The traditional settlement of Plomari is the second largest settlement of Lesvos, after the capital Mytilini. Recorded as the birthplace of ouzo, the seaside town is located on the southern coast of the island and has a long historical tradition in trade and industry with influences reflected in the architecture, manners and customs, possibly in the local language idiom.
Plomari stretches from west to east, along the coast. The hills and ravines to the north define its natural limits, and only the district of Isa-Mesa, built on the banks of the Sedunda River, is of considerable depth. The market square, close to the sea and the central square on the waterfront are the economic, social and symbolic center of the settlement. Here are the Plomari Club “Benjamin of Lesvos” and the large cafes of Plomari, which used to have a stage for musicians and gathered the town’s mainly urban population.
In the past, Plomari was called Megalochori, which was the largest agricultural-industrial center of the region and consisted of 18 small rural villages, referred to as “Plumaria”. In 1841-1843 successive large fires burned the old Plomari (Megalochori), while a few years later, in 1850, the great frost destroyed the olive trees of Lesbos and led to despair the inhabitants of Plomari. In this unfavorable situation, the foresight and encouragement of Benjamin of Lesvos led to the relocation of the inhabitants near the sea, which would favor the development of trade and shipping, in the coastal area of today’s Plomari. The inhabitants from Megalochori and the other villages of the region formed the core of the settlement, however, in the 19th century, many islanders, mainly sailors, from the Cyclades, Kythira, Psara, as well as from the Peloponnese and mainland Greece settled in Plomari. benefiting from the prospects of economic development and the limited Ottoman presence in the region.
Plomari is a special place in terms of the architecture and the layout of the settlement which is surrounded by old industrial buildings of olive and soap production as well as the famous tarsanades. The construction of the settlement is urban and dense. The houses are two- or three-story, stone-built and tile-roofed, and often have a ledge with glass, and earlier with wood, on the first or second floor. The overhang of the upper floors was based on arches resting on stone piers, in contrast to the rest of Lesvos, where they rested on wooden struts. According to the Lesbian architect Giorgos Giannoulellis, this particularity in architecture probably comes from the influence of the architectural tradition and the know-how of the immigrants from the Cyclades.
The houses, built in the rhythm of simple romantic classicism, often have a gable on the facade, while the wooden windows and doors, painted in a variety of colors, vividly convey the aesthetics of the inhabitants. This aesthetic is also revealed to today’s visitor as the building development has not significantly altered the character of the settlement inside the districts, which preserve the architectural structure and physiognomy of the settlement.
