Hippocrates in Larissa Today: Τhe connection of the monument of Hippocrates with the city center

by Rizos Haliabalias

Hippocrates arrived in Thessaly, the land of his ancestors, towards the end of the 5th century BC. and settled in Larissa. He lived in our city, practiced medicine, died, and was buried in its soil.

Citizens of Larissa, in 2015, honoring the memory of our ancient fellow citizens, we founded the «Hippocrates in Larissa» club. The main purpose of the association is to highlight and promote Hippocrates’s life and work and the relationship of the father of medicine with our city.

The Association’s actions (among others) include scientific days that have so far highlighted several parts of the Hippocratic work, educational actions in schools, and support for visits to the Hippocrates monument and museum. In collaboration with the Prefecture of Thessaly, the Municipality of Larissa, the Department of Medicine of the University of Thessaly and the Medical Association of Larissa, we have been organizing since 2017 the cycle of events «Hippocrates – The Eternal Return«.

Since 2016, through educational activities and workshops organized by our association, the connection of the Hippocrates monument with other important landmarks of the city center has been proposed. Students who participated in the specific actions visited and got to know the cultural points that exist from the Hippocrates monument to the city center following a suggested cultural route. At the same time, during scientific days and events at the monuments of the cultural route, elements of the history of the monuments emerged and in several cases they were linked to content related to the work of Hippocrates.

Recently, the Municipality of Larissa has started maintenance and renovation works, grading the monument and the construction works of the Hippocratic Place in the Alcazar park. He also started the project of connecting 16 archaeological monuments and cultural sites in the center of Larissa. The project implementation study is based on an existing study by the Ephorate of Antiquities of Larissa.Mr. Rizos Haliabalias is the president of the «Hippocrates in Larissa» Association.

With the completion of these initiatives, it will be imperative to restore the connection of the Hippocrates monument with the general network of integration of landmarks and memorial points of the city. The possibility of safe movement from the city center to the Hippocrates monument and vice versa can be ensured through the existing infrastructure (Pineiadon Nympho footbridge, Alcazar Park) and the “user-tourist” road network provided by the interconnection study. At the same time, it is crucial to place relevant signage through informational signs in the center of the city so that the visitor can be informed about the life and work of Hippocrates and also be informed about the way to reach the monument.