The Hellenic Ministry of Culture announced that archaeologists have uncovered the school where Alexander the Great studied under Aristotle more than 2,300 years ago. The site was found in the ancient city of Mieza, now in northern Greece.
Archaeologists found a building complex from the fourth century B.C. It includes a lecture hall with stone desks, two banquet halls, a stadium, a sports arena, and a covered porch.
The site features columns and mosaic floors. The banquet halls had raised platforms for about a dozen couches. Researchers also discovered ceramics, coins, and four writing styluses once used by students. The building’s style resembles the royal palace at Aigai, where King Philip II and Alexander lived.
Angeliki Kottaridi, an archaeologist and former director of antiquities at the ministry, is leading the excavation. She found the ancient remains near the theater of Mieza before her team started digging in 2024.
Kottaridi thinks this is the very school where Alexander studied. She points to the ancient writer Plutarch, who wrote that Philip II built the school for his son and other noble children. In ancient Greece, these schools were called gymnasia and offered both academic lessons and physical training.
Other scholars agree with the findings. Jeanne Reames from the University of Nebraska at Omaha said the evidence shows this is the school Philip II provided. Graham Wrightson from South Dakota State University said finding four styluses helps people imagine Alexander’s early years learning from Aristotle.
Elizabeth Baynham from the University of Newcastle said the site’s luxury matches Philip II’s wealth. She also suggested that safety was a reason for the location. Since it is 27 miles, or 43 kilometers, from the ancient capital of Pella, Alexander could have escaped if his father was threatened.
Baynham also said that Alexander, who was very intelligent, got an excellent education from Aristotle. However, historian Miltiades Hatzopoulos warned that more archaeological evidence is needed. He pointed out that the excavator has given interviews but has not published a formal paper yet.
