Lampsacus was an ancient Greek polis situated on the eastern side of the Hellespont (modern Dardanelles) . The English Wikipedia page describes the city as of Milesian AND Phocaean foundation, hinting at a joint colonial enterprise by the two Ionian cities. Other pages (such as the German, French, and Greek entries), however, mention only its Phocaean origin.
Jean-Paul Morel, in his article "Phocaean Colonisation" in Tsetskhladze, Gocha R. 2006. Greek Colonisation: An Account of Greek Colonies and Other Settlements Overseas. 1 1. Leiden: Brill. (Official site on Brill, a PDF is available on Academia) listed Lampsacus as a Phocaean colony:
The first Phocaean colony appears to have been Lampsacus (Lapseki), established in Asia Minor on the Hellespont in the territory of the Bebryces, a Thracian people (about 615 B.C.?)7. What little is known about it seems to conform to the ‘structures’ of Phocaean colonisation (see below)8. Its history, until its submission by Rome in 80 B.C., consists of a long series of conflicts with the Thracians, the Persians or other Greek cities (Miletus, Athens, etc.).9
7 Roebuck, C. 1959: Ionian Trade and Colonization (New York), 113.
8 Lepore, E. 1970: ‘Strutture della colonizzazione focea in Occidente’. PP 25, 22-4.
9 In general on Lampsacus, see Bürchner, L. 1924: ‘Lampsakos’. RE XII.1, 590–2.; Brugnone, A. 1995: ‘In margine alle tradizioni ecistiche di Massalia’. PP fasc. CCLXXX, 57–66.
In his references, both Roebuck (1959) and Brugnone (1995) identified Lampsacus as of Phocaean foundation only, which corresponds to the classification of Lampsacus in RE/New Pauly:
L. was founded (Eus. chronikoi kanones 95d) in 654/3 BC by Phocaeans [2. 107f.], not by Milesians (Str. 13,1,19).
Yet this rejection of Strabo's account of Milesian origin is not shared by The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites (1976), which stated that Lampsacus was:
City of the Troad (Mysia) originally called Pityussa, on the S shore of the Hellespont opposite Kallipolis. It had a good harbor (Strab. 13.1.18), and was said to have been founded by the Milesians or the Phokaians.
It seems that all references to a Milesian foundation ultimately trace back to Strabo 13.1.19:
κατέσπασται δ᾽ ἡ πόλις, οἱ δὲ Παισηνοὶ μετῴκησαν εἰς Λάμψακον, Μιλησίων ὄντες ἄποικοι καὶ αὐτοί, καθάπερ καὶ οἱ Λαμψακηνοί.
but the city is in ruins. The Paeseni changed their abode to Lampsacus, they too being colonists from the Milesians, like the Lampsaceni.
Hence there appears to be 3 stances on the colonial origin of Lampsacus:
- Joint Phocaean-Milesian foundation, as hinted by English Wikipedia.
- Sole Phocaean foundation without Milesian involvements, which seems to be the most widely accepted interpretation among scholars.
- Either Phocaean or Milesian foundation, with no definitive conclusion.
So which one should we accept as closer to truth? Was Lampsacus Phocaean, Milesian, or a combination of the two?
Lastly, I should add that given that joint foundation, relocation and repopulation of Greek overseas settlements were not uncommon (see, for example, Parion, Sybaris, Pyxous, Kaulonia, Kardia, etc.), the possibility that Lampsacus received influxes of Milesian settlers can't be ruled out, especially considering its proximity to other Milesian colonies such as Kyzikos and Abydos; and this might well be the reason why Strabo, writing more than 500 years after its foundation, thought the city to be Milesian in origin. Still, these are merely my speculations.
Additional Sources
- Pityoussa/Lampsacus on Pleiades.
- Lampsacus on ToposText with 248 entries of ancient references.