Ancient Greek Cities
Constantinos A. Doxiadis published his first study of Ancient Greek Cities in 1937. Since that time, he continued to explore this subject with undiminished interest in his aim “to reach a better understanding of the problems related to human settlements by studying their past history” and to learn from ancient types of settlements with regard to construction based on a human scale. During the period 1963-1977, Doxiadis Associates in collaboration with the Athens Center of Ekistics, conducted a research - using the initial study of 1937 as a starting point – which aimed at gathering further data regarding the organization of space in ancient Greek cities and, subsequently, to arrive at a new synthesis which would account for the newer findings and hypotheses.
Since August 1968, the research was organized more systematically under the supervision of the Athens Center of Ekistics and additional funding from the FORD Foundation and Doxiadis Associates.
Constantinos A. Doxiadis, Director of the Athens Center of Ekistics, personally supervised the research until the day of his death, June 28, 1975.
The project involved the collaboration of prominent Greek archaeologists, historians, philologists, architects etc. A number of these scholars had been dismissed from their positions in universities and the civil sector by the military junta, which was in power at the time (1967-74).
The project proceeded rigorously until July 1973. Its progress diminished thereafter, mainly due to a lack of sources, while the death of C.A. Doxiadis marked the essential halt of the undertaking.
Project objective:
| a. | The creation of an information archive on Ancient Greek Cities which would be useful to all those involved in research on related problems. |
| b. | A compounding of such information, which would result to a better understanding of the development of human settlements in Greece, from the very early years, prior to the arrival of the Greeks, up to the Roman era. |
According to the instruction given by C.A. Doxiadis at that time, “the research would cover ekistic phenomena in the wider, not the narrow, sense of the term, in order to deal with the development of settlement from its start, from the selection of the space for man’s living, to its completion and artistic expression through buildings and monuments. We would attempt, in other words, to cover the entire phenomenon of our life system which exists behind these, as represented by geography, history, man and his life, the multitude of their expressions in space.”
MONOGRAPHS
A sum total of 500 mimeographed copies of 24 volumes of monographs were completed and published.
| Volume 1. | An Ekistical Study of the Hellenic City-state, Arnold Toynbee, 1971, 154 pgs. |
| Volume 2. | Method for the Research of Ancient Greek Settlements, C. A. Doxiadis, 1972, 115 pgs. 35 ills (English/Greek). |
| Volume 3. | Corinthia – Cleonaea, M. Sakellariou, N. Faraklas, 1971, 444 pgs. 105 ills. (manuscripts in Greek also available). |
| Volume 4. | Cassopaia and the Elean Colonies, S. Dakaris, 1971, 333 pgs. 66 ills. (manuscript available also in Greek). |
| Volume 5. | Thasos and Peraia, D. Lazaridis, 1971, 207 pgs. 73 ills. (manuscripts available also in Greek) |
| Volume 6. | Abdera and Dikaia, D. Lazaridis, 1971, 133 pgs. 40 ills. |
| Volume 7. | Samothrace and its Peraia, D. Lazaridis, 1971, 193 pgs. 50 ills. |
| Volume 8. | Sikiyonia, N. Faraklas, 1971, 206 pgs. 76 ills. |
| Volume 9. | Prehistory of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace. D. Theocharis 1971, 64 pgs. 10 ills. (manuscript in Greek also available). |
| Volume 10. | Trizinia, Kalavria, Methana. N. Faraklas, 1972, 159 pgs. 53 ills. |
| Volume 11. | Floesia. N. Faraklas, 1972, 85 pgs. 30 ills. |
| Volume 12. | Epidavria. N. Faraklas, 1972, 220 pgs. 78 ills. |
| Volume 13. | Amphipolis and Argilos. D. Lazaridis, 1972, 144 pgs. 43 ills. |
| Volume 14. | Megaris, Aegosthena, Erenaea. M. Sakellariou, N. Faraklas, 1972, 191 pgs. 49 ills. |
| Volume 15. | Thesprotia. S. Dakaris, 1972, 356 pgs. 71 ills. |
| Volume 16. | Maronoea and Orthagoria. D. Lazaridis, 1972, 140 pgs. 40 ills. |
| Volume 17. | Athens: Ekistic Data – Initial Report. I. Travlos, M. Petroulakos, E. Pentazos, 1972, 84 pgs. 26 ills. |
| Volume 18. | Crete – Stone Age. A. Zois, 1973, 363 pgs. 22 ills. |
| Volume 19. | Hermionis – Alias. N. Faraklas, 1973, 138 pgs. 36 ills. |
| Volume 20. | Plilippoi – A Roman Colony. D. Lazaridis, 1973, 106 pgs. 20 ills. |
| Volume 21. | Attica: Ekistic Data – Initial Report. M Petropoulakos, E. Pentazos, 1973, 270 pgs. 32 ills. |
| Volume 22. | Thera and Therasia. J. W. Sperling, 1973, 95 pgs. 39 ills. |
| Volume 23. | The Grand City of Arcadia. Arg. Petronotis, 1973, 448 pgs. 18 ills. |
| Volume 24. | Lesbos and the Asia Minor Region. I. D. Kontis, 1978, 530 pgs. 63 ills. |
The language in some of these studies is Greek, English in some others, while the aim was for a bilingual circulation of all these in their final publication form.
By 1977 the following monographs had also been completed, which, however, remained unpublished due to lack of funds proper for production of maps and diagrams, typesetting, proofreading and printing of the texts.
- Crete – Early Minoan Age. A. Zois, 1975-1978.
- The Inland of Aegean Thrace. D. Lazaridis, 1974.
- Ilis. N. Gialouris, 1971 – 1977.
- Argaea – Asinaea. M. Sakellariou, N. Faraklas, 1974 – 1975.
- Aegina. N. Faraklas, 1975.
- Western Lokris. N. Faraklas, [1976].
- Eastern Lokris. N. Faraklas, 1976
- Akarnania. N. Faraklas, [1977].
- The Spercheios Valley: Malis – Oetaea – Aenis. N. Faraklas, 1977.
- Delphi. Angelou, 1970-1971.
- Greek Cities in Southern France. A. Tseklenis, 1972.
- The Neolithic Age in Greece. Shivaji Singh, 1970-1971.
All materials exist in manuscript form in the Archives.