Polygyros in Chalcidice

Polygyros in Chalcidice is in the news since its Archaeological Museum has reopened after being closed for twelve years to upgrade it to today's standards. 

Chalcidice is the three-fingered peninsula just east of Thessaloniki in Northern Greece, famous for its exotic beaches and natural landscapes. It is a popular vacation destination for people from Balkan countries, Austria, and Germany. 

Polygyros is situated at the peninsula's center, with easy access to notorious antique sites like Olynthus, Potidea, and Stagira. It is also close to the narrow where King Xerxes I of Persia dug a canal across the most easterly finger (Mount Athos Peninsula) during the Second Persian War in 480 BC (see: Stagira, the Birthplace of Aristotle). 

I vividly remember visiting the Museum of Polygyros when I toured around Chalcidice. I was determined to see the arrowheads from Olynthus (see: Olynthus and its houses), with their unique inscription ΦΙΛΙΠΠO (Philippou), meaning from Philip. It had taken Philip of Macedonia nearly two years to conquer Olynthus, and his army apparently had quite a sense of humor. The siege ended in 348 BC, after which Philip razed the city to the ground. 

Another treasure at the museum is the surviving part of Philip's treaty with the Chalcideans. Alarmed by Philip's policy after he occupied Amphipolis in 357 BC, the Chalcidean allies and the Olynthians concluded a treaty with Philip against Athens, who had refused an earlier proposition. To seal their agreement on the treaty's terms, the two parties solemnly swore by Zeus, Gaia, Helios, and Poseidon. 

Three copies of this treaty were made, and the Chalcideans would display theirs at the Temple of Artemis in Olynthus, and Philip would do the same in the Temple of Zeus in Dion. They jointly would exhibit a third copy in Delphi after having it ratified by the gods. 

Strolling further through this small museum, I discovered several artifacts worth my attention. There was, for instance, a terracotta Niké from Sane, 6^th century BC, a lion spout from the Temple of Ammon-Zeus in Kallithea, 5^th century BC, and a piece of cornice from an archaic sanctuary in Stagira, 6^th century BC. Last but not least, an exciting collection of silver and copper coins that was unearthed in Stagira, mainly carrying effigies of Macedonian kings. There were also coins from other cities like Akanthos (modern Ierissos), Sermyle, Skione, and Ouranopolis on the Chalcidice, and from more distant Amphipolis, Pella, Thessaloniki, Corinth, etc. 

These treasures may be dwarfed in the museum that has been enlarged to accommodate an extensive donation of more than one thousand artifacts. The generous benefactor is Iraklis Lambropoulos, who donated the collection his father, Ioannis, had gathered in the 1930s. In fact, he gave it to the Greek State, provided it would be displayed at the Archaeological Museum of Polygyros. 

Today's visitor will see finding from excavations carried out throughout Chalcidice dating from the Palaeolithic to the Archaic, Classic, Hellenistic, and Roman eras. Special attention is drawn to an unfinished kouros, which may have escaped my attention or is entirely new. Noteworthy is also a marble head of Dionysos from Aphytos, 4^th century BC, two marble grave statues from the Heroon of Stratoni, 1^st century BC, and the artifacts unearthed in Olynthus and its cemetery. 

It is obvious that I should visit this museum the next time I am in Chalcidice.

Travelling surprise in Greece

Knowing where to go and what to see is very important in any travel plan, but some surprises can turn out to be true gems. 

It so happened that I could visit the recently excavated cemetery of Akanthoy, near Ierissos, North Chalkidikis. The finds date roughly from the 7th-6th century BC, i.e., before Alexander and thus something he would have known.

According to Thucydides, the ancient city of Akanthos was founded as a colony of Andros, or, if we follow Plutarch, jointly by Andros and Chalkis in the middle of the 7th century BC. It sat on top of a prehistoric settlement. The city took the side of the Persians both in 499 BC (First Persian War) and 480 BC (Second Persian War) and sided with the Athenians in 431 BC during the Peloponnesian War. With the expansion of Macedonia under Philip and Alexander, Akanthos was incorporated into their kingdom. In 200 BC, the city was plundered by the Romans and became a mere province. 

The cemetery has been located underneath the modern city of Ierissos. It has yielded more than 14,000 findings confirming that the site was used all through the Roman age. The best artifacts have, of course, been moved to the Archaeological Museum of Polygyros. 

