, Cultural Heritage and Spatial in ,

Tangible and intangible cultural assets as means for sustainable and place making. The case of Ano Syros, Greece

G. Pozoukidou1 and E. Linaki2 1 Assistant Professor, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece 2 Planner, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece

* Corresponding authors: E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]

Abstract Architectural heritage refers to the form of cultural environment and its connection to “place-topos”, being the testimony of individual and collective existence, but also of human activity through the expression of its intellectual and artistic evolution. It includes traditional buildings and settlements, historical city centers and in general all the elements of the human environment having notable historical, urban, architectural, folkloric, social and aesthetic characteristics and value. Traditional settlements are of particular interest as part of the most recent (modern) built heritage of Greece. They are mostly small-scale villages with special architectural features, unique structural and functional characteristics and distinct urban fabric. They are institutionally protected by the Greek State but still there are serious drawbacks in protection policies due to complete absence of spatial criteria in the relevant protection guidelines. In this context this paper presents a pilot study of how to incorporate the multi-dimen- sional values of traditional settlements in a typical and mostly standardized general develop- ment plan. It incorporates physiognomic, morphological, demographic, cultural, urban and architectural elements that are particular to traditional settlements in such a way to create sustainable places. Furthermore it proposes building restrictions and rules in accordance to existing protection legislation. The pilot study is applied to the traditional settlement of Ano Syros that presents a rich history and a wide variety of tangible and intangible elements of cultural and architectural heritage.

Keywords: urban planning; traditional settlements; Syros

1. INTRODUCTION

Plato in his work “Politia (The Republic)” likens a man’s soul to a city. He attempts to analyze the human soul by exploring the city, assuming that by observing the city you get to know humans themselves, establishing in that way the unbreakable bond of a person to its place. Later on Doxiadis in his work “” imported new ideas about city functionality that were connected to human needs, where the ekistic elements which compose human settlements are nature, man, society, shells and networks. These five elements which are embedded in the concept of “entopia (in place)”, meaning a place that is practicable and can exist, brings back the issue of the relationship and interdependence of a person to its place,

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2. TRADITIONAL SETTLEMENTS AS “ENTOPIAS”

Traditional settlements are mostly small scale inhabited villages with special architectural features, unique structural characteristics and distinct urban fabric that were shaped through a diachronic connection of the past, present and future. Each one of them has a particular physiognomy that is connected to its unique entity, as it is expressed though the tangible and intangible landscapes and the perceptual image created by the senses of vision, hearing, touch, smell and taste [1]. From an institutional point of view traditional settlements have been part of Greek cultural heritage since the 1975s Constitution enactment where an agenda for special state protection and designation of “monuments, traditional areas and any traditional elements” was set (Hellenic Constitution (art.24 §6). Despite the fact that traditional settlements were constitutionally protected there was not a solid definition of what constitutes a traditional settlement in any national legislative document. It was the adoption, by the Greek legislation, of the Granada Convention that set for the first time a definition for traditional settlements as “a homogeneous set of urban or rural constructions that have special architectural, structural, social or historical features which are unique, valuable and need to be protected”. Later, in 2002 with the most recent Archeological Law (Law 3028/2002) traditional settlements were included in the greater notion of cultural heritage as places of “collective human action” or as “historical sites” that their protection is mandated by their “folklore, ethnological, social, architectural, industrial, historical and scientific significance” [2]. Furthermore Granada convention made an important distinction in regard to the expression "architectural heritage" that shall be considered to comprise three permanent properties: monuments, groups of building and sites. Sites, which are of particular interest for this research, are considered to be “the combined works of man and nature, being areas which are partially built upon and sufficiently distinctive and homogeneous to be topographically definable and are of conspicuous historical, archaeological, artistic, scientific, social or technical interest”. So for the first time protection of architectural heritage overcomes the boundaries of buildings and incorporates intangible elements that with the shells (buildings) comprise the concept of site-topos and by extension the concept of entopia.

