Pylus or Pylos ( grc, Πύλος) was a town in Triphylia in

ancient Elis Elis () or Eleia ( el, Ήλιδα, Ilida, grc-att, Ἦλις, Ēlis ; Elean: , ethnonym: ) is an ancient district in Greece that corresponds to the modern regional unit of Elis. Elis is in southern Greece on the Peloponnese, bounded on th ...

, mentioned only by

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 ...

, and surnamed by him Τριφυλιακός, Ἀρκαδικός, and Λεπρεατικός. He describes it as situated 30 stadia from the sea, on the rivers Mamathus and Arcadicus, west of the mountain

Minthe In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, Minthe (also Menthe, Mintha or Mentha; or or ) is an Underworld Naiad nymph associated with the river Cocytus. She was beloved by Hades, the King of the Underworld, and became his mistress, but s ...

and north of Lepreum. Upon the conquest of the Triphylian towns by the Eleians, Pylus was annexed to Lepreum. Strabo also contended that this Pylus was the homeland of

Nestor Nestor may refer to: * Nestor (mythology), King of Pylos in Greek mythology Arts and entertainment * "Nestor" (''Ulysses'' episode) an episode in James Joyce's novel ''Ulysses'' * Nestor Studios, first-ever motion picture studio in Hollywood, L ...

because in its vicinity passed the Alpheus, territory where the kingdom of Nestor was supposed to extend and because, according to him, it was the only one of the three cities called Pylus - see

Pylus (Elis) Pylus or Pylos ( grc, Πύλος) was a town in hollow Elis, described by Pausanias as situated upon the mountain road leading from Elis to Olympia, and at the place where the Ladon flows into the Pineus. Strabo, in a corrupt passage, assigns t ...

and

Pylus (Messenia) Pylos (, ; el, Πύλος), historically also known as Navarino, is a town and a former municipality in Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part of the municipality Pylos-Nestoras, of which it is t ...

for the others - that was far from the coast, which corresponded to the story of Telemachus's visit to Pylus in the '' Odyssey''. According to Greek mythology, it was the place where Hermes drove the cows that he stole from Apollo to sacrifice two of them to the gods. Wilhelm Dörpfeld located Pylus in the territory of the current village of Kakovatos, although the distance from it to the sea is less than that indicated by Strabo. Others leave it as unlocated.

References

Populated places in ancient Elis Former populated places in Greece Triphylia Lost ancient cities and towns Locations in Greek mythology {{ancientElis-geo-stub