The Ancient Argolid

This morning, we leave Nafplion and take a short drive to Tiryns whose cyclopean walls made it one of the most notable fortresses of Mycenaean Greece, and also reputedly the birthplace of Heracles. The city suffered the same collapse that destroyed Mycenaean civilisation at the end of the Bronze Age but remained a small but dwindling township into classical antiquity. Next, we explore the Argive Heraion, a beautiful and evocative site where it is easy to imagine the processions described by ancient authors traversing the vast tracts of surrounding countryside. We continue to the ruins at Asine, a city mentioned by Homer as part of the kingdom of Diomedes, King of Argos. The ruins include an acropolis and World War II fortifications built on a rocky point jutting into the sea. In the afternoon we drive to the 16th century Palamidi Fort which stands on a crag 200 feet above the Argolic Gulf.

Today we drive to the ancient Mycenaean citadel and palace at Prossymna, and then continue to the citadel at Mycenae. This is the centre of the mighty Helladic Bronze Age civilisation of Greece, according to legend the capital of King Agamemnon. While there are strong connections with the Minoan world of Crete, this mainland power took a strikingly different approach to its palatial architecture. We shall visit the museum and the famous shaft and Tholos tombs, including the treasury of Arteus. These are famed for the fine gold masks, now in the National Museum at Athens, whose finding prompted Henrich Schliemann to say, ‘I have gazed upon the face of Agamemnon’.

After lunch, we visit Epidaurus, home to the sanctuary of Asklepios, the god of healing, and its core is formed by the finest theatre in all of Greece. The remainder of the sanctuary comprises shrines and facilities for the wealthy pilgrims who enriched the sanctuary. We end our day with a visit to see the extraordinary Mycenaean road bridge at Ligortino which connected the citadel at Mycenae to the sites on the east coast.

This morning we explore Lerna which in antiquity was a region of water springs and one of the entrances to the underworld. It was also the lair of the seven headed Lernean Hydra, whose attribute was that two heads grew back for each severed by a would-be-hero. Heracles eventually managed to kill the creature, the second of his twelve labours. We continue to the Ancient Theatre of Argos, founded during the Hellenistic period. At one time, this theatre could host up to 20,000 spectators, who would have gathered here to be entertained by the Nemean games, held in honour of Zeus. We round off the morning with a visit to the Pyramid of Elliniko, one of the best-preserved examples of the Greek pyramids. Dating back to the fourth century, little is known about why these structures were built, with some suggesting they were used as watchtowers or perhaps tombs. This afternoon is free to spend as you choose, either relaxing or exploring more of Nafplion.

We start our morning at the fabulous Archaeological Museum in Nafplion located in the main square. Here we see artefacts from excavations in the general Argolid region including extraordinary Mesolithic finds and objects from several Bronze Age settlements and tombs, as well as later Archaic, Classical, and Hellenistic items. Next, we take a short drive to Midea, one of the largest and best-preserved Bronze Age fortresses and considered one the three most important in the region alongside Mycenae and Tiryns. Its strategic position meant that it could dominate and control the eastern outskirts of the Argolid plain. We continue to Dendra which appears to have been associated with the site and visit the cemetery and Tholos tomb here. From here we drive to Nemea where Heracles slew the Nemean lion, the first of his twelve labours. The Nemean games were held at the sanctuary of Zeus and were similar to those held at other sacred sites with competitions in boxing, wrestling, javelin and the most important event, the stadion – the race over one length of the stadium track.

We leave Nafplion today and start off this morning with a visit to Troezen, the birthplace of Theseus and the setting of the Euripides tragedy, Hippolytus. We continue to the coastal town of Galatas to board the local ferry service to the small island of Poros. After lunch, we board the fast ferry to Pireaus and transfer from there to our hotel.

We spend the morning at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens to see its fabulous collections before transferring to the airport for our flights back to London.