2.1 Protection of Traditional settlements in the Greek legislation system An overview of the Greek legislation system for the protection of traditional settlements indicates that there is a strong will for the protection of cultural heritage as part of the greater sense of sustainability. Therefore, the State is obliged to adopt sustainable planning policies (Hellenic Constitution, Art.24) that will ensure perpetualness preservation of any cultural and

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Sustainable Development, Cultural Heritage and in Syros, Greece natural possessions, such as to be preserved for future generations. In this sense, cultural heritage protection should be part of the greater spatial planning policy that in Greek legislative realm is expressed by several spatial planning laws and regulations [3]. The first substantial effort for the protection of traditional settlements was made in 1978 when the Traditional Settlements Protection Act (TSPA) was enacted and a total of 421 settlements were designated as traditional. The Act referred to the national territory and included settlements from both the mainland and insular parts of Greece. The main purpose of the act was to establish a set of general building regulations and morphological rules that would apply to all designated settlements until more detailed and specialized architectural and urban studies were conducted for each one of them [4]. TSPA is considered to be a milestone in the protection of traditional settlements, and it has become the guideline for a lot of subsequent legislative acts. From 1978 until 2013 an additional of 503 settlements were designated as traditional where in most of these cases the Council of State required that building regulations and morphological rules, set by the relative legislative acts, complies with those set by the 1978s TSPA (CoS Decision D200/2008) [4]. Therefore the specific act had significant impact in the formation of protection guidelines for hundreds of traditional settlements. Nevertheless TSPA had several drawbacks from its conception to its application starting from the fact that it was introduced for the sole purpose of characterizing certain settlements as traditional and for that it cannot be considered as a sufficient legislation framework to cover a diverse array of settlements. Moreover, it concerned a large number of traditional settlements covering the entire country (mainland and islands), therefore it proposed very general directions, failing to get into details according to the particular and different characteristics of each settlement. Besides, it was the TSPA itself, which, recognizing its inability to include provisions tailored to the needs of each settlement, transferred the specialization and defining the protection arrangements of each settlement to a later stage. Finally and maybe most importantly TSPA considered traditional settlements as a group of notably shells without overcoming the boundaries of buildings to include the intangible elements that shape entopias. In this context this paper experiments with the idea of incorporating the multi- dimensional values (tangible and intangible) of traditional settlements in a typical and mostly standardized general development plan for the traditional settlement of Ano Syros. Thus, it incorporates physiognomic, morphological, demographic, cultural, urban and architectural elements that are particular to traditional settlements in such a way to create sustainable places and entopias.

3. THE TRADITIONAL SETTLEMENT OF ANO SYROS

The traditional settlement of Ano Syros is located in the island of Syros, which is part of the greater Region of the Sea. The island, with an area of 84,069 sq. Km, is located in center of the Cycladic island cluster, neighboring with a great number of other Cycladic islands. Ano Syros is part of the Municipality of Syros the largest “urban” agglomeration on the island, which is composed of three different municipality units Ano Syros, Hermoupolis and Possidonia (Figure 1).

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3.1 Knowledge of the settlement Aegean Sea is the birth place of the Greek Antiquity and the fertile, but at the same time conflictual field, where West Europe meets Near East. The settlement of "Chora" (Ano Syros) was established approximately in the 8th-9th century, around the church of St. George in Mesovouni mountain by indigenous inhabitants. The foundation of this medieval city, has a direct connection with the dominations of Francs in Greece, as Syros would be part of the Duchy of Naxos [5]. In the 17th century the island, whose greatest part was Catholic, would gain the interest of the King of [6]. Because of the French protection, the residents of Ano Syros kept a neutral position, paying taxes to both Greek state and the Turks, undisturbed by their guardians [7]. The Catholic monasteries of Ano Syros practiced education, welfare, social organization and cultural development according to the European standards. Ano Syros (or else Chora) has a long historical course but a relative short planning history since appreciation and official protection of the settlement by the state did not took place until 1973. Until then the settlement developed without any specific plan following the peculiarities of the terrain and growing in an organic pattern. Drakakis in an effort to depict the protective walls of the 13th and 19th century [7], found that during the 13th century the settlement was developed in a dense concentrated way around the church of St. George, while the 19th century wall traces indicate the limits of the fully grown settlement in its present size and form. He also indicated the position of the five gates, two of which remained until the 19th century, and with the addition of six new one the settlement counts today eight functional gates. It is interesting to note that the religious traditions of Ano Syros played a significant role in the way the settlement was organized. Ano Syros lists nine temples - seven of them being of catholic doctrine and two of them orthodox, dispersed throughout the settlement [7]. These temples have been the basic structural element of the settlement around of which respective neighborhoods have been developed.

