713-726

The enchancement and development of the archaeological site at Edessa : 2005-2006

• Χρυσοστόμου, Αναστασία

Between the end of July 2005 and the end of 2006 work was carried out to enhance and develop the archaeological site at Edessa (Fig. 1, PI. 1), as part of a scheme designed for this purpose within the EU programme Interreg III A/Cards Greece - FYROM. The whole enterprise stemmed from a more general master plan, approved by the Culture Ministry (Figs. 2, 3, 4). Following the initial master plan, studies were drawn up for the restoration of the base of the inscribed pillar, the conservation and enhancement of Areas 1-15 on the right-hand side of the main street and the creation of routes for visitors (Fig. 5), and also the illumination of the site by electrical lighting. In collaboration with the Culture Ministry’s Conservation Directorate and the Building Materials Workshop of the Faculty of Engineering at the Aristotle University in Thessaloniki, analyses were made of the ancient mortars with the aim of selecting a suitable mortar for the intervention. In collaboration with the Stone Centre, an analysis was made of the problems associated with the building material, i.e. the travertine, while the Democritus University carried out an examination of the sediments on which the city was built and those that covered it after it had been abandoned. In Areas 1 and 2 to the left of the main street (PI. 2) conservation work was carried out involving a certain amount of rebuilding, pointing of walls and filling-in of internal spaces up to the level of the floors of the last phase of the Early Christian era. In addition, the restoration of the base of the inscribed pillar was also completed (PI. 3).Before the above tasks were executed, excavation work was carried out down to the level of the natural soil only in Areas 1 and 2 on the left-hand side of the main street. This yielded new data which led us to amend the original proposal for the restoration of these two areas. As the natural soil was cleared a number of pithos pits were unearthed, some of which date to the earlier periods of habitation, as do Walls I and III in Area 1 to the left of the main street and Walls I-III in Area 2 on the same side. In both Areas 1 and 2, Wall I continues eastwards into the area of the portico and shows that in earlier periods the building line lay near the west edge of the main street. Near the floor of the last phase in Area 2 on the left the iron lamp in PI. 4 was found. Trial trenches were dug in the porticoes and the main street and then, once the data had been recorded (Fig. 7), were filled back in. These investigations yielded the marble relief of the Dioscuri and the inscribed lead strips shown in Pis. 5 and 6.Finally, it should be mentioned that an attempt was made to increase public awareness of the work in Edessa itself through the release of announcements to the local press and the organisation of an educational programme for primary school children.

• History and Archaeology

• Αρχαιολογία

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