Acropoils & other hellenic world monuments

EUROPEAN HERITAGE DAYS 2014

&

WORLD HERITAGE MONUMENTS of GREECE

Photographic Exhibition

Under the Auspices of

ABOUT THE EUROPEAN HERITAGE DAYS

EUROPE A COMMON HERITAGE

Every year in September, the 50 signatory States to the

European Cultural Convention take part in the European

Heritage Days – a joint action of the Council of Europe and the

European Commission, putting new cultural assets on view and

opening up historical buildings normally closed to the public.

The cultural events highlight local skills and traditions,

architecture and works of art, but the broader aim is to bring

citizens together in harmony even though there are differences

in cultures and languages.

Each year, national and regional events are organised around a

special theme. These themes vary in each country from year to

year. They include such topics as:

* specific forms of heritage (e.g. farmhouses, musical

instruments, culinary traditions, garden architecture);

* specific periods in history (e.g. the Medieval heritage, the

Baroque heritage);

* society's approaches to heritage (e.g. heritage and citizenship,

heritage and youth).

* The Council of Europe and the European Commission

encourage the selection of trans-national themes which can be

illustrated by cross-border activities that are jointly set up by the

different countries

HELLENIC WORLD HERITAGE MONUMENTS of UNESCO

Acropolis, Athens

The Acropolis of Athens and its monuments are universal symbols of the classical

spirit and civilization and form the greatest architectural and artistic complex

bequeathed by Greek Antiquity to the world. In the second half of the fifth century

B.C .

Athens, following the victory against the Persians and the establishment of

democracy, took a leading position amongst the other city-states of the ancient world.

In the age that followed, as thought and art flourished, an exceptional group of artists

put into effect the ambitious plans of Athenian statesman Pericles and, under the

inspired guidance of the sculptor Phidias, transformed the rocky hill into a unique

monument of thought and the arts. The most important monuments were built during

that time: the Parthenon, built by Ictinus, the Erechtheion, the Propylaea, the

monumental entrance to the Acropolis, designed by Mnesicles and the small temple

Athena Nike.

The Athenian Acropolis is the supreme expression of the adaptation of architecture to

a natural site. This grand composition of perfectly balanced massive structures creates

a monumental landscape of unique beauty consisting of a complete series of

masterpieces of the 5th century BC. The monuments of the Acropolis have exerted an

exceptional influence, not only in Graeco-Roman antiquity, a time when in the

Mediterranean world they were considered exemplary models, but in contemporary

times as well.

From myth to institutionalized cult, the Acropolis, by virtue of its precision and

diversity, bears a unique testimony to the religions of ancient Greece. It is the sacred

temple from which sprang fundamental legends about the city. It illustrates the

civilizations of Greece over more than a millennium. From the royal palace of kings

in the 15th century BC and the Pelasgic walls of the first fortification, to the Odeon

constructed in AD 161 by Herod Atticus, a unique series of public monuments was

built and conserved in one of the densest spaces of the Mediterranean.

The Acropolis is located on a rocky promontory 156m above the valley of Ilissos; it

covers a surface area of less than 3ha. From the 2nd millennium BC it was a fortress

protecting places of worship and royal palaces. Access to the plateau was protected by

a wall, the Pelasgicon, which existed prior to the invasions of the Dorians who

threatened Athens beginning in 1200. After the fall of the tyrants, Hipparchus in 514

and Hippias in 510, the Acropolis was reconstructed. The Pelasgicon, which a

Delphic oracle declared cursed, was destroyed. The upper town, deprived of its

ramparts, was weakened, and in 480 the Persians under Xerxes took it over, looting

and burning the sanctuaries. Paradoxically, the looting of the Acropolis in 480 BC

guaranteed the conservation of one of the most impressive collections of archaic

sculpture in the Greek world. The rampart was destroyed in 472-471, at the same time

as the 'Long Walls,' which enclosed Athens and its port at Piraeus. With Pericles the

5th century BC marks the apogee of Athenian democracy.

A period of several decades, 447-406 BC, saw the successive building of the main

temple dedicated to Athena, the Parthenon; the Propylaea, the monumental entrance

which replaced the Gate of Pisistratus, built on the very site of one of the entrances to

the citadel of the ancient kings; the temple of Athena Nike; and the Erechtheion - the

four masterpieces of classical Greek art. Although the disastrous Peloponnesian War

and the capitulation of Athens in April 404 BC caused the demolition of the Long

Walls, they did not affect the Acropolis monuments.

The sacred hill of Athens, whose monuments were the admiration of all, continued to

be beautified by the powerful personalities of the moment, including the sovereigns of

Pergamon, Cappadocia, and Egypt, Roman Emperors such as Claudius and Hadrian,

and wealthy private citizens like Herod Atticus, the private tutor of Marcus Aurelius.

The first incidence of damage to the monumental heritage of the Acropolis came at

the time of the Herulian raid in AD 267. Since then and in spite of long periods of

relative calm, the monuments and the site have been damaged many times. The

Byzantines converted the temples into churches and removed their art treasures to

Constantinople. After the fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1204, Athens was put into

the hands of Frankish lords who had little respect for its ruins. When the Turks took

over the city in 1456, it became a mosque, and the Erechtheion was used from time to

time as the harem of the Turkish governor. In 1687, the most tragic of dates, the siege

of the Acropolis by the Venetian armies of Morosini resulted in the explosion of the

Parthenon, which the Turks used as a powder magazine.

In the 19th century, with official authorization from the Sultan, Lord Elgin,

ambassador of the King of England to the Sublime Porte, completed the pillaging by

acquiring marble sections which since 1815 have been the pride of the British

Museum. After a century of excavations and improvements of the site, the Acropolis

is now a testing ground for the most innovative open-air conservation techniques

aimed at safeguarding the marble sections, which have been affected by heavy

atmospheric pollution.

Archaeological Site of Aigai (modern name Vergina)

The city of Aigai, the ancient first capital of the Kingdom of Macedonia, was

discovered in the 19th century near Vergina, in northern Greece. The most important

remains are the monumental palace, lavishly decorated with mosaics and painted

stuccoes, and the burial ground with more than 300 tumuli, some of which date from

the 11th century B.C. One of the royal tombs in the Great Tumulus is identified as

that of Philip II, who conquered all the Greek cities, paving the way for his son

Alexander and the expansion of the Hellenistic world.

Justification for Inscription

The Committee decided to inscribe the nominated property on the basis of cultural

criteria (i) and (iii) considering that the site is of outstanding universal value

representing an exceptional testimony to a significant development in European

civilization, at the transition from classical city-state to the imperial structure of the

Hellenistic and Roman periods. This is vividly demonstrated in particular by the

remarkable series of royal tombs and their rich contents. The Committee decided to

add to the proposed criteria cultural criterion (i), since the paintings found at Vergina

are of extraordinarily high quality and historical importance.

Long Description

Vergina represents exceptional testimony to a significant development in European

civilization, at the transition from the classical city-state to the imperial structure of

the Hellenistic and Roman periods. This is vividly demonstrated in particular by the

remarkable series of royal tombs and their rich contents. The paintings found at

Vergina are of extraordinarily high quality and historical importance.

The ancient city in the northern foothills of the Pierian range is the capital of the

kingdom of Lower Macedonia, Aigai, traditionally founded by Perdiccas I when the

Macedonians of the Argive spread northwards over the plain of Emathia. This region

was already settled in the early Bronze Age (3rd millennium BC), as evidenced by a

tumulus (grave-mound) near the river Haliakmon. The wealth and density of over 300

grave-mounds in the Cemetery of the Tumuli testifies to the importance of Aigai in

the early Iron Age (1100-700 BC). As the capital of the Macedonian kingdom and site

of the royal court, Aigai was the most important urban centre in the region throughout

the archaic period (800-500 BC) and the following century. The grave-goods in a

series of tombs dating from the 6th and 5th centuries BC demonstrate commercial and

cultural links with Greek centres of eastern lonia and the south. At the end of the 5th

century, Archelaus brought to his court artists, poets and philosophers from all over

the Greek world.

Although the administrative centre was transferred to Pella in the 4th century BC,

Aigai retained its role as the sacred city of the Macedonian kingdom, the site of the

traditional cult centres, and the royal tombs. It was here in 336 BC that Philip II was

assassinated in the theatre and Alexander the Great was proclaimed king. The bitter

struggles between the heirs of Alexander, the Diadochoi, in the 3rd century adversely

affected the city, and it was further slighted after the overthrow of the Macedonian

kingdom by the Romans in 168 BC. Nevertheless, it was rebuilt and survived into

early imperial times. However, between the 2nd and 5th centuries AD the population

progressively moved down from the foothills of the Pierian range to the plain, so that

all that remained was a small settlement whose name, Palatitsia (palace), alone

indicated its former importance.

The most important building so far discovered is the monumental palace, located on a

plateau directly below the acropolis. This building, which rose to two and perhaps

three storeys, is centred on a large open courtyard flanked by stone Doric colonnades.

The rooms were used for religious, administrative, and political functions. On the

north side was a large gallery that commanded the stage of the neighbouring theatre

and the whole Macedonian plain. It was sumptuously decorated, with mosaic floors,

painted plastered walls, and fine relief tiles.

The theatre, from the second half of the 4th century BC, forms an integral part of the

palace complex. Just to the north there is a sanctuary of the goddess Eukleia, with

small 4th and 3rd centuries BC temples containing statue bases inscribed with the

names of members of the Macedonian royal family.

The best known feature of the site is the necropolis, which extends for over 3 km,

with the Cemetery of the Tumuli at its heart. This contains over 300 grave-mounds,

some as early as the 11th century BC. To the north-west of the ancient city there is an

important group of tombs from the 6th and 5th centuries BC belonging to members of

the Macedonian dynasty and their courts. These contained rich funerary deposits,

along with imported materials. One from around 340 BC with an imposing marble

throne, is believed to be that of Euridike, mother of Philip II. The most impressive

funerary monument is the Great Tumulus, an artificial mound 110 m in diameter and

13 m high, beneath which four elaborate royal tombs were discovered. One contains

wall paintings representing the rape of Persephone, believed to be the work of the

famous painter Nikomachos. Two of the tombs were undisturbed in antiquity and both

contained rich grave-goods. In Tomb II the body was found in a solid gold casket

weighing some 11 kg; the occupant has been identified as Philip II, father of

Alexander the Great and consolidator of Macedonian power. This tomb is especially

noteworthy for the frieze that adorns it, believed to be the work of the celebrated

Philoxenos of Eretria.

Historical Description

The ancient city in the northern foothills of the Pierian range has been identified with

certainty as the capital of the kingdom of Lower Macedonia, Aigai According to

tradition it was founded by Perdiccas I when the Macedonians of the Argive spread

northwards over the plain of Emathia. This region was already settled in the Early

Bronze Age (3rd millennium BC), as evidenced by a tumulus (grave-mound) near the

river Haliakmon. The wealth and density of over three hundred grave-mounds in the

cemetery of the Tumuli testifies to the importance of Aigai in the Early Iron Age

(1100-700 BC). The quality of the grave-goods shows that this was a period of highly

developed culture and technological skills in the community.

