Myus ( grc, Μυοῦς), sometimes Myous or Myos, was an ancient Greek city in Caria. It was one of twelve major settlements of the

Ionian League The Ionian League ( grc, Ἴωνες, ''Íōnes''; , ''koinón Iōnōn''; or , ''koinē sýnodos Iōnōn''; Latin: ''commune consilium''), also called the Panionic League, was a confederation formed at the end of the Meliac War in the mid-7th c ...

. The city was said to have been founded by Cyaretus ( grc, Κυάρητος) (sometimes called Cydrelus), a son of

Codrus Codrus (; ; Greek: , ''Kódros'') was the last of the semi-mythical Kings of Athens (r. ca 1089– 1068 BC). He was an ancient exemplar of patriotism and self-sacrifice. He was succeeded by his son Medon, who it is claimed ruled not as king but ...

. Myus was located on a small peninsula at the coast of the

Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea ; tr, Ege Denizi (Greek: Αιγαίο Πέλαγος: "Egéo Pélagos", Turkish: "Ege Denizi" or "Adalar Denizi") is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans ...

, but it now lies inland due to the sediment deposited by the Maeander River over many centuries. The site of the city lies north of the modern village Avşar in the

Söke Söke is a town and the largest district of Aydın Province in the Aegean region of western Turkey, 54 km (34 miles) south-west of the city of Aydın, near the Aegean coast. It had 121.940 population in 2020. It neighbours are Germencik fr ...

district of

Aydın Province Aydın Province ( tr, ) is a province of southwestern Turkey, located in the Aegean Region. The provincial capital is the city of Aydın which has a population of almost 200,000 (2012). Other towns in the province include the summer seaside reso ...

, Turkey

Myus was synoikised with Miletus. Myus had both a temple of Athena and a temple of Herodotus and sources tell us that it was always secondary to Miletos. Instigated by

Aristagoras Aristagoras ( grc-gre, Ἀρισταγόρας ὁ Μιλήσιος), d. 497/496 BC, was the leader of the Ionian city of Miletus in the late 6th century BC and early 5th century BC and a key player during the early years of the Ionian Revolt a ...

Miletus Miletus (; gr, Μῑ́λητος, Mī́lētos; Hittite transcription ''Millawanda'' or ''Milawata'' (exonyms); la, Mīlētus; tr, Milet) was an ancient Greek city on the western coast of Anatolia, near the mouth of the Maeander River in ...

, 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 ...

broke out here. It was the beginning of the

Greco-Persian Wars The Greco-Persian Wars (also often called the Persian Wars) were a series of conflicts between the Achaemenid Empire and Greek city-states that started in 499 BC and lasted until 449 BC. The collision between the fractious political world of th ...

It was the smallest among the twelve Ionian cities, and in the days of

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...

the population was so reduced that they did not form a political community, but became incorporated with Miletus, whither in the end the Myusians transferred themselves, abandoning their own town altogether. This last event happened, according to

Pausanias Pausanias ( el, Παυσανίας) may refer to: * Pausanias of Athens, lover of the poet Agathon and a character in Plato's ''Symposium'' *Pausanias the Regent, Spartan general and regent of the 5th century BC * Pausanias of Sicily, physician of ...

, on account of the great number of flies which annoyed the inhabitants; but it was more probably on account of the frequent inundations to which the place was exposed. Myus was one of the three towns given to

Themistocles Themistocles (; grc-gre, Θεμιστοκλῆς; c. 524–459 BC) was an Athenian politician and general. He was one of a new breed of non-aristocratic politicians who rose to prominence in the early years of the Athenian democracy. A ...

by the Persian king. During the Peloponnesian War the Athenians experienced a check near this place from the Carians.

Philip II of Macedonia Philip II of Macedon ( grc-gre, Φίλιππος ; 382 – 21 October 336 BC) was the king (''basileus'') of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia from 359 BC until his death in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty, founders of the a ...

, who had obtained possession of Myus, ceded it to the Magnesians.Athen. 3.78. The only edifice noticed by the ancients at Myus was a temple of

Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Romans ...

, built of white marble.

References

{{Authority control Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey Ionian League Former populated places in Turkey Buildings and structures in Aydın Province History of Aydın Province Greek city-states Populated places in ancient Caria Söke District

See also

References