Ampelakia, Larissa in the 19th century

Ampelakia of Larissa is a traditional settlement located on the northwestern slopes of Mount Ossa (also known as Kissavos), at the entrance to the Vale of Tempe. The village is renowned today for its beautiful mansions and for the significant economic growth it experienced in past centuries, due to the processing and dyeing of yarns in red, using the madder plant (Rubia tinctorum). After Thessaly was annexed to the Greek State in 1881, Ampelakia became a municipality with a total population of 3,037, including the villages of Baba, Spilia, and Laspochori. In the late 19th century—specifically from 1879 onwards—the Maniarios School operated in the village, a bequest of Ampelakiotis benefactor Diamantis Maniaris (1789–1871). The school, which acquired a rich and well-known library, collapsed in the 1928 earthquake.

Pictured: Panoramic view of the village of Ampelakia, Larissa, circa 1890. ©Municipal Photography Museum of Kalamaria ‘Christos Kalemkeris’.