Tiryns is one of the most important Bronze Age places in the whole eastern Mediterranean. Ancient Tiryns is located in the plain of the Argolid and is surrounded by mountain ranges.

The first human settlement of Tiryns started in the Neolithic age (7^th-4^th millennium B.C.) Unfortunately little archaeological evidence has been found from this time because of later building on the site. In the Early Bronze Age (3^rd millennium B.C.) there was a burst of rigorous building activity. The peak of building activity was in the 13^th century B.C.  In this town the gods Hera, Athena, and Hercules were worshipped.

Tiryns even had an offering at Delphi for its participation in the battle of Plateau during the Persian.

According to literary tradition Tiryns was destroyed by the Argeians and it inhabitants were banished after the first half of the 5^th century B.C. Throughout the Hellenistic and Roman periods, Tiryns continued to decline although it was never fully put out. The traveler Pausanias visited it in the 2^nd century A.D. and found it in ruins.

The walls of Tiryns were believed to be built by Cyclopes because they were so large. Even now parts of the wall are 7m thick and the largest stones of the wall are guessed to weigh 14 tons! They are even more extensive then the walls at Mycenae, although not as well known. It was said that even a pair of mules couldn’t move the smallest rock.

These walls were described by Homer in some of his writings as "wall-girt Tiryns." They were built of red and gray limestone, which is abundant on the hill that Tiryns sits on.

Tiryns gates are about the same size as Myceane, although some of it is missing. No coat of arms has been detected at Tiryns.

Inside the walls were discovered many structures. One was a magnificent palace. One of the structures was the galaria which consisted of six rooms and a passage. There was also a Great Megaron which was the largest room of the palace. On its walls were reliefs of triglyphs with rosettes and palmettes. The Central Court was where people stayed to watch the religious rituals in the court. There was an altar in this structure. Also there was the Throne Room, which had a hearth.

There was also a small town on the plain below and around the citadel. It was inhabited form the Middle Helladic of the Early Helladic period to the end of the Mycenaean period.

Some excavators of Tiryns were Wilhelm Dorpfeld, Kurt Muller, Nikolaos Verdelis, and Klaus Kilian. Heinrich Schliemann even excavated there for a while.

One of the myths that concerns Tiryns is that of Melampous and the Proitides. Proitos, the king of Tiryns, had three daughters called the Proitides. Unfortunately these girls had gone mad and Proitos wanted to cure them. He sent for Melampous who was a well know seer to cure the girls. (Another story states that Mulampous could even talk to animals.) Melampous came and asked for 1/3 of the king's kingdom in exchange for treating the girls. Proitos thought this was far too much and sent him away, but meanwhile his daughters grew worse. He sent for Melampous and he came again with his brother asking for 2/3 of the kingdom. The king had to agree. So Melampous sent runners to track the girls down, and when they had he forced them to drink a potion that would cure them. The king gave each of the brothers his daughters to marry (one of them died of exhaustion) and they lived in the kingdom of Tiryns.

Another story connected with Tiryns is Hercules and his twelve labors. Supposedly the king of Tiryns, Eurystheus, gave him all of the labors.

I really enjoyed Tiryns because it was just really amazing to see these huge walls. The stones were just amazingly gigantic. It was really remarkable to experience and see it. I also really enjoyed looking into the galaria, which was also really amazing that it stayed in the same shape for the whole time.

Tiryns was a really incredible experience.