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The Frankish tower of Lilaia is a late medieval
The Frankish tower of Lilaia is a late medieval tower
A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...
near Lilaia, in Phocis
Phocis ( el, Φωκίδα ; grc, Φωκίς) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Central Greece. It stretches from the western mountainsides of Parnassus on the east to the mountain range of Vardo ...
, central Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
.
Lilaia lies on the northern slopes of Mount Parnassus
Mount Parnassus (; el, Παρνασσός, ''Parnassós'') is a mountain range of central Greece that is and historically has been especially valuable to the Greek nation and the earlier Greek city-states for many reasons. In peace, it offers ...
and close to the springs of the Boeotic Cephissus
The Cephissus ( grc, Κήφισσος), called the Boeotian Cephissus to distinguish it from other rivers of the same name, or Kifisos ( el, Βοιωτικός Κηφισός) is a river in central Greece. Its drainage basin is . In Greek mytholo ...
. The tower lies about southeast of the modern settlement, at the site of the acropolis
An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens, ...
of ancient Lilaea. The tower is built on top of the well-preserved Classical-era city wall, and its lower part is built entirely of reused spolia
''Spolia'' (Latin: 'spoils') is repurposed building stone for new construction or decorative sculpture reused in new monuments. It is the result of an ancient and widespread practice whereby stone that has been quarried, cut and used in a built ...
, whereas the upper parts are built with quarried stone and brick.
The tower measures by , with walls about thick, and survives to a height of approximately . Its entrance was above-ground at the level of the first floor, on the western wall. Its exception size makes it very likely that it was the centre of an estate or fief.
References
Sources
* * {{coord, 38, 37, 33.5, N, 22, 30, 21.2, E, display=title Lilaia Duchy of Athens Lilaia Buildings and structures in Phocis