One of the fascinating spots I happen to stumble upon by chance is these lovingly cared-for tombs discovered in 2014, where everything is kept in situ. I admire the work of the archaeologists who managed to unearth these tombs from different eras in superposed layers while leaving each one undisturbed by the excavation of the others. 

Jars of all sizes and shapes (varying with time) alternate with small tombs, roofed or not. A few poignant small tombs still contain the cremated remains with their original grave goods on top – little earthen pots and jars that helped define the burial date. Also, skeletons of what seem to be young children are surrounded by toy horses and miniature vases. There also are many larger rectangular tombs in terracotta.

Outside, in front of an unmarked building, many larger pots have been collected, some wrapped in protective plastic. They are all waiting to be cataloged and studied together with smaller items filling colorful crates. Archaeology requires a lot of patience!

Alexander exhibition at the Louvre, Paris

« Au Royaume d’Alexandre le Grand. La Macédoine Antique. » Quite a mouthful for an exhibition, but definitely one that was worth seeing. Such a pity it ran for so short a period of time (from 13 October 2011 to 16 January 2012), and I wasn’t able to visit the Louvre till near the very end. Consequently, there was no point in sharing my impressions anytime soon.

I found the title of this exhibition rather confusing: was it about Alexander the Great, or was it about Macedonia? Well, in the end, it was about both, of course, but the accent was set around old Macedonia, and it was a well-deserved recommendation. Today, like in antiquity, it seems that Macedonia is some kind of stepchild, not entirely part of Greece or worthy to be part of it. The excavations of the past thirty years or so prove much to the contrary.

The very first excavations date back to 1861, when two French archaeologists (of course, we are referring to France and the French here!), Léon Heuzey and Henri Daumet made their first discoveries under the close watch of the Ottoman rulers. They uncovered the remains of the Royal Palace of Aegae, not knowing that this was Aegae, the old Macedonian capital, in what is called today Vergina. After that, we have to wait till after the First World War, when Konstantinos Rhomaios started new diggings in the area in 1920. He is the one who put Pella on the map, the second capital of Macedonia, about 25 kilometers further inland than expected because of the silting up of the Axios River. He also discovered several tombs in the Vergina area. By far the largest and most sensational discovery happened in 1977 when Manolis Andronicos localized the unspoiled Tomb of King Philip II, Alexander’s father. Huge quantities of precious gifts were found in his burial chamber as well as in the nearby tombs underneath this same tumulus. In the wake of this discovery, other promising diggings were generally started elsewhere.

Strangely enough, new finds show that the art in archaic Macedonia was closely akin to what we have seen in Mycenae, here only one hundred years later. Clear traces of this influence can be found mainly in the area of Pieria, in the westerly region. But meanwhile, it is obvious that the so-called Hellenistic art first and foremost originated here in Aegae and in Pella at the court of the Kings and in the houses of the Macedonian elite. As early as the 5th century, the Macedonian Kings attracted notable artists like Zeuxis of Heraclea, who decorated the Palace of King Archelaus, or Euripides, who wrote his Iphigenia in Aulis, Archelaus, and The Bacchantes here. Later on, we find more famous artists at the Court of Pella, like Lysippos, the official sculptor of Alexander, and Apelles, his official court painter; but also top painters like Aristides of Thebe or Philoxenus of Eretria. Even if the names had come to us, we still had no idea about the quality of their work till the now famous frescos in the Tomb of Persephone were discovered in Vergina; they give a totally unexpected image of their craft, in this case, the skills of Nicomachus of Thebe – a most lively and unique testimony. Wall paintings from the houses in Pella, on the other hand, turn out to be of such high quality and colour that they are considered as the precursors of the Pompeian style, which we meet in Pompeii – yet five centuries later!

The Louvre has done a thorough job with this exhibition, and they have not limited themselves to collecting a random number of objects from the Greek Museums. It all starts right at the entrance with a splendid copy of the pebble mosaic showing a lion hunt with Alexander on the left and Craterus to the right. A great welcome from the homeland, Macedonia!

I recently traveled through Macedonia myself, visiting many of the museums, and seeing all these objects over here was like meeting old friends again. Purely from memory, the following is what I remember having seen again in Paris (the Louvre didn’t allow any pictures!)

