Abydos, ancient city of Egypt, c.50 mi (80 km) NW of Thebes, near modern El Balyana. Associated in religion with Osiris, Abydos became the most venerated place in Egypt. It was the favorite burial place for the kings of the earliest dynasties, and later kings such as Seti I and Ramses II continued to build temples and sanctuaries there. Remains date from the I to the XXVI dynasty (3100-500 B.C.), and include large mud-brick-walled sanctuaries that predate the pyramids. A famous list of kings, found on the wall of the temple built by Seti I, has been valuable in determining the order of succession among the Egyptian kings from Menes to Seti.

Abydos, ancient town of Phrygia, Asia Minor, on the Asian side of the Hellespont opposite Sestos, in present-day Turkey. It was originally a Milesian colony. Near there Xerxes built his bridge of boats in 480 B.C., and in 411 the Athenian fleet defeated the Spartans. A free city until it was taken by Philip V of Macedon in 200 B.C., it became a major city of Antiochus III. It was the scene of the story of Hero and Leander.

Ancient Anatolian town northeast of modern Çanakkale, Turkey, on the eastern side of the Dardanelles. It was colonized circa 670 BC by the Milesians (see Miletus). Xerxes I crossed the strait on a bridge of boats to invade Greece in 480 BC. Abydos is celebrated for its resistance to Philip V of Macedon in 200 BC and for the legend of Hero and Leander.

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