Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

The aim of this essay is to explain the positions, which are expressed by Neo-Hellene philosopher Nikolaos Zerzoulis (1710-1773) in a letter (1754) to his old teacher, Balanos Vassilopoulos in Ioannina. The opportunity was given by the presentation of "the solution of the Delion problem", by Balanos Vassilopoulos, to the Academies of Europe. Zerzoulis makes some remarks, which allow us to form a clear opinion on the condition of Education during the Ottoman Empire – especially in the 18^th century – and also on the interior differentiation of antiaristotelian thought.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Musical groups of the community of mountainous areas

The example of Metsovo

Α. Μane, PhD Candidate, Laography Section,

Department of History and Archaeology, University of Ioannina

Musical groups are an element of conservation of the cultural tradition of mountainous areas. In this paper, I will be referring to the music of the “solotechnical” groups, that is the musical groups that form part of the social life of the inhabitants of the countryside, as well as the cities, and to their courses in time and place, which accompany people’s social sensitivity.

The musical groups (keep and) create the local version of the musical legacy -a piece of national heritage- making social aspects known, together with their economic identity, but mostly, with the magnitude and the character of civilisation.

The study of the local musical tradition becomes of particular importance, when it incubates social, financial and cultural history. Traditional life, social relationships, the bonding with both tradition and development mark the cultural reality of the function of a musical group within the social context. Thus, the history of the musical groups, with personal versions and social peculiarities, markedly outlines local history.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Votonosi

History, legends and traditions, a journey from the depths of the centuries until today,
bonds and connections with Metsovo

Tr. Sioulis, Instructor, PhD Candidate, Department of History and

Archaeology, School of Philosophy, University of Ioannina

With this essay, an attempt is made to introduce the history of the village Votonosi, its connection and its bonds with Metsovo, along with their common journey from the depths of the centuries until today. Also, there is an attempt to refer to the legends and the traditions created by the imagination of the village people or based on historic or other events.

In the beginning, a detailed description of the village is presented, along with a parallel reference to today’s reality, to the increases and decreases of the population, and the occupations of the inhabitants.

A historic retrospection is then attempted, which starts from the Ancient Ages and continues into the Roman and Byzantine times, the years of Turkish rule and later the modern years.

In this framework, evidence of valid researchers and archaeologists, referring to the archaeological findings which have survived, and information on the epochs which these findings represent, are presented. Also, there is a reference to the walls which lie near a hill of the village and confirm the existence of a population in the area from the Prehistoric Ages until the Roman Ages, while historic sources confirm the continuous existence and the active life of the inhabitants in the area during the Byzantine years, much more during the years of the Turkish Empire and later in the modern years.

Specifically, for the years of Turkish rule and the modern years, the historic sources refer mainly to Metsovo, but with explicit references to the villages around it, among them Votonosi, which after a period of time follows the historic destiny of the wider area around it, with Metsovo of today as Capital. The latter’s ancients inhabitants, as is shown, lived in the area of Votonosi and gradually, for several reasons, many of them left to reach and live in the area today called Metsovo.

There is an attempt in some way to prove and support the assertion which implies that the descent and origin of the inhabitants of Votonosi and Metsovo are common, an event which is confirmed by historic evidence, but is also connected with common customs, habits, language, last names, relationships, names of places etc., which are refer to bonds existing for centuries.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

The various-type development of Metsovo and its part

in the new economy and geography

F. Malkides, PhD Candidate, Sociology Department, Panteion University

For at least fifty years, a large region of the Greek state, Epirus, had stayed outside the planning of national development and evolution, even if, historically, it had played a major part in the country’s course.

The reasons were that the area, due to cold war facts, was capable of accepting as indispensable plans, only military ones, but mainly, that the centre, after the civil war, realised a policy of concentration in Athens, which caused the demographic collapse and the desertion of the periphery.

During that period, a historic community of Epirus, Metsovo, kept a peripheral position, despite its physical and human capabilities.

After 1989, a year which brought changes all over the world, Epirus, was once again connected with its familiar areas. The new geography and economy in the Eastern Europe region, the Balkans, with which Epirus had had privileged relationships, had been restored.

Yet, during the previous period, Epirus hadn’t been offered foundations, communications passages so that it would be able to communicate as it once had.

Now Metsovo will be restricted to its touristic role and to the “weekend escape”. The emigration of its youngsters, either abroad or to Athens, will continue, while policy for the area will concentrate on folklore and culture.

In this paper, after a historical analysis of Epirus and Metsovo, the present condition of Metsovo and a plan for the various-type development of the area are analysed. Proposals such as the Egnatia highway and railway, the preservation of Mount Pindos, the survival and evolution of traditional types of employment, form elements of an environmental development and a serious Greek presence in the new European and global environment.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

A network of local rambler trails in Southern Pindos

A proposition towards sustainable development of the Metsovo area

G. Tsotsos, Surveying Engineer, PhD Candidate

C. Kousidonis, Architect, Regional Planner, PhD

E. Dimitriadis, Associate Professor, School of Architecture,

Aristotelion University of Thessaloniki

The paper investigates the feasibility of a network of local rambler trails in the greater Metsovo area, in the region of Southern Pindos, Greece. The local network is designed as a supplement and extension of the already existing international and national ones. The settlement system and the recent but dynamic tourist development of the area is a significant factor of the design. The goal was to produce a network easy to implement, strongly related to the local history and the wealth of monuments, landscapes and habitats of various species of flora and fauna.

Further on, the necessary conditions and repercussions of the proposed network in relation to the settlement system and administrative areas are examined. The administrative areas have undergone a major restructuring through the 1997 law, known as Kapodistrias, concerning the local administration in both its administrative and spatial planning dimensions. The paper addresses the Local Administration Organizations (‘dimi’ and ‘kinotites’) with the opportunity to evaluate the establishment of the proposed network in the competitive context of tourist development as a means for attaining sustainability.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Bioresource Utilization for Sustainable Development in the Metsovo Area

E. Koukios, Professor N.T.U.A.

E. Avgerinos, Chemical Engineer, PhD Candidate, N.T.U.A.

Students and Members of the Bioresource Technology Unit

 Department of Chemical Engineering, N.T.U.A.

This study is the result of series of student papers prepared by Undergradute Students and supervised by Graduate Students at the Department of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens. The whole exercise took place in the framework of the course: “Biomass Utilization” (9^th Semester, Part of the Organic Industries Option). The aim of the particular studies was to further investigate the relationship between technology, culture and decentralisation in the specific technological field, focusing on the case of the Metsovo area.

The whole “package” of studies aims at an evaluation of the current situation and the prospects of future developments within three major local fields of the economy: agriculture and agro-industry, animal farming and respective industry, as well as forestry and wood industry.

The capacity of local agriculture in growing conventional crops is limited, so the possibility of growing aromatic plants for a production of essential oils and other high-value products was examined. As a mountain area, Metsovo has the potential for animal farming, nevertheless of limited quality and quantity spectrum. In the field of wood production and conversion, we have identified a rather insufficient use of the local production capacities of forests (137 km² - utilization only 0.98 m³/km²/year).

Other interesting issues studied included the potential application of new bioenergy technologies, wastewater treatment, and possibilitites for industrial growth based on the use of local biological resources, e.g. of a pulp-and-paper mill.

Bioenergy utilization is extremely important for the whole area, as a means to cover the local energy needs in an environmental friendly way. Such potential bioenergy applications include district heating of houses in the municipality, small mobile biomass pyrolysis unit, as well as biomass combustion for household use, in addition to production of biogas and bio ethanol by anaerobic digestion of cheese whey and liquid waste from animal breeding.

Installation of a pulp-and-paper mill in the area could permit utilization of wood resources from the surrounding regions as well, with the limiting factor being the economics of production.

In a final study, the students examined the relationship between the eco-development and eco-tourism in Metsovo, taking into account the local ecosystem as well as the local priorities: use of natural resources, protection of the environment, quality of life, traditions, and sustainable development.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Cluster for recreation in Metsovo, led by the restoration and

reuse of a traditional water-mill

N. Kordali, Architecture Engineer, N.T.U.A.

The theme of this study is placed in Metsovo, specifically at the foot of the steep slope where the picturesque town is perched. The occasion has been an abandoned water-mill, one of those that someone often meets by the rivers throughout the greek countryside and whose traces disappear as time passes by. The water-mill was used almost exclusively for the grinding of cereals. Its construction consisted of a simple rectangular building, which was housing the mechanisms, the focal point of the mill: a mobility mechanism with a paddle-wheel and a grinding mechanism with millstones. The need for constructions for gathering, storing and channeling water greatly increased the cost of building and conserving the whole system.

