The initiative for this project started before 2009, within the framework of research as a professor of classical archaeology at the School of History & Archaeology, at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and as a long-term excavator of the archaeological site at Vergina - Aegae, the cradle of the ancient Macedonian kingdom.
Having for many years participated in and directed the University’s archaeological research at Aegae, the old capital of ancient Macedonia and having dealt with its history and archaeology throughout my career, there was an interest in compiling a visual cartographic record of the changing borders of the ancient Macedonian kingdom between the beginning of its creation in the mid-7th century BC and the end of its independence in the 2nd century BCE, as a means of investigating some of the roots and causes of the so-called Macedonian Question.
The interest in compiling a cartographic record of the borders of ancient Macedonia led to the idea that a series of maps depicting the history of the land from antiquity up until the early 19th century could shed new but scholarly light on an international discussion that seems to be poorly informed on the complex issues involved.
For a classical archaeologist who has for almost a lifetime been excavating the territory where the ancient Macedon kingdom first took shape, the challenge of working with historical maps was more than simply an opportunity to satisfy a professional curiosity. It was a highly inviting intellectual and cultural exercise comparable, in many ways, to embarking on a new archaeological project.
