Heraion of Argos
The Heraion of Argos was one of the most important sanctuaries of Hera in ancient times . The ruins lie between the Mycenaean towns of Mycenae and Midea across from the city of Argos ( Peloponnese , Greece ).
Connected to the sanctuary is the story of the two brothers Kleobis and Biton , who hitched themselves like oxen in front of their mother's wagon in order to bring them to the Hera festival in time, whereupon they fell asleep after their work and did not wake up because a death on The zenith of life is the greatest reward for man.
The sanctuary is located northeast of the city of Argos, about two kilometers north of today's village Neo Ireo (Νέο Ηραίο, formerly Chonikas, Χώνικας), on a terrace that can be seen from afar and dates back to the 8th century BC. BC back. The most important cult building is the temple of Hera. Practically nothing is left of the oldest temple, but it is known that it was one of the first temples with a peristyle . He was born in 423 BC. Destroyed by fire. The new temple was built around 420-410 BC. Built a little below the old one by the architect Eupolemus . It had a peristyle of 12 × 6 Doric columns, in the cella there was a statue of Hera made of gold and ivory, created by Polyklet , the bottom was curved . Most of the remaining buildings date from the 7th or 6th century BC. Chr.
The emperors Nero and Hadrian honored Heraion with gifts.
The historian Hellanikos of Lesbos used a list of the priestesses of Heraion for dating , ranging from mythical times to his present day ( Peace of Nicias 421 BC).
literature
- Charles Waldstein : The Argive Heraeum. 2 volumes. Boston 1902-1905.
- Christopher Mee, Antony Spawforth: Greece. To Oxford Archaeological Guide . Oxford University Press, Oxford 2001, pp. 195-197.
- Christopher A. Pfaff: The architecture of the classical temple of Hera. (= The Argive Heraion. Results of excavations conducted by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens 1) American School of Classical Studies at Athens, Princeton 2003, ISBN 0-87661-801-8
- RS Mason: Argive Heraion, Argolid, Greece . In: Richard Stillwell et al. a. (Ed.): The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites. Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ 1976, ISBN 0-691-03542-3 .
Web links
- Heraion of Argos in the Arachne archaeological database
Coordinates: 37 ° 41 ′ 31 ″ N , 22 ° 46 ′ 29 ″ E