The restoration of a building destined to house a specific function (the need for which no longer exists) is a point of particular speculation. Considering that with the choice of a solution that deprives a building, which is located outside the inhabited area and cannot be very easily approached, of its usage character, you are essentially issuing its death sentence, the effort focused on the support of the use of the mill, framed by other equivalent uses and the creation of the constructions necessary for them. The whole theme is a game of multiple balances: the usage building of the mill must keep its character, despite the changes in needs that time has effected. On the other hand, you have to attract people, in spite of the long distance from the town and fill the building with life. Simultaneously, the possible new uses and constructions should obey the basic principle followed by the preexisting mill, the Need, while, at the same time, you ought to i) respect the balance which is defined by nature and the old building, which literally vanishes into the landscape and ii) ensure that the presence of modern constructions is clearly signified, without imitating, though at the same time, it must blend in the existing environment (structured or not), without insulting or rivaling it, but harmoniously coexisting.

The main trunk of the solution that was chosen is a route which leads from Metsovo to my cluster and crosses the road that joins the monasteries of Virgin Maria and Saint Nikolaos, making the “Mill” a binding ring and a pleasant intermediate stop. The water-mill and the area around it are converted to a place of recreation. The building itself, keeping one of the two preexistent mechanisms in operation, hosts a traditional pasta-making workshop which, beyond its educational character, can also yield economic benefits for the Municipality, where it belongs.

A new building, beside the old mill, houses a generator to produce electric power in order to cover the needs of the cluster. Its function leans on the same principle with that of the mill, i.e. the conversion of the water’s dynamic energy into motional energy by means of a paddle-wheel and finally, into electricity (for the case of the generator). Emphasizing the educational content of the cluster, there is, in the same building, an exhibition of the various manners of using water potential though time (water-mills, water-saw-mills, etc.). Another, bigger building is located between the building of generator and the river, containing a refreshment-room and restaurant, supplied with the appropriate auxiliary spaces and external and internal sitting-rooms (so that it can be used in all seasons), with an amazing view of the forest and the town of Metsovo, which literally hangs over your head.

Special attention is given to the clear differentiation of the new buildings from the older ones, by means of the different technology and materials that are used for their realization (wood and copper leaves for the coverage of roofs), whose selection had, as main rule, their harmonization with the sensitive natural environment.

The buildings are connected by shelters and wooden floors that prescribe stops as well as specific routes, in which the straight line that is traced with a direction of North to South dominates and daringly extends over the river, in response to the call of the opposite shore, to cross the river and enjoy its own charms. The wooden bridge offers views of unique beauty (like the little water-falls of the dam of Metsovitikos river), in themselves a reason for getting from Metsovo down to the “Mill”, while at the same time, it makes the cluster a connective point between the town and the opposite slope with its village (Anilio). The walk can be continued to the small church of Saint Athanassios, the monastery of Virgin Maria (historical monastery of the 17^th century with remarkable artistic treasures) and the nearby water-saw-mill. For those who don’t like long walks, the node created at the “Mill” offers the ability of visiting, quite easily, the two monasteries by short roads (for driving or walking), while pleasant stops have been planned for the walkers’ rest, as well as for recreation and enjoyment of the natural beauty.

Surely, every issue can be faced in countless ways. My suggestion means to serve the passer-by or the indigenous inhabitant of Metsovo of today, not by inviting them to the depth of the gorge just to show how our grandfathers were grinding cereals years ago, but rather, longing for the central part that the river with its small industries once used to play for the life of the community, it vindicates -for the Mill- the position of a life knot that separates and joins elements inside and outside the town.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Open air hydrological museum in Anthochori, Metsovo

S. Voyadjis, Architect, PhD, N.T.U.A.

In Greece and the surrounding area, almost minimal change has occurred in the production of food and clothing from the Neolithic era till almost nowadays. Cereals and their products, like bread, constituted the basic staple and natural fibers, like cotton or wool, were used for clothing. The technology needed for their production and processing remained almost unchanged for a very long period, practically up to the middle of the 19^th century.

Epirus, with its mostly mountainous ground and plenty of rainfalls, allowed the use of water as power generating force. Water mills are practically whole workshops, comprising flourmills and other machines (mandania and dristeles) for the processing of fibers and woolen clothing used by the inhabitants of the mountains. This is the case of the water mill of Anthochori, in the prefecture of Metsovo, that has the whole group of machines.

This paper presents proposals for the conservation and rehabilitation of the water mill of Anthochori and the construction of an open air hydrological museum.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Development of a multimedia Land Information System  for the registration, presentation, protection and maintenance  of Metsovo County churches and monasteries

A. Gogos, Rural and Surveying Engineer

J. Yannelos, Rural and Surveying Engineer

C. Danielides, PhD Candidate, N.T.U.A.

A. Labropoulos, PhD Candidate, N.T.U.A.

P. Zentelis, Assistant Professor, N.T.U.A.

Laboratory of Photogrammetry, N.T.U.A.

Churches and monasteries in Greece are tightly connected to our country’s history, culture and tradition. Projecting and preserving this cultural inheritance should be one of the primary objectives of any cultural, environmental and regional planning policy. These temples, living monuments of our past, have properly preserved and promoted the Greek element through the ages, through wars, revolutions and other difficult situations of the past. Therefore, it is a duty to ourselves, as well as to the next generations, to protect and to maintain these monuments.

This project develops a multimedia (using audiovisual information such as pictures, video-clips and sound-clips) Land Information System, in order to present, to register, to protect and to maintain the holly temples and monasteries of Metsovo County, which consists of the Municipality of Metsovo (with 13 churches and 2 monasteries), and the Communities of Anelio (4 churches), Anthohori (2 churches), Votonossi (2 churches), Milea (3 churches) and Chrissovitsa (2 churches). Additionally, one isolated monastery is located in Anthohori and another near Zagorochoria.

The system’s main objective was to link geographical to descriptive information, such as pictures, comments and explanatory text, in a way that data-access and retrieval would be facilitated even for an inexperienced user. The system’s database is structured in a way that geographical data can be accessed easily in various ways. The most important aspect of the system is that this database can be expanded and brought up to date anytime, according to the user’s needs, so that the information provided, should always be useful.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Development of a Land Information System using Multimedia to create a Civilisation Guide for Metsovo County

M. Alexandrou, Rural and Surveying Engineer

C. Danielidis, PhD Candidate, N.T.U.A.

A. Labropoulos, PhD Candidate, N.T.U.A.

P. Zentelis, Assistant Professor, N.T.U.A.

Laboratory of Photogrammetry, N.T.U.A.

This project developed a multimedia Land Information System. The application was focused on Ioannina Prefecture and particularly on Metsovo County and is aiming to develop a local Civilization Guide.

The project’s interface was designed to be user-friendly, and was structured in an expandable an updateable way, enabling its use in the future.

The multimedia data included in the system consists of digitized audiovisual information such as pictures, video-clips, music and sound-clips. These data topics refer to people’s everyday activities and civilisation issues of Metsovo County. The information can be retrieved either geographically, through the entities depicted on the aerial photos of the region’s villages, or through menus created on the interface of the program. Specifically, the multimedia information the user can experience, are pictures (photos, text), video (tour of the Averof Gallery and of the Folklore and Epirotical Art Museum) and sounds (music, explanatory text).

For the system’s operation, a database (tables containing entities’ attributes) was structured in order to link entities to the corespondent attributes and multimedia data.  The environment chosen for developing the system was G.I.S. ArcView 3.0, due to its user-friendly interface as well as its expanding and updating ability.

As a result to the system’s specialized design, which was described above, the application is easy to use and the information included can be retrieved just by clicking on a tool or a menu, without demanding any specialized knowledge in computer use.

The application described has the potential to be used by any individual user interested in knowing more about Metsovo County, but also, by local authorities as a means of better organizing and developing the district.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Τechnical-geological conditions and technical-geological map

of the city of Metsovo

N. Fytrolakis, Professor, Division of Geological Sciences

M. Antoniou, Assistant Professor, Division of Geological Sciences

Department of Mining Engineering and Metallurgy, N.T.U.A.

