Siris (Magna Graecia)
Encyclopedia
Siris was an ancient city of Magna Graecia
(in modern southern Italy
), situated at the mouth of the river of the same name flowing into the Tarentine gulf
, and now called the Sinni.
colony which at one time attained to a great amount of wealth and prosperity; however, its history is extremely obscure and uncertain. Its first origin was generally ascribed to a Trojan
colony; and, as a proof of this, an ancient statue of Minerva
was shown there which claimed to be the true Trojan Palladium. Whatever may have been the origin of this legend, there seems no doubt that Siris was originally a city of the Chones, the native Oenotrian
inhabitants of this part of Italy
. A legend found in the Etymologicon,, according to which the city derived its name from a daughter of Morges
, king of the Siculi, evidently points in the same direction, as the Morgetes also were an Oenotrian
tribe. From these first settlers it was wrested, as we are told, by a body of Ionian
colonists from Colophon
, who had fled from their native city to avoid the dominion of the Lydians
. The period of this emigration is very uncertain; but it appears probable that it must have taken place not long after the capture of the city by Gyges
, king of Lydia
, about 700-690 BCE.
Archilochus
, writing about 660 BCE, alludes to the fertility and beauty of the district on the banks of the Siris; and though the fragment preserved to us by Athenaeus
does not expressly notice the existence of the city of that name, yet it would appear from the expressions of Athenaeus that the poet certainly did mention it; and the fact of this colony having been so lately established there was doubtless the cause of his allusion to it. On the other hand, it seems clear from the account of the settlement at Metapontum
, that the territory of Siris was at that time still unoccupied by any Greek colony. We may therefore probably place the date of the Ionian settlement at Siris between 690 and 660 BCE. We are told that the Ionic colonists gave to the city the name of Polieum; but the appellation of Siris, which it derived from the river, and which seems to have been often given to the whole district , evidently prevailed, and is the only one met with in common use.
Of the history of Siris we know very little, except the general fact of its prosperity, and that its citizens indulged in habits of luxury and lack of vigor that rivalled those of their neighbours the Sybarites
. It may be received as an additional proof of their opulence, that Damasus, a citizen of Siris, is noticed by Herodotus
among the suitors for the daughter of Cleisthenes of Sicyon
, about 580 BCE-560 BCE, on which occasion Siris and Sybaris among the cities of Italy alone furnished claimants. This was probably about the period that Siris was at the height of its prosperity. But an Ionian city, existing as it did in the midst of the powerful Achaean
colonies, must naturally have been an object of jealousy to its neighbors; and hence we are told that the Metapontines, Sybarites, and Crotoniats formed a league against Siris; and the war that ensued ended in the capture of the city, which appears to have been followed by the expulsion of the inhabitants.
The date of the destruction of Siris cannot be fixed with any approach to certainty: it was probably after 550 BCE, and certainly preceded the fall of its rival Sybaris in 510 BCE. Its ruin appears to have been complete, for we meet with no subsequent mention of the city, and the territory is spoken of as open to colonisation at the time of the Persian War
, 480 BCE.) Upon that occasion we learn incidentally that the Athenians
considered themselves as having a claim of old standing to the vacant district of the Sirites, and even at one time thought of removing thither with their wives and families. The origin of this claim is unknown; but it seems pretty clear that it was taken up by the Athenian colonists who established themselves at Thurii
in 443 BCE, and became the occasion of hostilities between them and the Tarentines
. These were at length terminated by a compromise, and it was agreed to found in common a fresh colony in the disputed territory. This appears to have been at first established on the site of the ancient city, but was soon after transferred to a spot 5 km distant, where the new colony received the name of Heraclea
, and soon rose to be a flourishing city.
According to Strabo, Siris still continued to exist as the port or naval station of Heracleia; but no other mention of it is found, and it is not clear whether Strabo himself meant to speak of it as still subsisting in his day. No remains of it are extant, and the exact site does not appear to have been determined. But it may be placed on the left bank of the river Siris (Sinni), at or near its mouth; a position which well accords with the distance of 24 stadia (5 km) from Heraclea, the remains of which latter are visible at Policoro
, near the river Agri
, the ancient Aciris. A modern comune
, Nova Siri
, of the Province of Matera
, Basilicata
, seems to preserve the name and accords well with the expected location of the city, but no definitive evidence has confirmed this.
Magna Graecia
Magna Græcia is the name of the coastal areas of Southern Italy on the Tarentine Gulf that were extensively colonized by Greek settlers; particularly the Achaean colonies of Tarentum, Crotone, and Sybaris, but also, more loosely, the cities of Cumae and Neapolis to the north...
(in modern southern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
), situated at the mouth of the river of the same name flowing into the Tarentine gulf
Gulf of Taranto
The Gulf of Taranto is a gulf of the Ionian Sea, in southern Italy.The Gulf of Taranto is almost square, 140 km long and wide, and is delimited by the capes Santa Maria di Leuca and Colonna...
