I got up early and headed out solo to run. Abi and Sophie both needed the sleep. I probably do too, but I can catch up on the bus or something. I went hard on the waterfront, doing sprints at the end as the cherry on top of the exertion cake.
After cleaning up and eating breakfast, we headed out into the city to get a look at things and hear presentations from Sophie, Jessica, and Brad. Thessaloniki is a beautiful city. While it has in its history often come second to other cities in Greece (it’s currently the second largest city in the country), it has many qualities that have caused me to prefer it over Athens. I haven’t spent long enough in Thessaloniki to really get a sense of how it is, but the first impressions were extremely positive.
Sophie delivered our first presentation of the morning at Agia Sofia, which takes its name and some architectural influence from the more famous church in Istanbul. The church was built extremely early on and is dated to the middle of the 8th century CE based on the style of art inside. There’s also a letter from a monk in 797 that mentions the church, so it would have had to be in existence when he wrote. The church is a weird transitional style of architecture. The earlier basilica design is combined with the cross and square that is the hallmark of later Byzantine churches. Sophie did a great job with her presentation. She put the whole thing together on pretty short notice after arriving in Athens and her delivery was excellent.
The dome of Agia Sofia. Technically probably wasn't supposed to have this picture, the signage
is quite unclear regarding whether all pictures or just flash are prohibited.
We toured around inside the church for some time and then moved on. I got a bunch of pictures that apparently we weren’t supposed to take. As good as pictograph signs are, the one differentiating no photography in general vs. no flash photography is too unclear. And yeah, that sounds like I deliberately ignored the sign, but if we go back to the church I bet I could convince you that it means either no flash or no photography at all. Anyways, the next stop was Agios Demetrios.
Jessica gave us the low down on the church, which was created after the death of Demetrios, who later became the patron saint of the area. Basically, Demetrios tried to convert people to Christianity when it was still outlawed in the Roman Empire and was imprisoned. While imprisoned, a Christian man came to him for a blessing to fight a favored gladiator of the tetrarch for Greece. The tetrarchs were the administrators of roughly a quarter of the Roman Empire and were put into place when the empire became too unwieldy to manage from one seat. The Christian man killed the gladiator, but when the tetrarch had found out what had happened, he killed the man and Demetrios. However, his body was recovered and buried by brave Christians. Apparently, his bones and relics ooze myrrh and have healing properties.
The delicious smelling bones. This area did smell like myrrh, to the church's credit.
Dodgy claims about supernatural bones aside, the church was really cool. I even got into the older sections under the church before being shooed out by a crew shooting video for a TV show. Still, snagged some good photos.
An older altar under the church.
Our next stop was the Rotunda, created by the Tetrarch Galerius as his eventual mausoleum. Galerius died and was buried elsewhere, however. The Rotunda was converted into a church and features some gorgeous mosaics. One cool feature of the mosaics is that they depict monumental architecture, that is, art in art. The pictures, again, are locked on my SD card, but believe me they were incredible.
Some of the buildings portrayed in the Rotunda mosaics. The conservation job here is really well done.
After a short walk from the Rotunda, Brad delivered a presentation on the Triumphal Arch of Galerius. It’s massive as it currently stands and we only have a fraction of it remaining. The remaining pillars are loaded with reliefs, depicting processions, Galerius kicking ass up and down the empire while on campaign, Galerius sacrificing piously to the gods, and generally Galerius being a winner. Interestingly, the reliefs are not chronologically organized, unlike something like the Column of Trajan in Rome. Brad killed it with his presentation, both with his knowledge and delivery. We were next to one of the busiest intersections in the city and being loud enough to be heard and comprehensible is a skill that not everyone has. Brad does though and his notes on the reliefs were comprehensive and informative.
Studying the reliefs on the arch.
After a lunch break that I filled with a tasty falafel sandwich/wrap thing, we were on to the archaeological museum. Dr. Eleni Manakidou met us there and was available for questions as we moved through the museum. The highlight for me was certainly the Derveni Papyrus, for several reasons. The first is personal. I read the translation of the fragments for a class this year and being able to confront a source of deep confusion seemed appropriately cathartic. Secondly, it’s our first known instance of literary commentary. And that’s cool. Really cool.
In person, you can make out letters. This picture obviously doesn't do the papyrus justice.
We also had a presentation from Andrea on the Derveni Krater. The krater is shaped like a normal drinking vessel except it’s massive. And made completely out of metal with gorgeous reliefs all over it. It’s one of the most impressive pieces I’ve ever seen. It even looks slightly golden due to the ratio of tin to copper. The reliefs would have been created by pounding inside out on a sheet of metal. The amount of craftsmanship in this one piece is awe-inspiring.
The Derveni Krater. The scale of this thing is unbelievable when you see it in person.
Our next stop was the Byzantine museum. Despite being mostly outside my area of interest, I was still impressed with some of the textiles that are preserved. There was a ceremonial bishop’s garb that really caught my eye. It makes sense why processing the cross takes so long - people are walking more slowly because the robes they wear are super heavy and have metal all over them.
The heavy robes in question.
After another short break, we were off to explore the city walls. Which meant that I got to scramble and climb all over the old walls. Other than the physical joy of basically clambering on an adult jungle gym, we also saw an awesome gate with an inscription to one of female regents of the city whose name I’m currently struggling to recall. Still, it was interesting to get a small glimpse of a woman in power in the Byzantine area, which was not exactly known for equally representing both sexes in leadership roles.
The inscription mentioned above.
Our walk took us by several monasteries on the way back to the hotel, where we showered up and then headed out for dinner. The harbor side restaurants of Thessaloniki have great views and some great food. We ate delicious pizza and pasta at a restaurant called High School. As much as never want to go back to that time in my life, High School capital H capital S is somewhere I’d definitely revisit. Early start tomorrow. Sadly, we must depart Thessaloniki and begin heading back south. The program is ending. I don’t want it to, but it must. And now we’re in the home stretch.
Thanks for reading.
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