3rd Dry Stone (“Xerolithia”) Workshop “The Amorgian Craftsmanship”

The 3rd Dry Stone Workshop “Amorgian Craftsmanship” is a continuation of the 1st and 2nd Dry Stone Workshops, which were organized with great success in October 2021 and 2022, respectively, under the auspices of the Municipality of Amorgos and funded by the Ministry of Culture and Sports, the General Secretariat of the Aegean and Island Policy, and the Cyclades Preservation Fund. The purpose of the program is to transmit the knowledge of the art of dry stone walling and to familiarize the public with dry stone constructions, their cultural and environmental significance, as well as the interpretation of the anthropogenic island landscape, as it has been shaped by these structures.

The 3rd Dry Stone Workshop will focus on three main axes:

1. Restoration works: Restoration of the retaining walls around Kalopotama, along the boundaries of the marked hiking trail 1 “Old Strata”, near the village of Potamos in the region of Aegiali, Amorgos. This area, of exceptional beauty and cultural value, has slopes that were once completely cultivated with remarkable dry-stone terraces. The stream that crosses it allows the preservation of large trees, a rarity in the Cycladic islands. Today, the landscape is gradually being abandoned, providing an opportunity for the revival and promotion of the art of dry-stone construction.
   
   
2. Educational dimension: The educational aspect of the 3rd Dry Stone Workshop (October 21-25, 2024) will primarily involve restoration and construction activities of dry-stone structures at the aforementioned site. The work will be supervised by three local masters and carried out with the help of apprentices/participants. Masters from other parts of Greece and students from the Agricultural Department of the Professional Lyceum of Amorgos will also participate in order to familiarizethemselves with the subject.
   
   
3. Theoretical component: The theoretical part of the workshop will be attended by representatives of the Directorate of Modern Cultural Heritage of the Ministry of Culture, members of the dry-stone community from Ireland, as part of the institution’s cooperation for the inclusion of the dry-stone craftsmanship in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO. In addition, filmmaker Giannis Spiliopoulos will present his film “Stone Through Time… The Dry Stones of Kythnos”. Lastly, local and invited dry-stone masters will take the floor for a discussion focusing on the protagonists themselves.

Approximately 40 meters of apprentice walls will be completed, and it is estimated that about 20 apprentices will participate.