This study was carried out as a scientific offer of the Technical University of Athensto the city of Metsovo. It is composed of a technical-geological map of the Metsovo city area, at scale 1:2.500. The Technical-geological map and a city planning diagram have been deposited at the town-hall. This city planning diagram shows the main sites of the city in which crevices or deformations appear on buildings’ walls (coloured and at scale 1:2.500).

The geological formations were differentiated in four main lithological unities, according to the rock which predominates in each one (thickbedded mudstones and sandstones, thinbedded mudstones, alternation of shales and thinbedded mudstones and beds of clay shales and marls). Besides these primary formations, two secondary ones have been distinguished, namely old and recent moved soil-masses and the mantle of rock waste. Each one is characterized by a different mechanical behaviour.

Generally, the most serious problems in building and construction of technical works, is expected to be confronted in the eastern and southern part of the city. All these problems are due to the reduced shearing strength of the soils and by extension, to their sliding tendency.

Buildings with crevices and deformations on the walls are mainly localized in the same areas.

Foundation with cast in situ piles is suggested in the cases that the soil creeping goes relatively deep into the ground.

In the dipping beds of the thickbedded and thinbedded mudstones with the shale alternations, foundation on a base slab of concrete, which must be laid on a flat and clean background, is suggested.

In order to prevent and restrict phenomena of soil-masses creeping and sliding, the drainage of rain and spring gushing up water is suggested. City authorities as well as private citizens can be involved in the above matter.

No earthquake epicentres exist in the Metsovo city area, but the area is shaken by earthquakes, the epicentres of which can be located in adjoining areas. Building strains due to the earthquakes which happen from time to time affect the buildings cumulatively and cause soil micromovings (creepings).

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Geological conditions

Chemical and microbiological characteristics of the main

springs of Metsovo area

J. Kyroussis, Assistant Professor, Division of Geological Sciences

N. Fytrolakis, Professor, Division of Geological Sciences

Department of Mining Engineering and Metallurgy, N.T.U.A.

In this paper, the geological, chemical and microbiological characteristics of the water of the main springs of Metsovo area are examined.

Eight (8) of the springs originated from the formation of Flysch and three (3) from the ophiolitic nappe.

From the study of the chemical diagrams (fig. 1, 2, 3, 3a, 4 and 5), we conclude:

·         From the chemical point of view, all samples examined are suitable for drinking.

·         From the microbiological point of view, most springs are not suitable for drinking.

·         All springs are suitable for irrigation.

·         There is not any serious contamination by heavy metals.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

The contribution of analogue and digital remote sensing methods in detecting landslides in the Metsovo area

E. Rokos, Geologist, PhD Candidate, N.T.U.A.

N. Fytrolakis, Professor, Division of Geological Sciences,

Department of Mining Engineering and Metallurgy, N.T.U.A.

In this paper the systematic study of a probable reactivation or other changes in a big landslide during the period 1946-1987 is presented. The landslide was identified in the stereo-pair of the air-photos 200668-200669 taken on 31.7.1987, at 1:6,000 scale, south of Metsovo. This study is part of broader research on the contribution of analogue and digital remote sensing methods and techniques to the exploration of landslides in the Metsovo area.

The Metsovo area lithologically consists of flysche formations of the Pindos zone and probably of the Gavrovos-Tripoli zone. The area where the landslide was detected, consists of alternations of sandstone strata with silty clay and marls.

The evolution of the landslide through time, from 1946 to 1987, was studied with the aid of analogue and digital remote sensing methods and techniques, regarding its boundaries, three-dimensional form and shape.

For that purpose, the following stereo-pairs of black and white air-photos of the Metsovo-Anilio area were used (courtesy of the Army Map Service of Greece):

a. 35531-35532, scale 1:2,000, date 10.9.1946

b. 9677-9678, scale 1:16,000, date  25.9.1959

c. 105968-105969, scale 1:12,000, date 24.6.1978

d. 153422-153423, scale 1:12,000, date 19.6.1983

e. 200668-200669, scale 1:6,000, date 31.7.1987

These stereo-pairs were studied with lens and mirror stereoscopes in order to define the boundaries of the landslide area in each period and detect the changes that took place in this area.

The air-photos were then scanned with the aid of a scanner (HP Scanjet 4c), geometrically corrected using ground control points and referenced on the 200668 air-photo of 1987, in order to facilitate their correlation and processing, taking into consideration that they are central projections of the earth’s surface.

The next step in this study was digitizing the boundaries of the landslide area on each date, in order to study the possible changes that took place in the shape and the size of the landslide area.

Finally, unsupervised classifications were carried out for each air-photo, in order to divide the landslide area into three classes (bare soil, vegetation and shades, low vegetation).

The differentiation of the boundaries of each class on each date, shows the specific and characteristic changes in the landslide area.

The digitizing and geometric correction (rectification) processes and the multiple digital analysis of the air-photos were achieved with the aid of ER Mapper (image processing of satellite images and GIS).

The conclusions of this first stage of the research are :

·         During the period 1946-1987 there was no extension of the landslide area.

·         There were no new landslide phenomena visible in the air-photos, inside the research area.

·         There was a considerable increase in vegetation cover, mostly after 1978. This rise is due both to human intervention (in order to improve the landscape, protect the soil and prevent further landslide phenomena) and growth of natural vegetation.

In the next research stage, the aim is to develop a method of automatic detection of possible landslide phenomena with the aid of satellite image processing and to validate them by ground checking.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

A Comparison of the Quality and Accuracy of Classifications

of SPOT XS Remote Sensing Images

Corrected or not for Topographic Relief Displacement

in the Metsovo Province Area

Dr. Eng. D. Rokos, Professor, N.T.U.A.

V. Andronis, PhD Candidate, N.T.U.A.

Remote Sensing Laboratory, N.T.U.A.

Dr. E.Vozikis, Geomet Ltd

E.Varela, Geologist A.U.Th., Geomet Ltd

One of the fundamental processing techniques of digital remotely sensed images is their supervised classification into categories of land use/cover or other interesting geologic, pedologic, settlement density etc. features (Rokos, 1988, 1989, 1993, Rokos et al., 1995, 1998). During this process, based on data taken from appropriate and sufficient polygons of ground controls which are carried out in homogeneous zones (zones of common data, features, uses, cover, patterns, conditions, etc.) and on their correspondence to the specific digital values of their images (Rokos, 1988, Rokos et al., 1995, 1998), a special algorithm is “trained”, which “ascribes” the remaining areas of the digital remotely sensed image to the entity categories of the ground control polygons corresponding to their digital values.

The supervised classification method used in this research of the greater area of Metsovo Province (approximately 800 km²), was applied using the maximum likelihood algorithm, according to which every pixel of a satellite digital remotely sensed image is ascribed to a category (class), based on the rule that the probability that the specific pixel belongs to the specific category is greater than the probability that it belongs to other categories (Jensen, 1986).

Classifications were attempted:

a) in the multispectral SPOT XS digital remotely sensed image of 01-07-1996 and

b) in the same multispectral SPOT XS digital remotely sensed image of 01-07-1996, in which, however, errors due to topographic relief displacement were corrected using a digital elevation model (DEM).

The digital elevation model was developed from a stereo pair of SPOT PAN panchromatic satellite images of 16-01-1989 and 12-02-1989, using the HELAVA DPW 770 V. 4.0 system. Based on the digital elevation method, the orthogonal projection image of the SPOT PAN digital remotely sensed image was then calculated. The method used for this calculation was pixel by pixel rectification, according to which the photogrammetric collinearity equations are solved for every image pixel. The orthoprojected image which resulted using the HELAVA system, as well as area’s DEM, were then used for the orthorectification of the multispectral SPOT XS images, which were classified.