As the capital of the Argive Macedonian kingdom and site of the royal court, Algal

was the most important urban centre in the region throughout the Archaic Period

<800-500 BO and the century that followed. The grave-goods in a series of tombs

dating from the 6th and 5th centuries BC demonstrate commercial and cultural links

with the Greek centres of eastern Ionia and the south, such as Athens, Samos, and

Corinth, and illustrate the wealth and sophistication of the royal court. At the end of

the 5th century Archelaus brought to his court artists, poets, and philosophers from all

over the Greek world: it was, for example, at Algal that Euripides wrote and presented

his last tragedies.

Although the administrative centre was transferred to Pella in the 4th century BC,

Algal retained its role as the sacred city of the Macedonian kingdom, the site of the

traditional cult centres and the royal tombs. lt was during the marriage here in 336 BC

of Alexander, King of Epirus, to Princess Cleopatra that Philip II was assassinated in

the theatre and Alexander the Great was proclaimed king.

The bitter struggles between the heirs of Alexander, the Diadochoi, in the 3rd century

adversely affected the city, and it was further slighted after the overthrow of the

Macedonian kingdom by the Romans in 168 BC. Nevertheless, it was rebuilt and

survived into early Imperial times. However, between the 2nd and 5th centuries AD

the population progressively moved down from the foothills of the Pierian range to

the plain, so that all that remained was a small settlement whose name, Palatitsia

("Palace"), alone indicated its former importance.

Archaeological Site of Delphi

The pan-Hellenic sanctuary of Delphi, where the oracle of Apollo spoke, was the site

of the omphalos, the 'navel of the world'. Blending harmoniously with the superb

landscape and charged with sacred meaning, Delphi in the 6th century B.C. was

indeed the religious centre and symbol of unity of the ancient Greek world.

Long Description

The layout of Delphi is a unique artistic achievement. Mount Parnassus is a

masterpiece where a series of monuments were built whose modular elements -

terraces, temples, treasuries, etc. - combine to form a strong expression of the physical

and moral values of a site which may be described as magical. Situated in a

magnificent natural setting which is still intact, it is an outstanding example of a great

Pan-Hellenic sanctuary.

During the Mycenaean period, the female deity of Earth was worshipped in the small

settlement of Delphi. The development of the sanctuary and oracle were to begin in

the 8th century BC with the establishment of the cult of Apollo. Under the protection

and administration of the Amphictyony, the sanctuary continued to be autonomous

after the First Sacred War and, as a result, increased its Pan-Hellenic religious and

political influence. The Pythian Games were reorganized, the sanctuary was enlarged,

and it was enriched with fine buildings, statues, and other offerings. In the 3rd century

BC it came under the domination of the Aetolians and later, in 191 BC, was

conquered by the Romans. During the Roman period the site was plundered on

occasions, but it was also favoured by some of the Emperors. With the spread of

Christianity, the sanctuary lost its religious meaning and was closed down by

Theodosius the Great.

Some of the most important monuments of the site:

Temple of Apollo: dated to the 4th century BC, the temple was erected precisely on the remains of an earlier temple of the 6th century BC. Inside was the adyton, the centre of the Delphic oracle and seat of Pythia.

Treasury of the Athenians: A small building in Doric order, with two columns in antis and rich relief decoration, built by the Athenians at the end of the 6th century BC to house their offerings to Apollo.

Altar of the Chians: The large altar of the sanctuary, in front of the temple of Apollo, erected by the people of Chios in the 5th century BC, according to an inscription. The monument was made from black marble, apart from the base and cornice in white marble, resulting in an impressive colour contrast.

Stoa of the Athenians: Built in the Ionic order, has seven fluted columns, each made from a single stone. According to an inscription cut on the stylobate, it was erected by the Athenians after 478 BC, to house the trophies taken in their naval victories over the Persians.

Theatre: Originally built in the 4th century BC, but the visible ruins date from the Roman imperial period. The cavea had 35 rows of stone benches; the foundations of the skene are preserved on the paved orchestra. The theatre was used mostly for the theatrical performances during the great festivals.

Stadium: Constructed in the 5th century BC and remodelled in the 2nd century AD at the expense of Herodes Atticus; at this time the stone seats and the arched monumental entrance were added. It was in this Stadium that the Pan-Hellenic Pythian Games took place.

Castalian Spring: The preserved remains of two monumental fountains that received the water from the spring in the ravine of the Phaedriades date to the archaic period and the Roman era. The later one is cut in the rock and has niches cut high in the cliff, which probably held the offerings to the Nymph Castalia.

Tholos: A circular building in Doric order, built around 380 BC: its function is unknown but it must have been an important one, judging from the fine workmanship, and the high-standard relief decoration.

Polygonal Wall: Built after the destruction of the old temple of Apollo in 548 BC, to support the terrace on which the new temple was to be erected. The masonry is polygonal and the curved joints of the stones fit perfectly in place. Many inscriptions, mostly manumissions, are carved on the stones of the wall.

Archaeological Site of Mystras

Mystras, the 'wonder of the Morea', was built as an amphitheatre around the fortress

erected in 1249 by the prince of Achaia, William of Villehardouin. Reconquered by

the Byzantines, then occupied by the Turks and the Venetians, the city was abandoned

in 1832, leaving only the breathtaking medieval ruins, standing in a beautiful

landscape.

Long Description

Mystras, the 'Wonder of the Morea', was built as an amphitheatre around the fortress

erected in 1249 by William of Villehardouin. Reconquered by the Byzantines, then

occupied by the Turks and the Venetians, the city was abandoned in 1832, leaving

only the breathtaking medieval ruins, standing in a beautiful landscape. The complex

of the ruins of Mystras offers the image of a city with a brilliant destiny that was

deserted by men and threatened by the return of encroaching vegetation, which is

splitting the walls and covering the slopes, thus destroying here and there fragile

traces of history.

Mystras came into existence in 1248-49 when the Frankish lord, William II of

Villehardouin, Prince of Achaia, resolved to build a great castle on the top of the

620 m hill overlooking Sparta. The castle would be able to withstand attacks by the

Byzantines, and also contain the Esclavons, the Slavic tribes of the Melinges and the

Lezerites who inhabited the Taygete. Although a few inhabitants continued to live in

the ruins, the city was not abandoned until after 1832, when King Otto I founded the

new city of Sparta. For almost six centuries, Mystras lived a troubled existence.

However, several times and under different regimes it assumed a leading political and

cultural role. The vicissitudes of history did not spare the construction built by

William II of Villehardouin. The castle had barely been completed when the Prince of

Achaia, defeated by Michael VIII Palaeologus at the battle of Pelagonia and made

prisoner, was forced to cede as ransom to the basileus the three strongholds of

Monemvasia, Mania and Mystras (1261-62). When the favour of victory momentarily

shined upon him once again, in 1265, Villehardouin found that the inhabitants of

Sparta had deserted that vulnerable city and taken refuge around the castle of Mystras.

From 1262 to 1348, because of many wars in which it was often the prize, Mystras

was the seat of the Byzantine military governor, first named for a year then, after

1308, for life. The bishopric of Sparta was transferred to the new city, and the

Metropolis, dedicated to St Demetrios, was built in 1264, and reconstructed after

1310. Convents, such as those of the Theodore Saints (prior to 196) and those of

Brontochion (c. 1310) were built and richly decorated.

From 1348 to 1460 Mystras became the capital of the Despotate of Morea. The

despotate was the expression of the relative desire for decentralization of the

Cantacuzenes (1348-84) and the Paleologi (1384-1460), who, according to a system

modelled on feudalism, conferred power to family, in most cases to sons or brothers.

During this period - the zenith of Mystras, when the Peribleptos and the Pantanassa

were built around 1350 and 1428 respectively - the cosmopolitan city was a major

piece on the political chessboard on the Mediterranean. Most of the despots married

Frankish princesses; some made necessary alliances with the Turks, others with the

Venetians. In 1402 Theodore I Paleologus sold Mystras to the Knights of Rhodes;

only the hostile reaction of the population forced him to cancel the transaction.

After paying a tribute to Murad II at the time of his victorious expedition in 1446,

Mystras fell to Mohammed II on 30 May 1460. The event was seen in the West and in

the East as being almost equal in importance to the fall of Constantinople in 1453.

The beauty of the churches of Mystras, which during the Paleologus Renaissance had

been covered with dramatic frescoes, the renown of the libraries of Mystras and the

glory of its writers (including Georges Gemiste Plethon and Jean Bessarion who

brought neo-Platonic humanism to Italy) gave substance thereafter for the legend of

the 'Wonder of Morea.' Dominated by the Turks, conquered briefly by the Venetians

In 1669, then occupied for a longer period from 1687 to 1715, and recaptured in 1715

by the Ottoman Empire, Mystras never recovered its past grandeur, although it still

numbered some 40,000 inhabitants. The silk industry was the manufacturing and

trading city's only resource. Mystras was burned by the Albanians during the Magna

Revolt in 1770 and was in a state of decadence when it was definitively abandoned.

Archaeological Site of Olympia

The site of Olympia, in a valley in the Peloponnesus, has been inhabited since

prehistoric times. In the 10th century B.C., Olympia became a centre for the worship

of Zeus. The Altis – the sanctuary to the gods – has one of the highest concentrations

of masterpieces from the ancient Greek world. In addition to temples, there are the

remains of all the sports structures erected for the Olympic Games, which were held

in Olympia every four years beginning in 776 B.C.

Long Description

Olympia bears exceptional testimony to the ancient civilizations of Peloponnesos, in

terms of both duration and quality. The first human settlements date back to

prehistoric times; the Middle Helladic and Mycenaean periods are represented at the

site. Consecrated to Zeus, the Altis is a major sanctuary from the 10th century BC to

the 4th century AD corresponding to the zenith of Olympia. A Christian settlement

survived for a time at the site of the ruins of the great Pan-Hellenic sanctuary.

In north-western Peloponnesos the archaeological site of Olympia at the foot of the

Kronion Hill stretches over a triangular alluvial terrace at the confluence of the

Alpheios and the Kladeos. In this area of very ancient settlement, religious centres of

worship succeeded one another during the Hellenic period: those to Kronos, Gala, and

other Chtonian divinities, those to Pelops, the hero who gave his name to

Peloponnesus, and those to Hippodamia, whose hand Pelops won in a chariot race

against Oenomaos, her father. Olympia became a centre of worship to Zeus in the

10th century BC.

The name Olympia, which described the wooded valley where the site was located,

referred to the sacred mountain of Olympus, the habitual residence of Zeus. Placed

under the protection of the cities of Pisa and later Elis, the Olympian sanctuary

experienced an enormous renown in the 8th century BC, with the Pan-Hellenic games

which were held every fifth year. Beginning in 776 BC, the games regularly brought

together athletes. Later, orators, poets and musicians also came to celebrate Zeus.

