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The Byzantine castle of Monembasia was built on a rocky peninsula, north of Cape Malea, on the coast of the province of Epidaurus Limiras. The rock rises vertically from the sea, on the opposite shore of Laconia, with which was connected by a narrow strip of land and a single bridge.
The urban development of Monenbasia was determined by the terrain and the area available for building. Upper City houses typically stand two or three storeys tall, are larger than those in the Lower City and are built parallel to each other.  Most of the houses are to the south of the main market road in the Lower City, where building is dense. The buildings owe their fine condition to the fact that they were well built of sturdy masonry and durable mortar, with extensive use of vaults.Three different types of houses are found in Lower City: one with the façade on the narrow side, another with the façade on the broad side, and the square type which has more or less equal sides. The houses are founded on the bedrock, built of solid masonry and covered with domes, which are typically 3 metres wide. Cisterns were built in between the foundations to collect rainwater via a network of wells and pipelines starting on the house roof. At foundation level or immediately above there were domed storage areas mainly for olive oil and wine, though in some cases they may have been used for stabling animals. The rest of the house was usually on two levels above the domes. The lower one at street level provided access to the house and contained the kitchen area with the fireplace and cistern hatch; in older buildings there were also toilets similar to those at Mystras. A wooden staircase led to the main living areas on the upper floor. This had a fireplace, a balcony and as many windows as possible. Particularly in later years, rooms were separated by thin walls of rough materials such as planks and plaster (çatmas). If there was any space available, more rooms were added; in some cases the houses extended into archways over the streets. Finally, any courtyards or gardens would have been very small.



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