a more permanent and organized settlement, which ensured better defense and the parallel exercise of various economic activities, such as agriculture, hunting, fishing and animal husbandry; the latter, however, on a more limited scale than that of nomadic or semi-nomadic. Henceforth, there was import and export of cereals in the region, while it also served as a supply base for troops. The reorganization of the economy also created new sources of wealth, through artisanship, which improved transactions and prompted Chaonians to create their first coins in the 4th century BC. The excavation of Phoenice – the capital of the Chaonians – unearthed 800 coins, of which only 20 were issued by the Chaonians; evidence of their economic prosperity, extroversion, and independent development. Women had rights over family property (including the slaves), and they could manage it, sell it, or even give it up, without the mediation of a male guardian. Also, it was common for slaves, after their liberation acts, to remain at the side of their former masters, for as long as the latter lived. This reveals the strong bond between the slaves and their owners; possibly due to the late adoption of slavery in the region, and the preservation of tribal ties, the core of which was the house, and therefore all the members attached to it were largely integral. Geography Chaonia or Chaon ( or ) was the name of the northwestern part of Epirus. It was one of the three main ethnic divisions of Epirus; the other two were Thesprotia and Molossia. Strabo in his Geography places Chaonia between the Ceraunian Mountains in the north and the River Thyamis in the south. Phoenice (Phoinike) was the capital and most important city of the Chaonians. The strength of the Chaonian tribes prevented the organized Greek city-states from establishing any colonies on the coast of Chaonia. Their region lay on the edge of the Greek world and was far from peaceful; for many centuries, it remained a frontier area contested with the Illyrian peoples to the north. According to Šašel Kos, at the time of Pseudo-Scylax, Chaonians as well as all the peoples to the north and to the south of Chaonia were living in villages, while Greece began at the Greek polis of Ambracia. However, Šašel Kos, also stated that northern Epirus was part of the Greek world and the line stretching from the Acroceraunian mountains as