Acheron
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Acheron / Acherondas ᾿Αχέρων / Αχέροντας |
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 Acheron River Valley |
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| Data | ||
| location | Greece , Epirus | |
| River system | Acheron | |
| source | Tomaros , Ori Souliou | |
| muzzle |
Ionian Sea Coordinates: 39 ° 14 ′ 8 ″ N , 20 ° 28 ′ 55 ″ E 39 ° 14 ′ 8 ″ N , 20 ° 28 ′ 55 ″ E |
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| Mouth height |
0 m
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| length | 58 km | |
| Left tributaries | Pyriflegetheon | |
| Right tributaries | Tsangaritikos , cocytus | |
| Small towns | Ammoudia | |
The Acheron ( ancient Greek Ἀχέρων Achéron ; Modern Greek Αχέροντας Acherondas ; additional names Mavropotamos Μαυροπόταμος, "Black River" Fanariotikos Φαναριώτικος, according to the site Fanari near the mouth; Albanian Gurla ) is a 58 km long river in northwestern Greece . It flows through the historical region of Epirus and is also a topos of Greek mythology .
course
The Acheron River is fed by two source rivers. The western rises on the eastern slope of the Souli Mountains (Greek Ori Souliou Όρη Σουλίου) and runs south to the village of Polystafylo. The eastern one rises from the Tomaros mountain range, on which the ancient sanctuary of Dodoni is located. This source river flows in a south-westerly direction towards the village of Polystafylo. At Polystafylo both source rivers unite to form the Acheron. The direction of flow of the source river from the Tomaros massif is continued to Polystafylo. The section between Polystafylo and Trikastro is 12 to 15 km long and is also known as Lakka Souliou . North of the village of Trikastro, the Acheron swings its course to the north-northwest and enters a narrow valley, the Acheron Gorge ( Greek στενά Αχέροντα , literally 'Acheron-Narrow').
The Acheron Gorge begins in the village of Trikastro at the bridge of Serziana, turns just before the confluence of the ice-cold tributary Tsangariotiko (Τσαγκαριώτικο) to the west-southwest and ends at the waterfalls at the rock bridge of Tzavelena. The small tributary Pyriflegetheon (Πυριφλεγέθων) flows into the Acheron at this point. The Acheron turns west at Tzavelena and widens its valley somewhat. In this section of the river to the village of Glyki, the so-called sources of the Acheron can be found on both sides of the river . These springs are ice-cold fresh water sources in and along the river bed, which to the ancient Greeks seemed to come directly from the underworld. Today the sources of the Acheron and the east lying Acheron Gorge are a popular destination for Greek and foreign tourists.
After the village of Glyki, the Acheron swings its course to the southwest and reaches a plain near the coast at the village of Kastri. The Acherousia Lake was located in this plain until the end of the 19th century, which has since silted up completely. Ephyra's oracle of the dead lay on the banks of Lake Acherousia . Shortly before the village of Mesopotamos, the tributary Kokytos flows into the Acheron from the Paramythias mountains in the north. At the confluence of the Kokytos , the national road 6 from Igoumenitsa to Preveza crosses the Acheron. The Acheron flows through the village of Ammoudia and flows into the Ionian Sea in the Bay of Ammoudia. Its ancient mouth in the form of a large bay called Glykys Limēn ('sweet harbor') has now silted up .
mythology
In Greek mythology as well as in Dante's Divine Comedy , he is one of the five rivers of the underworld , into which the others, Styx , Kokytos , Phlegethon and Lethe flow. Along with the Styx, it is considered the river of the dead, over which Charon took the dead souls to Hades with his ferry . In Plato's Phaedo the dead are described who have “led a mediocre walk” and reach a lake via the Acheron, in which they purify themselves and do away with their trespasses before they are born again. Occasionally, Acheron is used as a synonym for Hades himself. According to legend, there was an oracle for the dead at its mouth .
Acheron is an Oceanid in mythology , one of the three thousand sons and daughters of Oceanus and Tethys . Together with the nymph Orphne (or Gorgyra ) he fathered Askalaphos .
photos
The Acheron near the village of Glyki
The valley of the Acheron (Narrows of the Acheron) near Glyki
The so-called sources of the Acheron in the course of the river
Web links
- Gustav Hirschfeld : Acheron 1 . In: Paulys Realencyclopadie der classischen Antiquity Science (RE). Volume I, 1, Stuttgart 1893, Col. 217 f.
- Map ( Memento from August 30, 2004 in the Internet Archive )
- Acheron ( Memento from April 5, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
- Traffic report on www.kajaktour.de
- Information on the Acheron River ( Memento of March 18, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) (in Greek)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Herodotus : Historien (= Kröner's pocket edition. Vol. 224). German complete edition, 4th edition. Translated by August Horneffer . Newly edited and explained by Hans Wilhelm Haussig , with an introduction by Walter F. Otto . Alfred Kröner, Stuttgart 1971, ISBN 3-520-22404-6 , p. 707.