The Altis (the sanctuary to the gods) includes the ruins of the two principal temples:

the Temple of Hera (6th century BC) and the Temple of Zeus (5th century BC). The

sanctuary contained one of the highest concentrations of masterpieces of the ancient

Mediterranean world. Many have been lost, such as the Olympian Zeus, a gold-and-

ivory cult statue which was probably executed by Pheidias between 438 and 430 BC.

Other masterpieces have survived: large votive Archaic bronzes, sculptures of

tympanums and metopes from the Temple of Zeus, and the Hermes by Praxiteles,

found along with its base in the Temple of Hera.

To the north stood a row of Archaic Treasuries (6thand 5th centuries BC), several of

which were built by residents of the distant Greek colonies of Selinus, Cyrene, and

Byzantium. More recent structures - the Metroon and the Echo Colonnade (4th

century BC), the Philippeion in honour of the victory at Chaeronea in 338 BC, and the

Exedra of Herodes Atticus (157-60 AD)- gradually added to the complex topography

of the sanctuary whose precinct overlooks an area of prehistoric settlements.

The density of buildings outside the Altis is even greater: the built-up zone combines

official housing and assembly rooms for the clergy and administrators, sports

structures, thermal baths, and lodgings and accommodation for guests. To the north-

west the Palaestra and the Gymnasium (3rd century BC), and to the east the old

Stadium, rebuilt during the 1st century AD and remodelled in 1961-62, highlight a

landscape of ruins of majestic beauty. Flooding of the Alpheios carried the

Hippodrome away: only its original location is known.

The influence of the monuments of Olympia has been considerable. To mention just

three examples, the Temple of Zeus, built in 470-457 BC, is a model of the great

Doric temples constructed in southern Italy and in Sicily during the 5th century BC;

the Nike by Paeonios, sculptured around 420 BC, so lastingly influenced iconographic

allegories of Victory that neoclassical art of the 19th century is still much indebted to

it; with reference to the Roman period, the Olympian Palaestra is undoubtedly the

typological reference made by Vitruvius in De Architectura.

Olympia is directly and tangibly associated with an event of universal significance.

The Olympic Games were celebrated regularly beginning in 776 BC. The Olympiad -

the four-year period between two successive celebrations falling every fifth year -

became a chronological measurement and system of dating used in the Greek world.

The significance of the Olympic Games demonstrates the lofty ideals of Hellenic

humanism: peaceful and loyal competition between free and equal men, who are

prepared to surpass their physical strength in a supreme effort, with their only

ambition being the symbolic reward of an olive wreath.

Archaeological Sites of Mycenae and Tiryns

The archaeological sites of Mycenae and Tiryns are the imposing ruins of the two

greatest cities of the Mycenaean civilization, which dominated the eastern

Mediterranean world from the 15th to the 12th century B.C. and played a vital role in

the development of classical Greek culture. These two cities are indissolubly linked to

the Homeric epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey , which have influenced European art

and literature for more than three millennia.

Justification for Inscription

Criterion (i): The architecture and design of Mycenae and Tiryns, such as the Lion

Gate and the Treasury of Atreus at Mycenae and the walls of Tiryns, are outstanding

examples of human creative genius.

Criterion (ii): The Mycenaean civilization, as exemplified by Mycenae and Tiryns,

had a profound effect on the development of classical Greek architecture and urban

design, and consequently also on contemporary cultural forms.

Criteria (iii) and (iv): Mycenae and Tiryns represent the apogee of the Mycenaean

civilization, which laid the foundations for the evolution of later European cultures.

Criterion (vi): Mycenae and Tiryns are indissolubly linked with the Homeric epics,

the Iliad and the Odyssey, the influence of which upon European literature and the

arts has been profound for more than three millennia.

Long Description

Mycenae and Tiryns represent the apogee of the Mycenaean civilization, which laid

the foundations for the evolution of later European cultures, including classical Greek

architecture and urban design, and consequently also on contemporary cultural forms.

Moreover, the two sites are indissolubly linked with the Homeric epics, the Iliad and

the Odyssey, the influence of which upon European literature and the arts has been

profound for more than three millennia.

The Mycenaean civilization developed on the Greek mainland in the late Bronze Age

(16th century BC). It was essentially a continuation of the Middle Helladic culture,

transformed by Minoan influences from Crete. Knowledge of its two earlier periods I

(c . 1580-1500 BC) and II (c . 1500-1400 BC) comes mainly from burials, notably the

shaft graves at Mycenae. Towards the end of Period II more elaborate tomb types

developed - large chamber tombs for families and beehive-shaped (tholos) tombs for

royalty. The apogee of the Mycenaean civilization came in Period III (c . 1400-1120

BC), when strong citadels and elaborate palaces were built. Towards the end of this

period a script, known as Linear B, came into use; the language used has been shown

to be an early form of Greek, confirming that the Mycenaeans were Greek speakers of

Indo-European origin. The political structure was that of an autocratic monarchy, the

ruler of which was known as the wanax, who administered his territory by means of a

hierarchical structure of officials. There was a special class of priests and priestesses.

The people were organized in an elaborate class system, and slavery was widely

practised.

The site of Mycenae is known from excavations to have been occupied from the

Neolithic period (c . 4000 BC). During the Middle Helladic period a cemetery was

established on the southern slopes of the natural hill which included Grave Circle B

(dated to the 17th century BC) and Grave Circle A (16th century BC). The Palace was

constructed on the summit of the hill and surrounded by massive cyclopean walls in

three stages (c . 1350, 1250 and 1225 BC respectively). In the final stage the

underground reservoir was also fortified.

A series of tholos tombs were built on the southern and south-western slopes of the

hill during the Mycenaean period: the so-called Tomb of Aegisthos (c. 1500 BC), the

Lion Tholos Tomb (c. 1350 BC), the Tomb of Clytemnestra (c. 1220 BC),

culminating in the Treasury of Atreus, at some distance from the others. Four large

buildings, believed to have been royal workshops, were built in the 13th century BC

in the vicinity of Grave Circle B. The palace was abandoned at the end of the 12th

century BC and a number of buildings were damaged by fire. However, the site

continued to be occupied until 498 BC, when it was conquered by Argos and its

inhabitants were expelled. The top of the hill was levelled at this time for the

construction of an Archaic temple. The site was reoccupied briefly in the Hellenistic

period, when another temple was built and a theatre constructed over the Tomb of

Clytemnestra. By the time the Greek traveller Pausanias visited Mycenae in the 2nd

century AD it had been completely abandoned for many years.

As at Mycenae, the earliest human occupation known at Tiryns is from the Neolithic

period. The oldest architectural remains, on the Upper Citadel, are from the early

Bronze Age (c . 3000 BC). The level of this area was built up in the middle Bronze

Age (1900-1600 BC) to accommodate new buildings. Tiryns flourished during the

Mycenaean period. A new fortified palace complex was constructed in the 14th

century BC. The defences were extended in the early 13th century BC, and the Lower

Citadel was also fortified. Following earthquake and fire damage, the site was

reconstructed, the new defences enclosing an area of 20 ha; the extra-mural settlement

covered more than 25 ha. The fate of Tiryns with the decline of the Mycenaean

civilization paralleled that of Mycenae. It was not finally abandoned until the

deportation of the 5th century BC, by which time it had lost its power and influence.

Historical Description

The Mycenaean civilization developed on the Greek mainland in the Late Bronze Age

(16th century BC). It was essentially a continuation of the Middle Helladic culture,

transformed by Minoan influences from Crete. Knowledge of its two earlier periods I

(c 1580-1500 BC) and II (c 1500-1400 BC ) comes mainly from burials, notably the

shaft graves at Mycenae. Towards the end of Period II more elaborate tomb types

developed - large chamber tombs for families and beehive-shaped (tholos) tombs for

royalty.

The apogee of the Mycenaean civilization came in Period III (c 1400-1120 BC), when

strong citadels and elaborate palaces were built. Towards the end of this period a

script, known as Linear B, came into use; the language used has been shown to be an

early form of Greek, confirming that the Mycenaeans were Greek speakers of Indo-

European origin.

The political structure was that of an autocratic monarchy, the ruler of which was

known as the wanax, who administered his territory by means of an hierarchical

structure of officials. There was a special class of priests and priestesses. The people

were organized in an elaborate class system, and slavery was widely practised.

The site of Mycenae is known from excavations to have been occupied from the

Neolithic period (c 4000 BC). During the Middle Helladic Period a cemetery was

established on the southern slopes of the natural hill which included Grave Circle B

(dated to the 17th century BC) and Grave Circle A (16th century BC). The Palace was

constructed on the summit of the hill and surrounded by massive cyclopean walls in

three stages (c 1350, 1250, and 1225 BC respectively). In the final stage the

underground reservoir was also fortified. A series of tholos tombs were built on the

southern and south-western slopes of the hill during the Mycenaean Period - the so-

called Tomb of Aegisthos (c 1500 BC), the Lion Tholos Tomb (c 1350 BC), the

Tomb of Clytemnestra (c 1220 BC), culminating in the Treasury of Atreus, at some

distance from the others. Four large buildings, believed to have been royal workshops,

were built in the 13th century BC in the vicinity of Grave Circle B.

The Palace abandoned at the end of the 12th century BC was and a number of

buildings were damaged by fire.

However, the site continued to be occupied until 498 BC, when it was conquered by

Argos and its inhabitants were expelled. The top of the hill was levelled at this time

for the construction of an Archaic temple. The site was re-occupied briefly in the

Hellenistic period, when another temple was built and a theatre constructed over the

Tomb of Clytemnestra. By the time the Greek traveller Pausanias visited Mycenae in

the 2nd century AD it had been completely abandoned for many years.

As at Mycenae, the earliest human occupation known at Tiryns is from the Neolithic

period. The oldest architectural remains, on the Upper Citadel, are from the early

Bronze Age (c 3000 BC). The level of this area was built up in the Middle Bronze

Age (1900-1600 BC) to accommodate new buildings.

Tiryns flourished during the Mycenaean period. A new fortified palace complex was

constructed in the 14th century BC. The defences were extended in the early 13th

century BC, and the Lower Citadel was also fortified. Following earthquake and fire

damage, the site was reconstructed, the new defences enclosing an area of 20ha; the

extra-mural settlement covered more than 25ha.

The fate of Tiryns with the decline of the Mycenaean civilization paralleled that of

Mycenae. It was not finally abandoned until the deportation of the 5th century BC, by

which time it had lost its power and influence.

Delos

According to Greek mythology, Apollo was born on this tiny island in the Cyclades

archipelago. Apollo's sanctuary attracted pilgrims from all over Greece and Delos was

a prosperous trading port. The island bears traces of the succeeding civilizations in the

Aegean world, from the 3rd millennium B.C. to the palaeochristian era. The

archaeological site is exceptionally extensive and rich and conveys the image of a

great cosmopolitan Mediterranean port.

