Academic Study Notes on Ancient Illyrian and Epirot Architecture and Urbanism

General Introduction to Illyrian and Epirot Architecture

The architectural landscape of the 5th to 1st centuries BC in the regions of Illyria and Epirus is characterized by a sophisticated development in fortifications, urban planning, social structures, and residential dwellings. This period, often referred to as Chapter Two in the study of regional antiquity, explores the evolution of castles, engineering projects, and the internal organization of cities. The physical manifestations of this era reflect a complex socio-economic reality, where the design of settlements was influenced by the need for defense, administrative centralization, and cultural exchange with the Hellenic world.

Castle Architecture and Defensive Networks

A significant inscription found at the fortification of Rabije in Tepelen is identifying these structures as "peripolie" or perimetral towns. This term highlights their primary function: the protection of mountain passes and transit routes. These complex defensive systems were not only present in federative units like the Amant s and Bylin s but also within smaller tribal units. A prime example is the Drinos Valley, which was enclosed by a network of cities and castles that effectively sealed the valley's entry points. While these outer fortifications secured the perimeter, the central hubs—initially the city of Melan and later Antigonea—were located deep within the interior for maximum security.

Technically, these castles were distinguished by their reliance on powerful natural defenses, typically covering a surface area between $0.5\,ha$ and $1.5\,ha$. Smaller fortifications were primarily intended for military garrisons, whereas larger ones also served economic functions. Gorica, covering $1\,ha$, is a typical hilly castle designed to fit the terrain with straight edges and serrations that allowed for flanking fire along the curtain walls. Notably, the eastern side lacks walls because it drops steeply toward the river, while the western side was reinforced with two quadratic towers. Its entrance is a tangential type, protected by one of these towers, and the interior preserves the foundations of houses that once featured tiled roofs.

In contrast to Gorica, Malathrea near Butrint covers $0.12\,ha$ and sits on relatively flat terrain. It features a quadratic layout with strong rectangular towers at the corners. While it resembles a Roman castrum, the Roman author Frontinus provides historical context: "In the old days, the Romans and other peoples established war camps with barracks scattered here and there according to cohorts… Pirro, the king of the Epirots, was the first who began to keep the whole army within the same rampart. The Romans, after they defeated him at Malevent and seized his camp, saw it and little by little arrived at what is in use today."

The Symbiosis of Cities and Fortifications

The relationship between residential urban centers and defensive citadels is best illustrated by the pairing of Lis and Akrolis. Polybius describes King Philip V's ambition to seize these locations, noting that Lis was strongly reinforced by both nature and human hand on the sea and land sides. Regarding Akrolis, Polybius states: "It had such a great height and was so strong, that even a single glance at it would make one understand that its conquest was an impossible thing" (Polyb. 8.1.3.). A similar synergy existed between Antipatrea (Berat) and Goric , which sat on either side of the narrow gorge of the Aps-it (Osum) river. Built simultaneously in the 4th century BC, these two fortifications were part of a pre-planned system to control the passage from the valley to the Myzeqe plain. This was a critical artery linking Illyria with Macedonia.

Engineering and Barrier Walls

The only known example of a barrier wall in the region is the Dema Wall, which bisects the Hexamili peninsula to isolate $13\,km^2$ of agricultural territory belonging to the city. While the peninsula was naturally protected by the sea and Lake Butrint on other sides, the northern land entrance was guarded by this $650\,m$ long wall. The wall ended approximately $20\,m$ from the sea to avoid direct naval bombardment. Its construction consisted of two outer faces with a central fill reinforced by transverse links. With a width of $9.50\,m$, it is broader than any other ancient structure of its category, providing enough space for rapid troop movement and the placement of stone-throwing machine batteries.

