Urban planning in middle and late byzantine cities

Abstract

Urban planning in Byzantium as a concept and as a method of organization seems that never existed in the towns of the Greek mainland or Asia Minor respectively. The overview of the extant archaeological data, although limited due to the elimination of the Byzantine layers without adequate study or publication, corroborates to a dynamic or an organic development of the cities and not to a predetermined planning. The discussion of these data opposes the view of other scholars who in the past, based on a Late Byzantine compilation work, had suggested otherwise. The Byzantine cities both new and old were formulated out of desire to cover the everyday needs of the people residing in them. The above conclusion can only be validated through systematic excavation, publication and the interpretation of the relevant findings.