Long Description

The island of Delos bears unique witness to the civilizations of the Aegean world in

the 3rd millennium BC. During the palaeo-Christian era, it was the seat of the

bishopric of the Cyclades which ruled over the islands of Mykonos, Syros, Seriphos,

Kythnos and Keos. From the 7th century BC to the pillage by Athenodoros, Delos

was one of the principal Pan-Hellenic sanctuaries. The feast of the Delians, which was

celebrated every four years in May until 316 BC, included gymnastic, equestrian, and

musical competitions, dances, theatrical productions, and banquets. It was one of the

major events in the Greek world.

Delos is a minuscule island stretching only 5 km north to south and a scant 1.3 km

from east to west. It was here, that Apollo, son of Zeus and Leto, was born: like

Delphi, Delos is the major sanctuary dedicated to Apollo, the Titan god par

excellence, one of the most important in the Hellenic pantheon.

On the island, which had already been the site of earlier human settlements (sparse

during the Neolithic age, more dense during the Mycenaean period), everything

revolved around the sanctuary of Apollo, the seat of the Ionian Amphictyonia. The

Naxians, the Parians, and the Athenians disputed the site, with the last-named

triumphing under Pisistratus (c. 540-528 BC). They ordered the first purification of

the place. In 454, the treasure of the Delian Confederacy, which replaced the

Amphictyonia, was moved to Athens. In 426 a second purification decree forbade

being born or dying at Delos. Pregnant women and terminally ill persons were

transported to the island of Rheneia. The decision, motivated by religious reasons,

was not without political considerations. In 422 BC in a move to strengthen Athenian

domination, the Delians were deported en masse. Except for some short reprieves and

truces, their exile lasted until 314, when Delos regained its independence in principle

and again became the centre of an island confederation that was tolerated and more or

less controlled by the Lagides of Egypt and later by the Macedonians. It became a

very important cosmopolitan Mediterranean port ,reaching outstanding levels during

the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, when the average population is estimated to have been

25,000.

In 166 BC the Delians were again ousted, this time by the Roman Senate, which

wished to supplant trade at Rhodes by making Delos a free port. It was a landmark

decision that signalled the end of a period dominated by religious and political

considerations and the beginning of a phase of economic expansion as had presaged

the extent of diplomatic and commercial relations reflected in the honorific decrees of

the late 3rd century BC in favour of the rich foreign benefactors of the sanctuary. The

great era of maritime trade ended only in 69 BC with the sacking of the island by

Athenodoros, the last of a series of disastrous events. Abandoned in the 6th century,

captured successively by Byzantines (727), Slavs (769), Saracens (821), Venetians,

the Hospitallers of St John of Jerusalem, and the Ottoman Turks, Delos was turned

into a quarry site. The columns of its temples were consumed by the lime kilns, the

walls of its houses left in ruins.

Today the island's landscape consists solely of ruins unearthed systematically since

1872. On an archaeological site estimated at 95 ha, 25 ha have been excavated. The

principal zones are the north-east coastal plain (Sanctuary of Apollo, Agora of the

Compitaliasts, Agora of the Delians); the Sacred Lake region (Agora of Theophrastos,

Agora of the Italians, the renowned Terrace of Lions, the Institution of the

Poseidoniasts of Berytos (Beirut); the Mount Kynthos area (Terrace of the Sanctuaries

of the Foreign Gods, Heraion); and the theatre quarter, whose poignant ruins have

been overrun by vegetation.

The island of Delos is among the first important Greek sites in the Aegean world to

have captured the attention of archaeologists. Delos had considerable influence on the

development of architecture and monumental arts during the Graeco-Roman period;

this influence was matched later by the important role it has played since the 15th

century in furthering our knowledge of ancient Greek art from a widely renowned site

Medieval City of Rhodes

The Order of St John of Jerusalem occupied Rhodes from 1309 to 1523 and set about

transforming the city into a stronghold. It subsequently came under Turkish and

Italian rule. With the Palace of the Grand Masters, the Great Hospital and the Street of

the Knights, the Upper Town is one of the most beautiful urban ensembles of the

Gothic period. In the Lower Town, Gothic architecture coexists with mosques, public

baths and other buildings dating from the Ottoman period.

Long Description

Rhodes is an outstanding example of an architectural ensemble illustrating the

significant period of history in which a military hospital order founded during the

Crusades survived in the eastern Mediterranean area in a context characterized by an

obsessive fear of siege. The fortifications of Rhodes, a 'Frankish' town long

considered to be impregnable, exerted an influence throughout the eastern

Mediterranean basin at the end of the Middle Ages.

With its Frankish and Ottoman buildings the old town of Rhodes is an important

ensemble of traditional human settlement, characterized by successive and complex

phenomena of acculturation. Contact with the traditions of the Dodecanese changed

the forms of Gothic architecture, and building after 1523 combined vernacular forms

resulting from the meeting of two worlds with decorative elements of Ottoman origin.

All the built-up elements dating before 1912 have become vulnerable because of the

evolution in living conditions and they must be protected as much as the great

religious, civil and military monuments, the churches, monasteries, mosques, baths,

palaces, forts, gates and ramparts.

From 1309 to 1523 Rhodes was occupied by the Knightly Order of St John of

Jerusalem, who had lost their last stronghold in Palestine, St John of Acre, in 1291.

They proceeded to transform the island capital into a fortified city able to withstand

sieges as terrible as those led by the Sultan of Egypt in 1444 and Mehmet II in 1480.

An anachronic vestige of the Crusades, Rhodes finally fell in 1522 after a six-month

siege carried out by Suleyman II, heading forces reportedly numbering 100,000 men.

The medieval city is located within a wall 4 km long. It is divided according to the

Western classical style, with the high town to the north and the lower town south-

south-west. Originally separated from the town by a fortified wall, the high town

(Collachium) was entirely built by the Knights Hospitallers who, following the

dissolution of the Templars in 1312, became the strongest military order in all

Christendom. The order was organized into seven 'Tongues', each having its own seat.

The inns of the Tongues of Italy, France, Spain and Provence lined both sides of the

principal east-west axis, the famous Street of the Knights, one of the finest

testimonies to Gothic urbanism. Somewhat removed to the north, close to the site of

the Knights' first hospice, stands the Inn of Auvergne, whose facade bears the arms of

Guy de Blanchefort, Grand Master from 1512 to 1513.

The original hospice was replaced in the 15th century by the Great Hospital, built

between 1440 and 1489, on the south side of the Street of the Knights; today the

building is used as the archaeological museum. Located north-west of the Collachium

are the Grand Masters' Palace and St John's Church. At the far eastern end of the

Street of the Knights, built against the wall, is St Mary's Church, which the Knights

transformed into a cathedral in the 15th century. The lower town is almost as dense

with monuments as the Collachium. In 1522, with a population of 5,000, it was

replete with churches, some of Byzantine construction.

After 1523, most were converted into Islamic mosques, like the Mosques of Soliman,

Kavakli Mestchiti, Demirli Djami, Peial ed Din Djami, Abdul Djelil Djami, and

Dolapli Mestchiti. Throughout the years, the number of palaces and charitable

foundations multiplied in the south-south-east area: the Court of Commerce, the

Archbishop's Palace, the Hospice of St Catherine, and others. The ramparts of the

medieval city, partially erected on the foundations of the Byzantine enclosure, were

constantly maintained and remodeled between the 14th and 16th centuries under the

Grand Masters Giovanni Battista degli Orsini (1467-76), Pierre d'Aubusson (1476-

1505), Aiméry d'Amboise (1505-12), and Fabrizio del Carretto (1513-21). Artillery

firing posts were the final features to be added. At the beginning of the 16th century,

in the section of the Amboise Gate, which was built on the north-western angle in

1512, the curtain wall was 12 m thick with a 4 m high parapet pierced with gun holes.

Monasteries of Daphni, Hosios Loukas and Nea Moni of Chios

Although geographically distant from each other, these three monasteries (the first is

in Attica, near Athens, the second in Phocida near Delphi, and the third on an island

in the Aegean Sea, near Asia Minor) belong to the same typological series and share

the same aesthetic characteristics. The churches are built on a cross-in-square plan

with a large dome supported by squinches defining an octagonal space. In the 11th

and 12th centuries they were decorated with superb marble works as well as mosaics

on a gold background, all characteristic of the 'second golden age of Byzantine art'.

Long Description

Although geographically distant from each other (Daphni is located in Attica, 11 km

from Athens; Hossios Luckas in Phocis, 67 km from the capital, and Nea Moni in the

centre of the island of Chios), the three properties belong to the same typological

series and share the same aesthetic characteristics. These three monasteries are

outstanding examples of a type of construction characteristic of the middle period of

Byzantine religious architecture. Nea Moni illustrates the simplest expression, an

octagonal church with no added spaces. Hossios Luckas and Daphni are more

complex: they have a central octagonal space surrounded by a series of bays that form

a square. This more elaborate structure defines a hierarchy of volumes and functions

and permits the implementation of an extensive iconographic and decorative plan.

The Monastery of Daphni, located on the ancient sacred road from Athens to Eleusis,

replaced a temple dedicated to Apollo Daphneios which had been destroyed in 396

AD. In the 5th century a basilica was built adjoining a wall that had been restored and

completed under the reign of Justinian (527-65). It formed a square enceinte, 97 m on

a side; a large part of the north wall, originally 8 m high, survives. This first

monastery, discovered through a series of archaeological remains, was abandoned

during the Slav invasions in the 7th and 8th centuries. It was not until 1100, when the

Byzantine Empire was at its apogee under Alexis I Comnenus, that it rose out of its

ruins. The church was built at that time. It had a narthex, to which a two-storey

exonarthex was added a short time later. Other monastic buildings such as the

refectory, cells and a well were built during the same building campaign and the

church was sumptuously decorated with mosaics portraying the Dormition of the

Virgin Mary. In 1205 the monastery was sacked by Frankish crusaders. In 1207 the

Duke of Athens, Otho de la Roche, gave it to the Cistercians of the Abbey of

Bellevaux. They built a cloister and remodelled the exonarthex and the enceinte wall

but without altering the mosaics. Daphni was returned to Orthodox monks after

Athens was taken by the Ottoman sultan Mehmet II in 1458. Deconsecrated in 1821,

the monastery has been undergoing restoration work since 1888.

The Monastery of Hossios Luckas is 37 km from Delphi on the western slope of the

Helicon: here a hermit named Lukas the Stiriote made his home in 946 among the

ruins of a temple dedicated to Demeter. The holy man died in 953. A work on his life

mentions a primitive church dedicated to St Barbara. In the latter half of the 10th

century, construction on another church for pilgrims was begun. The topography of

the vast polygonal enclosure of the monastery, which extends haphazardly on an east-

west axis, still bears traces of successive additions and testifies to the enduring

success of the cult to St Luke of Phocis. The immense central volume of the dome,

9 m in diameter, which rests on a drum pierced with sixteen windows, is supported on

three sides by groin-vaulted bays. The bema and the apse define the cross-in-square

plan of the church, which is one of the most perfect creations of Byzantine

architecture. The church is filled with iconographic treasures of a magnitude and

coherence rarely equalled. Its complex, compartmentalized plan is unified into a

harmonious and luxurious whole by the rich decor of mosaics, frescoes, and marble

slabs.

