Achinos

About

Echinus or Echinos (Ancient Greek: Ἐχῖνος) was a town and polis of Phthiotis or of Malis in ancient Thessaly, situated upon the Malian Gulf, between Lamia and Larissa Cremaste, in a fertile district. It was said to derive its name from Echion, who sprang from the dragon's teeth. Demosthenes says that Echinus was taken by Philip II of Macedon, the father of Alexander the Great, from the Thebans.

Philip II granted the town to the Malians in 342 BCE. From c. 235 BCE, it was part of the Aetolian League until 210 BCE, when it was captured by Philip V of Macedon, after a siege of some length.

The Romans captured the city in 193 BCE and gave it back to the Malians in 189 BCE. Strabo mentions it as one of the Grecian cities which had been destroyed by an earthquake. Under Roman rule, the city was part of Achaea Phthiotis and by extension of Thessaly, and experienced a period of great prosperity, as testified by archaeological finds.

In late Antiquity the city was an episcopal see, with its bishops taking part in the councils of Ephesus (431 AD) and Chalcedon (451 AD). Emperor Justinian I renovated its fortifications, but the 551 Beirut earthquake and tsunami caused major damage, and the town...