The final thematic land use/cover maps which resulted from the above classifications were compared to the forest map of the Metsovo Province Area provided by the Forest Service. This map was last updated in 1995 and is the most accurate existing documentation of land use in the area (Rokos et al., 1998). Findings from the comparison of the classifications, as to their quality and accuracy, to the area’s forest map are analytically presented in tables and evaluated and their critical interpretation is attempted.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Investigation of the possibilities of the portable radiometer

GER 1500 for the improvement of classifications of digital

remotely sensed images

J. Vassiliadis,  PhD Candidate, N.T.U.A.

V. Karathanassi, Dr. Eng., N.T.U.A.

V. Andronis,  PhD Candidate, N.T.U.A.

P. Derzekos, undergraduate student, N.T.U.A.

P. Kolliopoulos, undergraduate student, N.T.U.A.

G. Geronymos, undergraduate student, N.T.U.A.

D. Rokos, Professor, N.T.U.A.

Laboratory of Remote Sensing, N.T.U.A.

The character of this study has been experimental, at the educational and research level, both for the evaluation of the possibilities for creative co-operation of young scientists of varying research experience with undergraduate students actively interested in the application of edge technologies, and the estimation of the actual possibilities of the portable radiometer GER 1500, in random and non-optimal, from the remote sensing perspective, conditions of field measurements which had been realized, during winter, in Metsovo. The methodology developed was tested, after the Conference, in an area of Attica for which appropriate remotely sensed images were available.

In particular, the study attempted to investigate the potential contribution of measurements of reflected radiation (L), obtained with the use of the portable radiometer, in the classification process of satellite remotely sensed images. To this end, a methodology has been developed for the location of training polygons on the basis of appropriate measurements, obtained with the use of the radiometer GER 1500 and two classification methods (minimum distance and maximum likelihood) have been applied on the basis of these data. The classification methods were also later applied with the use of training polygons, which resulted from traditional ground controls. The evaluation of the results demonstrated that a valid atmospheric correction of satellite remotely sensed images is absolutely necessary to improve correlation of their digital numbers with respective radiometer values and would decisively contribute to a successful application of the method.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

A proposal for the registration and presentation of mountainous roads and footpaths in Metsovo area

A.Tsagari, Rural and Surveying Engineer, Assistant  N.T.U.A.

Laboratory of Photogrammetry, N.T.U.A.

The problems created by massive development of tourism, have led to efforts for milder and friendlier to the environment forms of tourism.

Mountainous areas of Greece, like Epirus, can develop alternative touristic programs, based on mountainous roads and footpaths. Special pedestrian maps are necessary for this purpose, because the ordinary road maps are not suitable. The article suggests the use of orthophotomaps for mountaineers and walkers.

The special information provided with these maps is:

1.     Map information on the relief of the terrain, the road net and the footpaths.

2.     Recreation information.

3.     Cultural information.

4.     Environmental information.

The main amount of information on this map results from the interpretation of aerial photographs.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

GPS technology for surveying applications

in the area of Metsovo

K. Papazisi, Associate Professor

D. Paradissis, Associate Professor

M. Farsaris, PhD Candidate

Topography Division, Department of Rural and Surveying Engineering, N.T.U.A. 

After its full development, the Global Positioning System (GPS) is being increasingly used in various surveying projects, in the last few years.

In Greece, it has been particularly used in research programs for the detection of tectonic displacements and in hydrographic projects. The new techniques have produced very good results.

In this paper, the GPS positioning methods, their accuracies and the possible use of the system in the Metsovo area are discussed.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Stone-reliefs of Metsovo

Conservation - Preservation

I. Nobilakis, Conservator of Stone, Assistant Professor, T.E.I. of Athens

K. Rokos, Sculptor, Professor, T.E.I. of Athens

P. Tzanoulinos, Sculptor, Laboratory Collaborator, T.E.I. of Athens

In this paper, the stone-reliefs of Metsovo are analyzed in detail, as well as their problems, their wear and some works are proposed for their conservation and preservation.

The stone-reliefs, which are under examination, are found in several houses, in fountains and churches of Metsovo. They have been created by “carpenters” of Metsovo using local stones, mainly limestones and micaceous schists. Their engraved elements –decorations and inscriptions– denote features of the local life style, which must be preserved, as they offer important information for our cultural heritage.

Frost effects and biological deposits, such as mosses, form the basic factors of wear of the stone-reliefs. The results of their activity on the stone are evident and intense and are displayed with the form of peelings and crackings.

Following the international rules of conservation, for their preservation, before any other conservation intervention, the following works are performed:

1.     Analysis of the constructive petrifaction of the stone-reliefs with the physical-  chemical method of X-ray diffraction, so that their quantitative and qualitative composition is verified.

2.     Drawing and photographical imprint.

3.     Imprint of their wears.

Based on the results of those analyses, as well as of those which will be done on the deposits, and on the former experience gained by the works of conservation of the stone-reliefs of Tinos, the following procedure is proposed:

1.     Pre-consolidations of the peeled material.

2.     Mechanical and chemical cleanings.

3.     Consolidation with the use of materials that suit the constructive petrifaction of the stone-reliefs.

After the total study of the structural material and its wears, some conclusions are drawn and according to them, proposals are formed for the preservation of the stone-reliefs.

The problems which are created from the activity of physical phenomena, such as frost, are continuous and permanent, having as a result the continuous wear of the stone-reliefs and naturally leading to peelings and crackings, increase of porosity and finally, to the entire destruction of the stone-reliefs.

In order to confront these problems, the conservation of the stone-reliefs is proposed, as well as the creation of plaster casts, from which copies will be reproduced.

These copies should be placed in a show-room, which will be the only way for the preservation of the elements of the traditional sculpture of Metsovo of the past century. The plaster casts will be constructed with the traditional method of constructing moulds and with silicone rubber in situ. They will remain in an archive of the show-room, so that there will be the possibility of reproduction of the copies, with any kind of material.

At the same time, plaster casts offer the possibility for researchers to collect all the elements for study and knowledge of the traditional sculpture and history of the area.

The original sculptures, which will remain in their original place after conservation interventions, will have a prolonged life. It is noted that they must be carefully observed on an annual basis. The necessary protective and preventive interventions should be made, so that the sculptures can be preserved as long as possible, since one can not stop the effects of the physical factors which cause the wear of the stone-reliefs.

The proposal for a show-room creation of copies of stone-reliefs of Metsovo was applied last year in Tinos, for the first time, by the Department of  Conservation of Antiquities and Works of Art of the Technological Educational Institution (T.E.I.) of Athens, in collaboration with the Sub-Prefecture of Tinos. The result of that attempt was the positive response of the private owners of the stone-reliefs, who, at the beginning, had been suspicious of the idea of intervention on the works of art at their houses or churches. They in turn, proposed to the Department of Conservation of T.E.I. to conserve all the stone-reliefs of the island and to create a Museum of stone-relief copies of Tinos, not only a show-room.

The experience, which was gained by the works in Tinos, created the confidence that the same positive results could exist in a resembling attempt in Metsovo and that such a solution would be the most realistic for the confrontation of the problems of the stone-reliefs of Metsovo and for their preservation.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

The carved wood-coating ‘Templon’ of the Holy Temple

of Agia Paraskevi in Metsovo

 A study of its decay (deterioration) and proposals for its

conservation and restoration

I. Gerekos, Professor of Applications,

Department of Conservation of Antiquities and Works of Art, T.E.I. of Athens

The art of carved wood-coating in Epirus starts to flourish during the 18th century and is later spread throughout the Roumeli region. Under the Turkish domination, wood-coaters manage to develop their techniques enormously among other types of Greek craftsmanship, along with their personal perception of creation. At the same time, the Tagiadori wood-coaters, who are primarily connected with Religious Art and tradition, go beyond that.

From the early decades of the 18th century, special types of carved-wood ‘templon’ appear, from which several parts from the background are taken out and, as a result, there are gaps among the faces. Eventually, the work is elegant and at the same time, human faces appear more often. As time goes by, carved wood becomes more vivid. In the middle of the same century, the influence of the European baroque style, which is the most important way of artistic expression, is obvious.

In the rise of the 19th century, carved wood ‘templon’ in Epiros is totally transformed, a change which strikes the observer, let alone the researcher. A typical example of the 19th century style in Epirus is the exquisite ‘templon’ of the Agia Paraskevi Temple in Metsovo, a breakthrough of carved wood art. Its length is 12.10 and the work is made of walnut tree wood, as the technique of ‘exergon’ carving is applied to both parts of the temple.

