PALLANTION
Arkadia, Greece.
More important for Roman legend than for Greek history and archaeology, for the Romans believed that Evander set
out from there to settle the Palatine in Rome. Though
already mentioned in Hesiod (Fr. 162 Merkelbach-West), the town never attained importance. It subscribed to the Arkadian synoecism after the battle of Leuktra; a battle between Kleomenes and Aratos took place
there in 228 (Plut.
Cleom. 4.4,
Arat. 35.5); because of
the fancied Arkadian origin of the first settlers of the
Palatine, the emperor Antoninus Pius made the village
a city libera et immunis (
Paus. 8.43.3).
The ancient city is located some 7 km SW of Tripolis,
just E of the Tripolis-Megalopolis road. On a low hill
rising in front of Mt. Kravari (ancient Boreion) the
Chapel of St. John is set down in the foundations of a
rectangular building (16.15 x 8.90 m) with an E orientation, probably the sanctuary dedicated to the Pure
Gods mentioned by Pausanias (
8.44.5). A few in to
the N, with the same orientation, there is a smaller,
earlier, megaron (10.45 x 4.50 m). A number of votive
offerings (6th-5th c. B.C.), now in the museum at Tegea,
were found beneath a terracotta paving of a small room
in the area. Portions of the acropolis wall are still in
place. On the S slope of the hill, on a large terrace, there
are to be found the foundations of a temple (21.40 x
11.70 m), apparently of 5th c. date. About 1.6 km SW
of Pallantion, on the N portion of Mt. Boreion in a
place called Vigli there are observable the foundations
of a temple (11.55 x 24.70 m), dated to the last quarter of the 6th c. which has been identified with that of Athena Soteira and Poseidon (
Paus. 8.44.4). The structure replaces an earlier, 7th c. building on the same site.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
G. Libertini,
ASAtene 1-2 (1939-40)
225-30 (report); M. Guarducci, ibid. 3-4 (1941-43) 141-51 (inscription); Reports in
BCH 64-65 (1940) 241-42;
Praktika (1958) 165-66; K. A. Romaios,
ArchEph
(1957) 114-62; N. A. Pappahatzis,
Pausaniou Ellados
Periigisis (1967) Iv 384-90
MPI.
W. F. WYATT, JR.
