DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.9840#0103
54
POLYRRHENIA MISTAKEN FOR AFTER A. [CHAP.
mains are situated about three miles from the northern
sea, and six from considerable ruins of the ancient town
of Phalasarna, the port of Polyrrhenia, which are found
at a place called Kutri on the western coast. Here then
are the very distances of Polyrrhenia, as given by Strabo,
both from its port and from the northern sea: and one
only wonders that Tournefort should have sought to
learn the ancient name of Palaeokastron from the poor
Greeks of the village13, instead of opening his eyes and
his Strabo, and comparing what he had actually before
him with what he read; in which case he would cer-
tainly have found it no difficult matter to discover the
truth. As it was, he may have been misled by the sup-
position of several modern geographers44 that Aptera
was situated near the village of Kisamo, which he had
passed on the northern shore ; and thus he inferred at
once, that the remains, seen at Palaeokastron in that
neighbourhood, were those of Aptera. Some later writers
have even gone so far as to give the name of Aptera to
that village of Palaeokastron45. Pococke too no sooner
found this Kisamos, near which some remains of anti-
quity do undoubtedly exist, than he observed, as the
French naturalist had done before him, " it was the
port of the ancient city Aptera, which is about five miles
distant to the south-south-east." He then proceeds:
" Polyrrhenia was another inland city five miles more
43 Tournefort's words (Tom. i. p. 80.) are: "Le 26 Juillet nous
allames aux ruines de Paleocastro, ou Chateau vieux, selon le grec vul-
gaire. Les gens du pays ignorent son ancient nom : il est pourtant a croire
que c'etoit la ville d'Aptere, puisque Strabon avance que Chisamo en e'toit
l'arsenal et le port: en effet Chisamo est un port de mer," etc.
44 Dominicus Marius Niger, (p. 348. ed. Basil. 1557.) "In cujus
parte intima Cisamopolis est, emporium Apterae, quod castrum Chisamum
hodie ab incolis nuncupatur." Ferrarius, Lexic. Geograph. v. Cisamus.
" Chisamopoli Soph. al. Chisamo, urb. Episc. Cretae in ora littorea Boreali
apud oram occid. pene deserta, ab Apteria 40 stad. a Cydone fere 20 mil. pass,
n occ." So too Andrea Cornaro, in Cornelius, Cret. Sacr. Tom. i.
p. 123, and, I believe, every one who has since written on the subject.
45 Gusseme, Diccionario Numismatico generale, Tom. i. p. 238. Es la
que al presente se llama: Atteria 6 Paleocastro. His assertion is repeated by
Rasche, Lexic. Univ. rei numar. Tom. i. 976.
POLYRRHENIA MISTAKEN FOR AFTER A. [CHAP.
mains are situated about three miles from the northern
sea, and six from considerable ruins of the ancient town
of Phalasarna, the port of Polyrrhenia, which are found
at a place called Kutri on the western coast. Here then
are the very distances of Polyrrhenia, as given by Strabo,
both from its port and from the northern sea: and one
only wonders that Tournefort should have sought to
learn the ancient name of Palaeokastron from the poor
Greeks of the village13, instead of opening his eyes and
his Strabo, and comparing what he had actually before
him with what he read; in which case he would cer-
tainly have found it no difficult matter to discover the
truth. As it was, he may have been misled by the sup-
position of several modern geographers44 that Aptera
was situated near the village of Kisamo, which he had
passed on the northern shore ; and thus he inferred at
once, that the remains, seen at Palaeokastron in that
neighbourhood, were those of Aptera. Some later writers
have even gone so far as to give the name of Aptera to
that village of Palaeokastron45. Pococke too no sooner
found this Kisamos, near which some remains of anti-
quity do undoubtedly exist, than he observed, as the
French naturalist had done before him, " it was the
port of the ancient city Aptera, which is about five miles
distant to the south-south-east." He then proceeds:
" Polyrrhenia was another inland city five miles more
43 Tournefort's words (Tom. i. p. 80.) are: "Le 26 Juillet nous
allames aux ruines de Paleocastro, ou Chateau vieux, selon le grec vul-
gaire. Les gens du pays ignorent son ancient nom : il est pourtant a croire
que c'etoit la ville d'Aptere, puisque Strabon avance que Chisamo en e'toit
l'arsenal et le port: en effet Chisamo est un port de mer," etc.
44 Dominicus Marius Niger, (p. 348. ed. Basil. 1557.) "In cujus
parte intima Cisamopolis est, emporium Apterae, quod castrum Chisamum
hodie ab incolis nuncupatur." Ferrarius, Lexic. Geograph. v. Cisamus.
" Chisamopoli Soph. al. Chisamo, urb. Episc. Cretae in ora littorea Boreali
apud oram occid. pene deserta, ab Apteria 40 stad. a Cydone fere 20 mil. pass,
n occ." So too Andrea Cornaro, in Cornelius, Cret. Sacr. Tom. i.
p. 123, and, I believe, every one who has since written on the subject.
45 Gusseme, Diccionario Numismatico generale, Tom. i. p. 238. Es la
que al presente se llama: Atteria 6 Paleocastro. His assertion is repeated by
Rasche, Lexic. Univ. rei numar. Tom. i. 976.