The Greek colonies

Greek colonisation of the Illyrian coast, with Corinth and Corcyra being the first to take the initiative, started in the seventh century BC. In 627 BC, roughly on the site occupied today by the town of Durres, inhabitants of Corinth and Corcyra founded the colony of Epidamnos and Dyrrachium. A few years later at the beginning of the sixth century BC, other colonists from the same region founded another colony, Apollonia, on a hill, slightly farther south and slightly inland. It was linked to the sea by the river Aoos (the Vjosa of today) which was navigable along its lower stretch. It was from these two centres that Greek civilisation penetrated to the interior of the Illyrian region.

A few centuries later, Dyrrachium and Apollonia had become important towns. Encircled by strong walls, and surrounded by agricultural lands, they became poleis -that is to say, city-states. The city wall of Apollonia, constructed with large parallelepiped blocks of stones and bricks, which has been partially uncovered in the last few years, stretches for more than 4 kilometres and encloses a surface area of almost 100 hectares where a population of 40,000-50,000 people lived at the time of the city's expansion. Architecture and sculpture were quick to flourish in these cities.

In the middle of the fifth century BC, Dyrrachium and Apollonia struck their first coins, silver stator, and therefore freed themselves from economic dependence on the metropolis. At first these two cities were governed by a small council of aristocracy, composed according to Aristotle, of notable eupatrids. In 436 BC there was a civil war at Dyrrachium. The Taulantians and the city of Corcyra supported the aristocracy, while Corinth took the side of the rebels. Relations between Dyrrachium and Apollonia and the Illyrians played an important role in the history of these two cities, even these relations weren't always friendly. Pausanians, in his Greek Itinerary, quotes an inscription which he had read in Elide: this inscription was discovered in the source of research done at Olimpia in the last few years. It mentions a war which took place in the first half of the fifth century started by Apollonia against the Abantians or the Amantians, their southern neighbours.

In the fourth century BC, after the formation of the Illyrian state beyond Dyrrachium and Apollonia, the initiative passed to the Illyrians. In the middle of the century their king Monounios occupied Dyrrachium. He had his first coin struck, which bore the legend "Basileus Monounios". His successor, Glaucias, established his power in these two cities, and then defended them against Cassandra, king of Macedonia, who occupied them for a while. The Illyrian coins, the "Illyrian drachmas" spread throughout Illyria, and reached Dacia (Rumania) and Thrace (Bulgaria).

These new relations were also favourable to the Illyrian people living in the two towns. In the Dyrrachium necropolis, dating form the Hellenistic period, many funeral stelae (columns or flat stones) have been discovered, a third of them bear Illyrian names. We find names we actually know, like Agron, Teuta, Gentius, Bato, Dazai, Plator, Epicade, but also strange and unknown names like Anyla, Labia, Lydra, Skyrthan, Teutius, Zaimina and others. These names from millenniums to present days have been amongst Albanian people.

Research has revealed arms, metal ornaments and earthenware receptacles with Illyrian writing. Sculptures depict figures in Illyrian costume. Sculptures and relief also dedicated to Illyrian gods. Naturally the centuries have not spared ancient monuments. So all that been left at Dyrrachium are fragments of public buildings, and equally rare sculptures witnessing the influence of classical art. However, a coloured mosaic from the end of the fourth century has been saved on which a woman's head can be distinguished; it is a remarkable piece of work. Moreover, recent research has revealed the physical features of the city of Apollonia more clearly .The wall supporting the Acropolis has remain almost intact. But research has only revealed a few traces of the monuments which embellished Apollonia in Greek period, the time of its expansion. However, the few that do remain do give us some impression - in particular, the supporting wall at the foot of the hill dominated by the temple of Artemis, and the porticoes with their seventeen stone niches, their thick octagonal columns and their sloping half-columns, crowned with remarkable Ionic capitals. Cicero's words about Apollonia "magna urbis et gravis" sufficiently illustrate the importance of this city.