Figure 1. Spatial relations of Hermoupolis and Ano Syros

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Sustainable Development, Cultural Heritage and Spatial Planning in Syros, Greece

The settlement's morphological and architectural image is connected to its fortified and defensive character that includes numerous steps, paths, arches, two-storey buildings made of sardine-like plaster and semi-openable wooden doors. Over the years, the settlement underwent several alterations (replacement of wooden frames with aluminum ones, changes in colors, demolition of stairs in order to construct infrastructure conductors) which eventually led to the alteration of the original morphological elements of the building stock and form of the settlement. A vital and peculiar characteristic of Ano Syros is the common/customary law of "air institution", which means that the roof of one house is the yard of another one, later repealed by the Council of State. The diachronic point of reference of the settlement is the Piazza which historically has been the main organizational and functional element [5]. Regarding the particular physiognomy of a place and having clarified that it refers to the perception we form about the nature of an entity and the unique characteristics of a place [5], the perceptual image of Ano Syros is completed with several other intangibles landscapes these of vision, hearing, touch, smell and taste. At first, the soundscape of the settlement brings up the folk music tradition and the Latin psalms. The sunlight and the pulsating air completes the intangible landscape, while the pleasant (basil, jasmine) and unpleasant (trash) odors create a delicious and at the same time odorant landscape of remembrance and recognition.

3.2 Protection regulations and urban plans for Ano Syros Despite the undeniable value of the tangible and intangible cultural heritage assets of Ano Syros it was not until 1973 that the Greek State with the Legislative Decree of 1973 referred as General Building Code (GBC) provided a primitive yet sufficient legal framework for the definition of traditional settlements either as part of larger cities or as autonomous settlements. GBC was later supplemented by several construction and morphological rules that applied specifically to buildings and not to settlements as integrated entities. Subsequently, one Ministerial Decision (1976) and one Presidential Decree (1978) formally designated Ano Syros as a traditional settlement. Nevertheless, these two legislative texts did not set specific to Ano Syros building regulations and morphological rules as well as did not delineate the protected area. The first substantial step towards its protection was in 1986 with the approval of the General Development Plan (GDP) that delineates the protected area and sets specific to Ano Syros building regulations. GDP never reaches its full application since the subsequent Urban Plan and Street Plan necessary for the full implementation of the GDP were never approved and implemented. From 1986 onwards there were two legislative acts that referred to the designation of individual buildings and set general building rules. Despite the plethora of the legislative instruments approved and partially applied in the case of Ano Syros most, if not all, of them are characterized by the absence of a vision and a comprehensive strategy tailored to the physiognomy of the place of Ano Syros. On the contrary, all the interventions were point-oriented and focused mainly on the protection of the building stock, completely ignoring the intangible elements that complement the concept of entopia. Therefore, it is imperative that any future endeavor towards the protection of such places should include all the physiognomic, morphological, demographic, cultural, urban and architectural elements that are particular to the traditional settlement being under protection. Towards this direction, the next section of this paper presents a pilot urban planning study for the traditional settlement of Ano Syros that attempts to embody the rich history and the wide variety of tangible and intangible elements of cultural and architectural heritage of the settlement.

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4. CREATING THE ENTOPIA OF ANO SYROS