• From the Museum in Aiani (Pieria), clay figures and vases;
• From Vergina, silver jars, a bronze lamp, gold crowns with delicate leaves and flowers, or tied with Heracles’ knot;
• From Amphipolis, a multicolored vase, a dashing terracotta dancer, and a true-to-life painted head of a terracotta woman;
• From Polygoros, one of the arrows engraved with “Philippou”, i.e., with the compliments of Philip (used during the siege of Olynthus);
• From Veroia, the intriguing bust of Olganos of Kopanos, which reminded me of Alexander;
• From Pella, molds for terracotta statues and finished clay statuettes, pots, jars found around the Agora, earthenware roof decorations, and pieces of burial furniture in wood, bone, and ivory;
• From Dion, a striking relief of Demeter;
• From Thessaloniki where evidently most of the objects came from, with gold masks in the style of Agamemnon; bronze helmets with or without a gold trimming; an earthenware pyxis painted with a garland of flowers on a black background; gold jewelry like bracelets, necklaces, earrings, fibulae, etc; gold, silver and bronze coins; a lovely bronze medallion of Athena in high relief; the painted inside walls of a tomb; etc.
• From the Louvre, a small bronze Alexander with a spear (not very resembling); a drum and capitals of columns from Aegae (brought back by Heuzey and Daumet but apparently never exhibited), which are now placed in the frame of a life-size drawing of the colonnades surrounding the central square of the Palace of Aegae. It’s as if you are truly walking inside. In the very center, I find the head of Young Alexander from the Museum of Pella.

Also, a showcase filled with Greek vases, bowls, drinking vessels, pots, and jars, all beautifully decorated, of course. And all around this on the walls, I recognize pictures of the frescos from different tombs in and around Vergina, Pella, and Lefkadia.

The Louvre has unveiled more hidden treasures from its catacombs, i.e., remains from the Palace of the Roman Emperor Galerius (305-311 AD), who promoted Thessaloniki to the capital of his tetrarchy. These are tall square marble pillars, approximately two meters high, with on the front and back a relief of a recognizable figure, like a Menead, Victory, Dionysos, Aura, Ariane, one of the Dioscuri, Leda with the Swan, and Ganymedes. The building to which the pillars belonged is called “Incantada” and once stood at the northern entrance to the Agora of Thessaloniki. This is all new to me and very revealing.

At this stage, I wonder why Alexander the Great is supposed to be the central personage of this exhibition, since, besides the head from Pella and the scanty bronze statue with the lost lance, I haven’t seen him. He turns out to be the surprise, probably meant to be the very climax … not very successful, if you ask me! When I’m about ready to leave, I discover a rather narrow window in a black box where Alexander is waiting for me. Gee, why cramp him behind this one window? They could have put him in a full-size showcase entirely made of glass, no? Anyway, this is where I find the true treasures of the entire exhibition (in my eyes, that is, of course), Alexander in person! For a start, there is the most striking Azara Hermes from the Louvre – after all, this is a copy of an original made by nobody less than Lysippos! Also, Alexander as Pan from the Museum in Pella, the Guimet Alexander from the Louvre, a torso that is being attributed to him, and an inscription from Thessaloniki, of which I remember nothing. And finally, at the very corner of this same dark showcase, a long, narrow glass étagère with the gold medallions of his Royal parents, King Philip II of Macedonia and Queen Olympias – precious pieces pushed aside in an almost forgotten corner. True sacrilege, I would say!

Stagira, the Birthplace of Aristotle

The name of Stagira sounds like magic, for it is the birthplace of no one less than Aristotle! Aristotle was born here in 384 BC. His father, Nikomachos, had been the doctor for King Amyntas III of Macedonia, the grandfather of Alexander the Great. Yet, both his parents died while Aristotle was still young, and he was adopted by a relative. At 18, he went to Athens, where he studied at Plato’s Academy for twenty years, i.e., till Plato died in 347 BC. Meanwhile, he founded his own school in Assos (Troas in today’s Western Turkey), and three years later, he moved to Lesbos where he met Theofrastos, who was to be his successor at the school in Athens. In 343 BC, King Philip II invited him to Pella to provide proper schooling for his son, Alexander. When his task was finished three years later, Aristotle withdrew to Stagira till he returned to Athens in 335 BC, founding his own school, the Lyceum, where he worked for the next twenty years. Being accused of impiety after the death of Alexander the Great, he moved to Chalcis, where he died only 63 years old. Tradition has it that a year after his death, the people of Stagira officially had his remains transferred to be reburied in their city…

If you look for the city of Stagira on today’s map of Greece, you’ll be directed soon enough to the peninsula of Chalcidice in eastern Greece. But surprisingly, that is only a modern town, whereas the historic site of Stagira lies some odd 30 km to the east, just below Olympiada on the shore of the Aegean Sea. I found out that an excellent way to pinpoint the site is to use the Wikimapia layout of Google, which gives the traveler plenty of detailed information besides the satellite image.

