Only five buildings (including the church of Panagia) survived the disaster of 1821. Four years later the villagers returned to Syrrako and rebuilt their lives. Their community was not included in the new Greek state; until 1912 the ravine of the river Chroussias served as the border between Greece and the Ottoman Empire. The wool trade enabled Syrrako to regain its prosperity. The poet Kostas Krystallis was born here in 1868. His work was influenced by the pastoral traditions of Syrrako and the patriotic stories of the recent War of Independence. "Shadows of Hades", his first poetry collection, angered the Ottoman authorities. Krystallis was condemned to 25 years in exile, but he eluded the Ottomans and crossed the river to Greece.