4.1 Hermoupolis and Ano Syros: An imminent relationship Diachronically the island of Syros had two major settlements, Hermoupolis and Ano Syros, and it is vital to make a reference to their historical relation in order to better understand the contemporary role of Ano Syros. Since the initial establishment of Hermoupolis and despite the fact that the two settlements where adjacent, there always have been a spatial and functional discontinuation between the two of them. This was mainly due to the suspicion with which the indigenous inhabitants of Ano Syros faced the newcomer refugees, who established Hermoupolis after the 1822 Greek independence revolution. Besides, the raids of the refugees to the residents of Ano Syros were quite frequent. From 1830, onwards due to its location next to the sea, Hermoupolis gradually became a significant transit trade center within the eastern Mediterranean area, while in 1860 the first port was constructed [8]. Therefore, despite the fact that Ano Syros was established 5 centuries earlier than Hermoupolis, it gradually lost its primary role in contrast to the adjacent settlement of Hermoupolis which flourish and became the economical and administrative center of the island. This was also imprinted on the quality of the buildings of Hermoupolis where the great economic prosperity of its inhabitants allowed the adoption of a grand Neoclassical style, while Ano Syros remained a product of anonymous folk . Several other differences further alienated the two settlements one of them being the different religious traditions, where Ano Syros have traditionally practiced the Catholic doctrine while Hermoupolis the Orthodox one. Today Hermoupolis continues to be the main urban settlement on the island with a great number of economic and administrative activities to be located there. To be more specific, shipyards which constitute one of the basic employment sectors of the island, small scale industries, crafts, as well other tertiary sector activities were historically located in Hermou- polis and hardly ever were part of Ano Syros. Lately, with the mandatory administrative merge of the two municipalities, all administrative functions of the municipality of Ano Syros were transferred to Hermoupolis, and Ano Syros was designated as the “historical seat” of the island. Therefore, Ano Syros is functionally depended to Hermoupolis for several urban functions and any future development endeavors should take into consideration their interdependencies. Figure 1 shows the spatial relation of the two settlements which are connected through two main axis.

4.2 The demographic profile of the settlement For better understanding the profile of Ano Syros factors such as population growth of the last 20 years, age distribution, educational level and employment distribution for 2011 were examined. According to the last census count (2011) Ano Syros had 862 inhabitants. In specific for 1991-2001 there was roughly a 13% increase in population numbers, while in the last decade (2001-2011) there was a significant decrease of 25%. At the same time the adjacent settlement of Hermoupolis presented an 8% reduction for 1991-2001 period and a population growth of 13% in the next decade counting 13,737 inhabitants in 2011. Despite the population decline it is interesting to note that the remaining population of Ano Syros has quite low average age, indicating that a lot of young people have returned or choose to stay on the island. In regard to employment the majority of the residents (77%) are occupied in the tertiary sector, which includes public services and tourism. It is interesting to note that the primary sector (agriculture and fishery) had gradually shrunk over the years to

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Sustainable Development, Cultural Heritage and Spatial Planning in Syros, Greece give “space” to the tertiary sector. Finally, in terms of the education level it seems that the residents of Ano Syros are quite educated since 50% of the population has either finish high school or acquired a specialization degree (usually in tourism businesses) after finishing high school.

4.3 The spatial and non-spatial assets of Ano Syros For a comprehensive understanding of the settlement apart from the demographic data an extensive analysis of the spatial characteristics of the settlement was realized. Towards this direction an extensive field research was conducted (July to September 2015) and a great amount of spatial data respective to the tangible and intangible characteristics of the settlement were acquired [3]. The data were related to land uses, building ownership, pedestrian network and traffic circulation, quality evaluation of the building stock, building heights, important vista points, protected areas and elements, violations of protected elements and finally recording of urban equipment. At the same time several intangible elements were included in the analysis. The map of existing land uses (Figure 3) indicate that the dominant element in the functional organization of the settlement are the religious spaces (temples and accompanied building). These elements (religious spaces) present a linear organizational structure following the main road axis that crosses the settlement. The religious spaces seem to function as focal points. Around them a variety of urban functions are developed i.e. public services, commercial, recreational, educational uses etc., thus one major (the Piazza) and a few smaller multifunctional cores create the backbone of the settlement around of which housing develops. It should be noted that the settlement has an extensive and sophisticated network of exclusive pedestrian pathways and stairway system (figure 4) that is connected to the seven historical gates of the settlement. Movement of cars in the settlement is not possible due to the steep terrain and narrow passages. Supply of goods and transport of people are realized by foot and a small number of donkeys. The build-unbuild space ratio is very high (figure 5) indicating the high building density and lack of open space. Buildings are up to two floors (following the ordinances of current legislation) but several violations have been recorded. It should be noted that it is imperative to preserve the low heights of the buildings in order to protect the peculiar amphitheatric view of the settlement which results from the extremely steep terrain slopes and fortification remains. The skyline (figure 2) that is created due to the steep terrain and the amphitheatric structure of the settlement is also a feature related to the respective heights of the buildings and need to be protected. Important viewpoints were also located and mapped. It is no surprise that the points having notable views are located on the few public open spaces (squares) and the courtyards of churches.

