Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography Volume I Part 1.djvu/35

ACHERDUS.

The Acherdus was regarded as the ruler and representative of all fresh water in Hellas. Hence he is called by Homer (Il. xx. 194) Kf»cU*F 'AxeAAs^aDd, was worshipped as a mighty god throughout Greece. He is celebrated in mythology on account of his combat with Heracles for the possession of Defaneira. The river-god first attacked Heracles is the form of a serpent, and on being worsted assumed that of a bull. The hero wrenched iff caw of his hams, which forthwith became a u aauunia , or horn of plenty. (Soph. TVocA. 9; Ov. Mtt is. 8| seq.; ApoUod. ii. 7. § 5.) This legend ■Ibdes appaRDtly to some efibrts made at an early period to check 1^ laYages^ which the inmidations «f the HTer caueed in this district; and if the river VM fwnftifd within its bed by embankments, the icpdo woold he oonvcrted in modern times into a land of plenty. For fnrther details respecting the BTtbological chazacter of the Achdoos, see Diet of Btogr. and MffA. «. v.

In the Roman poets we find Acheiotdegj i. e. the Suuaa , the daughters ef Achelons (Or. Met ▼. 552): Aekelota QdUrhoe, becaoae CallirhoS was ths daagfater of Adieloas (Or. Met, ix. 413): AckelouMf i. e. water in general (Virg. i. 9): Aehdow» keroi, that is, Tydeus, of OcBeas, king of Calydon, Aehdohu here Wac eqolTaleni to Aetolian. (Stat TAefr. iL 1420

2. A river of Thessaly, in the district of Kalis, kearLmnia. (Strab. pp. 434, 450.)

3. A moimtaiB torrent in Arcadia, flowing into the Alphens, from the north of Moont Lycaeos. (FsiB. Tui 38. § 9.)

4. Abo called Peirus, a river in Achaia, flowing Bear Dyme. (Strab. pp. 342, 450.)

ACHERDUS (^x^pfious, -wrros: Eth, ^Ax^p- tianat), a demns of Attica of uncertain site, b&- kapag to the tribe Hippothoootis. Aristophanes {EoL 3S2) m joke, uses the form *AxpaSou<riof iastead of 'AxcpSo^ios . (Steph. B. s. ov. 'Ax^p* his, 'AxpoSovf; Aeschin. in Tim, § 110, ed. Bek- br; Leske, DenU ofAUica, p. 185.)

ACHEBI'NI, the inhabitants of a small town in Skily, mentioDed only by Cicero among the victims «f the opfvesBflOs of Venes. Its position is qnite ■acertam; whence modern scholars pt>po6e to read other Srherini, or Achetini from Achetum, a town nqipakd to be mentioned by Silius Itslicos (xiv. 2«8); bat the ** pobes liqnentis Acheti"* (or AchaeH, as the name stands in the best MS5.) of that author weoU seem to indicate a river rather than a town. There is, bowervr, no authority for either emendation. (Ck. Vtrr, vL 43; Znmpt ad loc.] Orell. Ononuut. p. 6; Oonr. SieiL p. 381.) [ E. H. B. ]

A'CHEBON ('Ax^pM'), the name of several rifcrs, sU of which were, at least at one time, be- amd to be cwnnertyd with the lower world. The Acheron as a river of the lower worid, is described B the Diet a/Biojrr. aadJfiftk,

1. A river of Epeims in Thesprotia, which passed throagh the lake Acherasia (^Ax^powria hliuni)^ and after leoeiving the river Cocytus {KAkutos), flowed oio the hmhm sea, S. of the promontory Cheime- riaiB. Fliny (iv. 1) erroneously states that the mv flowed into the Ambradot gulf. The bay of the sea into which it flowed was usually called Gfvcyi Umra (I^mc^ AiM^ar) or Sweet-Harbour, lieanse the water wap fresh on account uf the quan- Utf poorad into it frtan the lake and river. Scylax lod Fkkmy call tha harbour Elaea ^EAof a), and

