Myndus () or Myndos ( el, ) was an ancient

Dorian Dorian may refer to: Ancient Greece * Dorians, one of the main ethnic divisions of ancient Greeks * Doric Greek, or Dorian, the dialect spoken by the Dorians Art and entertainment Films * ''Dorian'' (film), the Canadian title of the 2004 film ' ...

colony of

Troezen Troezen (; ancient Greek: Τροιζήν, modern Greek: Τροιζήνα ) is a small town and a former municipality in the northeastern Peloponnese, Greece, on the Argolid Peninsula. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the munic ...

, on the coast of

Caria Caria (; from Greek: Καρία, ''Karia''; tr, Karya) was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid-Ionia (Mycale) south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Ionian and Dorian Greeks colonized the west of it and joined the ...

Asia Minor Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The ...

, (

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

), sited on the

Bodrum Bodrum () is a port city in Muğla Province, southwestern Turkey, at the entrance to the Gulf of Gökova. Its population was 35,795 at the 2012 census, with a total of 136,317 inhabitants residing within the district's borders. Known in ancient ...

Peninsula, a few miles northwest of

Halicarnassus Halicarnassus (; grc, Ἁλικαρνᾱσσός ''Halikarnāssós'' or ''Alikarnāssós''; tr, Halikarnas; Carian: 𐊠𐊣𐊫𐊰 𐊴𐊠𐊥𐊵𐊫𐊰 ''alos k̂arnos'') was an ancient Greek city in Caria, in Anatolia. It was located ...

. The site is now occupied by the modern village of Gümüşlük.

History

Myndos was protected by strong walls, and had a good harbor. ( Paus. ii. 30. § 8; Strabo xiv. p. 658;

Arrian Arrian of Nicomedia (; Greek: ''Arrianos''; la, Lucius Flavius Arrianus; ) was a Greek historian, public servant, military commander and philosopher of the Roman period. '' The Anabasis of Alexander'' by Arrian is considered the best ...

, Anab. i. 20, ii. 5.) Otherwise, the place is not of much importance in ancient history. Both Pliny (v. 29) and

Stephanus of Byzantium Stephanus or Stephan of Byzantium ( la, Stephanus Byzantinus; grc-gre, Στέφανος Βυζάντιος, ''Stéphanos Byzántios''; centuryAD), was a Byzantine grammarian and the author of an important geographical dictionary entitled ''Ethni ...

(''s. v.'') mention Palaemyndus as an ancient Carian settlement near to Myndus, which seems to have become deserted after Dorian Mynduse was founded. (Comp. Strab. xiii. p. 611). Mela (i. 16) and Pliny (''l. c.'') also speak of Neapolis in the same peninsula and as no other authors mention such a place in that part of the country, it had been supposed that Myndus (the Dorian colony) and Neapolis were the same place. Pliny, however, mentions both Myndus and Neapolis as two different towns, and modern scholars differentiate the two. The cynic philosopher

Diogenes of Sinope Diogenes ( ; grc, Διογένης, Diogénēs ), also known as Diogenes the Cynic (, ) or Diogenes of Sinope, was a Greek philosopher and one of the founders of Cynicism (philosophy). He was born in Sinope, an Ionian colony on the Black Sea ...

visited Myndos and noticed how large the city gates were, relative to the town; he cynically remarked; "Oh men of Myndos, I urge you to shut the city gates, as your town might exit from these!". Myndian ships are mentioned in the expedition of Anaxagoras against Naxos. (Herod. v. 33.)

Herodotus Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known for ...

relates the story of how a captain from Myndus, Scylax, was found to have left no guards on his ship while a Persian force was preparing to attack the island of

Naxos Naxos (; el, Νάξος, ) is a Greek island and the largest of the Cyclades. It was the centre of archaic Cycladic culture. The island is famous as a source of emery, a rock rich in corundum, which until modern times was one of the best ...

