Heroon at Nemea

A hero shrine within the Panhellenic sanctuary of Zeus at Nemea in the northwest Argolid, Greece, dedicated to the mythological infant Opheltes. The heroon is an earthen mound 100 metres long and 40 metres wide on the west side of the Nemea river. Constructed around 573 BC when the first Nemean Games were held, its surroundings include an unlined well, a reservoir, and the starting line of the early stadium. Though literary sources for the Opheltes myth date only to the 5th century BC, the shrine likely predates its attributed hero. Excavations uncovered deliberately buried whole vessels and seven lead curse tablets with erotic imprecations, reflecting the site's reputation as a place to practice magic.