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A 2,500-year connection

The connection between Mantemohoria and mining goes back 2,500 years to the time of Philip, King of Macedonia. The mines continued to operate throughout the Roman and Byzantine eras and the period of Ottoman rule. After the war the mines became the property of Prodromos Bodossakis-Athanasiadis. In 1995 the historic Cassandra Mines were sold for a cut-rate price to TVX Gold, raising a storm of protest from Mantemohoria residents. Prior to the sale, the PASOK government had given reassurances that gold mining would be permitted only if environmentally hazardous substances were separated off, but it did not demand the full study of environmental consequences which is mandatory in such cases. The Council of State vindicated the residents, banning further gold mining on the site.

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