The construction of the monastery of Nea Moni of Chios is fully documented as it

was linked to a major event in Byzantine history. Constantine the Gladiator, a

nobleman living in exile, was told by two monks of Chios, Nicetas and John, that he

would become Emperor. When Constantine Monomachos married the twice-widowed

64-year-old Empress Zoe in 1042, thus becoming Basileus, he remembered the

prediction. In 1045 he founded the monastery, choosing as its site a valley on Chios

on the slopes of Mount Aetos and bestowing it with possessions and privileges. The

dome, approximately 7 m in diameter, has no lateral bays but is placed between a

triconch sanctuary and a narthex preceded by an exonarthex with lateral absides.

The fairly rustic architectural design is carried over into in the more primitive style of

the mosaics, which have a slightly Oriental flavour. Far from the somewhat abstract

humanism of the decor at Daphni and Hossios Luckas, the typical characters

portrayed at Nea Moni offer the stimulating counterpoint of more naïve art, a folk

transcription of the great models of Constantinople.

Old Town of Corfu

The Old Town of Corfu, on the Island of Corfu off the western coasts of Albania and

Greece, is located in a strategic position at the entrance of the Adriatic Sea, and has its

roots in the 8th century BC. The three forts of the town, designed by renowned

Venetian engineers, were used for four centuries to defend the maritime trading

interests of the Republic of Venice against the Ottoman Empire. In the course of time,

the forts were repaired and partly rebuilt several times, more recently under British

rule in the 19th century. The mainly neoclassical housing stock of the Old Town is

partly from the Venetian period, partly of later construction, notably the 19th century.

As a fortified Mediterranean port, Corfu’s urban and port ensemble is notable for its

high level of integrity and authenticity.

Outstanding Universal Value

The ensemble of the fortifications and the Old Town of Corfu is located in a strategic

location at the entrance to the Adriatic Sea. Historically, its roots go back to the 8th

century BC and to the Byzantine period. It has thus been subject to various influences

and a mix of different peoples.

From the 15th century, Corfu was under Venetian rule for some four centuries, then

passing to French, British and Greek governments. At various occasions, it had to

defend the Venetian maritime empire against the Ottoman army. Corfu was a well

thought of example of fortification engineering, designed by the architect Sanmicheli,

and it proved its worth through practical warfare. Corfu has its specific identity,

which is reflected in the design of its system of fortification and in its neo-classical

building stock. As such, it can be placed alongside other major Mediterranean

fortified port cities.

Criterion (iv): The urban and port ensemble of Corfu, dominated by its fortresses of

Venetian origin, constitutes an architectural example of outstanding universal value in

both its authenticity and its integrity.

The overall form of the fortifications has been retained and displays traces of

Venetian occupation, including the Old Citadel and the New Fort, but primarily

interventions from the British period. The present form of the ensemble results from

the works in the 19th and 20th centuries. The authenticity and integrity of the urban

fabric are primarily those of a neo-classical town.

The responsibility for protection is shared by several institutions and relevant decrees.

These include the Hellenic Ministry of Culture (ministerial decision of 1980), the

Ministry of the Environment, Spatial Planning and Public Works (Presidential decree

of 1980) and the Municipality of Corfu (Presidential decree of 1981). Also relevant

are: the Greek law on the shoreline of towns and of islands in general; the law on the

protection of antiquities and cultural heritage in general (n° 3028/2002) and the

establishment of a new independent Superintendence for Byzantine and post-

Byzantine antiquities, in 2006. A buffer zone has been established.

The proactive policies of restoration and enhancement of the fortifications and of the

citadel have resulted in a generally acceptable state of conservation. Many works

however have still to be completed or started. A management plan has been prepared.

An urban action plan, which is in line with the management plan of the nominated

property, has just been adopted (2005) for the period 2006-2012.

Historical Description

Corfu, the first of the Ionian Islands encountered at the entrance to the Adriatic, was

annexed to Greece by a group of Eretrians (775-750 BCE). In 734 BCE the

Corinthians founded a colony known as Kerkyra to the south of where the Old Town

now stands. The town became a trading post on the way to Sicily and founded further

colonies in Illyria and Epirus. The coast of Epirus and Corfu itself came under the

sway of the Roman Republic (229 BCE) and served as the jumping-off point for

Rome's expansion into the east. In the reign of Caligula two disciples of the Apostle

Paul, St Jason, Bishop of Iconium, and Sosipater, Bishop of Tarsus, introduced

Christianity to the island.

Corfu fell to the lot of the Eastern Empire at the time of the division in 336 and

entered a long period of unsettled fortunes, beginning with the invasion of the Goths

(551).

The population gradually abandoned the old town and moved to the peninsula

surmounted by two peaks (the korifi) where the ancient citadel now stands. The

Venetians, who were beginning to play a more decisive role in the southern Adriatic,

came to the aid of a failing Byzantium, thereby conveniently defending their own

trade with Constantinople against the Norman prince Robert Guiscard. Corfu was

taken by the Normans in 1081 and returned to the Byzantine Empire in 1084.

Following the Fourth Crusade and the sack of Constantinople by the Crusaders in

1204, the Byzantine Empire was broken up and, in return for their military support,

the Venetians obtained all the naval bases they needed to control the Aegean and the

Ionian Seas, including Corfu, which they occupied briefly from 1204 to 1214. For the

next half-century, the island fell under the sway of the Despots of Epirus (1214-67)

and then that of the Angevins of Naples (1267-1368), who used it to further their

policies against both the Byzantine Empire now re-established in Constantinople and

the Republic of Venice. The tiny medieval town grew up between the two fortified

peaks, the Byzantine Castel da Mare and the Angevin Castel di Terra, in the shelter of

a defensive wall fortified with towers. Writings from the first half of the 13th century

tell of a separation of administrative and religious powers between the inhabitants of

the citadel and those of the outlying parts of the town occupying what is now the

Spianada.

In order to assert its naval and commercial power in the Southern Adriatic, the

Republic of Venice took advantage of the internal conflicts raging in the Kingdom of

Naples to take control of Corfu (1386-1797). Alongside Negropont (Chalcis), Crete,

and Modon (Methoni), it would form one of the bases from which to counter the

Ottoman maritime offensive and serve as a revictualling station for ships en route to

Romania and the Black Sea.

The ongoing work on defining, improving, and expanding the medieval fortified

perimeter reflects the economic and strategic role of Corfu during the four centuries

of Venetian occupation. In the early 15th century activity concentrated on the

medieval town, with the development of harbour facilities (docks, quays and arsenals)

and continued with the renovation of the defence works. Early in the following

century a canal was dug, cutting off the medieval town from its suburbs.

Following the siege of the town by the Turks in 1537 and the burning of the suburbs,

a new programme of works was launched to isolate the citadel further and strengthen

its defences. The strip of land (now the Spianada) cleared in 1516 was widened by

demolishing houses facing the citadel walls, two new bastions were raised on the

banks of the canal, the elevation of the perimeter walls was lowered, and the two

castelli were replaced by new structures. The work, based on plans drawn by

Veronese architect Michele Sanmicheli (1487-1559), were completed in 1558,

bringing the town's defences up to date with the rapid progress made in artillery in

recent decades.

Yet another siege by the Turks in 1571 decided the Venetians to embark on a vast

project covering the medieval town, its suburbs, the harbour, and all the military

buildings (1576-88). Ferrante Vitelli, architect to the Duke of Savoy, sited a fort (the

New Fort) on the low hill of St Mark to the west of the old town to command the

surrounding land and at sea, and also the 24 suburbs enclosed by a ditched wall with

bastions and four gates. More buildings, both military and civil, were erected and the

15th century Mandraki harbour was restructured and enlarged. At the same time, the

medieval town was converted to more specifically military uses (the cathedral was

transferred to the new town in the 17th century) to become the Old Citadel.

Between 1669 and 1682 the system of defences was further strengthened to the west

by a second wall, the work of military engineer Filippo Vernada. In 1714 the Turks

sought to reconquer Morea (the Peloponnese) but Venetian resistance hardened when

the Turkish forces headed towards Corfu. The support of Christian naval fleets and an

Austrian victory in Hungary in 1716 helped to save the town. The commander of the

Venetian forces on Corfu, Giovanni Maria von Schulenburg, was inspired by the

designs of Filippo Vernada to put the final touches to this great fortified ensemble.

The outer western defences were reinforced by a complex system of outworks on the

heights of two mountains, Abraham and Salvatore, and on the intermediate fort of San

Rocco (1717-30).

The treaty of Campo Formio (1797) marked the end of the Republic of Venice and

saw Corfu come under French control (1797-99) until France withdrew before the

Russian-Turkish alliance that founded the State of the Ionian Islands, of which Corfu

would become the capital (1799-1807). The redrawing of territorial boundaries in

Europe after the fall of Napoleon made Corfu, after a brief interlude of renewed

French control (1807-14), a British protectorate for the next half-century (1814-64).

As the capital of the United States of the Ionian Islands, Corfu lost its strategic

importance. Under the governance of the British High Commissioner Sir Thomas

Maitland (1816-24), development activity concentrated on the Spianada; his

successor, Sir Frederic Adam (1824-32), turned his attention towards public works

(building an aqueduct, restructuring the Old Citadel and adding new military

buildings at the expense of the Venetian buildings, reconstruction and raising of the

town's dwellings) and the reorganisation of the educational system (the new Ionian

Academy was opened in 1824), contributing to the upsurge in intellectual interests

sparked during the French occupation. At the same time, the British began

demolishing the outer fortifications on the western edge of the town and planning

residential areas outside the defensive walls.

In 1864 the island was attached to the Kingdom of the Hellenes. The fortresses were

disarmed and several sections of the perimeter wall and the defences were gradually

demolished. The island became a favoured holiday destination for the aristocracy of

Europe. The Old Town was badly damaged by bombing in 1943. Added to the loss of

life was the destruction of many houses and public buildings (the Ionian Parliament,

the theatre, and the library), fourteen churches, and a number of buildings in the Old

Citadel. In recent decades the gradual growth of the new town has accelerated with

the expansion of tourism.

Paleochristian and Byzantine Monuments of Thessaloniki

Founded in 315 B.C., the provincial capital and sea port of Thessaloniki was one of

the first bases for the spread of Christianity. Among its Christian monuments are fine

churches, some built on the Greek cross plan and others on the three-nave basilica

plan. Constructed over a long period, from the 4th to the 15th century, they constitute

a diachronic typological series, which had considerable influence in the Byzantine

world. The mosaics of the rotunda, St Demetrius and St David are among the great

masterpieces of early Christian art.

Long Description

The Christian monuments of Thessaloniki are outstanding examples of churches built

according to central, basilical and intermediary plans from the 4th to the 15th

centuries. For this reason, they constitute a series which is a typological point of

reference. The influence of the Thessalonikian churches on the development of the

monumental arts was considerable, first in the Byzantine and later the Serbian world,

whether in the early Christian period of the high Middle Ages or the Palaeologan

Renaissance. The mosaics of the Rotunda, St Demetrius and St David's are among the

great masterpieces of early Christian art.

