PHILIPPES ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE

This 87-hectare site (Αρχαιολογικός Χώρος Φιλίππων/Archaiologikos Choros Filippon) has been a Unesco World Heritage Site since 2016. The main reason: it's the first home of Christianity in Europe. The ancient city of Philippi bears the name of its first official founder, Philip II of Macedonia, in 356 BC. But the city entered the history books in 42 BC, when rivals to Julius Caesar's succession fought a decisive battle here. Marc Antony and Octavian won. Their opponents' legionnaires were demobilized and forced to settle here. an "unimportant locality", according to Strabo, Philippi suddenly became a "little Rome". Its dynamism and position along the Via Egnatia soon attracted new populations... and new ideas. For his first evangelizing mission in Europe, in 49-50, the apostle Paul chose Philippi. Although the saint was briefly imprisoned there, he forged close ties with the local population. He returned twice, in 56 and 57. Above all, he addressed his famous Epistle to the Philippians, one of the great texts of the New Testament. A century later, the Philippians would have converted en masse to the new monotheism.

Theater and petroglyphs. After the ticket office and the Byzantine ramparts, the theater is grandiose: set against the hill of Orvilos, dominated by the acropolis, it was built when the city was founded and comes alive again in summer during the Philippi Festival. It is one of the few Macedonian monuments on the site. It was completely remodeled by the Romans to accommodate circus games (gladiators, wild animals...). The hill also bears an astonishing testimony to polytheism: 180 rocks bear small bas-reliefs from the ^2nd and ^3rd centuries, half of them dedicated to Artemis, most often depicted as a huntress. These naive petroglyphs are undoubtedly ex-voto offerings. With no equivalent elsewhere in Greece, they were engraved at the height of the transition period. Soon, the ancient temples would be demolished to make way for basilicas.

Basilica alley and museum. The Via Egnatia, the great Roman road traced in the ^2nd century BC between Rome and Byzantium, passed through here to form the city's main axis. Around it are concentrated the most prestigious monuments: the Roman forum, built shortly before St. Paul's first visit, and five early Christian basilicas dating from the ^4th and^5th centuries. Among these ruins, the episcopal palace incorporated an octagonal basilica surrounded by an ambulatory. Inspired by imperial palaces, it was dedicated to Saint Paul. Under cover, it retains its marble paving and beautiful mosaic pavements featuring geometric motifs and Christian symbols (peacock, tree of Life). Behind the forum, Basilica "B" is the best preserved: high sections of brick wall, arches and columns. On the other side, in the continuation of Basilica "A", is an ancient cistern that has become a place of pilgrimage: the "prison of St. Paul", where the apostle spent a few weeks and forged his legend. The visit continues with Basilica "C" and the small archaeological museum. The museum houses very little: a few steles and statues, a fragment of a mosaic, basilica capitals... You can finish your visit by climbing to an altitude of 260 m to enjoy the views from the top of the acropolis.