Argos n : an ancient city in southeastern Greece; dominated the Peloponnese in the 7th century BC

English

Etymology

From etyl grc Ἄργος.

Proper noun

1. A city in Greece, in the Peloponnese.

Argos (Greek: Άργος, Árgos, ) is a city in Greece in the Peloponnese near Nafplio, which was its historic harbor, named for Nauplius.

Name

The region of Argos is called the Argolis. The inhabitants of Argos were called 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).

History

Ancient Argos

A Neolithic settlement was located near the central sanctuary of Argolis, removed 45 stadia from Argos, closer to Mycenae. The sanctuary was dedicated to "Argivian Hera". The main festival of that temple were 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 , 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. Argos remained neutral or the ineffective ally of Athens during the 5th century BC struggles between Sparta and Athens.

Mythological kings of Argos include : Inachus, Phoroneus, Argos, Agenor, Triopas, Iasus, Crotopus, Sthenelas, Pelasgus (aka Gelanor), Danaus, Lynceus, Abas, Acrisius, Proteus, Megapénthês, Perseus, Argeus, and Anaxagoras.

After this there were three kings ruling Argos at any time, one descended from each of Bias, Melampus, and 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, who fought in the Trojan War.

Bias was succeeded by his son Talaus, and then by his son Adrastus who, with Amphiaraus, lead the disastrous Seven Against Thebes.

Anaxagoras was succeeded by his son Alector, and then Iphis. Iphis left his kingdom to his nephew Sthenelus, the son of his brother Capaneus. This house lasted longer than those of Bias and Melampus, and eventually the kingdom was reunited under its last member, Cyanippus.

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. Morosini captured it for Venice in 1686 but it was retaken by the Ottomans in 1716.

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.

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. http://www.culture.gr/2/21/211/21104m/e211dm03.html

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.

Notable people

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

See also

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

References

External links

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