4ο ΓΥΜΝΑΣΙΟ ΒΟΛΟΥ

On the hill of Palaia (Old Town), at the entrance of the city of Volos, the remains of a Mycenaean city that are visible under the Byzantine wall opposite Tsalapatas Museum were discovered. This city, together with Dimini and Pefkakia, constituted the palatial center of Iolkos.

The hill of Palaia has been continuously inhabited since the 4th millennium to date and is the historic core of the modern city of Volos. During Byzantine and Ottoman times the city was defined by the wall that collapsed at its most part in 1889 to unify the small town of Golos (Volos) with the modern city that had just started to develop on the eastern plain.

The Brickworks factory of Tsalapatas was founded in 1926. Since then and until 1978, when it closed down, it was a major production unit nationwide. Today, it is a rare example of a surviving industrial complex of this industry.

In 1995, the Municipality of Volos bought the complex under the URBAN programme, and in 1998-2001, the Volos Municipal Enterprise for Urban and Construction (DEMEKAV) carried out some building restoration works to create a cultural multiplex.

In 2004, the Piraeus Bank Group Cultural Foundation (PIOP), in cooperation with the Municipality of Volos, undertook the conversion of the premises of the main factory into the Brickworks Museum. The museum, which opened its doors to the public in December 2006, belongs to the network of thematic technology museums of PIOP. It aims to highlight the historical identity of the factory and the brickwork development in Greece and internationally, always in line with the industrial history of the city of Volos. The configuration of the permanent exhibition is supplemented by models and rich visual material.

Address: South Gate, behind the Magnisiakos Football Stadium