Cassope, Epirus

Most Recent Visit: May 2021 It’s not often that I’ll feature a site that has, essentially, almost no period of Roman occupation. This is, after all, what the blog is primarily focused on. But, I certainly don’t limit my visitations to solely Roman sites. Occasionally I’ll visit a site that isn’t Roman, but is still…

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Nicopolis, Epirus – Part II

Continued From Nicopolis, Epirus Part I Roughly 250 meters inside the Araporta, meeting back up with the National Road Preveza-Ioannina, is the entrance to the Archaeological Site of Nikopolis. During the summer it is open Wednesday through Monday from 8:00 to 20:00 and is closed on Tuesday. Through September and October, the closing time gradually…

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Patrae, Achaea – Part I

Most Recent Visit: May 2021 Located near the northern extent of the Peloponnese at the entrance of the Gulf of Corinth is the city of Patrae (also Patrai or Patra). Today it is located among the modern city of Patras, a name clearly derived from the ancient name. The mythological origins of the settlement date…

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Argos, Achaea – Part I

Most Recent Visit: May 2021 The area of the present day and ancient city of Argos seems to have been one of the longest continually inhabited locations in Greece, frequently attributed as one of the most ancient cities and with archaeological evidence suggesting habitation dating back to the 8th millennium BCE. Argos was said to…

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Sanctuary of Asclepius, Achaea – Part II

Continued From Sanctuary of Asclepius Part I Heading west from the Katagogion, one comes to the southern area of the actual sanctuary. The southernmost of these buildings is the Greek baths. These were constructed around 300 BCE and were fed from a spring on Mount Kynortion. The baths likely served a religious purpose in providing…

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Corinth, Achaea – Part III

Continued From Corinth Part II The northeast corner of Corinth’s forum is a bit messier and less orthogonal than the rest of the fairly rectilinear forum. Though during the Roman period it was covered over and the area was largely an open space, presently the remains of some elements of the Sacred Spring are now…

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Philippopolis, Thracia – Part I

The modern Bulgarian city of Plovdiv, most commonly known in antiquity as Philippopolis among a host of other names, is sometimes cited as being the oldest city in Europe, with habitation in the area dating back to the 6th millennium BCE. Perhaps part of what earned it the shared title of European Capital of Culture…

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Vienna, Gallia Narbonensis – Part II

Continued From Vienna Part I Theater and Odeon A few minutes to the west of the Jardin Archéologique de Cybèle, at Rue du Cirque 7, is the ancient theater of Vienna. Like the two museums, the theater has the same opening hours and admission price scheme. Like many other relatively intact ancient theaters in Europe,…

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Catana, Sicilia – Part II

Continued from Catana Part I. The theater (along with the odeon) is arguably the centerpiece of the Roman monuments of Catana; it is certainly the most completely excavated and well-preserved of the Roman remains here. It is located at Via Vittorio Emanuele II 266. The theater is open every day from 9:00 to 17:00 and…

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Tauromenium, Sicilia

Most Recent Visit: June 2017. The area around the modern city of Taormina, and ancient Tauromenium, seems to have been originally inhabited by the native Siculi people, who may have even dwelt on the site of Taormina. A few kilometers down the coast, though, in 735 BCE, the Greek colony of Naxos was founded. Naxos…

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