On the top of the hill of Prophet Ilias, above the village of Pera Melana in Kynouria (80 km from Tripoli), there are remains of the sanctuary of the god Apollo Tyritas, the most important of the sanctuaries of ancient Kynouria. Tyritas was probably an old local deity and was considered the patron of milk and cheese production. Over time, however, he became identified with the god Apollo and kept his old counterpart as a surname.
Worship at the sanctuary of Tyritas began in the 8th century BC and it was more intense in the 7th, 6th and 5th centuries BC with a glimpse into the 4th century. His sanctuary experienced the greatest prosperity of all the sanctuaries of the region in the archaic period and its central position in Kynouria probably contributed to this.
The small church of the Prophet Elias has been built on the foundations of the ancient sanctuary. Traces of a small temple from the 6th century have been discovered. BC, square altar, retaining wall of the 4th c. BC, Doric capital and architrave and disc-shaped capes of Laconic type, Other smaller clay and bronze finds were also found, including several votive offerings from various periods. Most of the latter are of Archaic times.
The most notable finds include a bronze bull statuette bearing the inscription APOLLON KLE, a bronze lion-shaped buckle with the inscription APOLLON EMI, a bronze flask with the inscription APOLLON TYRIT[AS] on its rim, and a bronze male statuette inscribed APOLLON TYRITAS.
Source: UNIVERSITY OF PATRAS
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