, and now called the Sinni.
History
Siris was a GreekAncient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
colony which at one time attained to a great amount of wealth and prosperity; however, its history is extremely obscure and uncertain. Its first origin was generally ascribed to a Trojan
Troy
Troy was a city, both factual and legendary, located in northwest Anatolia in what is now Turkey, southeast of the Dardanelles and beside Mount Ida...
colony; and, as a proof of this, an ancient statue of Minerva
Minerva
Minerva was the Roman goddess whom Romans from the 2nd century BC onwards equated with the Greek goddess Athena. She was the virgin goddess of poetry, medicine, wisdom, commerce, weaving, crafts, magic...
was shown there which claimed to be the true Trojan Palladium. Whatever may have been the origin of this legend, there seems no doubt that Siris was originally a city of the Chones, the native Oenotrian
Oenotrians
The Oenotrians were an ancient Italic people of unknown origin who inhabited a territory from Paestum to southern Calabria in southern Italy...
inhabitants of this part of Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. A legend found in the Etymologicon,, according to which the city derived its name from a daughter of Morges
Morges
Morges is a municipality in the Swiss canton of Vaud, located in the district of Morges and is also the seat of the district.-History:...
, king of the Siculi, evidently points in the same direction, as the Morgetes also were an Oenotrian
Oenotrians
The Oenotrians were an ancient Italic people of unknown origin who inhabited a territory from Paestum to southern Calabria in southern Italy...
tribe. From these first settlers it was wrested, as we are told, by a body of Ionian
Ionians
The Ionians were one of the four major tribes into which the Classical Greeks considered the population of Hellenes to have been divided...
colonists from Colophon
Colophon
Colophon was a city in the region of Lydia in antiquity dating from about the turn of the first millennium-BC. It was likely one the oldest of the twelve Ionian League cities, between Lebedos and Ephesus and its ruins are in the eponymously named modern region of Ionia.The city's name comes from...
, who had fled from their native city to avoid the dominion of the Lydians
Lydians
The Lydians were the inhabitants of Lydia, a region in western Anatolia, who spoke the distinctive Lydian language, an Indo-European language of the Anatolian group....
. The period of this emigration is very uncertain; but it appears probable that it must have taken place not long after the capture of the city by Gyges
Gyges of Lydia
Gyges was the founder of the third or Mermnad dynasty of Lydian kings and reigned from 716 BC to 678 BC . He was succeeded by his son Ardys II.-Allegorical accounts of Gyges' rise to power:...
, king of Lydia
Lydia
Lydia was an Iron Age kingdom of western Asia Minor located generally east of ancient Ionia in the modern Turkish provinces of Manisa and inland İzmir. Its population spoke an Anatolian language known as Lydian....
, about 700-690 BCE.
Archilochus
Archilochus
Archilochus, or, Archilochos While these have been the generally accepted dates since Felix Jacoby, "The Date of Archilochus," Classical Quarterly 35 97-109, some scholars disagree; Robin Lane Fox, for instance, in Travelling Heroes: Greeks and Their Myths in the Epic Age of Homer , p...
, writing about 660 BCE, alludes to the fertility and beauty of the district on the banks of the Siris; and though the fragment preserved to us by Athenaeus
Athenaeus
Athenaeus , of Naucratis in Egypt, Greek rhetorician and grammarian, flourished about the end of the 2nd and beginning of the 3rd century AD...
does not expressly notice the existence of the city of that name, yet it would appear from the expressions of Athenaeus that the poet certainly did mention it; and the fact of this colony having been so lately established there was doubtless the cause of his allusion to it. On the other hand, it seems clear from the account of the settlement at Metapontum
Metapontum
Metapontum, Metapontium or Metapontion , was an important city of Magna Graecia, situated on the gulf of Tarentum, between the river Bradanus and the Casuentus . It was distant about 20 km from Heraclea and 40 from Tarentum...
, that the territory of Siris was at that time still unoccupied by any Greek colony. We may therefore probably place the date of the Ionian settlement at Siris between 690 and 660 BCE. We are told that the Ionic colonists gave to the city the name of Polieum; but the appellation of Siris, which it derived from the river, and which seems to have been often given to the whole district , evidently prevailed, and is the only one met with in common use.
Of the history of Siris we know very little, except the general fact of its prosperity, and that its citizens indulged in habits of luxury and lack of vigor that rivalled those of their neighbours the Sybarites
Sybaris
Sybaris was an ancient city in Magna Graecia on the western shore of the Gulf of Taranto. The wealth of the city during the 6th century BC was so great that the Sybarites became synonymous with pleasure and luxury...
