Spring Break Trip along the Via Egnatia

• Dates: March 12–20, 2027
• Locations: Thessaloniki, Vergina, Veria, Philippi, and Kavala (Greece)
• Organized by: Harvard Department of History of Art and Architecture, in cooperation with CHS Greece
• Open to: Harvard sophomores enrolled in the spring semester course HAA 100R Along the Via Egnatia: Layers of a Macedonian Landscape
• Registration period: Determined by the Department of History of Art and Architecture and based on enrollment status
• Language: English
• Faculty: Eurydice Georganteli (Harvard), Patricio del Real (Harvard)
• Activity administration: Evan Katsarelis (CHS Greece), Sean Fisher (Harvard)
• Contact email: programs-eventsgreece@chs.harvard.edu

Overview

As part of the course "Along the Via Egnatia: Layers of a Macedonian Landscape," Harvard students explore Thessaloniki and the wider landscape of Macedonia in situ during spring break. Midway along the ancient Via Egnatia, Rome's land artery from the Adriatic to the Bosphorus, Thessaloniki is approached as a living mosaic, from its founding by Cassander of Macedonia in 315 BCE to the present day. Students trace its Macedonian, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman, Sephardic Jewish, and modern Greek layers through UNESCO World Heritage sites, museums, neighborhoods, and the city's late Ottoman and early twentieth-century architecture, and follow the Via Egnatia west to Vergina (ancient Aigai) and Veria, and east to Philippi and Kavala. The trip coincides with Greek Carnival and Clean Monday, which the seminar treats as a form of cultural immersion alongside the site and museum visits. Fieldwork feeds three student projects: photography and filmography, a collaborative digital humanities project, and individual site presentations.

This field trip, central to the Sophomore Excursion Seminar, is organized by Harvard's Department of History of Art and Architecture in cooperation with CHS Greece. In 2027, the program's inaugural year, CHS Greece contributes to its design and implementation.