Salamis Harbour Project. Report for 2016

Transcription

1 Salamis Harbour Project Report for 2016 In November-December 2016 an underwater survey, 1 as part of a three-year collaborative project between the Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities (E.U.A.) of the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports and the Hellenic Institute of Marine Archaeology (H.I.M.A.), was conducted off the eastern coast of Salamis in the Saronic Gulf (namely in the area of Ambelaki-Kynosoura) under the direction of Dr. Angeliki Simossi, Head of the Ephorate, and Yannos G. Lolos, Professor of Archaeology at the University of Ioannina and President of the Institute, with the involvement of the Laboratory of Marine Geology and Physical Oceanography of the University of Patras under Professor George Papatheodorou, and with substantial financial support from the. It should be noted that this is the first systematic underwater reconnaissance to be initiated by Greek institutions (with the participation of a 24 member team, see attached List of Participants) in a heavily polluted marine environment (and sea-bed), yet in a crucial area of historical importance. With regard to the history of marine research in the Straits of Salamis, it should be remembered that a pioneering underwater investigation was carried out in the Winter of 1884 in the area between Kynosoura-Psyttaleia-Keratsini, under the direction of Christos Tsountas, with the involvement of traditional divers (see Y. G. Lolos, in Enalia, Vol. VII, 2003, 13-27). Both the house and the storeroom of the University of Ioannina Salamis Excavations at Selinia were put at the service of the Salamis Harbour Project late in 2016 and early in A zodiac-type boat, 4.20 m. long, owned by Mr. Christos Agouridis has covered the needs of the archaeological and geophysical research in the Bay of Ambelaki. Before the inception of the main project, quantities of salt-water were taken from the north side of the inner Bay and were analyzed at the Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry of the Department of Chemistry at the University of Ioannina, under the care of Alternate Rector, Professor Triantafyllos Albanis. Also, at the opening of the 2016 campaign all three shores (north, west and south) of the inner Bay were cleaned from seasonal plastic litter, for the smooth development of research work. 1 The main period of underwater research (on the basis of a permit by the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports, dated ) in the area of Ambelaki-Kynosoura had a duration of 4 weeks, 5 Nov.-5 Dec. 2016, but successive visits to specific places in the area for supplementary fieldwork and study were made by members of the team, both before and especially after the main campaign, with an aim, among others, to survey a long stretch of the fortification wall of the Classical town of Salamis, running on the western part of the peninsula of Kynosoura and apparently protecting the town and its harbour from the south. This is, no doubt, a crucial element for the study of the wider topography of the harbour of Salamis.! 1

2 Within the context of the 2016 Salamis harbour Project, an intensive 3-day seminar (12-14/11/2016), comprising lectures and on-site lessons in Salamis, on Geoarchaeology and the methodology and techniques of land and underwater excavation, organized at the base of the team, with the participation of 21 Archaeology students from the University of Ioannina. 2 The main focus of the 2016 research was the inner (western) part of the Bay of Ambelaki, formed by the peninsulas of Pounta and Kynosoura. This is the commercial and military harbour of the Classical and Hellenistic town or demos of Salamis and certainly the closest and most vital harbour of the city-state of Athens, after those of Piraeus (Kantharos, Zea and Mounichia). It is also the gathering place of the united Greek fleet on the eve of the great sea-battle of 480 B.C., found in close proximity to well-known monuments to the naval success: the polyandreion or burial mound of the victors and the tropaion (trophy), on the long peninsula of Kynosoura (see I.G. II 2, 1035, lines 33-34). References to the ancient port of Salamis occur in the works of the geographer Scylax (of the 4 th cent. B.C.), the geographer Strabo (of the 1 st cent. B.C.-1 st cent. A.D.) and the traveller Pausanias (of the 2 nd cent. A.D.). Occasional mention of the antiquities in the harbour of Salamis, at Ambelaki, is found in works by several travellers, historians and archaeologists of the 19 th and 20 th centuries, while some of the submerged ancient remains in the Bay are marked, in a rudimentary manner, on old maps by: W. M. Leake (1841), H. G. Lolling (1884), German military cartographers (1889/1891), E. Curtius and J. A. Kaupert (1895) and M. Matthaiopoulos and A. Chrysanthis (1916). One of the main results of the 2016 underwater survey was the identification/ documentation of submerged ancient remains on all three sides (north, west and south) of the Bay of Ambelaki. These are invariably found above or under water, according to the change of the sea-level, the fall of which, especially in the month of February, reaches its lowest, i.e. about half a metre(!). As a result, several submerged remains are visible only at certain times of the year at low tides. The ancient architectural remains, which have been identified on the shore and in shallow waters, in the inner Bay, comprise portuary installations, fortification works and various other structures. By employing a combination of methods and techniques (aerial photography with a drone, photogrammetry, topographical and architectural documentation), the first underwater archaeological map of the area, with all visible elements, has now been constructed, which will be used as basis for further investigation in the historic Bay (see attached topographical plans, architectural drawings and aerial photographs). 2 As training, within the course Excavation Methodology, taught by Dr. Christina Marabea, at the Department of History and Archaeology of the University of Ioannina.! 2

