In Korestia, Kastoria, the sight of the ruined mudbrick houses with their distinctive red color evokes a cinematic set. The partially collapsed houses, built in the early years of the previous century, have many stories to tell the visitor.
In Western Macedonia,a few kilometers north of the city of Kastoria, lie the Korestia or «mud-brick villages», a historic cluster of villages that showcase exceptional architectural and cultural interest thanks to their mud-brick houses with their distinctive red hue. The houses were constructed by craftsmen in the first half of the last century with mud from red earth, water, and straw, and are unique examples of traditional architecture. Today, most of the villages are abandoned and half-ruined, while some still have a few residents.
Korestia of Kastoria: A journey through time
Gavros (25 km northwest of the city of Kastoria) is one of these villages, which you encounter on the road that connects Kastoria with Prespes. The deep-red ruins, forgotten by time and surrounded by endless beech forests, compose a unique cinematic landscape. It is no coincidence that several Greek and foreign directors sought settings here for their films («Deep Soul» by Pantelis Voulgaris, «The Suspended Step of the Stork» by Theodoros Angelopoulos etc.). Gavros was deserted after the end of the civil war, with its residents emigrating to Canada and Australia. Those who remained were forced to abandon it and settle in the new village of Korestia built in the 1970s.
The road then leads to Kraniona, which consists of the upper and lower village. In Upper Kraniona, most houses have collapsed, while only the Church of Saint Paraskevi (1864) has been preserved. East of Kraniona lies Mavrokampos, with the impressive mud-brick mansion of the Spanopoulos family, the Church of Saint Demetrios, and the traditional watermill. Chalara is another mud-brick village, with a few habitable houses, that is worth seeing.
North of the Korestia, almost on the border with the prefecture of Florina, you will encounter the village of Melas. Its old name was Statista. The village was renamed Melas in 1929, in memory of the artillery second lieutenant and hero of the Macedonian Struggle, Pavlos Melas, who was killed in the village on 13 October 1904. In the village you will see the house where Pavlos Melas was killed, which has been restored and operates as a museum. In the village square stands the statue of Pavlos Melas, while a short distance from the museum is also his cenotaph.
