See Also: Phrygia(encyclopedia)

Phrygia (sh)




Ancient district, west-central Anatolia.

It was named for a people whom the Greeks called Phryges and who dominated Anatolia between the Hittite collapse (12th century BC) and ascent of Lydia (7th century BC). The Phrygians were possibly of Thracian origin (see Thrace) and had their capital at Gordium. The kingdom of their legendary ruler, Midas, ended งใ 700 BC with the invasion of the Cimmerians, who burned the capital. The Phrygians excelled in metalwork, wood carving, carpet making, and embroidery. Their religious cult of the Great Mother of the Gods was passed on to the Greeks. Excavations conducted since 1945 have uncovered carved stone tombs and shrines there.