Hierapytna ( or Ἱερὰ Πύτνα), also Hierapydna (Ἱεράπυδνα), Hierapydnes (Ἱερά Πύδνης), or Hiera, was a town of

ancient Crete The history of Crete goes back to the 7th millennium BC, preceding the ancient Minoan civilization by more than four millennia. The Minoan civilization was the first civilization in Europe. During the Iron Age, Crete developed an Ancient Greece-i ...

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 "Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-si ...

says that it stood in the narrowest part of the island, opposite Minoa. Hierapytna, according to the ''

Stadiasmus Maris Magni The ''Stadiasmus Maris Magni'' or ''Stadiasmus sive Periplus Maris Magni'' () is an ancient Roman periplus or guidebook detailing the ports sailors encounter on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. The ''stadiasmus'' provides distances, sailing ...

'', was 180 stadia from Biennus, which agrees with the distance of 20 M.P. assigned to it by the

Peutinger Table ' (Latin for 'The Peutinger Map'), also known as Peutinger's Tabula, Peutinger tables James Strong and John McClintock (1880)"Eleutheropolis" In: ''The Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature''. NY: Haper and Brothers ...

. It was a town of great antiquity, and its foundation was ascribed to the

Corybantes According to Greek mythology, the Korybantes or Corybantes (also Corybants) (; ) were the armed and crested dancers who worshipped the Phrygian goddess Cybele with drumming and dancing. They are also called the ''Kurbantes'' in Phrygia. Etymolog ...

; it bore the successive names of Cyrba, Pytna, Camirus, and Hierapytna. From an inscription preserved among the Oxford marbles, it appears that the Hierapytnians were at one time allied with the neighbouring city of Priansus. There are both autonomous and Roman Imperial coins belonging to Hierapytna; the symbol on the former is generally a palm tree. Its site is located near modern

Ierapetra Ierapetra (; ancient name: ) is a Greece, Greek city and municipality located on the southeast coast of Crete. History The town of Ierapetra (in the local dialect: Γεράπετρο ''Gerapetro'') is located on the southeast coast of Crete, sit ...

References

Populated places in ancient Crete Former populated places in Greece Cretan city-states Places in Greek mythology {{AncientCrete-geo-stub