The discovery of two Corinthian helmets in Olympia, donated by the Messenians after a victory over the Mylaioi, can be traced back to the successful military campaign conducted by the Messenians in Zanclean territory around 490 BC. If the presence of the ethnic Messene refers to a historical moment in which the metonymisation of the toponym Zancle into Messene had already taken place, the definition of the Mylaioi seems difficult: the site of Mylai never appears to have enjoyed the status of a polis, posing the problem that it may have been a self-celebratory forgery produced by the Messenians.
Messeni and Mylaioi: a strange case of political propaganda or historical forgery?
Elena Santagati
2024-01-01
Abstract
The discovery of two Corinthian helmets in Olympia, donated by the Messenians after a victory over the Mylaioi, can be traced back to the successful military campaign conducted by the Messenians in Zanclean territory around 490 BC. If the presence of the ethnic Messene refers to a historical moment in which the metonymisation of the toponym Zancle into Messene had already taken place, the definition of the Mylaioi seems difficult: the site of Mylai never appears to have enjoyed the status of a polis, posing the problem that it may have been a self-celebratory forgery produced by the Messenians.File in questo prodotto:
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