The Royal Palace of Pella will open to the public in 2021

At last! The announcement is made official that the Royal Palace of Pella will open for visitors in the summer of 2021.

It is only a postponement of ten years. The birthplace (we hope) of Alexander was supposed to open in 2011, but at the last moment, it was decided to restart new excavations. At that time, Greece was facing a severe financial crisis which most certainly didn’t help the progress of the works.

The Greek City Times brought the long-awaited news and kindly added a full drawing of the palace layout. The quality of the picture, unfortunately, is awful and far from sharp. But this is all we have for the moment.

[picture from The Greek City Times]

It is said that the palace counted seven large buildings and I was hoping, against all odds, to find out where the palace proper was located as opposed to the premises occupied by King Philip’s wives other than Olympias. There must have been a room reserved for official receptions or banquets, a library, a Gymnasion and perhaps even a pool.

Instead, the article centers on the presentation of a digital tour in a visitor center. This edifice will be built to that purpose in 2023. Why this cannot be included or added to the existing Archaeological Museum of Pella nearby raises questions.

From what filters through, this palace is said to cover 28 ha, as opposed to the 6 ha mentioned initially. The reason for that difference may be linked to the period of prosperity that followed Alexander's death. Between the years 320 till 250 BC, the palace may have undergone drastic expansions.

For now, many questions remain unanswered. The fact remains that we will never know what treasures were kept inside the Royal Palace of Pella as the Romans thoroughly looted the premises and carried their trophies in triumph to Rome.