Greek Taxi Tour Around Imathia

Neolithic settlements, royal tombs with frescoed walls, gold caskets and gold wreaths and crowns, waterfalls, rivers, high mountains, verdant villages and endless plains are some of the things Imathia has to of­fer. Veria is the prefectural capital, a modem town that still has several traditional neighborhoods. In Byzantine times it was a major center, one of the chief cities of Macedonia. Its past importance is reflected in its 51 Byzantine and post - Byzantine churches, many of which contain wonderful wall paintings.

It is only 12 km northwest of Vergina, which gained worldwide renown with the discoveries made there by Professor Manolis Andronikos in the late 1970s. The incredible wealth of the site's finds led to the conclusion that Vergina was actually the first capital of the kingdom of Macedonia, Aegae.

The excavations brought to light the acropolis, well-preserved sections of the walls, foundations of Hel-lenistic houses, the palace, theatre, a temple and, to the north of the ancient city, the cemetery.

However, the most important monument at Vergina is the complex of royal tombs, which were unearthed in 1977-78 in the present village. The largest of them belonged to Philip II, a smaller one to a young prince, perhaps Alexander, and the third - a cist grave - to a woman.

Many funerary stelae were found in the vicinity, bear­ing invaluable inscriptions, all of them in Greek.

Philip's grave yielded a marble sarcophagus in which a solid larnax had been placed containing the bones of the dead man and his gold wreath. Round the cas­ket laid weapons, various vases and utensils bearing the royal seal.

Here, too, was buried one of Philip's seven wives. Her bones were also gathered in a gold larnax, in which there was another gold diadem, one of the most beau­tiful pieces of ancient jewelry ever found, and a cloth woven in purple and gold, decorated with flowers and birds, which is on display in the Vergina museum. However, something else, something unique was also discovered in the tomb: a painting of a hunting scene on an Ionian frieze. It is a masterpiece the like of which had only previously been seen in works of the Italian Renaissance.

The Prince's tomb is very similar to that of Philip. It, too has a painted frieze as well as a bed with gold and ivory ornamentation, surely one of the most elegant creations that has come down to us.

Finally, the cist grave yielded a brilliant fresco depict­ing Pluto's abduction of Persephone; this and the hunting scene are the only original works of any great painters of antiquity that have survived to the present. Southwest of Veria, on the slopes of Vermion (18km.), lies the village of Kastanies, which is usually snowed - in during the winter. This is the site of the monastery of the Panagia Soumela, founded by refugees from Pontos.

At Kato Vermio (26 km. from Veria), all that snow is put to good use at the Seli ski center (1.400 m. alt). A town noted for its waterfalls, its wine, its fruit and its Carnival customs is Naoussa. Situated 19 km from Veria in a green, well-watered region, it is very pic­turesque with traditional houses and the Arapitsa riv­er running through it. Near Naoussa is the village of Lefkadia, where Macedonian tombs and the remains of Hellenistic buildings have been found.

Finally, 9 km northeast of Veria at Nea Nikomidia, excavations have revealed traces of a Neolithic settle­ment of the 7th millennium BC, which is the oldest agricultural settlement along with Sesklo in Thessaly. The clay female figurines, as well as many frog fig­urines made of steatite are among the most interest­ing exhibits of the Veria Archaeological Museum.

USEFUL INFORMATION:

Archaeological Museum Veria: tel. 23310--24.972

Archaeological Museum Vergina: tel. 23310-92.347

Veria Ski Center: Tel. 23310-26.237

Seli: tel. 23320-49.226 7 ski lifts, 850 skiers per hour. Refuge, hostel, restaurant, cafeteria, ski school and rentals, parking lot. Highest altitude 1800 m., lowest 1400 m. Slopes for skiers of every ability.

Tria And Pende Pigadia Ski Center, Naoussa: Tel. 23320- 44.464 One ski lift, 1470 m., 800 people per hour; 1 tow, 800 m., refuge, ski school, rentals, High­est altitude 2005 m., lowest 1465 m.; 3 difficult slopes, 2000 m. long.

Mountain climbing • mountain refuges

a) At Kato Vermio, Sell, 1450 m. Refuge accommodating 60 people, with water, Kitchen, beds, mattresses and blankets. Information, Alpine Society of Thessaloniki (EOS), tel.: 23110-278.288

b) Also at Seli, refuge sleeping 120 people and direct dial telephone. Information, Alpine Society of Veria (EOS), tel.: 23310- 26.970

c) At Tria Pigadia, two refuges sleeping 35 and 60 people. Information, Naoussa Alpine Society (EOS), tel.: 23320- 28.567

Caves • Gorges:

The impressive Souli Gorge, length 5 km., and the caves at Siaball and Prionia.