ancient ruins
Ancient Olympia
The birthplace of the Olympic Games, this sacred sanctuary in the Peloponnese contains the ruins of athletic facilities, temples, and the workshop of Phidias.
4 km · about 5 min drive
West Greece, Greece · Europe
Makrísia is worth a stop: 10 minutes from Archaía Olympía, 4km from Ancient Olympia.
Makrísia is a town located in West Greece, Greece. With a population of 1,584, it is an important destination in Europe.
On a road trip, Makrísia sits in Greece, where you drive on the right. It's in the Europe/Athens time zone. Below you'll find where to stay, things to do nearby, and everything you need to add Makrísia to your route.
Scillus or Skillous (Ancient Greek: Σκιλλοῦς) was a town of Triphylia, a district of ancient Elis, situated 20 stadia south of Olympia. In 572 BCE the Scilluntians assisted Pyrrhus, king of Pisa, in making war upon the Eleians; but they were completely conquered by the latter, and both Pisa and Scillus were razed toRead more
the ground. Scillus remained desolate till about 392 BCE, when the Lacedaemonians, who had a few years previously compelled the Eleians to renounce their supremacy over their dependent cities, colonised Scillus and gave it to Xenophon, then an exile from Athens. Xenophon resided here more than twenty years, and probably composed the Anabasis here, but was expelled from it by the Eleians soon after the Battle of Leuctra, in 371 BCE. He has left us a description of the place, which he says was situated 20 stadia (approximately 2 1/4 miles] from the Sacred Grove of Zeus, on the road to Olympia from Sparta, It stood upon the river Selinus, which was also the name of the river flowing by the temple of Artemis at Ephesus, and like the latter it abounded in fish and shell-fish. From a portion of the spoils he had acquired in the campaign he had joined against Artaxerxes II (recounted in his work The Anabasis), Xenophon dedicated a temple to Artemis, in imitation of the celebrated temple at Ephesus, and instituted a yearly festival to the goddess. Scillus stood amidst woods and meadows, and afforded abundant pasture for cattle; while the neighbouring mountains supplied wild hogs, roebucks, and stags. When Pausanias visited Scillus five centuries afterwards the temple of Artemis still remained, and a statue of Xenophon, made of Pentelic marble.
Scillus's site is near the modern village of Makrisia.
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Makrísia is located in West Greece, Greece, Europe. The coordinates are 37.6096 latitude, 21.6051 longitude.
Makrísia has a population of approximately 1,584 people, making it a town in Greece.
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Essential numbers in Greece
Tourist police (English-speaking): 171.
Full driving guide for Greece3 notable places within an hour's drive.
ancient ruins
The birthplace of the Olympic Games, this sacred sanctuary in the Peloponnese contains the ruins of athletic facilities, temples, and the workshop of Phidias.
4 km · about 5 min drive
landmark
An amphitheatre of stone mansions stacked above the Lousios Gorge in mountain Arcadia, once a gunpowder workshop for the 1821 revolution. Its open-air water-power museum still runs mills, tanneries and powder wheels.
38 km · about 45 min drive
ancient ruins
One of Greece's most complete and least-crowded ancient cities: a vast 4th-century-BC site with an intact stadium, theatre, agora and the massive Arcadian Gate, spread below the village of Mavromati.
56 km · about 65 min drive
April to October
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