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The Old Town

The old town of Xanthi is built in an amphitheater with a natural boundary to the north at the foot of Mount Gerakas, to the east the river Kosynthos and to the west the steep altitude differences of the terrain.
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The first phase of construction of the current Old Town of Xanthi is placed in 1830-1845 and especially after the destructive earthquakes of March and April 1829. Builders from Western Macedonia and Epirus were invited then and began to rebuild churches, houses and public buildings, largely preserving the oldest urban fabric of the city.

The second phase of building development of Xanthi was placed after the destruction of Jenisea (1870), and the transfer of the administrative center of the region to the city.

Map 1.1- The location of the Old Town in the city of Xanthi, according to the P. D. of 1996

The morphology of the urban network of the city

is a typical example of medieval walled settlements, in which the development of the road network shows a timeless evolution. Evidence for this was the comfortable and fastest route to the main points of the settlement, such as the acropolis, the entrance-exit gates and the important buildings, always in relation to the relief of the ground. Thus, the irregular and "maze" at first glance, the current layout of the streets is the result of a continuous process and not an ad hoc design.

The initially unincorporated "village", as Xanthi is called in a chrysobulus of 1083, is walled and is now considered a fortress during the time of the empire of the Angels, i.e. from 1185. The non-orthodox layout of the streets within the fortified settlement results in the continuous alternation of the visual escapes of the city streets, with the corners of the houses protruding and dominating, controlling each passage for purely defensive purposes at first and their evolution into an element of social communication later, through the sash windows. The same happens with the squares and, in general, the platforms created by the roads.

Due to the small area of ​​the Old Town settlement

κand its limited boundaries, the structure is quite dense and the plots are usually trapezoidal in shape. The areas of the residences are usually around 80m2 and the residences of the affluent townspeople are larger usually with an area ranging from around 150 to 180m2.

The buildings in the old town of Xanthi are usually one-story or two-story and in rare cases three-story. In very few cases there is a semi-underground storage space combined with a mezzanine. In the settlement there is also a large number of single-storey folk houses, ground floor or with a semi-basement. The luxurious townhouses of the early 20th century usually consist of a ground floor and two floors or a ground floor and a floor with a raised basement.




In public buildings, the floors usually do not exceed three, and the maximum height can reach 13.5–14 m. without the roof (Town Hall). These buildings appear particularly imposing in relation to the scale of the houses, both in terms of the height and area of ​​their coverage, as well as its plastic decoration.

The residence was the main use of the buildings in the old town of Xanthi. In a few cases, the use of the ground floor as a shop, or as a storage area, or as an area for processing tobacco leaves is observed. The category of public buildings includes administrative buildings, religious buildings, educational buildings as well as residential buildings that currently house public functions. Commercial buildings include shops, workshops, and spaces for recreation and social gatherings.


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With the Ministerial Decision of the Ministry of Culture. reference no.ARCH/A1/Φ31/10500/1151/05-05-76, Gazette 661/Β΄/27-05-76 the old town of Xanthi was characterized according to Law 1469/50 as a "place of of special state protection" and with reference no. ARCH/A1/Φ31/5245/6006/07-02-77 (Government Gazette 142/Β΄/25-02-77) Decision of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. the southernmost part of the protected zone was declassified.

According to Y.A.YMATH/5385/24-11-1995 (Government Gazette 1097/D/14-12-1995) five hundred and ninety-three (593) buildings in the settlement of the Old Town of Xanthi were classified as preserved. These buildings are divided into preserved categories A', B' and C', with the buildings of category A' and B' being the most valuable.


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The buildings in the old town of Xanthi are usually single or double storey and in rare cases three storey

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