In the ruins of the Macedonian castle at Ioniko
What is left of the fortress on the hill Kales (Castle in Turkish) is in ruins. This place at an altitude of 630m. was chosen for the construction of the fortification building as it offers control of the wider area, in the valley of the river Nestos. Before its construction there was a Thracian settlement from the 9th-8th century BC. According to the evidence, the king of Macedonia, Philip II, was the first to build the Fortress in 340 BC and then it was used successively by the Macedonians and the Romans until the early Byzantine years (6th century AD) by the emperor Justinian. Archaeologists have identified a total of six phases, the most important of which are the phase from the 4th century BC and that of the 2nd century AD. Towers were erected at various points in its 250 m. perimeter, from which four circular and two quadrilateral have been excavated and are visible. An apotropaic relief of the god Priapus was found at the south central gate, which also gave the gate its conventional name. Among the other buildings of the castle, it is worth mentioning the cistern (water tank), with a diameter of 8m. and depth 12m.
If you are planning to visit the castle first contact the Ephorate of Antiquities of Xanthi. Access from Neochori via an asphalt road 8km. in the direction of the Ioniko and Kato Synoikismos.
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