Muses daughters of Harmonia (the daughter of Aphrodite and Ares), which contradicts the myth in which they were dancing at the wedding of Harmonia and Cadmus. The Muses had several temples and shrines in ancient Greece, their two main cult centres being Mount Helikon in Boiotia and Pieria in Makedonia. Strabo wrote: The cult of the Muses where also commonly connected to that of Apollo. Some Greek writers give the names of the nine Muses as Kallichore, Helike, Eunike, Thelxinoë, Terpsichore, Euterpe, Eukelade, Dia, and Enope. In Renaissance and Neoclassical art, the dissemination of emblem books such as Cesare Ripa's "Iconologia"
Valley of the Muses various games. In the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, games in honor of the Roman emperor were added. From that time the emperors sponsored the festivals, which were then called "Great Kaisareia" (Grk "Μεγάλα Καισάρεια") because the emperor was honored over the Muses. Winners of the games dedicated their tripods to a sanctuary. Many statues depicting the Muses, famous poets, and musicians stood in the open-air space of the Valley. With the rise of monotheism, the festivals and the valley were abandoned. In 1882, Stamatakis made the first test trench in the little church of Ayia Triada and noted the