The most impressive, overwhelming feature of the ‘templon’ is the numerous carved, sacred representations which decorate the round tops of the base and the ‘ketabedes’ (the lower parts of the Despotic Icons). We briefly mention the representation of Eve and Adam (Primitive Justice, the Original Sin, Divine Control, the Expulsion from Heaven), representations from Prodromus’ torture, the Annunciation of Virgin Mary, Christ as the Chief Priest etc. In addition, the decoration is enriched with sprigs which embrace the ‘kions’ (pillars), mermaids, dragons and two-headed eagles. All these are elegantly supplemented by plant decorations.

This ‘templon’ is undoubtedly a masterpiece and is dated from the first half of the 18th century. This can also be confirmed by the Despotic Icons, which are works of Russian Art during the fourth decade of the same century.

Conservation Status - Decay

A detailed examination of the ‘templon’ surface shows evidence of prolonged decay. The following are observed:

1.   Intense peelings, during preparation layer, of the gilding and the color of the background. The intensity of the peelings is gradually decreasing in the lower parts.

2.   Oxidation and black coatings.

3.   Decays in the carving decoration due to environmental moisture and xylophagous insects.

The main causes of decay are the following:

1.   Fluctuation of relative moisture and temperature inside the temple have affected the construction materials, contributing to the existence of micro-organisms and insects.

2.   Changes in weather conditions made the wood shrink and expand. The fluctuation of temperature and moisture proved that relative moisture was between 49 and 94 %, the yearly average of which is 66% (with a daily fluctuation of - 20 %).

3.   Fungi, acids and other substances deriving from them affect the wood in the most detrimental way.

Proposed Conservation Process

1.   Mechanical and chemical cleaning on the back side.

2.   Replacing of the rotten wooden supports.

3.   Consolidation of the wooden carrier with resin saturation.

4.   Reinforcement of the detached carved-wooden pieces.

5.   Cleaning and removing of the soot from the carved-wooden surface.

6.   Reinforcement of the remaining gold and the preparation layer.

7.   Perimetrical reinforcement of the peeled parts on the entire surface of the ‘templon’.

8.   Aesthetic restoration.

9.   Apentomosis and final varnishing.

Methods of analysis

1.     Identification of the woods.

2.     Analysis of the preparation layer with the Infra-red Spectroscopy method.

3.     Investigation of the stratigraphical sections.

4.     Selective coloration of the stratigraphical sections, a supplementary method of the I.R. and U.V. Spectroscopy.

5.     Identification of the background pigments, using the x-ray Diffraction method.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

The significance and the conservation problems of the new

monuments of the Province. The case of the statues of E. Averof,

the Shepherd, the Logger in Metsovo and A. Diakos in Lamia

B. Lampropoulos, Professor of Applications

P. Tzanoulinos, Sculptor-Conservator, Laboratory Collaborator

A. Tzamalis, Conservator of Antiquities and Works of Art

A. Karampotsos, Conservator of Antiquities and Works of Art

Department of Conservation of Antiquities and Works of Art, T.E.I. of Athens

The new statues and monuments of the Province decorate towns and villages and harmoniously coexist with the traditional style of every town and village.

Their corrosion phenomena are not usually the same as those in big industrial cities. The most common corrosion factors are high humidity, frost, biological depositions and temperature variations.

The statues of Metsovo were created by sculptor I. Pappas. The Shepherd and the Logger were created in the 1979-80 period and E. Averof in 1990-91.

The types of corrosion present include the removal of the protective layer (wax) in specific areas, where corrosion materials appear. As a result of the actions of visitors, there is a removal of “patina” in some areas of the surface. On the whole surface of the statues and especially on the points of water flow, there is a thin green layer of mineral “malachite” and there is “graffiti” on some areas of the surface of the E. Averof statue. A mineral analysis was performed with X - rays diffraction (X.R.D.) for the estimation of the corrosion materials and the depositions.

The surface was cleaned with a mixture of organic solvents in the cases of corroded wax and graffiti, and deionized water, chelated agents (E.D.T.A.) and mechanical methods in the cases of depositions and corrosion materials.

The “patina” was created with the use of potassium sulfide and a mixture of special wax and UV absorber was used for the protection of the surface.

The statue of A. Diakos was created by sculptor I. Karakatsanis in 1885.

The corrosion phenomena of this statue are those most common in areas with atmospheric pollution, such as:

a. Carbonisation, due to the effect of the carbon dioxide of the atmosphere.

b. Black crusts, due to the depositions of atmospheric particles and pollutants.

c. Biological depositions and plants between the marbles.

d. Removal of marble material, due to the flow of the rainwater.

e. Graffiti on lower parts of the statue.

f. Materials and effects of previous conservation procedures.

A quantitative analysis of the structure material and depositions was performed with the use of X-ray diffraction (X.R.D.) and Scanning Electron Microscope (S.E.M.).

The surface was cleaned using deionized water, neutral soaps (Texapon), organic solvents in the case of graffiti, absorbent clays (sepiolite), chelated agents (E.D.T.A.) in the case of black crust and biocides in the case of biological depositions and plants.

The surface was consolidated with the use of a saturated solution of calcium hydroxide.

Gaps were filled with special mortars and marble, after the removal of the materials of previous conservation procedures.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Profile of an Archive in Metsovo

Its significance and the efforts to conserve it

K. Houlis, Assistant Professor,

Department of Conservation of Antiquities and Works of Art,

Technological Educational Institute of Athens

Archive materials usually consist of written documents (manuscripts of printed material) that are not bound. They are comprised of loose documents of a private or public nature, letters, contracts, bills, receipts, various notes, press clippings, and occasionally photographs (negatives and prints) of the family, the personal events, and landscapes etc. Moreover, they can include graphic arts products such as maps, posters, political manifestos, wrapping paper or advertising leaflets.

The Archive material of the Tsanakas house in Metsovo, which was preserved thanks to the care of the town Mayor Mr. Al. Kachrimanis, is an especially significant case. This paper looks into the nature of the Archive and the contribution it can offer to the recording of local history. It also describes the conservation and restoration works on three old family photographs, as well as on fragments of three posters from the beginning of the century. The objects, that were chosen and conserved by students of the Department of Conservation of Antiquities and Works of Art of the Technological Educational Institute of Athens, will provide a model for the future restoration of the complete Archive. The project put an emphasis on professional ethics and showed deep respect towards the materials. It remained committed to the rationale on which the conservation of cultural heritage should be based, avoiding any arbitrary intervention or inconsistencies in favour of esthetic or research interests.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Musical Tradition of Epirus.

Theoretical and Methodological Problems of a Research Program

 P. Noutsos, Professor, Section of Philosophy, University of Ioannina

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the theoretical and methodological problems of a research program dealing with the musical tradition of Epirus. Specifically, it deals with the local conditions which determine a geopolitically small-scale community rich in natural and cultural attributes and relations. It also attempts to present the historical identity of Epirus (in a manner free of any ‘folk-lorism’ or ‘fact-based’ narration of ‘Epirotology’), as well as to clarify the structure and function of ‘tradition’ (with emphasis on the ‘oral’ practice of its agents). In this theoretical framework, the paper examines the peculiarity of Epirotic musical tradition and the particular aspects of its ceremonial microcosme, without ignoring the specific difficulties in the conception and realization of this program, which is being accomplished as an interdisciplinary approach to an issue of a long-lasting culture.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Epirus and Theatre in the18th and the 19th centuries

Proposals for research

G. Ladogianni, Assistant Professor, University of Ioannina

In this work we pose a number of questions that scientific research has to answer. The fact that the period of Enlightenment is one of the beginnings of modern Greek theater, as well as the fact that many publishers, translators, playwrights, financial contributors and other components of theatrical life from Epirus contributed in a dynamic way in the Enlightenment movement, obliges us to re-examine this subject. We present well known evidence to that effect. Indeed, during the first two centuries (the 18th and the 19th) of the recent period of modern Greek theater, the presence of both Epirote scholars and of the capital of rich Epirotes are among the strongest. There is, however, a time limit to that, which is a consequence of political changes after the revolution and the liberation. The pre-revolution life of the Diaspora Hellenism favours the existence of many cultural centers, whereas, after the creation of the Greek state, centralization prevails; Athens absorbs, practically, the entire cultural activity. In the capital of Epirus, Ioannina, a local cultural tradition continues during the entire 19th century. The research that we propose aims to show exactly that: the restructuring of the cultural and in particular the theatrical life of the city, during the two centuries that Epirus has the lead over the other Greek regions.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Painting with the materials of Epirus

 An experience with the children of Metsovo

 “Creative Meetings” of the Averof Gallery of Art,

September 1997

T. Stefanou, Painter

The natural environment itself has always given to man materials and shapes. As a man of art, I thought that the materials of the environment could be expressive means of art. Today that expression is diverse and resourceful, it can surpass the use of the known raw materials. Techniques for the use of natural materials, organic and inorganic, have been salvaged by eponymous and anonymous writers in the Middle Ages and the first Renaissance years.