I’m leaving Thessaloniki in the early morning, heading straight east over the old road to Kavala, past Alexandroupoli, and eventually to Istanbul. Most trucks and heavy traffic opt for the new freeway that skirts Lake Koroneia and Lake Volvi on the north side, making my drive along the southern side most pleasant. On my right lay the rich wooded hills of Chalcidice in a full array of green dotted with the yellow broom and a wealth of flowers in the cleared fields. In the wind-still morning air, the lakes peacefully reflect the clouds and their harvest of reeds and other water plants. Of course, my thoughts drift off to Alexander, who has marched his army along the opposite shores on his memorable conquest of Asia. Before him, his father, Philip must have followed either side during his many battles while creating the coherent Macedonian kingdom he left to his son after his assassination. In antiquity, this part of Chalcidice was rich with silver mines, and the towns I crossed could tell me many stories. It seems, however, that they have stopped in time. Life evolves at a different pace in this part of Greece.

At Stavros, I take a right turn south to the settlement of Olympiada, a pleasant village of about 650 inhabitants built by refugees expelled from Aghia Kyriaki, Turkey, in 1923. According to oral tradition, Queen Olympias was exiled here by Cassander. Still, from the historical point of view, this story is incorrect, for, in reality, she was exiled to Pydna. The new settlers called their city Olympiada in honor of Alexander’s mother based on this tradition. Its beautiful beaches of fine white sands and clear waters are now favored by tourists from Germany and Bulgaria, but presently in the second half of May, it is still tranquil and unspoiled. At the end of the village, I find a cozy harbor with a dozen fishing boats, overseen by an orthodox chapel with easy access from either the sea or the road to Ouranopoli. This main road also takes me up to ancient Stagira, signed and fenced with space to park my car.

All is quiet here. Except for the rustling of the wind through the low trees and the songs of many birds, all I hear is my own breathing. A rough track runs upwards from the entrance gate between bright honey-sweet broom shrubs – a feast for the eye till I reach the old city walls. A big map offers what seems to be a leisurely walk around the place, but it soon turns out to be a more difficult one as I venture into the dense shrubs and bushes.

Stagira was built over two successive hills and was defended by the wall I’m facing, protecting its people not only from the land side but also from the seaside. In its heydays, roughly between 500 BC and 350 BC, this wall was two kilometers long and often as thick as two meters. Although it has been nicely restored or probably just because of this, the wall is clearly visible in the landscape from afar.

The city was founded around 655 BC by colonists from the island of Andros and later from Chalcis. Like the rest of Greece, they were involved in the Peloponnesian War in 424 BC, becoming an ally of Sparta but changing camp soon after to take the side of Athens. Like many other cities on the peninsula, Stagira joined the Chalcidian League, whose seat was in Olynthus (which I’m also visiting). But then Philip II set off on his expansion conquests of Macedonia, and he is the one who besieged Stagira in 349 BC and thoroughly destroyed it in the process. When he hired the services of Aristotle to serve as a tutor for Alexander, he may have promised to rebuild the city as part of his (re)payment, but it never recovered its previous wealth. In this context, I definitely wanted to visit Stagira, of course.

The remains of the city walls are awe-inspiring, to say the least. It is interrupted by several watchtowers, only three being round. I’m standing right next to such a round tower as I enter the city through an opening close to the Acropolis. The view I discover all along the coastline is beyond my expectations. It is a mixture of memories from the Costa Brava when I look south in admiration for the strategic choice when I see Olympiada and its harbor at my feet. The day is hazy, but I can oversee quite a stretch of coastline to the north and northeast within visual contact of Amphipolis and the Strymon delta. I have visions of the Athenian corn fleet, for instance, keeping close to the land as it made its way back home, maneuvering from one port to the next. Or how about seeing the enemy or pirate ships approaching from up here? There is nothing wrong with my imagination, of course!