3 An essential part of the 2016 survey off Salamis was the geophysical research, carried out by a team from the University of Patras, and using a side scan sonar, a marine magnetometer and a special device with an attached underwater camera. The main aims of this investigation were: the identification of elements of archaeological interest on the sea-bottom and also the determination of the coast-line in the Bay in the Classical period. The high quality digital data collected during the geophysical survey will be of great value for the reconstruction of the coastal palaeogeography of the area. Of great interest is an enclosed or protected area (partly a marsh), with special functions, in the northwest part of the Bay of Ambelaki. It is defined, on the south, by an impressive long wall (or jetty) extending to ca. 160 m. and ending in a strong wellbuilt round tower, with a diameter of 7 m. (and preserved in two courses in its northnorthwest arc), of a type well-known from other fortified harbours, e.g. at Thasos, Halieis (Porto Cheli) and Phalasarna; while, on the east, this special area is bordered by a modern uplifted mole, 48 m. long in a N.-S. axis (just in front of the old Kriezis House), carelessly built (already since the end of the 19 th century) with ancient building material (dressed blocks and other large stones), and possibly lying, partly at least, on ancient foundation. Three (3) of these blocks preserve a periteneia at one edge, while at the south end of the mole, a large pierced stone (0.90 x 0.90 m.), though not in its original position, may represent a mooring stone. Immediately west of the modern mole, at a distance of m., surface clearing of the blackish mud has revealed a continuous row of large ashlar-blocks, running for ca. 12 m. in a N.-S. axis, and very probably belonging to the foundation course of a strong well-built structure, of public character. Selective tests have showed that the thickness of two (2) of the ashlar blocks reaches 0.50 m. Below are the dimensions in meters of the first eight (8) blocks (starting from south): (E.-W.) x 0.50 (N.-S.) (E.-W.) x 0,82 (N.-S.), with a square knob on its east face (E.-W.) x 0.78 (N.-S.) (E.-W.) x 0.75 (N.-S.) (E.-W.) x 0,77 (N.-S.) (E.-W.) x 1.30 (N.-S.) (E.-W.) x 0.60 (N.-S.) (E.-W.) x 0.55 (N.-S.). A little further to the east, at short distances ( m.) from the above mentioned modern mole, a dashed row of large oblong blocks (with a flattish upper surface! 3

4 and a thickness of 0.30 m.), stretching to ca. 19 m., in a N.-S. axis, may be claimed to be the foundation course of an ancient port construction (a pier/mole?). In the same (north/northwest) area, at some distance to the west of the modern mole, a large submerged building (or structure) of oblong shape, in a N.-S. axis, and of unknown character, measuring 21 x 9.20 m., has been surveyed. On the west side of the inner Bay, at a distance of 28 m. to the south of the beginning of the long wall on the present-day shore-line, lies a strong square tower (7.70 x 7.70 m.), built with large blocks (among them, one with a length of 2 m. at its southwest corner), and probably belonging to a fortification system originally related to the long wall. On the south side of the inner bay, the submerged remains, documented in the course of the 2016 survey, include (as seen from west to east): A pier or breakwater of rubble, with a width of 3.70 m., running for 39 m.; a mole, parallel to a modern mole, with a length of 40 m., in a N.-S. axis; also a wall, ca. 30 m. long, and parallel to the present-day coast line, with an attached square tower-like structure (6 x 6 m.), at a point where the Ayia Trias road meets the coastal road, Akti Themistokleous. Finally, within the context of the 2016 survey, a large quantity of diagnostic surface finds was collected, in nine (9) sectors, on the north and west side of the Bay of Ambelaki (see attached Catalogue of Finds, in Greek). The surface collection has yielded numerous sherds from commercial jars and other vases of various periods, a bronze coin of Corinth (of the 4 th cent. B.C.) and some small objects (2 clay lids, a complete clay loom-weight and a small fragment of a clay loom-weight). The largest proportion of the surface potsherds (including many fragments of plain and blackglazed pots) can be securely dated to the Classical and Hellenistic periods, apparently associated with the function of the main installations of the harbour of Salamis during the flourishing phases of Athenian history. Among the ceramic material collected in 2016, the pottery dating from Late Roman/ Early Byzantine times (and chiefly consisting of fragments of closed shapes with combed decoration) can be associated with a settlement of those times, parts of which have been revealed from rescue excavations by the Greek Archaeological Service in the coastal zone, on the west and north side of the Bay of Ambelaki. Epilogue The most important aspect of the 2016 survey was the documentation of portuary installations and other structures of both commercial and military character, and dating from Classical and Hellenistic times, on all three sides of the inner Bay of Ambelaki.! 4