What I wanted to show the children was the way that man has been intervening in nature, in the past and present times.

The whole project included material processing methods such as crushing, separation, sieving, washing and finally, conversion of the matter into dyeing powder.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

The Contribution of Geodesy and Photogrammetry to the

documentation and preservation of our Cultural Inheritance

A proposal for Epirus

D.-D. Balodimos, Professor, N.T.U.A.

The present paper deals with ideas accepted by people involved in the preservation of the Cultural Inheritance. The concept of the Historical Monument is given as well as the principles of the framework of deontology for its restoration.

The different kinds of documentation are stated with emphasis on the Geometrical Documentation, as it is expressed today by the Geodetic and Photogrammetric methods and instrumentation.

Examples of this kind of documentation are presented.

Finally, a proposal for the documentation and preservation of our Cultural Inheritance existing in Epirus is given.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Culture and Regional Development

The Case of the Region of Epirus

E. Kourliouros, Associate Professor, Department of Geography,

University of the Aegean

R. Mari, Architecture Engineer, Ministry of Culture

Y. Pramagioulis, Economist-Engineer, N.T.U.A.

The world economic crisis that followed the oil inflation crisis of the 70s, had serious impacts upon the traditional industrial zones that stimulated the post-war economic prosperity and social welfare in Europe. Major industries declined, others were relocated to Third World regions of cheaper labour, and others went through technological and organizational rationalization - all contributing to major job losses and rising unemployment rates. Top-down policies proved inadequate in coping with the problem. New alternative strategies of local endogenous development (bottom-up) were sought. In those new strategies, the sector of cultural industries, in close connection with the emergence of new forms of qualitative tourism, has played a major role in attracting inward investment, in creating new jobs and in combating economic and social backwardness prevailing in the areas that were hardly hit by de-industrialization.

In the past, the conservation and exploitation of local historical and cultural assets was considered to be a developmental goal of secondary importance in comparison to the goal of industrial growth. Today, such one-dimensional considerations do not exist any more. It is a common belief that historical and cultural human skills can be a valuable asset for the area’s economic development and social well-being.

In this paper, we first analyze the broader context of change as localities are shifting priorities from traditional manufacturing to cultural industries, and then we examine the problems/prospects of that shift in the case of the region of Epirus. The socio-economic and geographical characteristics of the region are briefly addressed, its rich cultural assets are presented, and relevant policy priorities (both national and EU) are discussed. Finally, the broad lines of an alternative cultural development model for the region are sketched out.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

The management of the natural heritage of Epirus mountains:

Experiences and Perspectives

G. Panagiaris, Dr. Biologist, Professor, Department of Conservation of Antiquities and Works of Art, T.E.I. of Athens

I. Ioannidis, Biologist, Goulandris Natural History Museum

C. Papaioannou, Biologist

G. Gianatos, Biologist of Wild Nature, MSc

According to the Convention for the protection of natural and cultural heritage (UNESCO 1972), the following can be defined as “natural heritage”:

-        Natural monuments made up of natural or biological formations, or groups of similar formations, that are of international importance, from the aesthetic or scientific point of view.

-        Geological or physiographic formations and precisely determined areas that are rich in animals or/and plants threatened by extinction, and in species of international importance, from the research point of view.

-        Natural landscapes or precisely determined natural areas of international importance, from the research point of view, because of their conservation need or their natural beauty.

In the 1650/86 environmental law for the protection of natural heritage in Greece, there are the following protection divisions: areas of total natural protection, national parks, protected natural formations, landscapes, elements of landscape and areas of ecodevelopment.

The term ecodevelopment is used in an attempt to surpass the misconception of the seventies, that human beings should be expelled from protected areas.

According to “ecodevelopment”, development planning should favor the protection of nature, taking into account biological and ecological factors, in correlation with the cultural, political and economical dimension and the local social reality as well.

Epirus region, one of the most mountainous regions of Greece, is a typical example of a mountainous ecosystem, with climatologic elements which vary from Mediterranean to central-European ones. The geomorphology of the region is characterized by an intense relief and the resulting geographical isolation, and -consequently- by the existence of various endemic species that define the nature and the culture, and interact among them. For the same reasons, Epirus acts as a shelter for many species wiped off from the plain areas and as an international natural reserve. All these elements are the main development resources of the region, in current economic and political conditions.

The proper management of ecosystems and the conservation, promotion and protection of natural monuments, are the unique prerequisite for these resources to remain unchanged and fruitful, so that development will be sustainable.

In this paper, typical examples of actions are referred to (i.e. LIFE Zagori, LEADER Epirus, LIFE Arctos etc.) and a planning proposal is formed, that will lead to effective results of the above-mentioned actions.

Emphasis is given to:

1.     The need for an integrated project of regional development and the coordination of secondary actions, in such a way that the quality of life and the protection of the natural and cultural environment are of equal importance.

2.     The need for an up-to-date improvement of the legal framework.

3.     The role of public education at various levels, in order to create a public behavior which will support sustainability.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Traditional tanning (leather processing technique) in Ioannina,

from the late 19th to the early 20th century

V. Rokou, Associate Professor, University of Ioannina

Tanning, a handicraft with a long history in the town of Ioannina, was a part of the economic life which started with cattle raising, the production of raw materials, raw wools and skins and reached the handicraft production of fabrics and processed leathers, to be used in shoemaking.

The issues of concern for the researcher into tanning in Ioannina are connected with the function of the handicraft town, the special relationship experienced by its inhabitants as a labour force between tradition and modernisation and the technical procedure signifying the move to machine production.

Research into the ‘tabakika’, as the tanneries are called, will reveal the size of the local handicraft in terms of the economic development of the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries.

The tanning handicraft and techniques reflect the traditional character of the local economy but also, the effort to modernise traditional society.

The ‘tabakika’ of Ioannina, a series of workrooms along the lake shore, in the area called Sharava, acquired economic importance.

They produce top quality leather brought to the market which is controlled by Thessaloniki, while the volume of production is linked to the guild system, which reflects the agrarian character of the inland on the town. At the same time, there is the dimension of trade town, in the context of the Ottoman agrarian crisis, which leads to the reconstruction of processing workshops as a solution for survival, and to the rural exodus to the town. Of course, the concentration of population in Ioannina is connected with other factors as well, including the return of population exiled by the Ali Passa state. The presence, though, of trade warehouses in the town’s commercial centre proves that its economic life continues to rely on commerce.

It is also the time of a turn toward the european economic policy of the factory. The reorganisation of the town shows the orientation of economic life to the factory and an investment in the idea of industrialisation, as is revealed in the architectural reorganisation of the ‘tabakika’. Yet, circumstances were prohibitive for the formation and expansion of industrialisation.

The transition of the town can be observed in the urban plan and the architectural construction of the mansions and workrooms. It was the lake which attracted the set up of the workrooms in the specific areas for leather processing.

The low buildings of the area, built with mud bricks, seem to have been constructed prior to the 19th century, but the two and three floor buildings, which were connected with the tanneries, were constructed in the late 19th century. The area was built with an adding architectural disposition, from the houses in the street which, since 1931 is called Zalokosta, in the area known as Sharava, toward the lake Pamvotis, and is part of the contemporary mythology of the town.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

The workshops of silver craftsmanship in Ioannina 

in the 19th  and early 20th centuries

E. Papaioannou, PhD Candidate,

Department of History and Archaeology, University of Ioannina 

The art of gold and silver craftsmanship, known in both its ecclesiastic and secular versions, has, in Ioannina, a grand continuing history of economic and cultural importance.

In this paper, an approach to the phenomenon of the creation and reproduction of the local cultural event of silvercraftsmanship is attempted, providing answers as to the time of its appearance, its flourishing and finally, the formation of the economic organization of silversmiths in Ioannina. It is stressed that Epirus, in the periphery of the grand cultural centers of the Balkans and Europe, creates, with Ioannina and the mountainous area of Kalarrytes as its centers, a local aesthetic model identifying the town, which still continues this dynamic tradition of the art of silver craftsmanship, adapted to the facts of modern civilization.

