Stiris ( gr, Στῖρις) or Steiris (Στείρις) was a town of

ancient Phocis Phocis was an ancient region in the central part of Ancient Greece, which included Delphi. A modern administrative unit, also called Phocis, is named after the ancient region, although the modern region is substantially larger than the ancient o ...

situated 120 '' stadia'' from

Chaeroneia Chaeronea (English: or ; el, Χαιρώνεια , ) is a village and a former municipality in Boeotia, Greece, located about 35 kilometers east of Delphi. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Livadeia, of which ...

, the road between the two places running across the mountains. The inhabitants of Stiris claimed descent from an

Athenian Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh List ...

colony of the Attic demus of Steiria, led by

Peteus In Greek mythology, Peteus or Peteos (Ancient Greek: Πετεώς or Πετεώο) or Petes (Πέτην) was a member of the Athens, Athenian royal family as the son of Orneus,Pausanias (geographer), Pausanias, ''Graeciae Descriptio'' 2.25.6; Pluta ...

, when he was driven out of

Attica Attica ( el, Αττική, Ancient Greek ''Attikḗ'' or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the city of Athens, the capital of Greece and its countryside. It is a peninsula projecting into the Aegean Se ...

Aegeus In Greek mythology, Aegeus (, ; grc-gre, Αἰγεύς, Aigeús, also spelled Aegeas) was an archaic figure in the founding myth of Athens. The "goat-man" who gave his name to the Aegean Sea was the father of Theseus. He was also the founder of ...

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 ...

describes the city as situated upon a rocky summit, with only a few wells, which did not supply water fit for drinking, which the inhabitants obtained from a fountain, four stadia below the city, to which fountain there was a descent excavated among the rocks. The city contained in the time of Pausanias a temple of Demeter Stiritis, made of crude brick, containing two statues, one of Pentelic marble, the other of ancient workmanship, covered with bandages. Stiris was one of the Phocian cities destroyed by

Philip II of Macedon 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 ...

at the close of the

Third Sacred War The Third Sacred War (356–346 BC) was fought between the forces of the Delphic Amphictyonic League, principally represented by Thebes, and latterly by Philip II of Macedon, and the Phocians. The war was caused by a large fine imposed in ...

; but it was afterwards rebuilt and was inhabited at the time of the visit of Pausanias. An inscription is preserved dating from the 2nd century BCE regarding a political and religious union (''

sympoliteia A ''sympoliteia'' ( gr, συμπολιτεία, , joint citizenship), anglicized as sympolity, was a type of treaty for political organization in ancient Greece. By the time of the Hellenistic period, it occurred in two forms. In mainland Greece, ...

'') between

Medeon Medeon ( el, Μεδεών) is a former municipality in Aetolia-Acarnania, West Greece, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Aktio-Vonitsa, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit has an area of ...

and Stiris, in which both cities had the approval of the

Phocian League Phocis was an ancient region in the central part of Ancient Greece, which included Delphi. A modern administrative unit, also called Phocis, is named after the ancient region, although the modern region is substantially larger than the ancient o ...

. The agreement was inscribed on a stele inside the temple of Athena Cranea, in the city of

Elateia Elateia ( el, Ελάτεια; grc, Ἐλάτεια) was an ancient Greek city of Phthiotis, and the most important place in that region after Delphi. It is also a modern-day town that is a former municipality in the southeastern part of Phthiotis ...

. The stele preserves the name of the League's ''

strategos ''Strategos'', plural ''strategoi'', Latinized ''strategus'', ( el, στρατηγός, pl. στρατηγοί; Doric Greek: στραταγός, ''stratagos''; meaning "army leader") is used in Greek to mean military general. In the Hellenisti ...

'', Zeuxis; in addition a sealed copy was to be guarded by a citizen of

Lilaea In Greek mythology, Lilaea or Lilaia (Ancient Greek: Λίλαια) may refer to two different women: * Lilaea, a Naiad of a spring of the same name. She was the daughter of the river god Cephissus. The ancient ''polis'' of Lilaea, and the modern ...

named Trason and there were three persons who acted as witnesses from different Phocian cities:

Tithorea Tithorea ( el, Τιθορέα), is an ancient place with more than 4,000 years of human history. A part of the municipality of Amfikleia-Elateia, in Phthiotis, Greece, it had a population of 630 in 2011, and is situated 156 km from Athens. ...

, Elateia, and Lilaea. The union included the sanctuaries, the territory, the ''

polis ''Polis'' (, ; grc-gre, πόλις, ), plural ''poleis'' (, , ), literally means "city" in Greek. In Ancient Greece, it originally referred to an administrative and religious city center, as distinct from the rest of the city. Later, it also ...

'' and the ports. From the formalization of the treaty the Medeonites will be with the Stirisians in conditions of equality and will have assemblies and common magistrates. It is not a complete merger of both cities: Stiris is the main city but the citizens of Medeon could designate a '' hierotamias'' who would make sacrifices according to the law of Medeon and who would have judicial competency together with the

archon ''Archon'' ( gr, ἄρχων, árchōn, plural: ἄρχοντες, ''árchontes'') is a Greek word that means "ruler", frequently used as the title of a specific public office. It is the masculine present participle of the verb stem αρχ-, mean ...

s of Stiris and could vote. Those who have been magistrates in Medeon will not be required to be so in Stiris unless they decided voluntarily. The administration of the Medeonite sanctuaries will be carried out according to the law of Medeon, and the territory will be common. The location of ancient Stiris is near the modern village of Steiri, where its remains are found on a hill called

Palaiochora Palaiochora ( el, Παλαιόχωρα or Παλιόχωρα) is a small town in Chania regional unit, Greece. It is located 70 km south of Chania, on the southwest coast of Crete and occupies a small peninsula 400 m wide and 700 m long. Th ...

, located southwest of

Livadeia Livadeia ( el, Λιβαδειά ''Livadiá'', ; grc, Λεβάδεια, Lebadeia or , ''Lebadia'') is a town in central Greece. It is the capital of the Boeotia regional district. Livadeia lies north-west of Athens, west of Chalkida, south-e ...

and southeast of

Distomo :"Distomo" ''may also refer to a work by Federico García Lorca'' Distomo ( el, Δίστομο) is a town in western Boeotia, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Distomo-Arachova-Antikyra, of which it is t ...

References

{{DGRG, title=Stiris Populated places in ancient Phocis Former populated places in Greece Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Central Greece