Thessaloniki was founded in 315 BC by Cassandros, who named it after his wife

Thessaloniki, just a short time after the new cities of Alexander.

Following the Roman conquest of Macedonia, it became one of the Empire's

provincial capitals. A cosmopolitan and prosperous seaport, the city grew in

commercial and strategic importance during the Roman period and was one of the

first bases for the spread of Christianity. St Paul first travelled there in AD 50, and he

returned in 56 to visit the church he had founded and for which he exhibited great

concern in his Epistles.

Imperial splendor and the changing fortunes of the Thessalonikian church were

inextricably linked during the early centuries of Christianity. It was during the period

that the palatial complex of Galerius was being built (298-311) that St Demetrius was

martyred (c. 303). Some time later the rotunda, which Galerius had probably planned

as his mausoleum, was taken over by the Christians who converted it to a church

dedicated to St George. North of the Forum, on the ruins of the thermae (baths) where

tradition has it that St Demetrius was imprisoned and tortured, they built the Basilica

of St Demetrius. Rebuilt in 412-13 by the eparch Leontius and enlarged in 629-34

according to a grandiose plan that included five naves, the church, despite having

been ravaged by fire in 1917, remains one of the most notable monuments of the early

Christian era.

Other churches of archaeological interest were built during the Byzantine period.

These include the Basilica of the Virgin, called Acheiropoietos, after 448, St David's

(late 5th or early 6th centuries), and particularly St Sophia (8th century), which is a

harmonious blend of the Greek cross plan and a three-nave basilica plan. After the

Latin conquest in 1205 it became the Cathedral of Thessaloniki. When the city was

returned to Byzantium in 1246, new churches were built, among which were St

Panteleimon, the Holy Apostles, St Nicholas Orphanos, and the present St Catherine's.

When the Ottomans gained control of the city in 1430, most of the churches, new or

old, were converted to mosques, and other Islamic sanctuaries were built (Hamza Bey

Cami in 1467-68, Alaca Imaret in 1484). Under Ottoman rule (1430-1912),

Thessaloniki regained the status of major cosmopolitan city it had enjoyed during the

early Christian era. This was particularly due to the arrival in 1492 of 20,000 Jews

driven from Spain by the Edict of Alhambra.

The multitude of cultural influences is reflected in the city's wealth of monuments,

now sadly depleted, which were described by travellers such as Robert de Dreux

(1665), Evliya Celebi (1668), Paul Lucas (1714), Félix de Beaujour (1797), and

Abdul Mecid (1858).

Pythagoreion and Heraion of Samos

Many civilizations have inhabited this small Aegean island, near Asia Minor, since

the 3rd millennium B.C. The remains of Pythagoreion, an ancient fortified port with

Greek and Roman monuments and a spectacular tunnel-aqueduct, as well as the

Heraion Temple of the Samian Hera can still be seen.

Long Description

Samos was the leading maritime and mercantile power in the Greek world in the 6th

century BC, and this importance is reflected in the extent and richness of the

archaeological remains, which are largely untouched by subsequent developmentThe

site is an area on the north-east coast of the island that is clearly defined by the

surrounding mountains. It consists of the ancient city (Pythagoreion) and the classical

Temple of Hera (Heraion). Pythagoreion is a classic site from the period of Greek

colonization, situated round a good natural harbour on a peninsula that is protected by

steep mountains behind it. It also had the advantage of being very close to the

mainland of Asia Minor. The earliest finds are pre-classical; dating back to the 4th or

3rd millennium BC, but the main settlement began in the 16th century BC, when it

was colonized by Minoans from Crete, later to be supplanted by Mycenaeans.

The ancestors of the classical Samians arrived from the Epidauros region in the 11th

century BC, following the turmoil of the Trojan War. By the 6th century BC, Samos

had become a major nautical power in the eastern Mediterranean, with close trade

links with Asia Minor and the Greek mainland. It was strong enough to establish

trading colonies on the coast of Ionia, in Thrace, and even in the western

Mediterranean. Samian political influence waned after the island was conquered by

the Persians at the end of the 6th century BC, but it continued to be an important

mercantile city throughout the Hellenistic and Roman periods. The city was sacked by

Germanic peoples in the 3rd century AD and never properly recovered thereafter.

Samos alternated between Byzantine, Turkish, and Venetian rule for many centuries,

not being fully united with Greece until 1910.

The fortifications round the ancient town date back to the classical period, with

Hellenistic additions. Excavations over many years have revealed a great deal of the

street plan of the ancient city, together with its aqueduct, sewage system, public

buildings, sanctuaries and temples, agora, public baths (Roman), stadium and town

houses (Roman and Hellenistic). One of the most famous features is the Eupalineio, a

tunnel running for 1,040 m through the mountainside to bring water to the city, the

work of Eupalinos of Megara in the 6th century BC.

The great Temple of Hera (Heraion) had its origins in the 8th century BC, when it was

the first Greek temple to be surrounded by a peristyle of columns; its 7th-century

successor was also innovatory in that it was the first temple to have a double row of

columns across the front. These were both surpassed by the temple begun around 570

BC by Rhoecus and Theodorus, who built a colossal structure measuring some 45 m

by 80 m, the earliest in the new Ionic order. It was supported by at least 100 columns,

whose moulded bases were turned on a lathe designed by Theodorus. Thirty years

later this temple was destroyed in a Persian raid and a replacement was planned on an

even vaster scale, but it was never to be completed. The complex around the Heraion

includes altars, smaller temples, stoas, and statue bases, all located inside the

sanctuary, along with the remains of a 5th-century Christian basilica. The temple is

fundamental to an understanding of classical architecture. The stylistic and structural

innovations in each of its successive phases strongly influenced the design of temples

and public buildings throughout the Greek world. The technological mastery of the

Eupalineio similarly served as a model for engineering and public works.

Historical Description

The nomination is for an area on the NE coast of the island that is clearly defined by

the surrounding mountains. It consists of the ancient city (Pythagoreion) and the

classical temple of Hera (Heraion).

Pythagoreion is a classic site from the period of Greek colonization, situated round a

good natural harbour on a peninsula that is protected by steep mountains behind it. It

also had the advantage of being very close to the mainland of Asia Minor. The earliest

finds are pre-classical, dating back to the 4th or 3rd millennium BC, but the main

settlement began in the 16th century BC, when it was colonized by Minoans from

Crete, later to be supplanted by Mycenaeans.

The ancestors of the classical Samians arrived from the Epidauros region in the 11th

century BC, following the turmoil of the Trojan War. By the 6th century BC Samos

had become a major nautical power in the eastern Mediterranean, with close trade

links with Asia Minor and the Greek mainland. It was strong enough to establish

trading colonies on the coast of Ionia, in Thrace, and even in the western

Mediterranean. Samian political influence waned after the island was conquered by

the Persians at the end of the 6th century BC, but it continued to be an important

mercantile city throughout the Hellenistic and Roman periods. The city was sacked by

Germanie peoples in the 3rd century AD and never properly recovered thereafter.

Samos alternated between Byzantine, Turkish, and Venetian rule for many centuries,

not being fully united with Greece until 1910.

The fortifications round the ancient town date back to the classical period, with

Hellenistic additions. Excavations over many years have revealed a great deal of the

street plan of the ancient city, together with its aqueduct, sewage system, public

buildings, sanctuaries and temples, agora (market place), public baths (Roman),

stadium, and town houses (Roman and Hellenistic). One of the most dramatic and

famous features is the Eupalineio, a tunnel running for 1040 m through the

mountainside to bring water to the city, the work of Eupalinos of Megara in the 6th

century BC. It is described by one authority as "a miracle of ancient surveying

[which] was begun at both ends running level, and the miners met in the middle with

only the smallest of errors."

The great Temple of Hera, or Heraion, had its origins in the 8th century BC, when it

was the first Greek temple to be surrounded by a peristyle of columns; its 7th century

successor was also innovatory in that it was the first temple to have a double row of

columns across the front. But these were surpassed by the temple begun around 570

BC by Rhoecus and Theodorus, who built a colossal structure measuring sorne 45 m

by 80 m. the earliest in the new Ionic order. It was supported by at least 100 columns,

whose moulded bases were turned on a lathe designed by Theodorus. Thirty years

later this temple was destroyed in a Persian raid and a replacement was planned on an

even vaster scale, but it was never to be completed. The complex around the Heraion

includes altars, smaller temples, stoas, and statue bases, all located inside the

sanctuary, along with the remains of a 5th century Christian basilica.

Sanctuary of Asklepios at Epidaurus

In a small valley in the Peloponnesus, the shrine of Asklepios, the god of medicine,

developed out of a much earlier cult of Apollo (Maleatas), during the 6th century BC

at the latest, as the official cult of the city state of Epidaurus. Its principal monuments,

particularly the temple of Asklepios, the Tholos and the Theatre - considered one of

the purest masterpieces of Greek architecture – date from the 4th century. The vast

site, with its temples and hospital buildings devoted to its healing gods, provides

valuable insight into the healing cults of Greek and Roman times.

Long Description

In a small inner Argolid valley surrounded by rocky heights only thinly covered by

the meagre vegetation of Mediterranean scrub, the archaeological site of Epidaurus

sprawls over several levels. At an altitude of 430 m, the Sanctuary of Apollo Maleatas

overlooks the rest of the ruins. Lower down, to the south-west, at approximately

360 m, is the Theatre. Finally, the Sanctuary of Asclepios and its various buildings -

baths, gymnasium, palaestra, stadium and katagogeion (dormitories for patients) -

stretch over a western shelf located at between 320 m and 330 m altitude.

This vast site (although only an area of 520,000 m2 is state property, construction has

been forbidden throughout the entire valley from floor to crest) is a tribute to the

healing gods of Epidaurus - Apollo, Asclepios, and Hygeia. Legend has it that

Asclepios was the fruit of Apollo's love for a daughter of the king of Orchomenes. In

the 6th century a cult dedicated to him was established at Epidaurus, where

archaeological excavations uncovered a sanctuary dating from the much earlier

Mycenaen period.

By the 5th century the sanctuary already enjoyed great renown, both for the

miraculous cures that occurred there and for the games held every four years and the

stadium dates from that time. Epidaurus entered its greatest period in the 4th century

BC, when the Temple of Apollo Maneates and the great monuments of the Hieron

were built. The Hieron includes the Temple of Asclepios, the Tholos, the

Enkoimeterion, where the sick awaited their cures, the Baths of Asclepios, and above

all the incomparable Theatre, rightfully considered one of the purest masterpieces of

Greek architecture. Epidaurus continued to flourish during the Hellenistic period.

Despite pillaging by Sulla in 87 BC and by Cilician pirates, the restored sanctuary

prospered during the Roman period, as witnessed by the famous description by

Pausanias in AD 150.

