Summary

Almost all cities in Greece hide a Byzantine past, which played a decisive role in shaping their organization and image up to the present day. Nevertheless, in most cases, this past has left very few material traces – usually a castle – and has become extremely difficult to decipher.

A characteristic example is Lamia, the medieval Zitouni, a small Byzantine town that was a strategic hub on the road in and out of southern Greece for over a millennium. By combining the scant references from written sources and the fragmented archaeological evidence, this book attempts to reconstruct the form and evolution of Lamia from the 4th to the 15th century, and to assess its significance as a local administrative, military, and ecclesiastical center.

At the same time, it highlights the opportunities that fragmented historical and archaeological data provide for restoring the Byzantine link in the evolution of Greek cities.

Contents: Abbreviations || Foreword || Introduction || The Early Christian Lamia and its countryside || The Transitional Centuries and the question of desolation || The Post-Byzantine Zitouni || A small town between Byzantium and the West || Observations and conclusions || Appendix || Bibliography || Index || Maps and images