The investigations between 1997 and 2006
Swedish archaeologists returned to Kalaureia in 1997 upon invitation from the local representative of the Greek Archaeological Service. The site itself had been expropriated by the Service in 1978, and the buildings of the farmstead that had been built on top of the site in the early part of the 20th century had for the most part been demolished by then.
During the brief campaign of 1997 our aim was mostly to map the extant remains of the buildings uncovered in 1894. A single trench was excavated against the western peribolos wall of the Temple to Poseidon in order to give the wall an archaeological date. The main result of the excavation was the discovery of a structure, which judging from the strength of the walls, was a large one and datable to the very end of the Bronze Age or to the 11th century BC. Some features within the structure suggest a cultic function, which is of interest, as the Bronze Age past of the Sanctuary to Poseidon is a much debated research question.
In 1999 and 2000, small-scale-excavations in the interior of Building D established the date of the structure to the late 4th century BC. An altar in the southeastern part of the building complex, as well as possible supports for klinai (dining sofas) along its interior walls, and the fact that miniature vessels were found smashed in its dirt floor, suggested a cultic function for the whole structure. In 2001 and 2002, our attention was turned into clearing the western part of the archaeological site of the dumps of soil excavated in 1894 and of the last remnants of the farmstead structures. The task was deemed necessary for the sake of future excavations, and was also aimed at making the site more visitor-friendly.
Buildings E, D and C were built at the end of the fourth century BC. E. Savini.
Between 2003 and 2005, excavations at Kalaureia were conducted within the research project "Physical Environment and Daily life in the Sanctuary of Poseidon at Kalaureia (Poros), funded by The Stiftelsen Riksbankens Jubileumsfond. During this time Buildings D and C were thoroughly excavated while up-to-date methods for documentation of the excavation and processing of the soil samples were established. Archaeologically both buildings were dated to the late 4th century BC, which, as it was discovered, is one of the main building phases at the site, the other ones being the late 8th century BC and the late 6th/early 5th century BC.
Fragments of gigantic Attic amphora manufactured around 725 BC. C. Mauzy.Remnants of a building, datable to the late 8th century BC or to the end of the Early Greek Iron Age, were discovered underneath the western part of Building D. Among the finds were large fragments from gigantic amphorae, some of which had certainly been manufactured in Athens. A number of the fragments were found buried in pits together with sherds from large late Bronze Age kraters. This may suggest some type of ritual aimed at connecting with a past that Early Iron Age Greeks conceived heroic. During the 7th and 6th centuries BC this part of the site was probably an open-air feasting area, formalized only towards the end of the 6th century by means of a system of terrace walls with intricate masonry. The same period probably saw the construction of the Temple to Poseidon in the northeastern part of the site, even though the cult itself is certainly earlier. The erection of Buildings D and C towards the end of the 4th century BC obviously concluded the extension of the sanctuary towards the southwest. The architecture of the buildings is currently being re-evaluated by Jari Pakkanen.
A couple of interesting depositions of materials post-dated the main architectural phases, so far known at the site. Remains of a gargantuan feast were buried within a triangular enclosure outside the southwestern corner of Building D. The deposition could be dated to around 165 BC, which highlights the Hellenistic period as yet another period of activity at the site. The contents of an Archaic cistern, excavated to the northwest of Building D, belonged to the very end of the Hellenistic period or to the Early Roman period (c. 50 BC). Among the finds were bones from animals, such as dogs, snakes and a crow. Both depositions certainly reflect ritual activities of a character that is not known from the written sources.
The archaic cistern constructed at the end of the sixth century BC. B. Wells.
Geophysical surveys in order to detect buried structures were conducted by Apostolos Sarris and his team from the Institute of Mediterranean Studies in Rethymnon, Crete, first in 2004 and then in 2006. Some of the findings to the south of Building D and to the east of the Temple to Poseidon are currently being investigated through means of excavation. In 2006, a large area to the east of the temple was also cleared and incorporated into the fenced archaeological site.
The results of the excavations and other investigations at Kalaureia between 1997 and 2006 have been published in the scientific journal of the Swedish Institute at Athens, Opuscula Atheniensia.
AP
