Two Spartan Names (Aeclus and Cothus) for the Athenian Colonists of Euboea?

Abstract

This paper shows that the forming of Athenian traditions relating to colonisation of Euboea can be dated back to the first half of the sixth century. It hands down memory of figures such as Pandorus, Aeclus, Cothus and Ellopos, who belonged to a cadet branch of the Athenian royal lineage. Accounts regarding these heroes have not yet been studied by scholars, probably because they come to us through late traditions, and therefore have been judged untruthful and of little historical interest. But, on the contrary, they imply a complex of relationships undertaken by Athenians, Euboeans, Thessalians and Boeotians during the sixth century B.C., and throw light on the Athenians’ perception of their own ethnicity and identity.