History:
Byllis was an ancient city and the chief settlement of the Illyrian tribe of the Bylliones, located in the transboundary region between southern Illyria and Epirus. The remains of Byllis are situated north-east of Vlorë, 25 kilometers from the sea in Hekal, Fier County, Albania. Byllis was designated as an archaeological park on 7 April 2003 by the government of Albania.
Stephanus of Byzantium mentions a town called Byllis as a seaside city in Illyria and its foundation legend, according to which the city was built by Myrmidons under Neoptolemus, returning from the Trojan War towards its homeland. This legendary tradition is reflected also by numismatics.
The massive walls of Byllis were built before the end of the 4th century BC and literary sources report them as an Illyrian rather than Epirote or Macedonian foundation. Later Byllis acquired the trappings of a Hellenistic town, and because the southernmost Illyrian tribes, including the Bylliones, were inclined to become bilingual, it was also a Greek-speaking city. Byllis received sacred ancient Greek envoys, known as theoroi, during the early 2nd century BC, which only cities that were considered Greek were eligible to receive. The time duration that passed before Illyrian cities were documented on a list of theorodokoi clarifies that acculturation did take place in southern Illyria, however it indicates that the process was gradual.
During the Roman-Illyrian war in 169/168 BC the Bylliones took part on the Roman side against the Illyrian king Gentius. However, the subsequent alliance of Byllis with Molossians and Macedonians led to its sacking and destruction by the Romans. After a long decline, in 30 BC the city became a Roman colony. In Roman times Byllis rose again, also becoming a bishopric in late antiquity.
Byllis was founded on the territory of the Illyrian community of the Bylliones around 350 BC, on an already existent proto-uraban area dating back to the previous century. Initially it was one of the several foritifed Illyrian hilltops that cotrolled the high hills of the region of Mallakastër. The area was on the edge of the sphere of influence by Apollonia and Epidamnos, as well as of Epirus. The foundation of the Illyrian city in the 4th century on the northern edge of the Aoos valley is probably connected with the presence of bitumen mines near Selenica, which were located on the opposite edge of the valley. According to a tradition preserved by Greek lyric poet Pindar, Byllis was supposedly founded by Myrmidons returning from the Trojan War, who were being led home by Neoptolemus.
Mid-4th century BC fortification walls were built with isodomic ashlar layers. The walls were 2.25 km long and 3.5 m wide, enclosing an area of 30 hectares around a steep hill. In the sanctuary of Dodona a 4th-century BC inscription on a lead foil provides the earliest known attestation of the Bylliones, asking to which deity they should sacrifice in order to ensure the safety of their possessions.