The group of buildings comprising the Sanctuary of Epidaurus bears exceptional

testimony to the healing cults of the Hellenic and Roman worlds. The temples and the

hospital facilities dedicated to the healing gods constitute a coherent and complete

ensemble. . It exerted an influence on all the asclepieia in the Hellenic world, and

later on all the Roman sanctuaries of Esculape. The emergence of modern medicine in

a sanctuary originally reputed for the psychology-based miraculous healing of

supposedly incurable patients is directly and tangibly illustrated by the functional

evolution of the Hieron of Epidaurus and is strikingly described by the engraved

inscription on the remarkable steles preserved in the Museum.

The Theatre, the Temples of Artemis and Asclepios, the Tholos, the Enkoimeterion,

and the Propylaea make the Hieron of Epidaurus an eminent example of a Hellenic

architectural ensemble of the 4th century BC. In particular, the theatre, an

architectural masterpiece by Polycletes the Younger of Argos, represents a unique

artistic achievement through its admirable integration into the site and the perfection

of its proportions and acoustics.

Temple of Apollo Epicurius at Bassae

This famous temple to the god of healing and the sun was built towards the middle of

the 5th century B.C. in the lonely heights of the Arcadian mountains. The temple,

which has the oldest Corinthian capital yet found, combines the Archaic style and the

serenity of the Doric style with some daring architectural features.

Long Description

Isolated as it is in a conserved environment, the Temple of Bassae is an outstanding

example of a Hellenic votive sanctuary in a rural setting. It represents a unique artistic

achievement, remarkable for its archaic features (elongated surface, an exceptional

proportion of 15 columns on the longer side and 6 columns on the facade, and a north-

south exposure), and for its daring innovations (the use of Ionic and Corinthian orders

for a Doric edifice, the variety of materials used, and the originality of the layout of

the cella and the adyton).

The Temple was dedicated by the inhabitants of Philagia to Apollo Epicurius, the

god-healer who had come to their aid when they were beset by the plague. Its ruins

rise majestically to 1,130 m high in the mountainous region of Arcadia in the heart of

the Peloponnese, near Andritsaina. Built in the second half of the 5th century BC (c.

420-410 BC?), it belongs to the first generation of post-Parthenonian edifices.

Pausanias admired its beauty and harmony and, moreover, attributed it to the architect

Ictinos, although contemporary archaeologists have been unable to provide

confirmation.

With its elongated dimensions (39.87 m by 16.13 m), the peripteral structure is built

mainly in grey limestone of local origin. The outer colonnade of the hexastyle temple

respects an extremely strict Doric order (the metopes are not sculptured). Inside,

however, fine-quality sculpturing blends with a more sophisticated architectural style.

The front of the pronaos and the opisthodomos, with two in antis columns, restate the

Doric order. In the cella, however, a series of embedded Ionic columns stand against

low support walls. On the southern side, where an adyton is located, the last two Ionic

columns standing in the cella at the far end of the oblique walls flank one Corinthian

column which stands alone in the centre of the temple. The decoration is notable,

particularly by virtue of the different materials used: the walls and the bases and

tambours of the columns are limestone, and the Ionic capitals and the Corinthian

capital are in Doliana marble, as are the sculptured metopes of the exterior frieze of

the cella, the plates of the Ionic frieze which runs along the inside of the sanctuary,

the guttae, the roof supports and the roofing tiles.

The capital of the central column of the Temple of Bassae is the most ancient

conserved Corinthian capital, and as such the temple may be considered a model for

all 'Corinthian' monuments of Greek, Roman and subsequent civilizations.

Being located away from the city, the temple long remained undiscovered. A French

architect came upon it accidentally in 1765 and brought it to the attention of the

academic world. The first archaeological investigation in 1812 was profitable but at

the same time prejudicial for the integrity of the site. The discovery of the Ionic

frieze's 22 sculptured plates ultimately divested the site of these remarkable

sculptures, which were acquired in 1814 by order of the future King George IV of

England and transferred to the British Museum along with the Corinthian capital.

Deprived of decorations of exceptional quality (a Centauromachy and an

Amazonomachy), the Temple of Bassae was carefully restored in 1902, but in 1965

the critical state of the monument called for renewed renovation.

The Historic Centre (Chorá) with the Monastery of Saint-

John the Theologian and the Cave of the Apocalypse on the

Island of Pátmos

The small island of Pátmos in the Dodecanese is reputed to be where St John the

Theologian wrote both his Gospel and the Apocalypse. A monastery dedicated to the

‘beloved disciple’ was founded there in the late 10th century and it has been a place of

pilgrimage and Greek Orthodox learning ever since. The fine monastic complex

dominates the island. The old settlement of Chorá, associated with it, contains many

religious and secular buildings.

Justification for Inscription

Criterion (iii): The town of Chorá on the island of Pátmos is one of the few

settlements in Greece that have evolved uninterruptedly since the 12th century. There

are few other places in the world where religious ceremonies that date back to the

early Christian times are still being practised unchanged.

Criterion (iv): The Monastery of Hagios Ioannis Theologos (Saint John the

Theologian) and the Cave of the Apocalypse on the island of Pátmos, together with

the associated medieval settlement of Chorá, constitute an exceptional example of a

traditional Greek Orthodox pilgrimage centre of outstanding architectural interest.

Criterion (vi): The Monastery of Hagios Ioannis Theologos and the Cave of the

Apocalypse commemorate the site where St John the Theologian (Divine), the

“Beloved Disciple”, composed two of the most sacred Christian works, his Gospel

and the Apocalypse.

Long Description

The Monastery of Hagios Ioannis Theologos (Saint John the Theologian) and the

Cave of the Apocalypse on the island of Pátmos, together with the associated

medieval settlement of Chorá, constitute an exceptional example of a traditional

Greek Orthodox pilgrimage centre of outstanding architectural interest. The town of

Chorá is one of the few settlements in Greece that have evolved uninterruptedly since

the 12th century. There are few other places in the world where religious ceremonies

that date back to the early Christian times are still being practised unchanged.

The Monastery of Hagios Ioannis Theologos and the Cave of the Apocalypse

commemorate the site where St John the Theologian (Divine), the 'Beloved Disciple',

composed two of the most sacred Christian works, his Gospel and the Apocalypse.

Pátmos is the northernmost island of the Dodecanese group with an area of some

88 km2 , is largely barren, formed from three volcanic masses connected by narrow

isthmuses. There are three settlements: the medieval Chorá, the 19th-century harbour

of Skála, and the small rural Kampos. The site selected by Christodoulos for his

Monastery of Hagios Ioannis Theologos dominates the whole island.

Pátmos was colonized first by Dorian and then Ionian Greeks. When it was absorbed

into the Roman Empire it was used, like other Aegean islands, as a place of exile for

political prisoners. Among them was the Evangelist St John the Theologian (also

known as St John the Divine), who was brought to the island in AD 95 during the

reign of Domitian. Like so many of the Aegean islands Pátmos was devastated by

Saracen raiders in the 7th century, and it was virtually uninhabited for the next two

centuries. In 1088 Hosios Christodoulos, a Bithynian abbot who had already founded

monasteries on Léros and Kos, obtained permission from the Byzantine Emperor

Alexis I Comnenus to found a monastery on the island dedicated to St John. This was

at a time when the imperial state was encouraging resettlement on the islands and

shores of the Aegean, a policy that included the establishment of fortified

monasteries.

The island was captured by the Venetians in 1208. It is around this period that the

oldest settlement on Pátmos was founded, that of Chorá, when married lay brothers

and other people working for the monastic community settled around the monastery.

After the fall of Constantinople in 1453 about 100 families were resettled in Chorá, to

the west of the monastery, where they established the wealthy area known as

Alloteina. At this time the appearance of the settlement was that of dispersed houses

essentially rural in nature. Pátmos came under Turkish control in the early 16th

century. Paradoxically, this marked the beginning of a period of prosperity for the

islanders, who were granted certain tax privileges in exchange for their submission.

The inhabitants of Chorá took advantage of these to engage in shipping and trade, and

this is reflected in the fine houses built by wealthy merchants in the late 16th and

early 17th centuries, a number of which survive to the present day.

This prosperity ended when the island was sacked by the Venetians under Francesco

Morosini in 1659. Following the fall of Candia to the Turks in 1669, Venetians

refugees were settled on the island. They created a new residential area, known as

Kretika, the main square of which was named Agialesvia, dedicated to a female

Cretan saint.

The urban tissue began to change, the new properties being much smaller and densely

packed. It was slowly to recover its former mercantile role, but in the later 18th

century and throughout the 19th century Pátmos was once again a major trading

centre. In the mid-18th century the Aporthiana quarters were formed as the town

expanded. Many of the old houses were rehabilitated and new mansions were built.

Meteora

In a region of almost inaccessible sandstone peaks, monks settled on these 'columns

of the sky' from the 11th century onwards. Twenty-four of these monasteries were

built, despite incredible difficulties, at the time of the great revival of the eremetic

ideal in the 15th century. Their 16th-century frescoes mark a key stage in the

development of post-Byzantine painting.

Long Description

'Suspended in the air' (the meaning of Meteora in Greek), these monasteries represent

a unique artistic achievement and are one of the most powerful examples of the

architectural transformation of a site into a place of retreat, meditation and prayer.

The Meteora provide an outstanding example of the types of monastic construction

which illustrate a significant stage in history, that of the 14th and 15th centuries when

the eremitic ideals of early Christianity were restored to a place of honour by

monastic communities, both in the Western world (in Tuscany, for example) and in

the Orthodox Church.

Built under impossible conditions, with no practicable roads, permanent though

precarious human habitations subsist to this day in the Meteora, but have become

vulnerable under the impact of time. The net in which intrepid pilgrims were hoisted

up vertically alongside the 373 m cliff where the Varlaam monastery dominates the

valley symbolizes the fragility of a traditional way of life that is threatened with

exinction.

The monasteries are built on rock pinnacles of deltaic origin, known as Meteora,

which rise starkly over 400 m above the Peneas valley and the small town of

Kalambaka on the Thessalian plain. Chemical analysis suggests that the pinnacles

were created some 60 million years ago in the Tertiary period, emerging from the

cone of a river and further transformed by earthquakes. The Meteora are enormous

residual masses of sandstone and conglomerate which appeared through fluvial

erosion. Seismic activity increased the number of fault lines and fissures and hewed

the shapeless masses into individual sheer rock columns. Hermits and ascetics

probably began settling in this extraordinary area in the 11th century. In the late 12th

century a small church called the Panaghia Doupiani or Skete was built at the foot of

one of these 'heavenly columns', where monks had already taken up residence.

During the fearsome time of political instability in 14th century Thessaly, monasteries

were systematically built on top of the inaccessible peaks so that by the end of the

15th century there were 24 of them. They continued to flourish until the 17th century.

Today, only four monasteries - Aghios Stephanos, Aghia Trias, Varlaam and

Meteoron - still house religious communities.

The area includes forested hills and river valley with riverine forests of Platanus

orientalis and species such as the endemic Centaurea lactifolia (found near Koniskos

village) and Centaurea kalambakensi. The nearest protected area is Trikala Aesthetic

Forest (28 ha), created in 1979, which has been planted with Pinus halepensis and

Cupressus sempervivens. The potential vegetation cover is described as supra-

Mediterranean, with climax cover of Quercus and Ostrya species and Fagus sylvatica

beech forest above 700 m.