Attention is also paid to the movement and employment of the technical group, as labor force, in the framework of the international division of labor. The emigration of the people of Epirus to Venice, Northern Europe and Russia, which is recorded in human conscience as “the movement of the people of mountainous areas” results in the creation of a local cultural model, which arises from the contact and communication of one cultural model with the other.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

The course of development and decline of the art of gold

embroidery in Epirus during the period of Turkish rule

(from the major centre to the periphery and from the periphery to the centre)

E. Vlachopoulou-Karabina, PhD Candidate, Department of History

and Archaeology, University of Ioannina

This study starts with an analysis of the concept of gold embroidery and an account of the transplantation of this art to Epirus during the period of the Despotate. A brief review of the history of Epirus and the privileges of the various regions after the Turkish conquest is provided, with emphasis on the socio-economic conditions which permitted the development of the centre and then of the periphery. In the main body of the study, a detailed account of the following is given:

First period (16th -17th centuries): Ioannina was the major centre. Testimonies to the continuation of the art there (references in commercial documents, letters and testimony of travellers on the trade in silk, silk fabrics and gold embroidery materials, intended for traders and tailors) are recorded; transition from the monk or nun craftsman/ woman of the monastic centre to the secular “gold tailor”-gold embroiderer.

Second period: (18th century): distinctive development of the periphery and folk art at its zenith. Its development is traced in the following areas:

a.      Moschopolis -a model community in the period of Turkish rule- gold embroiderers’ workshops.

b.     Lioutzi-Politsiani: itinerant “gold tailors” (Zagori, Pogonia)-Sumptuous bridal dresses (ostentation of wealth brought from abroad on the costume).

c.      Kalarrytes-Metsovo-Syrrako: renowned “gold tailors” and gold embroiderers - impossibility of establishing a major craft industry workshop.

Third period (late 18th to the third quarter of the 19th century): decline of the peripheral centres (destruction of Moschopolis-Kalarrytes-Syrrako; migration to themajor urban centres) and recovery of the central importance of Ioannina: Esnafs (corporations), syrmakesides (gold embroiderers)-terzides (tailors) (major workshops -productions-exports).

In the last period (third quarter of the 19th century - to the present), the decline of the art is traced (adoption of European manner of dress after the liberation of Epirus), with its weak survival in the “terzidika” embroideries of the traditional costume of Metsovo.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

River Arachthos: a source of life or electricity?

The dilemma over Public Power Corporation dams

J. Papadimitriou, Lawyer, President “Union for the Protection of Arachthos”

Recently, it is commonly stated that “the next war will be a war on water”. As the global ecological movement has stressed, large projects aiming at the excessive exploitation of rivers’ water, usually lead to an even greater water shortage and intensify the problem. The dimension of geographical inequalities is sacrificing the water resources of Western Greece to “developmental” planning and to the creation of an “energy center” in Epirus, with the “damming” of Arachthos and the further exploitation of all points of the river’s flow.

This choice will have adverse impacts:

1.     on the area’s geological stability,

2.     on the area’s political and historical heritage,

3.     on the ecological stability of the gorge and the ecosystem.

The presentation of these dangers, following related actions of the area’s inhabitants, has set back the project’s materialization plans.

The discussion on the dilemma over an investment offering short-term employment or a plan for the sustainable development of the river shore zone and the mountains, concerns us all.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

An approach to the issue of intervention in the Aoos environment

K. Moraitis, Architecture Engineer, Assistant Professor, N.T.U.A.

K. Ntaflos, Architecture Engineer, N.T.U.A.

A. Panagouli, Architecture Engineer, N.T.U.A.

It is obvious that the project “settlements of ecological education at the lake of Ioannina-Pamvotida” is not just trying to solve a specific problem, but is much more trying to form a methodology of approach for the common study of ecosystems and architectural constructions, with emphasis on wetland ecosystems.

By these means, proposals and conclusions are useful and applicable in the cases of other interventions, such as the artificial lake of Aoos river or other water areas. These water areas of Aoos belong to the broad Epirotic environment-landscape.

The meanings that we can give to various natural spaces help us in the creation of forms in the landscape. Natural structures are recognised (as being indicative of the quality of the natural processes which are performed), and can be transferred and realised in a “building-structure”, whose basic structural elements originate from “pictures-images-messages” of the lake environment.

Interventions in space -settlements intend to support- assist the closer contact of man with nature, taking into account, in the structure, the condition of reversability. This reversability expresses the temporariness of the structure, which can be dismantled and removed, leaving no traces in the landscape. Furthermore, the demand for energy efficiency and autonomy, accomplished with the use of renewable sources of energy (bioclimatic design), and the application of active and passive systems (energy design), refers to the self-sufficiency of the structure.

Finally, the contribution of ecological design (which allows the recycling of the structure), knowledge of hydrobiology and physiology and the gradation of the accessibility of natural spaces, give the touch of a gentle approach.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Creation of a protected corridor between Mount Olympus

and North Pindos: A need of both national

and international expediency

C. Tsipiras, Civil Engineer, Geographer, Chairman of the Greek section of “Mountain Wilderness”, Member of the interdisciplinary network “Mountain Forum”

The theory of intermediate spaces or corridors is one of the most modern ideas of ecological land use and the matter of the creation of a protected corridor between Mt Olympus and North Pindos has already caused an interest among the international scientific community. These proposals should contain positive solutions to the deadlocks of the ecological crisis, which plagues not only our country but our planet as well.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Identity and scale:

The local values for the Europe of the city and the village

Th. Vlastos, Assistant Professor,

Department of Rural and Surveying Engineering, N.T.U.A.

Τ. Birbili, Dr. Environmental Economics,

Development Agency, Municipality of Athens

Europe focuses its attention on cities, where the greatest percentage both of the population and of activities is being concentrated. The discussion on the serious environmental, urban and transport problems is spreading across the cities’ networks and in the international fora and is supported by an impressive production of Directives and policy directions emanating from the European Commission. Apart from the technical solutions which are promoted for resolving these problems, more and more emphasis is being given, at present, on values which are lost in the modern city, such as identity and human scale. Thanks to these values the big city could survive. Their conservation however, sets as a precondition the revival of the smallest urban entity: the neighbourhood. The neighbourhood could function as the core and the basis for the encouragement of citizen’s participation to whatever involves his living.

Human scale and identity are principles which are still maintained in the non-urban space, since this is the space of the small sizes and of cultural tradition. Big cities squash human scales and technology, upon which they base their development, levels cultures and eliminates differences.

However, local cultures are subject to the impacts arisen from the accelerating expansion of the urban conurbation and the installation of the big scale interconnection networks. Local cultures are shrinking and both their role and their weight are determined by decisions that are taken in their absence, reducing them to servants of specific city demands.

Europe is being constructed in the form of a network of cities which compete with each other and whose mechanisms leave outside whatever has remained from local cultures. In this way, values and precious examples are being lost for the metropolitan societies of the 21st century whereas the discussion for the environment is being proven to be sterile since the daily life conditions in the cities are totally technical and there doesn’t exist an objective basis for a real knowledge and motivation of the inhabitants.

In Greece, special reasons relevant to its political history and the absence of transport infrastructure have imposed the reduction of the settlements’ wealth, the abandonment of many villages and the concentration of the country’s population in a fewcities without either preparation or programming. Today, the urban planning impacts of the accession in the European Union can possibly lead towards an even more intense abandonment of the non-competitive areas and settlements, since emphasis is given on the construction of a few but big scale works which will facilitate the connection of the country with the rest Member States. The necessity to create the essential infrastructure for an equitable development throughout the country is being underestimated.

For Greece, the accession into the European Union should have been based from the beginning upon the reconstruction of the country’s real identity, with the restoration of the internal equilibrium between the city and the village on an equitable basis. Without this condition, Greece will be found on an unfavourable situation regarding its relations with most of the European countries, which are characterised by administrative and economic decentralisation.

Vis-a-vis the big scales of Europe, the paper supports the value of the smaller scales. The wider area of Metsovo, which will be subject to important transformations from the construction of the new motorway and its accompanying impacts, represents an indicative example of the processes. Could the village, as an area-oasis with its own identity, located within the interior of an administratively integrated geography of networks such as the European one, achieve becoming a cell and a constructive element of the new European structure?