Figure 2. Successive Skylines of Ano Syros (Source: Stefanou, 2003b)

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The area of the seven neighborhoods of the settlement were also mapped (figure 6). The edges of these neighborhoods have been historically formed and they “carry” the local history and traditions of Ano Syros. Their names are indicative of their unique and prevalent features i.e. two neighborhoods are named after the main churches located within (St. John and Virgin Mary), two of them after the prevalent manmade characteristic of steps (Skali and Skalakia), one after its functional role at the settlement level (piazza) and finally one after its geographical orientation (Vornas). In terms of the intangible cultural assets several elements were identified and located on maps in order to better understand their spatial distribution and interrelations. Figure 6 shows the distribution of the protected buildings (religious and other notable buildings) and their buffer zones (when applied) within which special building rules and restrictions apply. Another important element that is part of the physiognomy of the settlement is this of “stegadia” (figure 6). Stegadia are very small narrow gates that were used for defense purposes and for better control of the incomers into the settlement. Over the year their initial purpose of existence diminished and today they are an interesting feature and part of the identity of the settlement. Twenty of them have been well preserved and are under state protection. Finally, the three different Ecclesiastical processions as an important part of the intangible assets of the settlement were also mapped (figure 6).

4.4 A proposal for the entopia of Ano Syros The scope of this research is to propose an urban plan that would promote the unique identity and physiognomy of the settlement of Ano Syros. It is assumed that both identity and physiognomy are formed by the tangible and intangible cultural assets of the settlement while the concept of “entopia” becomes the central pillar of this plan. Analysis indicates that Ano Syros has great potential in fulfilling the five elements of “entopia” and be a place where a man can relate to its place-topos. The proposed urban plan is organized according to “entopias” five elements: nature, man, society, shells and networks. Following is a description of the basic aim that each element aspires to fulfill, representing the five basic pillars of the proposed plan:  Nature: The harmonious coexistence of the manmade and natural environment.  Man: Incorporation of intangible cultural elements and resources that are part of the physiognomy of the settlement.  Society: A balanced for the prosperity of the indigenous inhabitants and enhancement of social cohesion.  Shells: Conservation and restoration of notable buildings and other structural and functional features of the settlements.  Networks: Ease of accessibility and mobility to and within the settlement. The proposed general plan (figure 7) depicts the distribution of the proposed land uses. The concept is to preserve the physiognomy of the settlement but also to enhance new development opportunities as means to reverse population decline and to enhance diversification of the productive activities. The existing traditional neighborhood of “Piazza” is designated as the main multifunctional core of the settlement. A highly land use mixed environment where uses like commerce, recreation, administration, residence and a variety of other uses is promoted. Furthermore, a series of notable buildings located in this area are proposed for preservation and restoration (if needed). With the exception of few most of the proposed, for preservation, buildings are concentrated around the main road axis that runs through the settlement (figure 8).

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Sustainable Development, Cultural Heritage and Spatial Planning in Syros, Greece

In addition to the main core a smaller, complementary core is proposed. The scope of this smaller core is to promote the diversification of the production activities by creating an appropriate building environment for small and medium size creative craft businesses. In comparison to the rest of the settlement this area has «privileged» building regulations and restrictions in order to accommodate the special needs that these activities require in space. With the exception of these two functional cores, for the rest of the settlement a general residential use is proposed. According to the relevant legislation except from the residential use other type of uses can be located in these areas like education, small retail business (i.e. bakery) and services (i.e. haircut salon, pharmacy etc.). Therefore, despite the fact that the proposed land use is primarily residential, urban uses that service local community can be located, promoting in that way a quite mixed use urban environment. A vital element towards the improvement of the functionality of the settlement is good circulation of people and goods. It has been recorded that the settlement has several accessibility and mobility issues due to its steep slopes and limited accessibility by car. The basic concept is to preserve the extensive network of exclusive pedestrian paths and enhance walkability within the settlement. Towards this direction, the accessibility and mobility plan is comprised of 2 basic elements: a) installation of two small lifts in order to facilitate easy access to residents and tourists b) designation of parking spots in all entrance points of the settlement. (Figure 9).