Strangely enough, the structures of these stone walls vary a lot, and I don’t understand why. To the right, the wall is built in the rough Lesbian or polygonal style. In contrast, the round tower and the left part of the wall are set up in the so-called “Egyptian style,” using square and rectangular blocks of different sizes and materials (limestone and marble) alternating with dark flat stones – with surprising effects. It seems that some parts of the original walls still stand up to four meters tall.

I try to stick to the path as I visualize it from the billboard at the entrance, but there are too many side tracks and no indication to reach the next site of interest. I follow my gut feeling, passing by several ruins of Classical and Hellenistic houses from between the 5th and 3rd century BC until I reach the open space at the very heart of the city, the Agora. Here I am confronted with an unusual rectangular public building measuring 26 x 6 meters, indicated as a Stoa, although it was a hall used for public debate. It had three closed walls around which a simple stone bench was set, while the one open long side faced the Agora. A broad staircase, although placed off-center, marked the entrance. The Stoa was covered by a roof held up by a row of eight columns aligned in the middle of the construction. Sadly only the foundations have survived, and it takes some imagination to picture it in full glory. In front but to the side are remains of a small altar, and on the other side of the market place those of a water cistern. The shape of this Agora is somewhat random as if the space has simply been used to the best of the possibilities without any basic pattern.

To the right begins a paved street, Greek in as far as I can judge, passing along several storerooms. These are relatively small rooms, one containing the remains of three large jars stuck into the floor and a larger clay basin probably used for storing cereals. The next room reveals two large elongated holes chiseled in the rock (more or less in the shape of a boat) with several cavities in which most probably large earthen jars could stand. A remarkable sight, I must say.

My path leads me past the Byzantine wall from the 10th-11th century, which cuts the old city in two and is made of all sorts of materials – typical Byzantine if you ask me, for they were master recyclers avant-la-lettre. But underneath, archaeologists have discovered remains of the archaic city wall from the 6th century BC. Amazing how this city limit was being used and reused after 16 centuries! Halfway through that straight wall rises a big square tower and surprises me with full-size flooring made of inlaid marble; the open rectangular space in the center of the room seems to indicate the place for an altar, possibly dating back to the 6th century.

Descending the peninsula's southern edge, I stop several times to take in the scene, picture-perfect views into the successive coves and beaches. Close to the beach, the dense growth gives way, and I stare into the remains of walls and rooms clearly sunken under sea level. What an exciting discovery! From here, I reach what appears to be the oldest part of Stagira, where an archaic Sanctuary (6th century BC) and late Classical walls have been exposed. Well, that is what the books say, but honestly, I can’t determine what is what. I climb to the top of this northern hill crowned with more Byzantine buildings and walls that seem to have been built one on top of another without a clear pattern. However, a very delicate and promising piece of cornice from this sanctuary can be seen at the Museum of Polygyros in Chalcidice.

It is midday, and the air is becoming pretty hot. Luckily, I took enough water with me. Yet I’m dying for a cup of coffee – maybe in neighboring Olympiada? I leave Stagira over what turns out to be the long way which offers a magnificent last view of the city walls down to the cafés and restaurants along the seashore. I find a quiet and shady table at the edge of the sandy beach where the hotel restaurant owner has set up a large white tent decorated with shells and crudely crafted maritime items painted in lively colors. What a breather! I sit back to stare over the peaceful sea and blue sky. All is well, and the café frappé is exactly what I needed.

After collecting my breath and my brains again, I decided to drive south over a green road on the map to Ouranopoli, which is as far as the road would take me because the remaining section of the peninsula is the property of the monks reigning over the Athos Mountains. From above Olympiada, I make a last stop to admire the tiny island of Kapros, stretching a good two kilometers from the shore. Kapros means “boar” in Greek, which is indeed what it looks like. Even in antiquity, the resemblance had not gone unnoticed, for Stagira’s silver drachmas all carried the image of a boar …

I drive through Stratoni and Ierissos to Nea Roda, where I hope to see traces of the canal dug by King Xerxes I of Persia in 480 BC. Persian conquests and occupation have been a reality over the centuries, yet when we read about it, we tend to brush over the names and dates to return to the history of Greece as we like to see it. Just try to picture Iran occupying Turkey and invading Greece – not very likely, but Iran was Persia and mighty powerful in the 5^th century BC. We should not forget that Persia had often interfered enough in Greece’s internal affairs until Alexander the Great reversed the odds.

