Butrint is Albania's greatest Roman archaeological site!

Butrint is a fascinating UNESCO World Heritage Site that boasts within a beautiful natural setting several well-preserved monuments from its rich history. As a Greek colony, a Roman city, a bishopric that was later ruled by a Byzantium that occupied by the Venetians before its eventual abandonment as late as the 19th century under Ottoman control. We'll explore the key phases and monuments of this incredible archaeological site, always threatened by its changing local environment as we'll see. Butrint is in southern Albania, just 20 kilometers south of Saranda. The territory and this hill was already occupied as early as 50,000 BC. The hill is located in the saltwater lagoon, Lake Butrint, connected to the Mediterranean by the Vivari Channel. Located just in front of the island of Corfu, it occupies a strategic location along the Adriatic coast. Ancient Butrint was known as Buthroton. It was founded originally as a city of the Epirote tribe of the Kionians, in close association with the Corinthian colony Corsaira on modern Corfu. With a strategic location, giving access to the Straits of Corfu, it really was at a critical point between the Greek and the non-Greek worlds. The fortified Acropolis was first occupied from the 7th century BC through the 5th century BC, and in the 4th century it expanded to include a Temple of Asclepius and an Agora and a theater, all of which still stand today. The temple platform on the Acropolis was overlooking the theater and the urban center. The outermost wall protecting the Acropolis of nearly 10 acres was extended by circa 380 BC, including the famous Lion Gate, which we can still admire today. Just inside the gate is an impressive fountain, where signs of use are evident still today. The city below, with the Agora and theater, as well as residential district, were defended by a separate distinct wall circuit. One of the most striking features in the theater is a wall inscribed with the names of slaves that were freed in the Hellenistic era, continuing in the Roman period. Already in 228 BC, ancient Butrint had become under the protection of Rome along with Corfu. Then, in 146 BC, it became part of the new province of Macedonia. And then in 44 BC, Julius Caesar designated the city as a Roman colony to be occupied by soldiers who had fought for him against Pompey the Great. The marshland was being reclaimed under Julius Caesar, but it wasn't until Augustus that the city took on its grand shape and scale. Fresh from his victory at Actium in 31 BC over Cleopatra and Mark Antony, Augustus finished what Caesar started in this veteran's colony. It included the construction of an aqueduct that was an impressive new feature. Spanning the distance over the lagoon to reach Butrint, the channel's source was from nearby springs. The aqueduct in the lagoon must have been an impressive sight. We don't have that portion of it, but we do have the Castellum Acquae and related Nymphaeum fountain preserved still today on site. We can see here, leading out from the Castellum Acquae, are the piers of the aqueduct. And in this particular point, they turn, going over a Hellenistic gate, on their way to the Forum area of the Roman period. Here's a reconstruction that lets us understand just how complex this portion was in the city of the Roman era. The aqueduct allowed for the creation of a large bath complex. Located near the Agora and the theater, the remains are still visible. Here we clearly can see some of the hypocaust system, the elevated hollow floor through which the hot air would pass. There were also a lot of new constructions inserted into the area at this time around the new Roman Forum as well. There were also more residential quarters created for the increased population, making this a truly thriving city. Tying to this activity was the work of the Roman epic poet Virgil, who included the ancient site Butrint in the Aeneid. Virgil wrote that Aeneas visited this very site and that it had been founded by another refugee from the destruction of Troy, that is Hellenus, a son of Priam as well. Also occupying the city, Neoptolemus, a son of Achilles, and his concubine Andromache, who was the widow of the great warrior Hector. So powerful was this Roman tradition that it was the impetus for the eventual 1928 Italian excavations under Mussolini, ever interested in making connections to Rome's past or his own gain as Italy's leader. But it really is the character of Augustus that sets the stage for the history of Butrint. And in fact, found in the theater of Butrint, there were discovered a cache of Augustan era statues, including a portrait of Augustus, his wife Livia, and his right-hand man Agrippa. These are the cast of characters that were forever associated with Butrint and its rise to glory. Excavations reveal that in the 3rd century, a massive earthquake substantially damaged the entire town and the area around the Verena Plain. However, the city continued to live on and it was still a major port in the province of Oedipus. And one of the great standout features of late antiquity in Butrint is this grand triconque palace, which was the residence of an elected official built around the early 5th century AD. Also in the 5th century, Butrint became an Episcopal center with a large church, which was substantially reconstructed. In the 6th century, the remains of which we can still admire today. Nearby the church is the baptistry, which is one of the great paleo-christian baptistries of the Christian world. It's very well preserved with its mosaic pavement intact. Dating back to the 6th century AD, it was excavated in 1928 by the Italian mission. And what it reveals is that the baptistry, with a diameter of over 14 meters, was built within a large rectangular structure pre-existing that was probably previously a Roman bathhouse. So there are some of the remains nearby the baptistry of a caldarium hypocaust system. But what we're astounded by is the reuse of all these columns to create something new in the city of Butrint in the Christian era. And we have this extraordinary amount of mosaic floor still preserved, recalling life in the Christian world in the 6th century. The town had become heavily fortified and continued to flourish as a Christian center. But then the Slavs arrived in the 580s, leading to the abandonment of much of the city. Robert Giscard the Norman arrived in 1081, but was expelled shortly thereafter by the Byzantines, who remained in control of the area until the 13th century. Let's think of the 1204 sack of Constantinople, and then the area turned over to the despotate of Papyrus. Then came the Androvans, the Venetians, and again the Byzantines. And in all this time, the fortifications, the walls were rebuilt and maintained, and we can admire so many of them, particularly the Venetian ones, that line much of the site as you make your way through the archaeological park. But it was in the 15th century that the Venetians created the triangular fortification on the south side of the channel, and this is where the life of the city gravitated towards in this period. Continual wars between Venice and the Ottomans eventually led to the Ottoman control in 1799, and remained in their control until Albania gained its independence in 1912. That is such amazing history for one site. Butrint is one of the great archaeological sites of Albania, and really is one of our great cities of the Roman Empire. You can explore more of the Roman Empire with us as we continue on our series of cities of the Roman Empire. 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