The temple of Zeus Ithomatas stood on top of Mt. Ithome, at an altitude of 800m, within the fortified acropolis of Messene. Pausanias mentions that, after his rescue by the Kouretes, the child Zeus was brought to Ithome. His upbringing was undertaken by two Nymphs, Ithome and Neda.

Only a part of the temple’s foundations have been preserved; building material from the temple was re-used in the construction of the old Voulkano monastery. A fragment of a bronze tripodic cauldron has been associated with the god’s worship on top of Ithome as early as the 8th century BC, while the sculptor Ageladas (6th/5th century BC) had created a statue of Zeus as a child.