Listed 2 sub titles with search on: Information about the place for wider area of: "THOURIA Small town MESSINIA" .
THOURIA (Ancient city) MESSINIA
Thouria: Eth. Thouriates. A town of Messenia, situated in the eastern
part of the southern Messenian plain, upon the river Aris (Pidhima), and at the
distance of 80 stadia from Pharae, which was about a mile from the coast (Paus.
iv. 31. § 1). It was generally identified with the Homeric Antheia, though others
supposed it to be Aepeia. (Paus. l. c.; Strab. viii. p. 360.) It must have been
a place of considerable importance, since the distant Messenian gulf was even
named after it (ho Thouriates kolpos, Strab. l. c.). It was also one of the chief
towns of the Lacedaemonian Perioeci after the subjugation of Messenia; and it
was here that the Third Messenian War took its rise, B.C. 464 (Thuc. i. 101).
On the restoration of the Messenians by Epaminondas,Thuria, like the other towns
in the country, was dependent upon the newly-founded capital Messene; but after
the capture of this city by the Achaeans in B.C. 182, Thuria, Pharae, and Abia
joined the Achaean League as independent members. (Polyb. xxv. 1.) Thuria was
annexed to Laconia by Augustus (Paus. l. c.); but it was restored to Messenia
by Tiberius. Pausanias found two cities of this name. The Thuriatae had descended
from the summit of the lofty hill of the upper city to dwell upon the plain; but
without abandoning altogether the upper city, where a temple of the Syrian goddess
still stood within the town walls (Paus. iv. 31. § 2). There are considerable
remains of both places. Those of Upper Thuria are on the hill of the village called
Paleokastro, divided from the range of mountains named Makryplai by a deep ravine
and torrent, and which commands a fine view of the plain and gulf. The remains
of the walls extend half a mile along the summit of the hill. Nearly in the centre
of the ruins is a quadrangular cistern, 10 or 12 feet deep, cut out of the rock
at one end, and on the other side constructed of masonry. The cistern was divided
into three parts by two cross walls. Its whole length is 29 paces; the breadth
half as much. On the highest part of the ridge there are numerous ruins, among
which are those of a small Doric temple, of a hard brown calcareous stone, in
which are cockle and muscle shells, extremely perfect. In the plain at Palea Lutra
are the ruins of a large Roman building, standing in the middle of fig and mulberry
grounds. Leake observes that it is in an uncommon state of preservation, part
even of the roof still remaining. The walls are 17 feet high, formed of equal
courses of Roman tiles and mortar. The roof is of rubble mixed with cement. The
plan does not seem to be that of a bath only, as the name would imply, though
there are many appearances of the building having contained baths: it seems rather
to have been the palace of some Roman governor. As there are no sources of water
here, it is to be supposed that the building was supplied by an aqueduct from
the neighbouring river of Pidhima.
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited June 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
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