Urban Planning Models

Urbanism in Illyrian and Epirot cities was influenced by economic, social, and technical levels, as well as the specific terrain, which could range from flat plateaus like Antigonea and Bylis to steep slopes like Liss and Zg rdhesh. Four primary models have been identified: radiocentric, slope-based, orthogonal (Hippodamian), and sui generis. The radiocentric model is typical for cities built over older Iron Age settlements. Orik, dating to the 5th century BC, sits on a $9\,ha$ elliptical hill, $40\,m$ high, situated between the waters of Vlora Bay and the lagoon known in antiquity as "Portus Introitus." Descriptions by Caesar indicate the presence of defensive walls and towers. The city had a $1.5\,ha$ acropolis at its center, with roads carved into the rock radiating out toward the perimeter. Antipatrea (Berat) follows a similar radial logic; it sits $161\,m$ above the Osum, with a 9.60-hectare area bisected by a main road running south to north from the main entrance to the acropolis, with other roads curving around this central axis.

The Slope and Orthogonal Models

The slope model characterizes settlements that evolved from pre-urban agglomerations into proper cities, such as Zg rdhesh. In these cases, the prehistoric center became the new acropolis. In Zg rdhesh, which spans an 8-hectare triangular slope, a system of longitudinal roads leads to the acropolis, while transverse roads run parallel to terrain contours, supported by terracing walls that create platforms for houses. Liss (Lezha), founded in 385 BC by Dionysius I of Syracuse, spans $22\,ha$ on a $140\,m$ high hill. It features a mixed urban scheme: the lower city uses longitudinal and transverse roads, while the seven entrances of the upper city suggest a radiocentric arrangement.

The orthogonal or Hippodamian model, where streets intersect at right angles, was applied in flat terrains like Apollonia, Bylis, and Antigonea. Apollonia, founded in 588 BC, eventually expanded to $96\,ha$. In the 4th century BC, its urban structure relied on two main axes. One road, $600\,m$ long and $6.20\,m$ wide, ran from the main entrance to the agora with a steep $15\%$ incline requiring steps. The second road, $800\,m$ long and $7.40\,m$ wide, ran from the port entrance along the ridge of the hill. These intersected at the agora, creating insulae (blocks) in a $2:1$ ratio ($120\,m \times 60\,m$). Antigonea, founded in the early 3rd century BC, used a grid of five primary roads ($7\,m$ wide) and 14 secondary roads ($5.50\,m$ wide) that created insulae measuring approximately $53\,m$ by $53-106\,m$. Bylis, built ex novo in the late 4th to early 3rd century BC, featured seven main roads ($8.30\,m$ wide) and 25 transverse roads ($6.60\,m$ wide), resulting in roughly 80 rectangular insulae.

The Agora and Social Architecture

The agora served as the central square and the heartbeat of civic life. Some cities were monocentric (Apollonia, Bylis, Butrint), while others were polycentric (Amantia, Foinike, Dimal). For example, in Dimal, social elements like the theater and temple are strangely distant from one another, a fact not dictated by the terrain. The stoa (colonnade) was the defining architectural element of the agora, acting as a frame for the square. In the 4th century BC, Apollonia had a rigid, L-shaped stoa that blocked views to the north but left the west open to the sea. By the 3rd century BC, under the influence of Pyrrhus, agoras became more flexible and dynamic. The Bylis agora, for instance, transitioned from a rectangular plan to a trapezoidal one with a $110.^\circ$ angle, breaking the previous monotony.

Unlike Greek cities, Illyrian agoras rarely included a central temple. The temple of Asclepius in Butrint was actually a "thesauros" or small treasury for the sanatorium's income rather than a full temple. Theaters, however, were increasingly integrated into the agora. While the theater in Apollonia was $100\,m$ from the agora, the theater in Bylis was built in the same spirit as the square and stoas, serving as a balanced, integral element of the central space.

