Grevená

Grevena linked Macedonia with Epirus and Thessaly through the rugged valleys of the Pindus. The region came under Ottoman control around 1385, but its mountain routes continued to carry merchants, shepherds and travelling craftsmen. Stone bridges over the Venetikos, Haliacmon and their tributaries made these journeys possible where ravines and rushing water interrupted the roads.

A particularly clear early modern landmark is the Aziz Aga bridge near Trikomo. A dedicatory inscription, subsequently lost, reportedly dated it to 1727. Its three arches carried a route between Macedonia and Epirus, with a greatly enlarged central span over the river. Such bridges served merchant caravans heading to regional fairs, especially the summer fair at Mavronoros, and shepherds moving flocks between Pindus pastures and winter quarters in Thessaly. In 1807 Ali Pasha extended his authority over Grevena, and many villages became estates of beys in his service. The same district consequently combined mobile livelihoods and commercial connections with changing claims over agricultural land.