{"id":32711,"date":"2023-11-07T05:52:01","date_gmt":"2023-11-07T03:52:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/klqewmpxo.cyon.link\/?p=32711"},"modified":"2024-09-12T07:53:51","modified_gmt":"2024-09-12T04:53:51","slug":"naxos-steinhaeuser-karkos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/azalas.de\/en\/naxos-stonehouses-karkos\/","title":{"rendered":"The old stone houses at Karkos"},"content":{"rendered":"

W<\/big>alking from Ap\u00edranthos to the fortified monastery Fotod\u00f3tis<\/a> near Danak\u00f3s, one passes a picturesque valley called Kark\u00f3s, with a grove of magnificent old Vallonean oaks<\/a>. Two old stone houses bear witness to the former use of this area. The valley was once cultivated with vinyards, though today it is only used for grazing sheep. Right next to the grove on the slope of Mount Koraki\u00e1 lies the small church Panag\u00eda Chrysopig\u00ed<\/a>, originally a Mycenaean tomb.<\/p>\n

\"valley
\nview over the valley of Kark\u00f3s towards Ap\u00edranthos<\/small><\/p>\n

\"valley
\nOn the northern slope of the valley grow magnificent Vallonean oaks.<\/small><\/p>\n

\"old
\nNext to the fields lie two old stone houses where the farmers lived when they were working on the land.<\/small><\/p>\n

\"old
\nThe fields were originally mainly cultivated with vines, for which they are particularly well suited.<\/small><\/p>\n

\"old
\nHere the stone house on the southern edge of the valley with a basin for the treading of the grapes next to it (gr. lino\u00fa<\/em>).<\/small><\/p>\n

\"old
\nIn the lino\u00fa<\/em>, the grapes were crushed with the feet. The juice ran into the small, deeper basin, which can be seen at the front right. In the lino\u00fa<\/em>, two round stone slabs can be seen leaning against the rocks, which were used for the pressing of the piled-up mash overnight.<\/small><\/p>\n

\"old
\nThe house consists of three carefully built rooms.<\/small><\/p>\n

\"old
\nShelves are built into the brickwork in the corner.<\/small><\/p>\n

\"old
\nHere one can see the typical local style of the masonry: stacks of small stone slabs are inserted between the larger stones. This technique was also used in the Hellenistic tower of Chim\u00e1rrou.<\/small><\/p>\n

W<\/big>hile the traditional stone-built houses in the villages had roofs supported by wooden beams and real windows, the old stone shepherds’ houses in the countryside (Greek mitatos<\/em>, pl. mitati<\/em>) usually had roofs made of stone slabs without wood, which is why the mitati<\/em> could only be quite narrow. There was usually only a low entrance and no windows. These houses in Kark\u00f3s are midway between a village stone house and a mitato<\/em>: They are carefully built and have small windows, but are covered with a roof of stone slabs without wooden beams.<\/p>\n

\"old
\nThe other stone house is still very well preserved.<\/small><\/p>\n

\"old
\nThe entrance is surrounded by upright marble posts. The window is an unusual luxury for a simple country house; people obviously stayed here often enough to justify the additional effort.<\/small><\/p>\n

\"old
\nInside the house looking to the right towards the wide fireplace, which was also used for cooking. The roof is built without the use of wood and the interior of the room is narrowed upwards by widening the walls until the space in between them can be bridged by large stone slats.<\/small><\/p>\n

\"old
\nView towards the other side with a small window to the west. The walls are carefully plastered.<\/small><\/p>\n

\"old
\nAbove the stone slabs of the roof lay a thick layer of earth, which was pressed with a cylindrical rock “column” every autumn to make it as waterproof as possible. Here the earthen layer on the roof is well visible in a small mit\u00e1to<\/em> that lies nearby.<\/small><\/p>\n

\"Panagia
\nJust above Kark\u00f3s lies the tiny church of Panag\u00eda Chrysopig\u00ed, originally a Mycenaean tomb.<\/small><\/p>\n

\"old
\nNext to the church excellent marble was quarried for the construction of houses from Mycenaean until modern times. Accordingly, this place is called marmarokopi\u00f3<\/em> (roughly “marble quarry”).<\/small><\/p>\n

see also:<\/p>\n