The fact remains that in 492 BC, King Darius I of Persia sent a large army and fleet across the Hellespont to invade mainland Greece. This fleet, which was following the land army closely, was destroyed by a storm at the promontory of Mount Athos. Three hundred vessels were lost, and 20,000 men drowned. In the spring of 490 BC, Darius tried again. Heading for Athens, however, he was decisively defeated at the Battle of Marathon, putting an end to his Persian conquests - for the time being. New plans were drafted, but Darius died in 486 BC before he could execute any of them. It was his son Xerxes I who took over and who personally led the Second Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BC with one of the largest armies ever assembled. Xerxes had learned from Darius’ disastrous naval experience of 492 BC and ordered a canal to be dug through the narrow of the Athos peninsula, which is only two kilometers wide. This was probably one of the most significant engineering assignments of its time, shortcutting the long sailing route around Mount Athos. This is the place I want to see for myself.

But – to conclude my summary of the Persian’s role at this time in history – this didn’t mean a complete victory of the Persians over the Greek city-states, for even after being victorious at the Battle of Thermopylae, the Persian fleet suffered a severe defeat at Salamis. A year later, the Greeks united against the Persians and finally halted the enemy invasion at the Battle of Plataea. View Larger Map

Preparing for this wonder of the world, I searched for traces of the digging on satellite pictures, but the line of the old canal was very vague. The land is relatively level with only a few low hills before rising again towards Mount Athos at the very tip of the peninsula, but if one looks carefully, there is a dark green line of trees where this canal once ran through the land from east to west. Somewhere along the modern road, which more or less follows its tracé from Nea Roda to Trypiti on the other side of the narrow, I pass a giant billboard that confirms that I have arrived in the area. Exciting to be here at last but rather disappointed that there is so little left to see.

Since I got this far, I decided to continue to Ouranopoli, which promises beautiful sandy beaches and an old Byzantine fort at the threshold of the Athos monasteries, which are off-limits anyway. Exotic villas and plush hotels line the road into the city, which turns out to be thoroughly spoiled by the tourists. One souvenir shop next to the other, one fast food place stuck to the next with bawling music filling the air. I take a quick picture of the lonely but commanding fort squeezed between the harbor for fake pirate ships and a modern parking lot and turn back in search of peace and quiet. I find such a spot back again in Olympiada as I decide to take my evening meal at the same place where I tasted the coffee earlier in the day. Blissful scenery and delicious Greek food crowned with their local krassi – what more could I ask for…

By now, it is time to investigate the modern city of Stagira, where I am told there is a park dedicated to Aristotle and his works called “the Natural.” At this hour, I’m fortunate enough to have the park to myself, allowing me to investigate the several instruments that illustrate the phenomena of nature. A shiny white marble statue of Aristotle inspired by works from antiquity oversees the lovely park.

I take my time and stop at each construction: the parabolic reflectors (reflecting even a whisper from one to the other); the sundial (which also gives the month of the year); a huge lens (to prove the focusing of energy); a large compass (to illustrate that Aristotle's philosophy is universal); the pentaphone (five slabs of granite that produce a sound close to that of the ancient scale of pentaphone); two series of optical disks (whose designs, when set in motion, blend together to form another pattern); inertia spheres (the shock of one sphere is gradually carried forward from the first to the last sphere); a pendulum (where the oscillation energy of one element is transferred to the other two); and finally the water turbine (when cranking the lever, one can create a swirl in the water column similar to that of a tornado). It’s fun, I can assure you! At the far end of the park, I try my luck at the telescope focused on the Athos peninsula, but it is out of order. I take a picture in Zoom instead, with low hopes for the outcome since, as said before, this is not exactly a clear day, but in the end, I get a glimpse of the illustrious Mount Athos! Saying my goodbyes to Aristotle, I can’t help thinking he is happy here.

The drive back in the low evening sunshine will stay with me forever. The road takes me right across the middle of Chalcidice, another green route on the map. I am under the charm of the lush wooded hills with a wide variety of trees and shades of green. At times the blooming broom bushes on either side of the road are touched by the delicate sunrays and metamorphosed into pure gold. I hardly meet another car or traveler on this long drive of more than 100 km back to bustling Thessaloniki – lucky me!

