Thetidium or Thetidion or Thetideion (, Θετίδειον, or Θεστίδειον) was a town in

Thessaliotis Thessaliotis () was one of the four districts into which ancient Thessaly was divided. The others were Pelasgiotis, Histiaeotis, and Phthiotis. Thessaliotis corresponded to the central plain of Thessaly and the upper course of the river Peneius, ...

ancient Thessaly Thessaly or Thessalia (Attic Greek: , ''Thessalía'' or , ''Thettalía'') was one of the traditional regions of Ancient Greece. During the Mycenaean Greece, Mycenaean period, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, a name that continued to be used for one of ...

, close to

Pharsalus Pharsalus may refer to: * ''Pharsalus'' (planthopper), a genus of insects in the family Ricaniidae * Farsala Farsala (), known in Antiquity as Pharsalos (, ), is a town in southern Thessaly, in Greece. Farsala is located in the southern part ...

, where Flamininus encamped at the end of the second march from

Pherae Pherae (Greek: Φεραί) was a city and polis (city-state) in southeastern Ancient Thessaly. One of the oldest Thessalian cities, it was located in the southeast corner of Pelasgiotis. According to Strabo, it was near Lake Boebeïs 90 stadi ...

towards

Scotussa Scotussa or Skotoussa ( or Σκοτοῦσα or Σκοτοτοῦσαι) was a town and polis (city-state) in the region of Pelasgiotis in ancient Thessaly. It was between Pherae and Pharsalus, near the border of Phthiotis, about to the west ...

, before the

Battle of Cynoscephalae The Battle of Cynoscephalae () was an encounter battle fought in Thessaly in 197 BC between the Roman army, led by Titus Quinctius Flamininus, and the Antigonid dynasty of Macedon, led by Philip V, during the Second Macedonian War. It was ...

. It derived its name from

Thetis Thetis ( , or ; ) is a figure from Greek mythology with varying mythological roles. She mainly appears as a sea nymph, a goddess of water, and one of the 50 Nereids, daughters of the ancient sea god Nereus. When described as a Nereid in Cl ...

, the mother of

Achilles In Greek mythology, Achilles ( ) or Achilleus () was a hero of the Trojan War who was known as being the greatest of all the Greek warriors. The central character in Homer's ''Iliad'', he was the son of the Nereids, Nereid Thetis and Peleus, ...

, the national hero of the Achaean Phthiotae. According to

Phylarchus Phylarchus (, ''Phylarkhos''; fl. 3rd century BC) was a Greek historical writer whose works have been lost, but not before having been considerably used by other historians whose works have survived. Life Phylarchus was a contemporary of Aratus, ...

, after Thetis had

Hephaestus Hephaestus ( , ; wikt:Hephaestus#Alternative forms, eight spellings; ) is the Greek god of artisans, blacksmiths, carpenters, craftsmen, fire, metallurgy, metalworking, sculpture and volcanoes.Walter Burkert, ''Greek Religion'' 1985: III.2. ...

make

armor Armour (Commonwealth English) or armor (American English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, e ...

for her son, he agreed to give the armor to her if she would sleep with him. Thetis agreed, but told him she would have to try it on first, as to see if it would fit her son. Armed, she fled his advances. Hephaestus, in his anger, hit her ankle with a hammer. She landed in Thessaly and healed the wound, and thus the place was named after her. Its site is at a location called Agios Athanasios or Kato Dasolofos, within the boundaries of the modern village of Thetidio, which echoes the ancient name.

References

Populated places in ancient Thessaly Former populated places in Greece Thessaliotis Thetis {{AncientThessaly-geo-stub