Τίρυνς Τίρυνθα | |
 General view of the Citadel of Tiryns, with Cyclopean masonry | |
  Shown within Greece | |
| Location | Argolis, Greece |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 37°35′58″N 22°48′00″E / 37.59944°N 22.80000°E |
| Type | Settlement |
| History | |
| Periods | Bronze Age |
| Cultures | Ancient Greece |
| Official name | Archaeological Sites of Mycenae and Tiryns |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | i, ii, iii, iv, vi |
| Designated | 1999 (23rd session) |
| Reference no. | 941 |
| Region | Europe and North America |
Tiryns (/ˈtɪrɪnz/ or /ˈtaɪrɪnz/; Ancient Greek: Τίρυνς; Modern Greek: Τίρυνθα) is a Mycenaean archaeological site in Argolis in the Peloponnese, and the location from which the mythical hero Heracles was said to have performed his Twelve Labours. It lies 20 km (12 mi) south of Mycenae.
Tiryns was a hill fort with occupation ranging back seven thousand years, from before the beginning of the Bronze Age. It reached its height of importance between 1400 and 1200 BC, when it became one of the most important centers of the Mycenaean world, and in particular in Argolis. Its most notable features were its palace, its Cyclopean tunnels and especially its walls, which gave the city its Homeric epithet of "mighty walled Tiryns". Tiryns became associated with the myths surrounding Heracles, as the city was the residence of the hero during his labors, and some sources cite it as his birthplace.[1]
The famous megaron of the palace of Tiryns has a large reception hall, the main room of which had a throne placed against the right wall and a central hearth bordered by four Minoan-style wooden columns that served as supports for the roof. Two of the three walls of the megaron were incorporated into an archaic temple of Hera. The site went into decline at the end of the Mycenaean period, and was completely deserted by the time Pausanias visited in the 2nd century AD.
In 1300 BC, the citadel and lower town had a population of 10,000 people covering 20–25 hectares. Despite the destruction of the palace in 1200 BC, the city population continued to increase and by 1150 BC it had a population of 15,000 people.[2][3][4]
Along with the nearby ruins of Mycenae, UNESCO designated Tiryns as a World Heritage Site in 1999 because of its outstanding architecture and testimony to the development of Ancient Greek civilization.[5]
- ^ "Tiryns, Greek Mythology Link". Archived from the original on 2002-08-07. Retrieved 2002-08-07.
- ^ Yasur-Landau, Assaf (16 June 2014). The Philistines and Aegean Migration at the End of the Late Bronze Age. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781139485876 – via Google Books.
- ^ Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "Archaeological Sites of Mycenae and Tiryns".
- ^ Ring, Trudy; Salkin, Robert M.; Boda, Sharon La (1 January 1994). International Dictionary of Historic Places: Southern Europe. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9781884964022 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Archaeological Sites of Mycenae and Tiryns". UNESCO World Heritage Convention. United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization. Retrieved 27 November 2022.