoman province of Eastern Rumelia , which united with Bulgaria in 1885. The rest of Thrace was divided among Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey at the beginning of the 20th century, following the Balkan Wars , World War I and the Greco-Turkish War . Today Thracian is a strong regional identity in Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria and other neighbouring countries. Famous Thracians and people from Thrace Mehmed II Ottoman Sultan, born at Edirne in Thrace; he was the Sultan who conquered Constantinople, marking the end of the Middle Ages.Bayezid II Ottoman SultanSpartacus was a Thracian auxiliary soldier in the Roman army who deserted but was captured and then enslaved by the Romans. He led a large slave uprising in what is now Italy in 73-71 BC. His army of escaped gladiators and slaves defeated several Roman legions in what is known as the Third Servile War . Belisaurius , one of the most successful Generals of the Roman Empire , was born in the borderlands between Thrace and Illyria .In Ancient Greek mythology , Orpheus was the chief representative of the art of song and playing the lyre .Democritus was a Greek philosopher and mathematician from Abdera, Thrace (c. 460-370 BC.) His main contribution is the atomic theory , the belief that all matter is made up of various imperishable indivisible elements which he called atoms .Herodicus was a Greek physician of the fifth century BC who is considered the founder of sports medicine . He is believed to have been one of Hippocrates’ tutors.Protagoras was a Greek philosopher from Abdera, Thrace (c. 490-420 BC.) An expert in rhetorics and subjects connected to virtue and political life, often regarded as the first sophist . He is known primarily for three claims (1) that man is the measure of all things, often interpreted as a sort of moral relativism , (2) that he could make the “worse (or weaker) argument appear the better (or stronger)” (see Sophism ) and (3) that one could not tell if the gods existed or not (see Agnosticism ). A number of Roman emperors of the 3rd-5th century were of Thraco-Roman backgrounds (Maximinus Thrax, Licinius , Galerius , Aureolus , Leo the Thracian , etc.). These emperors were elevated via a military career, from the condition of common soldiers in one of the Roman legions to the foremost positions of political power. Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE Authenticity guaranteed. Items will be shipped within 1 to 3 business days of purchase completion. FREE – domestic SHIPPING INTERNATIONAL – $7.99 (REGISTERED-$21.00) WE COMBINE SHIPPING. If you would like to have special shipping, please contact us. All items will be sent out in protected envelope and boxed if necessary. YOU ARE BIDDING ON AN ANCIENT ITEM(S) AS DESCRIBED AND PICTURED ABOVE!!! Every item offered by cameleoncoins is unconditionally guaranteed to be genuine & authentic. We can provide a certificate of authenticity or extended return policy by request only!!! Please include 5 dollars and a short request with your payment if you would like a COA!!! 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