The inner enclosure of the fortification of Servia, also known as the middle or transverse wall, has a polygonal shape and is better preserved than the external walls of the city. It was the castle’s second line of defense, dividing Byzantine Servia into an upper and lower city. The archaeological evidence indicates that the upper city covered an area of about 20 hectares and was more sparsely populated than the lower city. The middle wall was of great height, as can be seen from its remaining parts, and was reinforced by towers at strategic points, making the upper city a safer place to concentrate the population of the lower city in the event of a siege.
The modern cobbled path leads to the partially restored tower of the middle wall that served as an entrance gate from the lower to the upper city. The building is more than 4 meters high and has an internal dimension of 4 x 4 meters, while the entrance to the upper city was through two gates of 3.5 and 2 meters wide on the northern and western sides of the tower. These openings show that only the western one was closed with a door.
During the restoration work on the middle wall, a single-space church, measuring 8,40 x 5,30 m with a portico on its north side, was discovered almost attached to the inner side of the entrance tower. The church bears interesting wall paintings, surviving only on the lower part of the walls, which, although preserved in a fragmentary state, could be dated between the 13th and 14th centuries based on iconographic and stylistic criteria. The eastern part of this chapel is formed compactly to save as much space as possible: the niche of the Prothesis is built into the wall, and a stone altar, plastered on all sides, is placed within the semicircular arch of the sanctuary.
Ευγενίδου, Δ. (1988) “Ανασκαφές στη βυζαντινή Κεντρική και Δυτική Μακεδονία, Σέρβια και Μογλενά”, ΑΕΜΘ 1, 1987. Θεσσαλονίκη: ΥΠΠΟ-ΤΑΠ/Αριστοτέλειο Πανεπιστήμιο Θεσσαλονίκης, σ. 63-67.
Ευγενίδου, Δ. (1997) “Τα βυζαντινά μνημεία των Σερβίων”, πρακτικά Α’ Πανσερβιώτικου Συνεδρίου για την ανάπτυξη της περιοχής. Σέρβια, 6-8 Οκτωβρίου 1995, σ.79-84.
Ευγενίδου, Δ. (1997) Κάστρα Μακεδονίας και Θράκης, Βυζαντινή Καστροκτισία. Αθήνα: ΑΔΑΜ, σ. 142-147.
Theologidou, K. (2005) “The castle of Servia. Historical documentation, architectural Description, pathology, proposed repair works”, in 1st European Workshop Restoration use of the early Medieval fortifications in the east Mediterranean countries. Veria, Byzantine Museum, 27-29 September 2003. Thessaloniki, pp. 93-109.
Kontogiannis N.D. (2022) Byzantine Fortifications: Protecting the Roman Empire in the East. Yorkshire – Philadelphia: Pen & Sword Books Ltd.
Bakirtzis, Ν. (2010) “The Practice, Perception and Experience of Byzantine Fortification”, in The Byzantine World, ed. P. Stephenson, Abingdon, Oxford: Routledge, pp. 352-371 (355)
Ξυγγόπουλος, Α. (1957) Τα μνημεία των Σερβίων. Αθήνα: Εταιρεία Μακεδονικών Σπουδών.
Papayianni, I. et al. “THE FORTMED PROJECT. A Holistic Approach for the Restoration of Castles and their reuse for Socioeconomic Development of the Around Area. The Castle of Servia”, in Proceedings of the International Congress “Studies in Ancient Structures” Yildiz Technical University – Faculty of Architecture, 9-13 July 2001, Istanbul – Turkey, pp. 889-898.
Παπαθανασίου, Θ. (1939) Το μεσαιωνικόν φρούριον των Σερβίων. Θεσσαλονίκη: Τύποις. Μιχ. Τριανταφυλλου.
Πέτκος, Α. και Καλταπανίδου-Πυροβέτση, Β. (2009) Σέρβια, μια Βυζαντινή πόλη-κάστρο. Διαδρομές στο χώρο και στο χρόνο. Βέροια: 11η Εφορεία Βυζαντινών Αρχαιοτήτων- Υπουργείο Πολιτισμού-Περιφέρεια Δυτικής Μακεδονίας.
Σταλίδης, Γ. & Κούτσιανου, Σ. (2019) “Ανασκαφική έρευνα στο κάστρο Σερβίων. Αρχικές παρατηρήσεις και συμπεράσματα”, ΑΕΜΘ 28. Θεσσαλονίκη 20-22 Μαρτίου 2014, σ. 117-128.
Τάνου, Σ. (2017) “Τυπολογία βυζαντινών πύργων σε οχυρωματικούς περιβόλους του βορειοελλαδικού χώρου: μια πρώτη προσέγγιση”, στο Βαραλής, Καραγιάννη (επιμ.) Κτίτωρ, Αφιέρωμα στον δάσκαλο Γεώργιο Βελένη. Θεσσαλονίκη: Μυγδονία, σ. 334-335.
Τσιάπαλη, Μ. (2022) Η καστροπολιτεία των Σερβίων, Θεσσαλονίκη: Εφορεία Αρχαιοτήτων Περιφέρειας Θεσσαλονίκης.
Τσιλιπάκου, Α. (2002) Σέρβια, μια βυζαντινή Kαστροπολιτεία. Αθήνα: Τ.Α.Π.Α.
The creation of this website is part of the implementation of the Act “Consolidation and Restoration of the Western Tower of the Castle of Servia,” which was implemented by the Ephorate of Antiquities of Kozani and co-funded by Greece and the European Union / European Regional Development Fund through the Operational Programme “Western Macedonia” of the NSRF 2014-2020.