Mount Athos

An Orthodox spiritual centre since 1054, Mount Athos has enjoyed an autonomous

statute since Byzantine times. The 'Holy Mountain', which is forbidden to women and

children, is also a recognized artistic site. The layout of the monasteries (about 20 of

which are presently inhabited by some 1,400 monks) had an influence as far afield as

Russia, and its school of painting influenced the history of Orthodox art.

Outstanding Universal Value

Brief synthesis

Cloaked by beautiful chestnut and other types of Mediterranean forest, the steep

slopes of Mount Athos are punctuated by twenty imposing monasteries and their

subsidiary establishments. Covering an area of just over 33,000 hectares, the property

includes the entire narrow rocky strip of the easternmost of the three peninsulas of

Chalcidice which jut into the Aegean Sea in northern Greece. The subsidiary

establishments include sketae (daughter houses of the monasteries), kellia and

kathismata (living units operated by the monks), where farming constitutes an

important part of the monks’ everyday life. An Orthodox spiritual centre since the

10th century, Mount Athos has enjoyed a self-administered status since Byzantine

times. Its first constitution was signed in 972 by the emperor John I Tzimiskes. The

'Holy Mountain', which is forbidden to women and children, is also a recognized

artistic site. The layout of the monasteries (which are presently inhabited by some

1,400 monks) had an influence as far afield as Russia, and its school of painting

influenced the history of Orthodox art. The landscape reflects traditional monastic

farming practices, which maintain populations of plant species that have now become

rare in the region.

Criterion (i): The transformation of a mountain into a sacred place made Mount

Athos a unique artistic creation combining the natural beauty of the site with the

expanded forms of architectural creation. Moreover, the monasteries of Athos are a

veritable conservatory of masterpieces ranging from wall paintings (such as the works

by Manuel Panselinos at Protaton Church ca. 1290 and by Frangos Catellanos at the

Great Lavra in 1560) to portable icons, gold objects, embroideries and illuminated

manuscripts which each monastery jealously preserves.

Criterion (ii): Mount Athos exerted lasting influence in the Orthodox world, of

which it is the spiritual centre, on the development of religious architecture and

monumental painting. The typical layout of Athonite monasteries was used as far

away as Russia. Iconographic themes, codified by the school of painting at Mount

Athos and laid down in minute detail in the Guide to Painting (discovered and

published by Didron in 1845), were used and elaborated on from Crete to the Balkans

from the 16th century onwards.

Criterion (iv): The monasteries of Athos present the typical layout of Orthodox

monastic establishments: a square, rectangular or trapezoidal fortification flanked by

towers, which constitutes the peribolos of a consecrated place, in the centre of which

the community's church, or the catholicon, stands alone. Strictly organised according

to principles dating from the 10th century are the areas reserved for communal

activities (refectory, cells, hospital, library), those reserved solely for liturgical

purposes (chapels, fountains), and the defence structures (arsenal, fortified towers).

The organization of agricultural lands in the idiorrythmic sketae (daughter houses of

the monasteries), the kellia and kathismata (living units operated by the monks) is

also very characteristic of the medieval period.

Criterion (v): The monastic ideal at Mount Athos has preserved traditional human

habitations, which are representative of the agrarian cultures of the Mediterranean and

have become vulnerable through the impact of change within contemporary society.

Mount Athos is also a conservatory of vernacular architecture as well as agricultural

and craft traditions.

Criterion (vi): An Orthodox spiritual centre since the 10th century, the sacred

mountain of Athos became the principal spiritual home of the Orthodox Church in

1054. It retained this prominent role even after the fall of Constantinople in 1453 and

the establishment of the autocephalous patriarchy of Moscow in 1589. Mount Athos is

directly and tangibly associated with the history of Orthodox Christianity which, in

varying degrees, is present in more than 20 nations in the 20th century. It is no

exaggeration to say that this thousand-year-old site, where the weight of history is

palpable in the countryside, the monuments and the precious collections have been

built up over time, has retained even today its universal and exceptional significance.

Criterion (vii): The harmonious interaction of traditional farming practices and

forestry is linked to the stringent observance of monastic rules over the course of

centuries, which has led to the excellent preservation of the Mediterranean forests and

associated flora of Mount Athos.

Integrity

Closely associated with the history of Orthodox Christianity, Mount Athos retains its

Outstanding Universal Value through its monastic establishments and artistic

collections. All the monasteries are well-preserved due to on-going restoration

projects carried out according to approved plans. The materials used for restoration

are traditional and environmentally friendly.

Mount Athos encompasses an entire peninsula of 33,042 ha, an area of sufficient size

to maintain a rich flora and fauna that has been well conserved by careful

management of the forests and traditional agricultural practices. Although the natural

environment is maintained, it is also vulnerable to forest fire, infrastructure

development (mainly roads), and seismic activity. Monastic activities have kept their

traditional character due to rules which have remained relatively unchanged

throughout the centuries, and the evolution of monastic life should not harm the

environment.

Authenticity

The property reflects adequately the cultural values recognized in the inscription

criteria through the setting of the monasteries and their dependencies, together with

the form, design and materials of the buildings and farms, their use and function, and

the spirit and feeling of the place.

Mount Athos has an enormous wealth of historic, artistic and cultural elements

preserved by a monastic community that has existed for the last twelve centuries and

constitutes a living record of human activities.

Protection and management requirements

Mount Athos has a peculiar self-administered system under Hellenic Constitutional

Law. While the sovereignty of the Hellenic State remains intact (article 105),

management is exercised by representatives of the Holy Monasteries, who comprise

the Holy Community (article 105). The Hellenic State has placed the responsibility

for the protection and conservation of the natural and cultural property into public

agencies, namely the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs, Culture and Sports,

General Secretariat of Culture, through the responsible 10th Ephorate of Byzantine

Antiquities, the Centre for the Preservation of the Athonite Heritage, the Ministry of

Environment, Energy and Climate Change, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

(Directorate for Churches – Mount Athos Administration). The monuments are

protected by the provisions of the Archaeological Law 3028/2002 “On the Protection

of Antiquities and Cultural Heritage in general”, and by separate ministerial decrees

published in the Official Government Gazette.

Restoration and conservation works, co-funded by the European Union, are performed

by the Hellenic State (10th Ephorate of Byzantine Antiquities and Centre for the

Preservation of the Athonite Heritage). There is on-going collaboration between the

responsible services of the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs, Culture and

Sports; the General Secretariat of Culture; and other Ministries with the monastic

community. However, it should be stressed that the scheduling and execution of all

work concerning individual Holy Monasteries requires their consent as well as that of

the Holy Community.

Sustaining the Outstanding Universal Value of the property requires ongoing

conservation of the buildings including their finishes and mural paintings, as well as

of manuscripts and artworks. Studies concerning the installation of infrastructure in

the monastery buildings, including fire protection, have been undertaken.

Protection and management of the forests, including provision of major infrastructure,

is the subject of specialized programs planned by the monasteries, in cooperation with

the Holy Community and relevant scientists.

Promotion of Mount Athos’ cultural heritage includes conferences, publications and

more recently the internet. Mount Athos is well-known to the Orthodox Christian

world and attracts many thousands of visitors, scholars and pilgrims every year.

Once finalised and agreed upon, the Management Plan prepared by the Holy

Community will address forest management in terms of ecological sustainability; road

and port (arsana) construction and maintenance; waste management; the need for a

consistent approach to conservation for all monasteries; and a risk preparedness plan

for all the monasteries and their dependencies.

Long Description

The transformation of a mountain into a sacred place made Mount Athos a unique

artistic creation combining the natural beauty of the site with the expanded forms of

architectural creation. Moreover, the monasteries of Athos are a veritable

conservatory of masterpieces, ranging from wall paintings by Frangos Castellanos at

the Great Lavra to portable icons, gold objects, embroideries, or illuminated

manuscripts which each monastery jealously preserves. Mount Athos exerted a lasting

influence in the Orthodox world, of which it is the spiritual centre, and on the

development of religious architecture and monumental painting.

The monasteries of Athos display the typical layout of orthodox monastic

establishments (to be found as far away as Russia): a square, rectangular, or

trapezoidal wall flanked by towers, which constitutes the periobolus of a consecrated

place, in the centre of which the community's church (catholicon) stands alone.

Strictly organized according to principles dating from the 10th century are the areas

reserved for communal activities (refectory, cells, hospital, library), those reserved

solely for liturgical purposes (chapels, fountains), and the defensive structures

(arsenal, fortified tower). The organization of agricultural lands in the idiorrythmic

skites (daughter houses of the main monasteries), and the kellia and kathismata (farms

operated by monks) is also very characteristic of the medieval period.

The monastic ideal has at Mount Athos preserved traditional human habitations,

which are representative of the agrarian cultures of the Mediterranean world and have

become vulnerable through the impact of change within contemporary society. Mount

Athos is also a conservatory of vernacular architecture and agricultural and craft

traditions.

The northernmost of the three peninsulas jutting into the Aegean Sea from Chalkidi is

a narrow rocky strip approximately 50 km long and 10 km wide, rising to 2,033 m. In

ancient Greek mythology the peninsula was said to be the stone thrown at Poseidon

by the giant Athos. For Christians it was the Garden of the Virgin, the priceless gift

that Christ gave his mother. The precise date of the first Christian establishments on

Mount Athos is unknown. However, the monastic movement began to intensify in

963, when the future St Athanasius the Athonite, having left the Theme of Rithynia,

founded Great Lavra on the tip of the peninsula. In 972 the first Typikon (agreement)

was concluded at Karyes between the Emperor Jean Tsimitzes and the monks of

Mount Athos. It provided the basis of the exceptional status still enjoyed by the 'Holy

Mount' today.

In 1926, the Greek Government ratified a charter based on the long tradition of the

Typika. In 1977, when Greece became a member of the European Common Market,

the signatory states recognized the specificity of the self-governing region of Athos

and its special status. The 360 km2 of Athos are exclusively inhabited by men, the

majority of them monks living in coenobitic or idiorrythmic establishments,

anchorites, or wandering brothers. The Typikon granted by the Emperor Constantine

IX Monomachus in 1046 and signed by more than 100 heads of religious

communities, banned women and more generally all 'smooth-faced persons' from

entering the mountainous region. Power in this monastic republic is strictly divided

between three assemblies: the Synaxe, or the Holy Assembly, which meets twice a

year, holds the legislative power; the Holy Community holds the administrative

power, and the Holy Epistasie holds the executive power. At Karyes, a civil governor

of Athos, under the Greek Foreign Affairs Ministry, ensures that the Charter of 1926

is respected.

Today Athos includes 20 monasteries, 12 skites, and about 700 houses, cells, or

hermitages. Over 1,000 monks live there in communities or alone, as well as in the

'desert' of Karoulia where cells cling to the cliff face rising steeply above the sea.