The site

Mystras is a fortified Byzantine town in Laconia, Greece, rising through the Taygetus range below a Frankish castle above ancient Sparta. As capital of the Despotate of the Morea in the 14th and 15th centuries, it flowered during the Palaeologan Renaissance, drawing artists, architects, and thinkers such as Gemistos Plethon. Exceptionally well preserved, this UNESCO World Heritage city testifies to late Byzantine art and culture.

Field notes

civilizations

Byzantine

types

City · Fortress

occupied

1,249 CE — 1,460 CE

visitors

145,939 / year

country

Greece

elevation

310 m above sea level