PETRA
Thessaly, Greece.
Modern name of a
hill of three peaks on the W side of Lake Boibe (Karla),
ca. 5 km E of Gerli (now Armenion). It was an island in
antiquity. It is the site of a prehistoric settlement with
extensive Cyclopean walls (ca. 4 km in length), estimated
to be the largest Mycenaean walled site known in Greece.
There was also an archaic-Hellenistic settlement here;
sherds, some building remains, etc. are to be seen. It is
sometimes identified as Armenion (
Strab. 11.503, 530, a
city between Larissa and Pherai) and sometimes as Kerkinion, a city somewhere near the Boibe Lake, taken by
the Aitolians and Athymanians under Amynander in 200
B.C. when it had a Macedonian garrison (
Livy 31.41. 2f).
BIBLIOGRAPHY
A. S. Arvanitopoullos,
Praktika (1910)
232f; (1911) 346f; F. Stählin,
Das Hellenische Thessalien
(1924) 103; A. Philippson,
GL I 1 (1950) 121, 274; V.
Milojćić,
AA (1955) 221-29
PI;
BCH 81 (1957) 597.
T. S. MAC KAY