Kozani

The prefecture of Kozani is in western Macedonia and is in its bigger part mountainous. The mountains have green forests with traditional settlements, old mansions, stone houses and also mountaineering shelters.

Capital, administrative and economic centre of the prefecture is the city of Kozani. It is built in a plateau and it is a city that combines modern with old architecture. Visit the old mansions, the Metropolitan Church of Saint Nikolaos of the 17th century with wooden temple and beautiful murals, the Library of Kozani founded in 1668 with rare books and manuscripts, and the beautiful forest Kouri. Famous is the School of Kozani that was founded in 1645 and offered a lot in education of the region. Kozani is also known for the units of the National Electrical Company that supply the whole country. In the prefecture are produced very good fruits as apples and peaches, the unique in Greece crocus (Saffron), cheese-making, wines and other.

• the ancient city Aiane on the hill Megali Rahi dated from the prehistoric years. The city prospered in the 6th and 5th century BC and was abandoned in the 1st century BC. The excavations revealed graves and cemeteries from the prehistoric to the Hellenistic years and the city was identified with the ancient Aane that was capital of the kingdom of Elimia. The most important monuments saved today are: the classic agora (market), the hellenistic houses, the classical arcade with pillars, a large, circular cistern quarried out in the rock, large cist-graves dated to the late Archaic and Classical periods, Farmhouses, Roman tholos tomb and Byzantine and post byzantine churches (11th – 19th century). In the Archaeological Museum of Aiane you will see interesting discoveries from the ancient city and the surrounding areas.
• in Aiani the Church of the Assumption of Virgin Mary and the church Saint Dimitrios of (11th – 12th century) and the monastery of St. Nikanoras (1532) in Zavorda above Aliakmonas river.
• Polyfytos lake with the bigger bridge in the Balkans.
• in Serbia, the Byzantine castle (6th century) above the valley of Aliakmonas, and a big Basilica with murals from the 11th century.
• in Velvento, Byzantine churches and monasteries (St. Minas 11th century and St. Nikolaos 16th century with old murals).
• Early Christian Basilica with astonishing mosaics, in Agia Paraskeyi.
• in Sisani the 11th century Episcopal church.
• the famous arcaded bridges of Voios

According to the archaeological discoveries the region was inhabited since the Paleolithic times. In the region where today is the prefecture of Kozani existed the ancient regions of Elimia, Eordea and a part of Orestidas. In Herodotus is reported that it belonged to Upper Macedonia that was the base of operations of the north-western Greek races or as Herodotus mentions them, Doric races. The rich archaeological discoveries in the region of Aiani and in other places of the prefecture showed the high level of the residents and that they had developed relations with all of Greece. The growth of these centres continued until the Roman domination.
During the Ottoman domination a lot of cities like Siatista, Kozani, Serbia, and Velvento had big commercial growth and the people who got rich from the trade with the neighbouring countries build a lot of mansions, models of architecture decorated with fretwork and astonishing murals.
The people of Kozani took part in the revolution of 1821 and in the Macedonian Fight.