The Anigrides (Ancient Greek: Ἀνίγριδες) were in Greek mythology the nymphs—that is, the potamides—of the river Anigrus in Elis. On the coast of Elis, not far from the mouth of the river, there was a grotto sacred to them near modern Samiko, which was visited by persons afflicted with skin diseases.[1] They were supposedly cured here by prayers and sacrifices to the nymphs, and by bathing in the river.[2] The earliest known attestation of the cult of these nymphs was from the poet Moero in the 3rd century BCE.[3]

The river Anigrus (or Anigros) itself was a small stream in southern Elis that flowed down from Mount Lapithas and the mountains at Minthi to the Ionian Sea. The waters are distinctly sulfuric in character.[3] The river and cave are now part of the thermal springs of Kaiafas.[4]

Notes

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  1. ^ Lambrakis, Nicolaos; Katsanou, Konstantina (2014), "Geothermal fields and thermal waters of Greece: an overview", in Baba, Alper; Bundschuh, Jochen (eds.), Geothermal Systems and Energy Resources: Turkey and Greece, Sustainable Energy Developments, CRC Press, p. 25, ISBN 978-1138001091, retrieved 2015-12-21
  2. ^ Pausanias, 5.5.6; Strabo, 8. p. 346; Eustathius of Thessalonica, On Homer p. 880.
  3. ^ a b Larson, Jennifer Lynn (2001). Greek Nymphs: Myth, Cult, Lore. Oxford University Press. p. 159. ISBN 0195122941.
  4. ^ "Samicum". A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography. Vol. 2. John Murray. 1873. p. 889. Retrieved 2015-12-21.

References

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  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainSchmitz, Leonhard (1870). "Anigrides". In Smith, William (ed.). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. Vol. 1. p. 178.