Larisa is pluri-stratified city showing a continuity in its life from the prehistoric to the contemporary age. In this article we analyze the most recent phases in this continuity, necessary for study of the previous Hellenistic-Roman settlement, i.e. Paleo-Christian-Byzantine and Ottoman. In the early Christian period Larisa suffered a slight contraction, which was accentuated in the Proto-Byzantine age with the erection of a circuit of walls. At the archaeological level, with regard to the Christian city we know of three churches, and in particular the “cathedral”, which demonstrates the importance of the Byzantine city. In fact, Larisa was elevated to Episcopal centre and military fortress of Thessaly. Under the Ottoman Empire (1423-1881), the city flourished once again to see expansion and construction of a great many mosques, some probably built over earlier Christian sites. The urban layout of the Ottoman city can be seen in some parts of the modern one, including the division between public and private spaces. In fact, the public buildings are still in the central part of the city, and especially on the modern central square (Kentrikì Plateia).
