GREECE PELOPONNESE ELEIA KAKOVATOS

Where was ancient Pylos, the home of King Nestor? Ancients usually located it in Messinia, but in the first century BC, Strabo pointed out that in his days three places with the name Pylos existed in the western Peloponnese. "There is a Pylos in front of Pylos, and still another Pylos." Of these, Strabo picked out the one in Triphylia/Eleia, near the Alpheios river, to be the most probable site. Most topographers continued to favour the Messinian location, but a few ranged themselves on Strabo's side. This view was also supported by Dörpfeld when he began excavations at Triphylian Kakovatos in 1907-1908.

The site of Kakovatos is located on a low hill, about 4 km NE of the modern village. An acropolis with remains of walls, a palace, Mycenaean sherds, and three fairly large tholos tombs were discovered here. The excavated tombs were in a terrible condition since they had been used as a quarry by the residents. And although the tombs had been looted, enough remained to demonstrate the wealth and power of the people once buried here. This strongly supported the view of Kakovatos as Nestor's Pylos. Today, the palace of Nestor is identified with the site of Ano Englianos, but Kakovatos may still be the place from where Neleus, Nestor's father, ruled over Triphylia towards the end of the 14th century BC.

The archaeological site is furnished with a (surmountable) fence and usually locked. Still, the only remains visible today are the structures of the three poorly preserved tholos tombs.