. The Persian commander, Megabates, flew into a rage and had him put in stocks, at which point Aristagoras, a

tyrant A tyrant (), in the modern English usage of the word, is an absolute ruler who is unrestrained by law, or one who has usurped a legitimate ruler's sovereignty. Often portrayed as cruel, tyrants may defend their positions by resorting to ...

from Miletus helping several Naxian oligarchs to retake Naxos, discovered what had happened to his guest-friend Scylax. Pleading with Megabates to no avail for Scylax, he released him anyway, incurring the Persian commander's wrath. The consequence of this falling out was that, according to Herodotus, Megabates warned the Naxians of what was afoot, ruining the expedition and in turn Aristagoras who, with nowhere to go, stirred up the

Ionian Revolt The Ionian Revolt, and associated revolts in Aeolis, Doris, Cyprus and Caria, were military rebellions by several Greek regions of Asia Minor against Persian rule, lasting from 499 BC to 493 BC. At the heart of the rebellion was the dissatisfa ...

. This is a classic example of Ionian αταξιη (lack of discipline, disorder, licentiousness), a charge commonly levelled at them, especially in the 5th century by

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh List ...

. At a later time, when

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...

besieged Halicarnassus, he was anxious first to make himself master of Myndus; but when he attempted to take it by surprise, the Myndians, with the aid of reinforcements from Halicarnassus repulsed him with some loss. (Arrian, ''l. c.''; comp. Hecat. Fragm. 229; Polyb. xvi. 15, 21; Scylax, p. 38; Ptol. v. 2. § 9; Liv. xxxvii. 15; Hierocl. p. 687.)

Athenaeus Athenaeus of Naucratis (; grc, Ἀθήναιος ὁ Nαυκρατίτης or Nαυκράτιος, ''Athēnaios Naukratitēs'' or ''Naukratios''; la, Athenaeus Naucratita) was a Greek rhetorician and grammarian, flourishing about the end of t ...

(i. 32) states that the wine grown in the district of Myndus was good for digestion. Remains of the city are visible in and around Gümüşlük and in the adjacent waters; it is supposed that some unrecorded earthquake caused seafront sections of the ancient town to be submerged. As a result, much of the land and offshore areas are protected from interference and development.

Ecclesiastical history

Myndus was an episcopal see of

, a suffragan of Stauropolis (Aphrodisias). The '' Notitiæ episcopatuum'' allude to it as late as the 12th or 13th century. However, only four of its bishops are known: Archelaus, who attended the

First Council of Ephesus The Council of Ephesus was a council of Christian bishops convened in Ephesus (near present-day Selçuk in Turkey) in AD 431 by the Roman Emperor Theodosius II. This third ecumenical council, an effort to attain consensus in the church th ...

(431); Alphius, who assisted at the

Council of Chalcedon The Council of Chalcedon (; la, Concilium Chalcedonense), ''Synodos tēs Chalkēdonos'' was the fourth ecumenical council of the Christian Church. It was convoked by the Roman emperor Marcian. The council convened in the city of Chalcedon, Bi ...

(451); John who was present at the

Third Council of Constantinople The Third Council of Constantinople, counted as the Sixth Ecumenical Council by the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches, as well by certain other Western Churches, met in 680–681 and condemned monoenergism and monothelitism as heretica ...

(680); and another John who went to the

Second Council of Nicaea The Second Council of Nicaea is recognized as the last of the first seven ecumenical councils by the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church. In addition, it is also recognized as such by the Old Catholics, the Anglican Communion, an ...

(787). The bishopric is included in the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

's list of

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbis ...

Notable people

Alexander of Myndus Alexander el, Ἀλέξανδρος) of Myndus in Caria was an ancient Greek writer who some believe lived during the 1st century AD but this date is uncertain. He wrote on diverse topics, including zoology and divination. His works, which a ...

, ancient Greek writer * Apollonius of Myndus, ancient Greek astrologer * Eusebius of Myndus, ancient Greek philosopher * Botryas of Myndus, ancient Greek writer * Zenon of Myndus, ancient Greek writerStephanus of Byzantium, Ethnica, § M462.3
/ref>

Notes

References

External links

Gümüslük
{{Authority control Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey Greek colonies in Caria Dorian colonies Ancient Troezen Ruins in Turkey Destroyed cities Former populated places in Turkey Geography of Muğla Province History of Muğla Province Buildings and structures in Muğla Province Halicarnassus Members of the Delian League Populated places in ancient Caria Bodrum District