— Ch. 1 · Neolithic And Mycenaean Origins —
Pylos.
~6 min read · Ch. 1 of 6
Populations from Anatolia began to spread in the Balkans and Greece around 6500 BC, bringing with them the practice of agriculture. Excavations have demonstrated a continuous human presence from the Late Neolithic period (5300 BC) on several sites of Pylia. These include Voidokilia and Nestor's cave where numerous ostraca or fragments of painted ceramics were found. The region became one of the most important centers during the Bronze Age between 1600 and 1200 BC. Pylos served as the capital for a powerful kingdom often referred to as Nestor's kingdom of sandy Pylos. Homer described this place in both his Iliad and Odyssey when Telemachus visited it.
The Palace of Nestar remains today the best preserved palace in all of Greece. It was discovered by American archaeologist Carl Blegen starting in 1939 at the University of Cincinnati. His excavations continued until interrupted by World War II before resuming in 1952 under his direction through 1966. Archaeologists uncovered thousands of clay tablets inscribed with Linear B script used between 1425 and 1200 BC. This syllabic script represents Mycenaean Greek which is the earliest attested form of the language. Over 1,087 tablet fragments were recovered specifically from the site of Nestor's Palace alone.
In 2015 Sharon Stocker and Jack L. Davis led an excavation team that unearthed what they called the Griffin Warrior tomb near Tholos Tomb IV. A shaft grave dated to Late Helladic IIA period held the body of someone aged thirty to thirty-five years old standing about one point seven meters tall. The burial contained armor weapons mirror jewelry including gold signet rings showing exceptional craftsmanship. Researchers believe this could be the final resting place of a Wanax tribal king or military leader during the Mycenaean era.
Classical And Medieval Fortifications
The ancient city stood north of Sphacteria island where Athenian politician Cleon sent an expedition in 425 BC. Demosthenes completed fortifying the rocky promontory known as Koryphasium by 424 BC during the Peloponnesian War. Spartans later used ruins on nearby Sphateria apparently dating back to Mycenaean times for their own operations. After centuries of silence Pylos reappeared in historical records only when Nicholas II of Saint Omer erected a castle around 1281 according to some accounts while others attribute construction to his nephew Nicholas III shortly thereafter.
Navarino became part of the Frankish Principality of Achaea following the Fourth Crusade in 1204 though it remained relatively unimportant until naval battles erupted between Venice and Genoa in 1354. Mary of Bourbon held possession of Navarino along with Kalamata from Robert of Taranto starting in 1358 but retained control until her death in 1377. Albanians settled in the area at about this time alongside active mercenary groups including Navarrese Gascon and Italian soldiers operating there throughout 1381 and 1382.
Venetian forces seized the fortress themselves in 1417 after prolonged diplomatic maneuvering succeeded in legitimizing their new possession two years later. Ottoman raids led by Turakhan Bey struck first in 1423 then repeated again in 1452 targeting both land and sea positions within the region.