Il passo di Zygos, il Metsovitikos e le ‘fortezze dimenticate’

The Zygos pass is one of the most important ways to cross the Pindus range from Epirus to reach the region of Thessaly and south-western Macedonia. The river valleys were often privileged routes and in this case the Metsovitikos allowed to climb the western slope of the Pindos. Because of its importance in antiquity, presumably between the fourth and third centuries B.C., fortified sites were built in strategic points, easy to defend, and with a good visibility on the territory and intervisibility with each other. However there aren’t many archaeological information on these sites, also because of the mountain landscape and the adverse climate. This paper focuses on four fortified sites, placed in pairs respectively to the south and north of the river : Mikri Gotitsa, Anthochori and Demati, Votonosi.