Olynthus and its houses

Several months ago, in the frame of the exhibition on Alexander the Great at the Hermitage in Amsterdam, I attended a lecture about Macedonia where one of the subjects treated was the city of Olynthus.

To me, Olynthus was a city repeatedly besieged by King Philip, Alexander’s father, in his attempt to create a united Macedonia. Ultimately, he razed it from the map, flattening the entire place in a final crush. So, it would be interesting to learn more about this part of history. As it turned out, this was not to be the main focus of the lecture, it was to be the houses of Olynthus, and I was in for several surprises!

The town is located in southwestern Chalcidice, covering two flat-topped hills in the middle of a fertile plain, about ten kilometers north of Potideia. The origin of Olynthus goes back to its mythological founder, Olynthus, son of Heracles. Still, the oldest remains date from Neolithic times in the third millennium BC, which were destroyed by the Persians in 479 BC.

We owe it to King Perdiccas II of Macedonia to order local tribes and settlements to move to Olynthus. This population increase led to the city's actual organization, which soon covered the entire north hill. Here, the new town was built according to a grid plan, the Hippodamian plan. Hippodamus of Miletus (498-403 BC), although an eccentric figure in his time, was the father of urban planning. He conceived the city layout with wide straight streets crossing each other at square angles, inevitably leading to an ample space in its very center where the Agora would emerge so the citizens could meet and greet in one central location. The first city to be built according to this principle was, of course, Miletus in Asia Minor. Still, the idea took on rather quickly, and Olynthus and Pella were to be built this way (eventually lavishly implemented by Alexander the Great when he founded his many cities in the east and generously copied by the practical Romans).

From 432 BC onward Olynthus’ power rose substantially to become the leader of the Chalcidian League, a confederation of 32 cities on the Chalcidice peninsula. Both Athens and Macedonia would love to have Olynthus as an ally rather than as their enemy. Still, an alliance with Olynthus never lasted long as they kept changing camp according to their own whims.

In 357 BC, King Philip II concluded a peace treaty with Olynthus and its allies, i.e., against Athens (part of this text is being kept at the nearby Museum of Polygyros). But a couple of years later, Olynthus changed its mind again and sought an alliance with Athens, who in return did nothing or close to nothing to help them. At first, Philip maneuvered in such a way as to isolate Olynthus by taking one neighboring city after the other and thus seriously cutting down its power. In 348 BC, he besieged Olynthus and razed it to the ground. Useless to point out that the speaker in Amsterdam had my undivided attention, and it was obvious I had to see Olynthus for myself on my next trip to Macedonia – which I did.

Because Olynthus has been (nearly) completely flattened, it is easy to get a good overview of its layout. Although hardly 1/10^th of the total area has been excavated, two large avenues, 7 meters wide, clearly stand out with smaller streets dividing the city into blocks (a familiar sight in major American cities today!). Each block counted ten houses with one upper floor and a paved yard. Amazingly, some of the earliest floor mosaics in Greek art have been discovered here!

It is surprising to learn that most of the houses have a similar ground plan which is commonly referred to as “pastas houses”, i.e. roughly squares of 17 x 17 meters, divided in two almost equal parts, while the northern half is again divided in two. This means that the walls and supporting columns are all placed according to a common rule required: one single roof covers all the northern halves of the entire row of houses. Life evolved around a central courtyard situated in the southern half, which opened onto the long northern portico, i.e., the “pastas.” This portico was the focal point in each house, a convenient and comfortable working area. Nearly all the rooms opened directly to the court or to the pastas. It turns out that the houses in Olynthus were non-hierarchical, meaning there were no main or dominant rooms or backrooms. This differentiates them from the “prostas” type of houses that the Romans built in later years.

All Olynthian houses had a room dedicated as a kitchen area, sometimes with a built-in hearth, and another small room assigned to bathing as several bathtubs have been found in situ with their drainage system. But what stroke me most during this lecture was the illustration of the rooms used as “andron.” Now the “andron” is a kind of formal dining room, only for men, of course, which was used primarily for the Greek “symposiums.” These were dinner parties in which the host took care of entertaining his guests, deciding on the subject to be debated during the long eating and drinking séances, and making sure the appropriate amount of water was mixed with the wine. There were music players, but also young boys and hetaerae to be at the dedicated service of the guests. After a few hours, it was obvious that things ran out of hand, and the mosaic floors were valuable assets when cleaning up the mess the guests made of food, wine, and vomit. In Olynthus, these “androns” usually were square rooms of approximately 5 x 5 meters, with plastered and painted walls around which a raised border of about one meter high indicates the place for the couches (klinè). Because of their setting against the walls, the “androns” in Olynthus could hold seven “klinè,” which meant that the room entrance was off center. The floor was drained by a pipe running through the walls straight into the street, an efficient way to clean up after a messy revelry.