. It may be received as an additional proof of their opulence, that Damasus, a citizen of Siris, is noticed by Herodotus
Herodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
among the suitors for the daughter of Cleisthenes of Sicyon
Cleisthenes of Sicyon
Cleisthenes was the tyrant of Sicyon from c. 600–570 BC, who aided in the First Sacred War against Kirrha that destroyed that city in 595 BC. He is also told to have organized with success a war against Argos because of his anti-Dorian feelings...
, about 580 BCE-560 BCE, on which occasion Siris and Sybaris among the cities of Italy alone furnished claimants. This was probably about the period that Siris was at the height of its prosperity. But an Ionian city, existing as it did in the midst of the powerful Achaean
Achaeans (tribe)
The Achaeans were one of the four major tribes into which the people of Classical Greece divided themselves. According to the foundation myth formalized by Hesiod, their name comes from Achaeus, the mythical founder of the Achaean tribe, who was supposedly one of the sons of Xuthus, and brother of...
colonies, must naturally have been an object of jealousy to its neighbors; and hence we are told that the Metapontines, Sybarites, and Crotoniats formed a league against Siris; and the war that ensued ended in the capture of the city, which appears to have been followed by the expulsion of the inhabitants.
The date of the destruction of Siris cannot be fixed with any approach to certainty: it was probably after 550 BCE, and certainly preceded the fall of its rival Sybaris in 510 BCE. Its ruin appears to have been complete, for we meet with no subsequent mention of the city, and the territory is spoken of as open to colonisation at the time of the Persian War
Persian War
Several wars are termed "Persian" or called simply "the Persian War:"* Greco-Persian Wars* Roman-Persian Wars* Russo-Persian Wars**Russo-Persian War **Russo-Persian War **Russo-Persian War **Russo-Persian War...
, 480 BCE.) Upon that occasion we learn incidentally that the Athenians
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
considered themselves as having a claim of old standing to the vacant district of the Sirites, and even at one time thought of removing thither with their wives and families. The origin of this claim is unknown; but it seems pretty clear that it was taken up by the Athenian colonists who established themselves at Thurii
Thurii
Thurii , called also by some Latin writers Thurium , for a time also Copia and Copiae, was a city of Magna Graecia, situated on the Tarentine gulf, within a short distance of the site of Sybaris, whose place it may be considered as having taken...
in 443 BCE, and became the occasion of hostilities between them and the Tarentines
Taranto
Taranto is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto and is an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base....
. These were at length terminated by a compromise, and it was agreed to found in common a fresh colony in the disputed territory. This appears to have been at first established on the site of the ancient city, but was soon after transferred to a spot 5 km distant, where the new colony received the name of Heraclea
Heraclea (Lucania)
Heraclea was an ancient city of Magna Graecia, situated in Lucania on the Gulf of Tarentum , but a short distance from the sea, and between the rivers Aciris and Siris , the site of which is located in the modern comune of Policoro, Province of Matera, Basilicata,...
, and soon rose to be a flourishing city.
According to Strabo, Siris still continued to exist as the port or naval station of Heracleia; but no other mention of it is found, and it is not clear whether Strabo himself meant to speak of it as still subsisting in his day. No remains of it are extant, and the exact site does not appear to have been determined. But it may be placed on the left bank of the river Siris (Sinni), at or near its mouth; a position which well accords with the distance of 24 stadia (5 km) from Heraclea, the remains of which latter are visible at Policoro
Policoro
Policoro is a town and comune in the province of Matera, in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata. It is bounded by the communes of Rotondella, Scanzano Jonico and Tursi. Policoro is a relatively small town of approximately 15,000 inhabitants...
, near the river Agri
Agri
Agri may refer to:* As shorthand or prefix referring to agriculture* Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development * Azerbaijan–Georgia–Romania Interconnector * Ağrı, a city in eastern Turkey* the Agri in southern Italy...
, the ancient Aciris. A modern comune
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
, Nova Siri
Nova Siri
Nova Siri is a town and comune in the province of Matera, in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata. Nova Siri is close to the site of the ancient Ionian colony of Siris. Nova Siri is formed by 2 small cities: Nova Siri Centre and Nova Siri Station. The centre is sited on a hill at 350 m above...
, of the Province of Matera
Province of Matera
The Province of Matera is a province in the Basilicata region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Matera.It has an area of 3,447 km², and a total population of 203,837 . There are 31 comunes in the province . The main comunes by population are:- External links :* **...
, Basilicata
Basilicata
Basilicata , also known as Lucania, is a region in the south of Italy, bordering on Campania to the west, Apulia to the north and east, and Calabria to the south, having one short southwestern coastline on the Tyrrhenian Sea between Campania in the northwest and Calabria in the southwest, and a...
, seems to preserve the name and accords well with the expected location of the city, but no definitive evidence has confirmed this.