The growing number of country estates investigated in advance of
development work provides a panorama of larger and smaller establish-
ments and a useful comparative perspective for the wealthier country
houses like Komboloi. The geographical spread of these kinds of estates
is expanding as modern development work joins remote areas more
closely to existing conurbations. The discovery of successful, if compara-
tively remote, properties suggests that such establishments were widely
distributed to exploit different ecological niches more effectively and
were not necessarily concentrated in close proximity to towns (even if
discoveries along the new Egnatia Odos show strong concentrations of
late classical and early Hellenistic country houses around Thessaloniki,
with imperial successors). Among the most recent discoveries is the
farmhouse at Aghios Konstantinos, in the district of Grevena, dating
between the third and second centuriesbc.^20 The Komboloi and Tria
Platania houses have yielded generous supplies of tableware—skyphoi,
kantharoi, plates,olpai,askoi; as well as mortars and strainers for food
preparation, suitable for a well-to-do family and their immediate adher-
ents. Provision for storage at sites like Vrasna, east of Thessaloniki
(Fig. 4.5), or at Asprovalta, another military establishment with a similar
history, this time on the slopes of Mount Kerdylion, was more than
adequate, but not nearly on the same scale, nor with the expansive style
and internal furnishings of the former. This seems to be in keeping with
the defensive or policing functions of these roadside facilities.^21 A fourth-
centurybcfarmhouse on the hillside above Thasos town, at Marmar-
omandra, consists of two properties, a residential unit and a storage
building, the latter containingpithoiset into the ground surface. It can
be compared with the two vineyards on Thasos owned in the laterfifth
centurybcby the Athenian Adeimantos and supervised by a slave,
comprising respectively a minimum of 22 storagepithoiin thefirst and
93 on the second piece of land, which were collectively listed as quite
respectable marketable property.^22
(^20) Karamitrou-Mendesidi 2009, 114–26; the structures cover an area of 750 m (^2) , with 11
rooms around a central courtyard, 12.5 x 12.5 m = 156.25 m^2 ; p. 115fig. 2, and esp. 116fig.
3, for the plan; 121fig. 11, Room ̃, containspithoi= in a dedicatedpitheon, sunk into the
floor. At least nine are visible on the reconstruction drawing of the house, 125fig. 4.
Construction of a rectangular kiln, which involved partial destruction of the southern
external wall, indicates the end of use of the house, or parts of it.
(^21) Adam-Veleni et al. 2003, 101–7; and Adam-Veleni 2009, 1–14, for a review of the
evidence of country houses along the Egnatia Odos; See Ch. 4, nn. 15 22 – 20.
Marmaromandra: Z. Bonias,AD41 (1986) B’, 168–71; Adeimantos’vineyards: Ch. 6,
n.40; Grandjean and Salviat 2000, 182; cf. also Y. Garlan,BCH Suppl. XII (1986) 221– 5
(Kalonero estate andamphoraworkshop, Thasos, owned by a well-known island family,
including Aristagoras and his son Demalkes).
Dining cultures 279