BRIEF GUIDE TO THE KORINTHIA

ORIENTATION: ANCIENT KORINTH:

      The village of Ancient Korinth is located at the center of the ancient city of Korinth, on a series of plateaus that descend in steps from the interior of the Peloponnesos to the sea.  Akrokorinth is the northernmost of the mountains of the Peloponnesos, and the central core of the land thus lies to the south. Below Akrokorinth the land is nearly all ancient sea-bed, and the cliffs are breaks made by earthquakes in geologic time. 

In antiquity Korinth was geographically the largest of the cities of Greece, and under the modern houses and streets are the remains of the ancient settlement, and these can be seen in every new house foundation and built into modern constructions everywhere.  Korinth's location astride the Isthmus of Korinth made it a natural trading power, and the city has always had commercial relations with both East and West.  The importance of the city continued through ancient Greek and Roman times and under the Christian Byzantine Empire (330-1453); for long centuries Korinth was the effective capital of Greece and its most important city.  Even under the Ottoman Sultans (1453-1821) Korinth remained significant and its citadel played a crucial role in the Greek War of Independence (1821-30). 

In 1856, however, the city suffered a devastating earthquake--one of the many that have struck the area over the centuries--and most of the inhabitants left their homes and shops and established themselves at New Korinth by the sea (the modern city).  Ancient Korinth, then, was left as a small agricultural village.  In the 19th and early 20th centuries the local economy was dominated by the grazing of sheep and the cultivation of grapes, primarily for production of raisins ("currants," or "Korinths"); raising of tobacco supplemented these crops in some areas.  Beginning in the 1950's increasing irrigation has transformed the agriculture of the Korinthia, allowing the production of apricots, oranges, lemons, grapefruit, and esoteric fruit (such as the mousmoula).  The climate of the Korinthia, its favorable location, and irrigation have turned the area into the "California of Greece," making it one of the richest agricultural areas in the country.  In addition, the region has profited from its nearness to Athens and its proximity to the sea, so that many Athenians have bought land and built summer homes in the area.  In the summer the population of the area increases substantially.  All of this, the irrigation and the unchecked suburban sprawl, have put real strains on the environment and threaten ecological catastrophe.  Nonetheless, there still is considerable natural beauty for the visitor to enjoy.

In 1896 the American School of Classical Studies at Athens began excavations in Ancient Korinth, and these continue still today.  The excavators have formed a close relationship with the village, bringing in needed capital and providing a small but important foreign element in the village.  The explosion of tourism, beginning in the 1960's, has naturally had its effect on Ancient Korinth, as tourist shops and restaurants have multiplied, and this brings considerable income into the community.

As we've said, the modern village lies over the ruins of the ancient city.  In fact, the ruins are much more extensive than the modern village, and fragments of columns and pieces of pottery can be seen everywhere in the nearby fields.  (Don't disturb any of these finds!  It is wrong to do so and also against Greek law!)  Recent research (carried out by David Romano of the University of Pennsylvania) has shown that the street pattern of the modern village follows remarkably closely the layout of the ancient city.  The street that runs east-west just to the south of Rooms Marinos (toward the sea) is certainly on the line of an ancient roadway, and (in a five-minute walk) it runs directly down to the ancient and the modern center of Ancient Korinth.

            As mentioned, the center of the modern village is the plateia or agora, and most of the roads of the village eventually end up there.  In the plateia you will find periptera (kiosks) selling almost anything, many souvenir shops, and several kapheneia (coffee-houses) and places serving light food.  The kapheneia are all very friendly and they are ideal places for a drink and a snack at any time of day.  In the summer you will find most of the chairs right out in the street, encroaching seriously on through traffic.  In much of Greece the kapheneia are the exclusive preserve of men, who come to smoke, talk, and play cards, and women never enter.  In Ancient Korinth, however, that tradition has changed, and--in the summer months especially--women are welcomed in these establishments.  Originally there was a large plane-tree in the center of the plateia, providing shade for all who came to rest, and many of the older residents of the village can remember the huge tree with its spreading branches and huge leaves.  It has now been cut down, a sacrifice to modern traffic, and the plateia is divided into two sides.  All of the kapheneia provide good service and good value, but "Mitso's" establishment has a charm and history all its own.  The sign to the left of the door identifies this as "Themis' Place," but a glance above the door shows that the kapheneion was opened nearly 100 years ago by Themis' grandfather.  Themis' father (Mitsos)  provided much of the service until his death in 1998.  The sign for Themis' Place, as well as many of the other advertisements in the plateia, have occasioned much delight and amusement for foreigners, with their attempts at English colloquialisms: Themis’ sign, for example, once referred to the view over the "Corinthian Golf."  Themis said that the sign brought in many customers who offered to tell him about the mistakes--but he recently painted it over, as close inspection will show!  (Of course, most of you will realize that "Golf" means "Gulf" in German, so maybe Themis is smarter than any of you think!)

            In recent years the two restaurants located on the south side of the plateia have come to play a larger and larger role in local life, and the life of visitors and archaeologists working here.  Nikos' place, right on the SE corner of the plateia, opposite Yianni Kreimbardis' "super market," has become a "home away from home" for many of our staff members.  Nikos is a very sympathetic, kind, and generally well-meaning individual.  He speaks English and his food is good.  The same can be said for the restaurant to the west.  But remember that the prices at these places are not particularly low.

In the summer evenings you will find the plateia a pleasant place for a coffee (kafe elliniko), a soft drink, or even a brandy (koniak) or ouzo.  As the evening wears on, most of the noises of the village will die out, leaving only the buzz of the men talking; then finally on weeknights the places start to close around 11:00 or 11:30 and by midnight the plateia.  On weekends there is often music in the back of Themis Place and sometimes this is quite loud.  Even this, however, is for local people, not for foreigners (although we are naturally welcome to join in), and everything usually shuts down by midnight.

In the plateia there is a grocery store (Yianni's) with most of the necessities you will need; fruits and vegetables are in another store, and these are unfortunately not as plentiful as one might like. There is also another, new, grocery store further to the west, and now a bakery in the plateia, complete with many of the sweets the Greeks are famous for.  A few years ago you couldn't buy fresh vegetables or fruit in Ancient Korinth.  Now you can find them at a number of places.  In some ways best, is the store of Souli (Athanasios Papaioannou), just on the way out of the plateia toward Rooms Marinios, on the left. Souli is a pot-mender, who has worked for years at the Korinth Excavations, and for us at Isthmia. We can't say that his products are necessarily better than those elsewhere, but he is a good colleague, his family is very pleasant, and we try to give him whatever business we can.

The village is essentially dependent on agriculture and most of the men are farmers.  They own land that is spread around in different areas as a result of family and marriage arrangements.  The main crops are apricots, mousmoula, grapes, tobacco, and olives, and a few families have sheep.  Agriculture has changed radically over the past forty years, largely as a result of the introduction of irrigation.  Previously, wheat and sheep were the primary products, with grapes an important export crop (Corinthian raisins, or “currents”).  Irrigation allowed the farmers to turn their attention to more profitable fruit production, although the result has been the lowering of the water table and likely ecological disaster.  As mentioned above, many of the villagers now participate, in one way or another, in the tourist trade, but a greater economic impact has been the arrival of Athenians, who have begun to build luxurious houses in the village.  Ancient Korinth is a relatively short distance from Athens, and most Athenians wish to have a summer or a weekend home not far from the city.  Ancient Korinth is--unfortunately--ideally suited for such construction, and the result is the gaudy and tasteless "villas" that are springing up in all parts of the village.