Prefecture of
Ilias
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An ancient town of Arcadia. According to the
tradition it was built by Figalos (the son of Lykaonas) near the banks of Neda river. The
town flourished but it was also conquered by Spartans in 659 B.C., Aetolians in 220-217
B.C. and Philip V of Macedonia.
THE TEMPLE OF EPICUREAN APOLLO
Iktinos (as it has been already mentioned) was dedicated to
Apollo the Epicurean in order to thank him for saving them from the plaque of 420 B.C. The
Dorian temple was built with local limestone. It is the object of research due to its
architecture and the sculpture decoration. In 1811-12 it was examined by the Diletadi
company who took away twenty-three plates of the frieze and the metopes that are nowadays
in the British Museum. The themes of these sculptures are battles between Greeks and
Amazons, as well as battles between Lapithes and Centaurs. The well-proportioned temple is
divided in to a vestibule and a nave with six columns in the front and fifteen in the long
sides. The nave, in particular, is divided into two rooms with five Ionian columns in each
side. The southern side has got a Corinthian column, the most ancient of that kind in
Greece. The statue of Apollo was considered to be inside the nave. According to Pafsanias
it was big, made of copper. It was later replaced by a marble one. The upper part of the
nave has got a part of the frieze. The excavations have recently revealed Hellenistic and
Roman findings. |
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