Alea ( grc, Ἀλέα) was a town of
ancient Arcadia
Arcadia ( el, Ἀρκαδία) is a region in the central Peloponnese. It takes its name from the mythological character Arcas, and in Greek mythology it was the home of the gods Hermes and Pan. In European Renaissance arts, Arcadia was celebrat ...
, between
Orchomenus and
Stymphalus. In the time of
Pausanias, 2nd century, it contained temples of the
Ephesian Artemis, of
Athena Alea
Alea (Ancient Greek: ) was an epithet of the Greek goddess Athena, prominent in Arcadian mythology, under which she was worshiped at Alea, Mantineia and Tegea. Alea was initially an independent goddess, but was eventually assimilated with Ath ...
, and 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 ...
. It appears to have been situated in the territory either of Stymphalus or Orchomenus. Alea was never a town of importance; but some writers have, though inadvertently, placed at this town the celebrated temple of Athena Alea, which was situated at
Tegea
Tegea (; el, Τεγέα) was a settlement in ancient Arcadia, and it is also a former municipality in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the Tripoli municipality, of which it is a municipal unit ...
.
Its site is located near the modern
Alea,
which was renamed to reflect association with the ancient town.
References
Populated places in ancient Arcadia
Former populated places in Greece
Arcadian city-states
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