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The land of the Tymphaeians

Μελέτες

• Καλλίνη, Χρυσάνθη

Tymphaea (also called Stymphaea) is an area we know very little about from the historical as well as the archaeological evidence. Tymphaea lay on the eastern side of Mt. Pindus, on the northern side of Mt. Hasia, on the southern side of Mt. Voion and on the western side of the river Aliakmon. According to Strabon (book VII) the borders of Tymphaea could be defined as following: on the western side Parauaea, Antitania and Epirus, on the southern side Aethicia, Estiaeotis and Thessaly, on the eastern side Perrhaebia and a part of Elimeia, and on the northern side Orestis and the northern - western part of Elimeia.Tymphaea was an area between Macedonia, Epirus and Thessaly that some time before the 4th century B.C. came under the Molossian domination (Epirus). In the 4th century B.C. (while Philip II was king of Macedonia) Tymphaea became part of the Macedonian kingdom. But its place —it is a crossroads, a passage between Macedonia, Epirus and Thessaly— made Tymphaea a very important canton and thus it was dominated sometimes by Macedonia and other times by Epirus.The ancient historians mention the names of three Tymphaeian cities: Ae- ginium, Tricca and Aethicia. As regards the last one it is now said that it could be another tribal canton on the southern side of Tymphaea and not a city. Ae- ginium has been identified with Kalabaka because of an inscription mentioning the people of Aeginium found in Kalabaka, but now this opinion is considered doubtful.As regards the religion of Tymphaei, we can only mention the worship of Zeus as Δειπάτυρος. We do not know anything else about this Zeus except that he was probably the most important god of Tymphaei and that the name ‘Δειπάτυρος’ might have meant ‘Zeus the Father’.Lastly it should be said that the name Tymphaea is linked with the ‘Tympha- icum gypsum’ —known from Theophrastus and Pliny— which was found on the surface of the earth and was used for scouring clothes and for painting.

• History and Archaeology

• Ιστορία, Αρχαία
• Archaeological site location

Περιέχει χάρτη της περιοχής της Τυμφαίας