Figure 3. Existing Land uses Figure 4. Pedestrian pathway system

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Figure 5. Build-Un-build area Figure 6. Intangible cultural assets of A. Syros

In terms of open spaces a network of open/green spaces combined with a plethora of cultural heritage elements is proposed. Cultural heritage elements that compose the tangible and intangible landscape of Ano Syros are set under two forms of protection a) by spatially specifying protection zones around them and b) by incorporating them into thematic networks. Designation of protection zones (figure10) include man made elements such as natural water fountains and dry stone walls that traditionally have been an integral part of the natural landscape. Networks of cultural and natural elements are proposed as an interconnected system that include elements crucial to the physiognomy of the settlement such as “stegadia”, notable buildings, religious buildings, vista points, landmarks, monuments and the ecclesiastic processions. Last but not least, a set of specific building rules i.e. floor area ratio and building footprint were proposed. These rules intended to protect two basic elements that are essential to the physiognomy of the settlement (a) the skyline that have been historically created over the centuries and (b) the terrace roofs and the peculiar way they have been used due to the customary law that have been followed by the residents over the centuries.

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Sustainable Development, Cultural Heritage and Spatial Planning in Syros, Greece

Figure 7. Proposed land uses Figure 8. Proposed buildings for protection

Figure 9. Accessibility and mobility Figure 10. Protection Zones and Thematic proposal Networks

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5. CONCLUSIONS

Transforming a settlement into an entopia, a place that is practicable and can exist, is a complex and sophisticated issue. Until now urban planners focused on creating grand functional plans based on standards that have been imposed by an abstract planning theory and applied by a central authority. As such, most of the times these plans completely lack of features that would connect a person to its place, since a place-topos- is an imprint of the soul and consciousness of its people. In this context, the proposed urban plan for the settlement of Ano Syros attempts to create an entopia for this settlement. The five entopia principles becomes the structural elements of the plan and particular morphological and cultural characteristics that comprise the physio- gnomy of the place are embeded. Traditional buildings and elements of human environment having notable historical, urban, architectural, folkloric, social and aesthetic value and significance become of great importance in the specifics of the plan. The proposed plan for Ano Syros stresses out the fact that it is possible to convert our alienated living spaces into entopias. However, it is necessary to change the mentality of “urban planning” into “place making” that will include intangible to the planners and designers elements yet essential to those for whom we are planning.

References

1. Stefanou, I., 2000. The physiognomy of the Greek City. Academic Editions, National Technical University, Athens, Greece. 2. Protection of Antiquities and Cultural Heritage (Law 3028/2002, Official Gazette 153/28.06.2003) 3. Linaki, E., 2016. Tangible and intangible cultural heritage assets of Αno Syros. A pilot urban study. Graduate Thesis, Department of Spatial Planning and Development, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki Repository. 4. Pozoukidou, G., and Papageorgiou, M., 2013. Protection of Traditional Settlements in Greece: Legislation and Practice. Proceedings of the International Conference on Changing cities. Spatial, Morphological, Formal and Socio-economic dimensions, (eds A. Gospondini), June 18 to 21, Skiathos, Greece, 501-510 5. Stefanou I., 2003b. The urban planning of Hermoupolis. Academic Editions, National Technical University, Athens, Greece. 6. Roussos-Milidonis, M., 2007. Syra Sacra. The religious history of Syros. KI.K.E.D.E., Syros. 7. Drakakis I., 1971. The History of the settlement of Hermoupolis, Volume A, 1821-1825, Athens. 8. Municipality of Hermoupolis, 2012. Operational Program of Municipality of Syros. Available at: http: // www. hermoupolis.gr (Accessed on 1.4.16) (accessed April 1, 2016).

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