In the luxuriant nature, near the town of Kleitoria in the Municipality of Lefkasio, there are saved the excavation findings of the ancient city-state Kleitor, the first city of all the Arcadian ones that minted coins. Outside city walls and its theatre, archaeological mattock has revealed a great deal of other archaeological findings as well. Every summer, theatrical plays and ancient tragedies are performed there.
Ancient Kleitor, a city of NW Arcadia, called Azania, lies 3km. on the west of Low Kleitoria and on the south of Upper Kleitoria. Its name probably derives of its enclosed position. According to local myths, it was founded by Kleitor, sone of azanos, who was the genitor of the Arcadian tribe of Azans.
A systematic excavation in the area between the theatre and the SW gate of the walls and an extended multi-targeted rescue bid on the occasion of the forthcoming irrigation work in the plain, are the only sources of excavation findings which reveal the knowledge on the construction history of the ancient city, along with other archaeological information. The fortification wall is estimated at around 3000 meters defining the extent of the city at about 577 hectares. The stone foundation of the wall is structured based on the woven technique and with the application of a trapezium shape. The superstructure of the masonry was made of adobes. In the NW gate, there are identified two phases of Hellenistic period and there is also defined an earlier one, without being able to adequately identify it chronologically.
The theatre is located on the NW of the city and has given evidence on the existence of a tier. Evidence of a classical - Hellenistic structured residential area has come to light in the case of a street junction in the location of the city, named Frangoklisssi. In the roman times, residence is expanded peripherally out of the walls, where we have rural structures of that period. The organized cemeteries of the city are located outside the city gates. The graves vary from post-geometric to post-roman ones. Excavation evidence and surface indications lead to the result that Frangoklissi has been founded on the position of an already-existing Early Christian basilica. In the 4th century AD, the expansion of the city ceases and the new urban centre is now moved to the west, in the place of modern village Kleitoras, a name dating back to medieval times.
Source: http://monuments.hpclab.ceid.upatras.gr
Photos: www.kastriacave.gr, www.kleitoria.gov.gr