Theater Architecture and Regional Distribution

Around 15 theaters from the 5th to 3rd centuries BC have been identified in the region, including those at Apollonia, Dimal, Bylis, Nikaia, Foinike, and Butrint. These theaters are primarily found in Southern Illyria and Epirus, suggesting that the process of acculturation through contact with the Hellenic world was strongest in these zones. The architectural style was liberal and adaptive rather than strictly canonical. The Bylis theater, with a capacity of $6,600-7,500$ spectators, utilized a natural slope where $1,000\,m^3$ of rock was excavated to form the seating. It featured a U-shaped seating area with an eccentric ring design, a full circular orchestra, and a T-shaped stage building. The stage included paraskenia (side towers) and a proskena decorated with Doric half-columns.

The theater of Foinike is historically significant as arguably the largest theater of antiquity, with a capacity of $21,000-24,000$ spectators, surpassing the famous theater at Argos. It shares basic characteristics with the Dodona and Bylis theaters, featuring a semicircular seating area and a T-shaped stage. Despite its size, the construction quality was somewhat lower than centers like Epidaurus. The seating followed a natural hollow in the hill and offered views of the Ionian Sea and the Corfu island. Meanwhile, the Apollonia theater, located along the city's main road, had a capacity for $11,500-13,000$ people. It was built on a natural cavity and featured statues of Nemesis and Hera. Smaller cities like Nikaia and Butrint also possessed theaters; Nikaia's theater (capacity $2,900-3,300$) essentially served as a civic theater relative to the larger Bylis, while Butrint's theater ($1,700-2,000$ capacity) was linked to the sanctuary of Asclepius and featured seats decorated with panther paws, a symbol of Dionysus.

Stadiums and Athletic Facilities

Stadiums were essential for physical and military training. The stadium at Bylis was located within the agora and consisted of a single straight wing $134\,m$ long with seven rows of seating, accommodating $2,600$ spectators. An open water channel ran in front of the bottom row for the athletes' use. The stadium of Amantia, built in the 3rd century BC, was located outside the city walls due to overcrowding. It featured a clay track $12.50\,m$ wide and a U-shaped seating area. The track was oriented so that the sun would remain behind or to the side of the runners to avoid blinding them. Marks on the track suggest it accommodated various race distances, such as the diaule and dolichos, equivalent to modern 400-meter sprints.

Temples and Religious Sites

Significant temples include the Temple of Artemis and Gaia in Apollonia, dating to roughly $525\,BC$, and the temple in Shtyllas. The sanctuary of Asclepius in Butrint is essential for understanding the 4th-century religious landscape. These structures were often part of a "temenos" or sacred precinct. In Amantia, a temple dedicated to Aphrodite was constructed in the 3rd century BC outside the city walls. Architectural fragments from these sites, such as friezes and monumental entrances, demonstrate the presence of both Doric and Ionic styles.

Major City Profiles and Historical Summaries

Epidamnos-Dyrrachium, founded in $627\,BC$ by Corinthian and Corcyraean colonists, was the largest fortified city of Southern Illyria, though little of the ancient structure remains today. Apollonia, described by Cicero as "magna urbs et gravis" (a great and heavy city), was a major trade and industrial center of $140\,ha$ with a population potentially reaching $60,000$. It was a renowned center for the arts and oratory, where Octavian Augustus was studying when Julius Caesar was assassinated. Following a 3rd-century AD earthquake that diverted the Vjosa river, Apollonia lost its economic importance.

Bylis, the capital of the Bylin koinon, spanned $30\,ha$ and achieved its full urban form in the 3rd century BC. It was divided into three zones: the agora, the eukhorion (a space for sheltering nearby villagers during war), and the residential area. Orik, mentioned as an Epirot port as early as the 5th century BC, relied on the trade of raw materials like timber and stone from Karaburun and the Akrokeraune mountains. Its acropolis featured houses and stairs carved directly into the rock. Foinike, described by Polybius as the most fortified and wealthiest city in Epirus, was built on a prismatic massif and featured a sinusoidal street layout to manage the steep terrain.