ACHERUSIA PALUS

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the surrotmding district bore aooofding to Thucy- dides the name of Elaeatis ('EAcuoru). The Acheron is the modern GwU» or river of SuU^ the Cocytus is the Vuod^ and the great marsh or Uke below Kattri the Acherusia. The water of the Vttvd is reported to be bad, which agrees with the account of Pausaniss (L 17. § 5) in relation to the water of the Cocytus (ff8o»p Sfrtfnriararw), The Glycys Limen is oilled Port Fandri^ and its water is still fresh; and in the lower part of the plain the river is commonly called the river of Fandri, The upper part of the plain is called Ghfhjf; and thus the ancient name of the harbour has been transferred from the coast into the interior. On the Acheron Aidoneus, the king of the lower world, is said to have reigned, and to have detained here Theseus as a prisoner; and on its banks was an oracle called vtKvotiojnuop (Herod, v. 92. § 7), which was con- ^ y suited by evoking the spirits 5l the dead^^Thuc./^y(r^-: £, t) L 46; Liv. viii. 24; Strab. p. 324; Step^B. '• v*; ^^ . > 7; Pans. L 17. § 5; Dion Cass. 1. 12; Scylax, p. 11; ^^^ '^ ^ Ptolem. iii. 14. § 5; Leake, Northern 0reec6f vol. i. ^Tt(j(i. p. 232, seq. iv. p. 53.)

2. A river of Elis, a tributaiy of the Alphetus, (Strab. p. 344; Leake, Jforeo, vol. ii. p. 89.)

A'CHERON ('Ax^v), a small river in Bruttium, near Pandosia. Its name is mentioned in coiiunctica with that city both by Strabo and Justin, from whom we leam that it was on its banks that Alexander, king of Epirus, fell in bottle against the Lucanians and Bmttians, b. a 326. (Strab. p. 256; Justin, xii. 2.) Pliny also men- tioos it as a river of Brattium (iii. 5. s. 10.), but appears erroneously to connect it with the town of Acherontia in Lucania. It has been supposed to be a small stream, still called the Arconti, which falls into the river Crathis just below Consentia; but its identification must depend upon that of Pandosia. [Pandosia.] [ E. H. B. ]

ACHERO'NTLA. (^Ax*porris or *Ax*potnla a small town of Apulia, near the frontiers of Lucania, situated about 14 miles S. of Vcnusia, and 6 SE. of Ferentum. Its position on a lofty hill is alluded to by Horace in a well-known passage (celsas nidt*m AchercnUae^ Carm. iii. 4. 14; and Acron ad loc. and the modern town of Acerenza retains the site as well as name of the ancient one. It is built on a hill of considerable elevation, precipitotis on three ades, and affording only a very steep approach on the fourth. (Romanelli, vol. ii. p. 238.) It seems to have been always but a small town, and is not men- tioned by any ancient ge<^rapher; but the strength of its position gave it importance in a military point of view: and during the wars of the Goths against the generals of Justinian, it was occnped by Totila with a garrison, and became one of the chief strong- holds of the Gothic leaders throughout the contest. (Procop. de B, G. iii. 23, 26, iv. 26, 33.) The reading Athenmito in livy (ix. 20), whidi has been adopted by BoDumeUi md Cramer, and considered to refer to tiie same place, is wholly unsupported by autiiority. (Alschefeki, ad 2oe.) The coins assigned to this city belong to Aquilonia. [ E. H. B. ]

ACHEBU'SLA PALUS (Ax<pou<r(a Xi/ui^), the name of several lakes, which, like the various rivers of the name of Acheron, were at some time believed to be connected with the lower world, until at last the Acherusia came to be considered in the lower world itself The most important of these was the lake in Thesprotia, through which the Acheron flowed. [Acheron.] There was a small lake of