Greece - Archaeological site of Ancient Messene

The archaeological site of ancient Messene lies in a fertile valley approximately in the centre of the Regional Unit of Messenia, south of Mt Ithome. Ithome was the strongest natural and manmade fortress of Messenia, controlling the valleys of Stenyclaros to the north and Makaria to the south. (Strabo compares it to Corinth as regards strategic importance). The first installation on the site dates to the Late Neolithic or the Early Bronze Age, while in the 9th-8th c. BC the cult of Zeus Ithomatas was established on the peak of Mt Ithome. A heroon shrine was founded in the lower city during the Geometric period (800-700 BC), along with the first sanctuary of Artemis Orthia, Asklepios and Messene. All the sacred buildings belonged to a town named Ithome. The Spartan annexation of the area following the First Messenian War (743-724 BC) put a stop to the evolution of the town into a more complex urban organism and the development of an urban outlook. The Spartan occupation, however, did not result in a total loss of national consciousness among the inhabitants, who were now helots.