The buildings and artefacts uncovered by Canadian excavations at Stymphalos (1994–2001) shed light on the history and cult of a small sanctuary on the acropolis of the ancient city. The thirteen detailed studies collected in Stymphalos: The Acropolis Sanctuary illuminate a variety of aspects of the site. Epigraphical evidence confirms that both Athena and Eileithyia, goddess of childbirth, were worshipped in the sanctuary between the fourth and second centuries BCE. The temple and service buildings are modest in size and materials, but the temple floor and pillar shrine suggest that certain stones and bedrock outcrops were held as sacred objects. Earrings, finger rings, and other jewelry, along with almost 100 loomweights, indicate that women were prominent in cult observances. Many iron projectile points (arrowheads and catapult bolts) suggest that the sanctuary was destroyed in a violent attack around the mid-second century, possibly by the Romans.

A modest sanctuary in a modest Arcadian city-state, the acropolis sanctuary at Stymphalos will be a major point of reference for all archaeologists and historians studying ancient Arcadia and all southern Greece in the future.

Gerald P. Schaus is a professor in the Department of Archaeology and Classical Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University.

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‘This meticulously documented and amply illustrated book will be welcomed warmly by scholars interested in both Greek religion and the history of the region, and be envied for the completeness and speed of publication of such a broad corpus of excavated material.’

Bryn Mawr Classical Review, August 2015