Semystra () was a town of

ancient Thrace The Thracians (; ; ) were an Indo-European languages, Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Southeast Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied the area that today is shared betwee ...

Dionysius of Byzantium Dionysius of Byzantium ( Greek ∆ιονύσιος Βυζάντιος, Dionysios Byzantios Latin Dionysius Byzantinus) was a Greek geographer of the 2nd century CE. He is known for his Ανάπλους Βοσπόρου ''Anaplous Bosporou'' ''Voy ...

wrote that there was an altar of the

nymph A nymph (; ; sometimes spelled nymphe) is a minor female nature deity in ancient Greek folklore. Distinct from other Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature; they are typically tied to a specific place, land ...

Semystra there, whence the name of the town. Semystra nurtured the

Keroessa In Greek mythology, Ceroessa (Ancient Greek: Κερόεσσα ''Keroessa'' means "the horned") was a heroine of the foundational myth of Byzantium. She was the daughter of Io and Zeus; elder sister of Epaphus; and mother of Byzas, founder of Byzant ...

, who was the daughter of Io and

Zeus Zeus (, ) is the chief deity of the List of Greek deities, Greek pantheon. He is a sky father, sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus. Zeus is the child ...

.Dionysius of Byzantium, Anaplous of the Bosporos, §24
/ref>Anaplous Bosporou. Dionysii Byzantii De Bospori navigatione quae supersunt; una cum supplementis in geographos graecos minores aliisque ejusdem argumenti fragmentis e codicibus MSS. edidit Carolus Wescher, p.12
/ref> Dionysius added that Semystra nearly became a big city during the

Greek colonization Greek colonisation refers to the expansion of Archaic Greeks, particularly during the 8th–6th centuries BC, across the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea. The Archaic expansion differed from the Iron Age migrations of the Greek Dark Ages ...

, since the leaders of the colonization tried to found the city, but during the sacrifices, a crow snatched one of the thighs from the middle of the flames and carried it to the Bosporion promontory. The rest of the Greeks saw this as a sign from

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

and went to the spot were the crow left the thigh. Its site is located at the head of the

Golden Horn The Golden Horn ( or ) is a major urban waterway and the primary inlet of the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Turkey. As a natural estuary that connects with the Bosphorus Strait at the point where the strait meets the Sea of Marmara, the waters of the ...

European Turkey East Thrace or Eastern Thrace, also known as Turkish Thrace or European Turkey, is the part of Turkey that is geographically in Southeast Europe. Turkish Thrace accounts for 3.03% of Turkey's land area and 15% of its population. The largest c ...

References

Populated places in ancient Thrace Former populated places in Turkey Roman towns and cities in Turkey History of Istanbul Province {{Istanbul-geo-stub