There seem to be considerable variations in these house plans; some have larger “androns,” others larger kitchens or general rooms. Several houses had special workrooms and shops with an opening to the street. Besides that, the homes on one block could be very distinctive from those on another block, perhaps because of a different social status or people exercising a different trade.

Armed with all this background information, I’m off to see Olynthus for myself! The city is within easy reach from Thessaloniki; driving south till the freeway turns into a local road and making sure to turn left in Nea Moudania instead of driving on towards the peninsula of Kassandra. The antique city, now called Megale Toumba, lies on the eastern side of the river Olynthios, while the modern town has relocated to the opposite side. The place is fenced and the access path equals a walk in the park, which in spring bursts with a wide range of flowers and blossoming bushes of all kinds where the busy bees are having a party.

Soon the road runs uphill, and I am treated to the first overall view over the remains of this once so proud city. The walls are approximately knee-high, mainly thanks to the archaeologists' reconstruction work. They have done an excellent job here, inserting a pinkish layer of cement where the original stones end and the newly restored ones have been added. It is a clear example of what “razed to the ground” means,  as historians tell us, for that would have offered us very little to see. I stare immediately into one of the main streets running slightly uphill, giving the impression of an aerial view. Modern excavators have named these avenues, while the smaller crossroads are labeled as streets. At more or less regular intervals, the excavators have placed boards with pertaining information about the streets and the houses so that even the unprepared visitor will find the answers he is looking for.

I follow one of the side streets to its dead end against the city wall, where the sewage conduct that runs underneath this street continues through the wall out of the city. I now remember how during the lecture I was told that the walls of the town and the houses might have had only stone basis whereas the top part was built in brick or mud. That would partially explain how Olynthus was destroyed to the ground, although it was located in a strategic and well-defendable position. The Olynthians put up a fierce fight! It took Philip nearly two years to conquer the city with a short interruption for a campaign in Thessaly. At any rate, his army found the time to engrave their spearheads with a personal message “ΦΙΛΙΠΠO” from Philip. The king and his army must have had quite a sense of humor! Examples of these spearheads can be admired at the nearby Museum of Polygyros, exciting stuff!

In most houses, the wells have been located and nicely preserved – covered with a grid to keep the absent-minded visitor from falling into the pit. I come across one well with the restored wooden frame around it, very interesting. And then, there are the floor mosaics that were left in their original location. As I mentioned above, these are the oldest examples showing well-preserved geometrical motives framed within typical Greek bands. They are comparable to the better-known mosaics at Pella, although not as “royal,” maybe. I recognize the Macedonian sun in one of them while the corners are filled with volutes supporting the wave pattern around the sun. Another one shows a horseback hunter wearing the typical Macedonian hat as he rides in full gallop like in the images we have seen of Alexander the Great. One entrance exposes a deer attacked by two griffons, delicately worked out in small pebbles. Breathtaking to watch!

The Bouleuterion that has been discovered is in a relatively poor state with no seats left, only the socles of the columns that once supported the roof. And in the corner next to it are the remains of a fountain or Nymphaeum, partially reconstructed above the ever-present pinkish cement line.

One of the reasons why Philip so thoroughly flattened Olynthus may have been that the city had given asylum to two of his half-brothers, possible pretenders to the throne of Macedonia. However, we may never know this for sure, but the brothers were killed – problem solved.

At the foot of this hill is a small museum offering an exhibition of pictures taken before, during, and after the site's restoration. Still, it also includes some aerial views that can be very helpful for those who want some extra orientation.

To conclude, I would like to mention that Callisthenes (ca. 370-327 BC), the biographer of Alexander the Great who accompanied him on all his campaigns, was born here in Olynthus. All this proves that Olynthus was not just any city, but a city with lots of history to tell.

[Click here to see all the pictures of Olynthus]