
Archaeological site of Nikopolis
Ancient Nikopolis is extended in an area of 900 acres in the peninsula of Preveza, on the southwest side of Epirus, 10km far from Preveza.
On 2nd September 31 B.C, at the mouth of the Amvrakikos gulf, one of the most important naval battles in ancient time took place. It was the naval battle of Aktium. The fleet of the roman general Octavian, headed by Agrippas, it clashed and won the combined fleets commanded by the roman general Mark Antony and Cleopatra VII, queen of Egypt. This victory put an end to roman civil war, definitely affecting the shape of the Roman Empire and the course of history. It marked the start of a new era (Pax Romana, which was inaugurated by the autocracy of Octavian Augustus all over the Mediterranean area.
Octavian Augustus, in commemoration of his victory, he founded Nikopoli, which he adorned with impressive buildings and he turned it into a centre of Greek civilisation and a meeting point between the eastern and western world. The city enjoyed special political and economic privileges, it even had its own mint. Octavian Augustus at the same time re-established Aktia Festival, the annual local games of Acarnanians, by giving them new prestige, and showing off for one more time, the new world order in western Greece. The games – that included athletic, musical and theatrical competitions – called ever since New Aktia, used to take place every four years on the anniversary of the naval battle and they were considered equivalent to Olympic Games. The Games used to attract many spiritual men, like Epictetus (89 AD). The city’s dwelling went on during the Byzantine period.
Nowadays, the magnificent monuments of the region are still irrefutable witnesses of thousands years of life of Ancient Nikopolis. At the (forest suburb) ‘en alsi proastio”, we can still find the installations of the Aktia Games: the Theatre, the Stadium, the Gymnasium and the Augustus Monument on the sacred hill. The prestigious Early Christian Walls, the necropolis, the aqueduct dominate along the way, while at the city centre, all the ways lead to “vassilospito”, the Basilica A’ of Doumetios, with its beautiful mosaic decoration, the Odeon, the mansion of “Manios Antoninos”. Most of the monuments are open to the public by appointment.
More info at Wikipedia
Archaeological site of Nikopolis phone: 26820 51.010
Archaeological Museum of Nikopolis
5ο Km Prevezas-Ioanninon National Road
Telephone: +3026820-89892
Fax: +30 26820-89893
Email: amn@culture.gr
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