Map 87 Pontus-Phasis Compiled by David Braund and T
Map 87 Pontus-Phasis Compiled by David Braund and T. Sinclair (Turkey), 1997 with the assistance of Diane Braund Introduction Pontus The land of Pontus has two main parts, both of which belonged to the Mithridatic kingdom of Pontus in the Hellenistic period. The first is the main ridge of the Pontic mountains and the steep descent to the shore. The lower slopes are thickly wooded, and the shore districts have a humid and rainy climate. In the main Pontic ridge a gap occurs in the hinterland of Amisus (modern Samsun), after which the mountain chain continues at a lower height and with less abrupt slopes (Strabo’s term Paryadres seems to denote the higher part of the chain). As far east as Rhizaion (Rize) Greek settlements along the coast have existed since the sixth century B.C., and in the case of Sinope the seventh. To the south, the Pontic chain is bordered by Armenia Minor, a part of Armenia itself (Late Antique Sper, probably the Syspiritis of the classical authors), and what was to become the Georgian mountainous district of Tao, drained by the R. Glaukos (Oltu Çay) and the Tortum Çay. The district of Chaldia, the Gümüşhane basin, is difficult to classify, particularly in classical times, as there is no evidence that it belonged either to Pontus (in a geographical or administrative sense), to Armenia Minor, or to Armenia itself. The Roman empire made no effort to control the interior of Chaldia until the reign of Justinian. The second part of Pontus is the series of fertile inland plains, joined by relatively low chains of hills, in the river systems of the Iris (Kızıl Irmak) and the lower Halys (Yeşil Irmak).
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