In the upper part of the hill of Servia, the citadel occupies an area of about 2.5 acres. It has an irregular pentagonal shape, following the terrain’s topography, and is surrounded by a fortified enclosure reinforced on its sides by a series of towers of different periods on the west, north, and south. The fortification of the citadel on its eastern side is not remarkable due to the steep cliff that runs along it, while the fortified enclosure has collapsed along the entire length of the southern side.
Today, the fortified enclosure of the citadel has three standing towers and two towers in a ruinous state. A solid polygonal tower, probably of the 11th century, dominates the south side of the enclosure. In the middle of the western enclosure of the citadel, the foundation of a triangular tower-like structure was discovered. Traces of architectural remains, possibly of a tower, can also be seen in the north-eastern corner of the enclosure.
In the northwestern part of the fortification enclosure of the citadel, the part that faces the upper city, there are two four-sided towers of similar layout and architecture, which, according to archaeological research, were added to the fortification of the citadel in a later phase, around the middle of the 14th century. The western tower, the restoration of which was completed in 2023, is located in the west corner of the citadel. It is quadrilateral with a roughly rectangular plan, with dimensions of 7 × 7 m, a side thickness of 1,3 m, and a height of about 17 m. It is built of rows of carved stones on the tower’s facades and filled with rough stones inside, with good-quality lime mortar as a binding material. A particular feature of the facades is the extensive use of bricks in irregular rows. The tower is three-story and wooden floors defined each one of them. The northern tower has similar morphological characteristics which can be found in a series of 14th-century towers in Macedonia. The towers’ construction can, therefore, be associated either with the occupation of Servia by Stefan Dusan in 1341 and the care he took to strengthen the fortification of Servia, a tactic he also followed in other castles he occupied, or by Ioannis Kantakouzenos, who took possession of Servia after 1350.
Inside the citadel, traces of architectural structures that served its military and administrative functions are still visible. The excavation data revealed evidence of the settlement layout inside the northern side of the fortified citadel enclosure that was developed after the construction of the walls. In particular, the remains of six single-story buildings, possibly used as military quarters, warehouses, or stables, have come to light. At the same time, movable finds suggest the existence of a pottery workshop within the citadel.
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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.
