Uranopolis

Uranopolis was a city in ancient Macedonia, allegedly founded by Alexarchus, brother of king Cassander of Macedonia. The exact location of Uranopolis is unknown, though perhaps the city was located on the peninsula of Athos. Uranopolis was the site of a mint in the Kingdom of Thrace. Coins of Uranopolis are known for displaying Athena or the Muse Aphrodite Urania, the muse of astronomy, sitting on a globe. The globe represents the Celestial Sphere. It is a common misunderstanding that the globe represents the earth and that this is the first known depiction of the earth in its actual shape.

Name given erroneously to a city in Galatia

In the 19th and early 20th centuries the name "Uranopolis" was mistakenly given to the town and bishopric of Verinopolis in the Catholic Church's list of titular sees. Verinopolis was in the late Roman province of Galatia Prima. Its ruins are near present-day Köhne in Turkey.[1]

References

  1. ↑ Siméon Vailhé, "Uranopolis" in Catholic Encyclopedia (New York 1912)

Bibliography

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