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

The Contribution of Hellenic Traditional Architecture

to a Contemporary Bioclimatic Design in Hellas

S. Kostoula, BSc Architectural Engineering,

MA Architecture, Advanced Environmental & Energy Studies

This paper is a study of Hellenic traditional architecture within the scope of an effort to establish a method which would enable architects to design contemporary, comfortable buildings.

An increasing number of people complain that the modern buildings they occupy are uncomfortable. This is an undoubtedly existing problem. Before the industrial age, a substantial number of buildings were constructed without any facilities such as artificial lighting, central heating and air-conditioning. On the other hand, these buildings still had to tackle the same climatic conditions as in modern times. In each type of indigenous architecture found everywhere in the world, in Hellas too, an archetype exists. It is in effect, a model endlessly repeated. Evidently, our ancestors had arrived at a solution to the problem of tackling the same climatic conditions. The question of how such a study could contribute to the design of contemporary, comfortable buildings is justifiable but can be answered.

The study of the country’s mountainous region forms a distinct part of this paper, in which the following are examined and analysed:

·       The specific climatic characteristics.

This description aims to establish a firm understanding of the conditions and problems that have to be tackled by buildings within the zone.

·       The thermal requirements.

Arrangements that need to be made for the occupants to be comfortable; to tackle the climate described in the above section successfully.

·       Design principles.

Designate principles which need to govern the design of any structure within the zone.

·       Analysis of particular examples.

This analysis aims to establish the relationship between the archetypes and guidelines outlined in the climatic characteristics and design principles sections.

This study aims to help architects in their effort to exploit the climatic conditions of every Hellenic mountainous region in order to achieve their goal more easily, better, and saving energy, while contributing in the protection of the environment.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

The dry stone wall: retaining the soil, maintaining the culture

E. Pangratiou, Architect-Geographer, EU Program Coordinator,

Zagori Developmental Society

Throughout the Mediterranean, man has responded to the challenge that the area’s whimsical climate and sloping terrain pose by using the retaining dry stone wall to shape the landscape.

This landscape of terraces or “pezoulia” is very much in evidence in Epirus, mainly around villages and other settlements. However, owing to the depopulation of agricultural areas, the terraces are now covered with thick vegetation and are collapsing. This deterioration of the man-made landscape is not without wider consequences.

It is therefore necessary that systematic research be carried out in order to establish:

(a) ·  which settlements have terrace-like formations in their vicinity;

 ·  to what uses terraces are put (which plants are cultivated in which places);

 ·  which dry stone building techniques are employed depending on locally available materials;

 ·  what other dry stone constructions, such as fountains, cisterns, huts, threshing floors and mills, there are, which constitute an important part of the architectural heritage of agricultural Epirus;

(b) ·  ways of dealing with dry stone constructions in need of preservation.

The above items mark out a common area of research for such disciplines as architecture, structural engineering, environmental studies, geography, agricultural sciences, animal husbandry, ethnography, archaeology, economics ...

In Zagori, and in the context of three European programs, an effort is under way whose aim is to preserve terraces used in agriculture, as well as to restore dry stone constructions and bring them back to use. Transnational meetings of study groups from various Mediterranean areas make it possible to exchange experiences and ideas concerning the preservation of dry stone building.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

He arrived in Canada … departed for the U.S.A.

Contribution to the history of the immigration

K. Karanatsis, Sociologist

Excerpts from the “Social Life” column of the “Aoos” provincial newspaper (1913-1958) outlining the phenomena of immigration and urbanization during this period.

Cartography of the immigration movement from the province of Konitsa, in the context of the wider immigration movement. Convergences and diversions.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Design and function of a modern cheese plant

V. Andritsos, Chemical Engineer, N.T.U.A.

Κ.Tzia, Assistant Professor, N.T.U.A.

Laboratory of Food Technology, Department of Chemical Engineering, N.T.U.A.

In this work, data on the amounts of the main cheeses produced, imported and exported in Greece and in Europe, as well as the capacity of the greek cheese plants are presented. By the analysis of these data, the possibility of establishment of a new cheese plant in Greece is examined. Based on cheese consumption and exports in Greece and Europe, as well as the legislation of EU on feta cheese and recent national nutritional habits, the establishment of a feta-cheese plant is proposed.

The selection of location in relation to the raw milk supply and the particular characteristics of the production area, the design of the cheese plant, the construction, the utilities and the necessary equipment are presented. Also, the hygiene practices for the workers, the facilities, the raw milk and the equipment according to directive 93/43 EC and HACCP are noted.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

The teaching of translation: a demand and an achievement of

contemporary culture

A. Alexakis, Professor of translation, Special Assessor,

Institute of Pedagogics, University of Ioannina

After focusing on contemporary Western society and the factors which demon-strate the significance, extent and other features of translation activity today, the paper attempts to compare and contrast that picture with ‘traditional’ translation in order to accentuate the differentia specifica between the situation in the past and the present.

That difference  -which could be summed up as the contrast between amateurism and professionalism, between the self-taught translator and his ‘qualified’ counterpart- then forms the basis for a study leading to conclusions which permit an answer to the following questions: why has it only now been realised that there is a need for translation to be taught? and, what exactly should be the content of that teaching?

After references to the need for the translator to be able to understand texts of all kinds and be able to compile equally varied primary texts in the destination language, the paper draws additional evidence in connection with the answers required from a brief analysis of the problems raised ipso facto by the process of translation.

The paper concludes that the factors to which it refers and which it has analysed would make possible the preparation of a curriculum for teaching translation - a curriculum based on documentation rather than intuition, and one which would meet both demands of the subject itself and the requirements of modern civilisation.*

* Μετάφραση, John Solman.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Uncontrolled Landfills and Demands for their Reincorporation to the Environment

A. Vgenopoulos, Professor, NTUA
Dr. D. Katsinis, Geologist,

Department of Mining Engineering and Metallurgy, Section of Geological Sciences, NTUA

The disposal of urban wastes consists one of the most serious problems of the modern communities, mainly because there is no disposal technology without side effects to thea environment. As we all know there are a lot of illegal landfills where various municipalities or communities bury or burn their waste, without any concern for the specifications demanded.

So the main problems observed to that sites are a) The gas production and b) The leac  ages derived from the mass of the wastes. In the present work, we are occupied with the first problem, that of gas production, using results from our study in the landfill of Ano Nea Liosia. With the term of gas production we mean the production of the mixture of gases known as biogas. We think that this problem is the most important because it affects immediately our try for landfill recovery. That can be faced in the following ways:

a)     Use of earth covers with the right mineralogical composition.

b)     Detection of areas with increased rates of biogas production.

c)     Suction of the biogas.

In the present work, we deal with the first two ways mentioned above. In particular, as will be shown by the interpretation of the analytical results in our study of the Ano Nea Liosia landfill, an appropriate mineralogical composition of the earth cover used can, first, increase the percentage of biogas retention-adsorption and, second, the biogas with the contained in the earth cover minerals can produce series of chemical reactions, resulting in the reduction of great quantities of  gases such as methane and others.

Επιστροφή στην κορυφή της σελίδας

Static and Dynamic Analysis of Valleybridge Deck Slabs Reinforced with Beams

E.J. Sapountzakis, Lecturer,

J.T. Katsikadelis, Professor,

Institute of Structural Analysis and Aseismic Research, NTUA

 In this paper the static and dynamic analysis of valleybridge deck slabs reinforced with beams is presented. The analysis consists in isolating the beams from the plate by sections parallel to the lower outer surface of the plate. The forces at the interface, which produce lateral deflection and inplane deformation to the plate and lateral deflection and axial deformation to the beam, are established using continuity conditions at the interface. The adopted model describes better the actual response of the plate - beams system and permits the evaluation of the shear forces at the interface, the knowledge of which is very important in the calculation of shear connectors. The findings from this investigation concerning the deflections, the eigenfrequencies and modeshapes, the buckling load of the plate - beams system, using the adopted model which approximates better its actual response, necessitate the consideration of the inplane forces and deformations. The static and dynamic analysis, the influence of creep, shrinkage and inplane forces and the calculation of buckling load are presented in examples with great practical interest.