Building Enclosure Wall in Vafio

At Vafio in Laconia, a sturdy perimeter wall encloses a building on land long associated with the Koukoutsi family. Its Greek name, Μανδρότοιχος κτιρίου, simply means the enclosure wall of a building, and the structure itself is modern, built in a self-consciously neoclassical style. Such walls in the region often reflect a nineteenth or early twentieth century desire to marry rural defence with architectural elegance. The setting is layered with far older history: this valley near ancient Vapheio, Bapheio, Pharis and Pherae holds Mycenaean houses and tombs, and quarry cuttings that archaeologists continue to record.