In the mountains of Psiloritis are the famous Mitata. They are buildings with interesting and special architecture that has ancient roots. Impressive is that they are built of stones without clay or other binders.

And yet they stand for decades without collapsing. It's an architectural construction that resembles that of Minoan vaulted tombs. Gray-green limestone slabs laid in such a way as to create impressive vaults at the end. A typical example is the oldest Mitato, which is located in Nida and has a marker from 1841.

But what are these stone and special cells?

They are actually the permanent and warm mountain shelters of the shepherds to withstand the snow and bad weather conditions. They needed to build buildings that could withstand the wind and cold and did not require a lot of materials. These dry-stone shelters were just what they needed. And as it turns out, the Cretans were right. If you look at the building and observe it, you will notice that it has only one opening and that is a low door. Externally, you can see that it consists mainly of four main areas, namely the main Mitato, the kumo, the tyrokeli (the place where the cheese is stored and ripened) and the mantra for keeping the animals. The main Mitato area is where the processing of the milk for the local traditional cheeses takes place.

You would see the cheese vat in a spacious area as you look up, at the top of the dome there is a small opening for lighting and smoke extraction.

Life in Mitata

As you can see, life in Mitata and the surrounding area is not easy. You are essentially between earth and sky and often in very difficult and adverse conditions. Psiloritis mountain is the center of the world for its shepherds. People who have grown up in this environment with all the difficulties and love their Mitata. In fact, it’s their homes.