Archaeologists Unearth the 2,400-Year-Old School Where Aristotle Taught Alexander to Be Great
The latest excavation at Aristotle’s gymnasium in ancient Mieza has revealed ornate, mosaic-covered halls where researchers believe Alexander the Great learned his formative lessons
Excavations in northern Greece are providing fresh insight into the formative years of Alexander the Great and his education under the tutelage of Aristotle. Greek officials revealed recent findings at the royal gymnasium of Mieza, where scholars assert Aristotle may have once taught a teenage Alexander. These latest discoveries, part of a three-year excavation project, include ornate mosaic-decorated halls that could have served as part of Alexander's school.
The 30-acre Mieza complex, which housed a wrestling ring, stadium, arcades, and a 200-meter-long covered running track, was also found to contain the Didaskaleion, or teaching area. Here, students learned using styluses and stone desks, as revealed by archaeologists led by Angeliki Kottaridi, the director emerita of antiquities with the Hellenic Ministry of Culture. Adjacent to the teaching area, two banquet halls with mosaic tile floors and intricate finishes mirror those of Philip II's palace at Aigai.
Kottaridi believes the architectural similarities are intentional, confirming that the Mieza complex was purposefully constructed by Philip II "for the education of his son Alexander and the children of the noble Macedonians." The layout of the complex, combining athletic and instructional spaces, underscores its significance as a fourth-century B.C.E. Macedonian educational institution.
The discovery of pottery, old coins, bronze writing styluses, and olive oil fragments suggest the students had access to valuable resources. While these findings may not definitively prove Alexander's education location, researchers are confident that the evidence strongly supports the notion that this gymnasium was where Aristotle taught Alexander and his peers the lessons that would shape him into one of history's greatest conquerors.
As the excavation continues, it is expected to shed more light on elite education in Macedonia during the second half of the fourth century B.C.E.
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