5 The fortified northwestern part of the Bay, defined by the long wall and signalled by the two towers, at its limits, is the prime evidence for the identification of that restricted area as the main military zone of the harbour of Salamis, certainly an Athenian territory in Classical times. This new evidence, seen within the wider topography of the Straits, and supplemented by the information from ancient historical and literary sources, leaves no doubt about the crucial function of the Bay as the launching point of the Greek fleet (of over 300 triremes) against the invading Persian armada in 480 B.C. We are fairly hopeful that future underwater discoveries in the course of our survey in the wider area of Ambelaki will comprise finds, of all kinds, which may prove to have a close association with major events of Athenian history of the 5 th century B.C., or perhaps finds related to monuments to the epic sea-battle on neighbouring land. Dissemination of the Salamis Harbour Project in: - (press release, 16 March 2017). - Greek Reporter.com - Archaeology Magazine. - LiveScience (Rossella Lorenzi). - Smithsonian.com. Yannos G. Lolos - Y. G. Lolos, Underwater research in the harbour of the Battle of Salamis, Antike Welt, May 2017 (in press). Salamis Harbour Project 2016 H.I.M.A. Research Team List of Participants Directors: - Ioannis (Yannos) G. Lolos, Professor of Prehistoric Archaeology, Director of the Unit of Archaeology and Art History, University of Ioannina, President of H.I.M.A. - Dr. Angeliki Simossi, Head of the Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities, Ministry of Culture and Sports.! 5

6 Assistant Director: Elias, Spondylis, Archaeologist, Honorary Director of Underwater Antiquities, Ministry of Culture and Sports, Vice-president of H.I.M.A. - Christos Agouridis, Archaeologist (M.A.), Ephorate of Palaeoanthropology and Speleology, Ministry of Culture and Sports, General Secretary of H.I.M.A. - Myrto Michalis, Archaeologist (M.A.), Member of the Board of Directors of H.I.M.A. - Xanthie Argyris, Archaeologist (M.A.), Member of the Board of Directors of H.I.M.A. - Christina Marabea, Archaeologist (Ph.D.), University of Ioannina Excavations in Salamis, Member of H.I.M.A. - Panayiotis Georgopoulos, Archaeologist (M.A.), Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities. - Semiramis Sofra, Archaeologist. - Demetrios Syrmalis, Student of Archaeology, University of Ioannina. - Nikolaos Golfis, Professional diver, Technical manager of the underwater research, Member of H.I.M.A. - Markos Garras, Physicist (M.Sc.), Member of H.I.M.A. - Foteini Vlachaki, Architect-Restorer (Postgraduate diploma), Member of the Board of Directors of H.I.M.A. - Eleni Diamanti, Survey Enginner-Photogrammetrist, Member of H.I.M.A. - Demetrios Ayianozoglou, Architect. - Anna Notia, Philologist-Classicist. - Chrysothemis Stamatopoulou, Philologist. - Vassileios Mentoyiannis, Professional photographer, Member of H.I.M.A. - Nikolaos Gavriil, Professional photographer. - Xhevdet Ajazi, worker. - Aldorando Mustafa, worker. - George Papatheodorou, Professor of Marine Geology, University of Patras, and colleagues:! 6

7 - Maria Geraga, Associate Professor of Marine Geology, University of Patras. - Demetrios Christodoulou, Marine Geologist, M.Sc., Ph.D. - Nikolaos Georgiou, Marine Geologist, Ph.D. Candidate. - Xenophon Demas, Marine Geologist, Ph.D. Candiate.! 7

8 ! 8

9 Selected figures Salamis, Ambelaki. Clearing works on the north side of the inner Bay.! 9

10 ! Salamis, Ambelaki. Long wall in the northwest part of the Bay. Salamis, Ambelaki. Round tower at the end of the long wall.! 10