Το Ριζόκαστρο. Σωζόμενα υπολείμματα : Νέες παρατηρήσεις και επαναχρονολόγηση
Part of : Δελτίον της Χριστιανικής Αρχαιολογικής Εταιρείας ; Vol.32, 1989, pages 329-366
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Pages:
329-366
Parallel Title:
Risokastro. The Preserved Remains : New Observations and Redating
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Articles
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I. INTRODUCTION. OLD VIEWS, NEW OBSERVATIONS AND RECENT WORK .Louring the course of a study aimed at the strengthening and restoration of the retaining wall of the east parodos of the Theatre of Dionysos in Athens, the problem arose of the surviving remains of the Rizokastro. An excavation undertaken in 1985 in the auditorium of the theatre, behind the retaining wall, yielded new evidence, on the basis of which the earlier, generally accepted dating for the Rizokastro may be reviewed. The new discoveries are presented in parts II and III of this article by K. Tsakos and A. Vavylopoulou-Charitonidou. This was also an opportunity to give a more detailed account of the monument and assemble both the data already known from the bibliography and the unpublished data brought to light by the new investigation. Part IV presents an overall reappraisal of the surviving evidence, leading to new conclusions with respect both to the Rizokastro itself and to the fortifications on the south slope of the Acropolis in general. According to J. Travlos, after its destruction by the Herulians (A.D. 267), Athens was confined within the limits of the Late Roman walls, which had been constructed to the north of the Acropolis (A.D. 267-282). The fortifications of the city were improved in the 11th century A.D. by the construction of an encircling wall at the foot of the Acropolis, called the Rizokastro. By the end of the first period of Turkish occupation the Late Roman wall had disappeared, as had the Rizokastro itself, with the exception of a small section on the south slope, known as the Serpentzes (Fig. 1). The sections of the fortifications assigned by Travlos to the Rizokastro were uncovered by the excavations of the Archaeological Society on the south slope of the Acropolis (in the Theatre of Dionysos in 1862, the Stoa of Eumenes in 1877, and the Odeion of Pericles in 1914), and those of the American School of Classical Studies in the area of the Klepsydra in 1943. The section next to the Odeion of Herodes Atticus was always visible, as is clear from the drawing made by Fauvel at the end of the 18th century (Fig. 4), and a further section was revealed by the demolition of the houses above the Odeion of Pericles in 1967. A new section was identified in 1971 beneath the ground floor of the building that is now the Kanellopoulos Museum, and a further section was recently (1981) identified by K. Tsakos at Odos Epicharmou 19. The remains of ancient blocks in the pavement of Odos Prytaneiou 9, 3/5 should also be attributed to the Rizokastro. Much of the monument was demolished during the excavations of 1862, 1877, and an unidentified excavation in the east parodos of the Theatre of Dionysos sometime after 1894 (Figs. 7-8). Its present condition is also the result of other, recent work: parts of it to the west and northwest of the Acropolis were incorporated into the remodelling of the entrance to the Acropolis, and into the retaining wall in Odos Theorias. In the Theatre of Dionysos, the section in the east parodos was restored with blocks lying scattered in the area after 1913 (Figs. 8-9), and the remains of the wall in the west parodos were strengthened by a new wall in 1965 (Figs. 12- 15). In the Odeion of Pericles, the remains of the wall were used as foundations, in 1970 for the new wall enclosing the archaeological site in Odos Thrasyllou, and in 1980 for a channel to drain off the rain-water from the auditorium of the Theatre of Dionysos (Fig. 11); in 1985, new channels were built on top of the latter to lead off rain-water and waste from the Acropolis Museum. In the east parodos of the Theatre of Dionysos, the measures taken to strengthen the retaining wall necessitated a partial restoration of it, involving the concealment and demolition of the few remains of the wall still preserved above it. These were constructed of ancient building material and bricks; the typical method was used of erecting two good walls some distance apart and filling the interval with rubble and earth. A characteristic feature is the use of a very friable mortar. Two points of further interest are the way the wall occupies the entire width of the retaining wall, and the fact that the remains still in situ of the conglomerate blocks used in the ancient wall were incorporated into the inner wall of the fortification (Figs. 16-21). J. Travlos dated the monument to the 11th century A.D. on the basis of the construction of the remains in the Stoa of Eumenes. The section in the area of the Klepsydra was dated on the basis of secure evidence by A. Parsons to the end of the 12th-beginning of the 13th centuries A.D., and has been attributed to repairs made by the Franks. Ε. M. II. EXCAVATION OF THE AREA TO THE NORTH OF THE RETAINING WALL OF THE EAST PARODOS OF THE THEATRE OF DIONYSOS At the west end of the excavation were found a complex of walls (Tl, T6, T7 and T8) and a cistern shaped like a pithos (φρ. 3) that appear to belong to a Byzantine building (house A). One third of the cistern is built into the retaining wall, and may perhaps account for the hitherto inexplicable destruction of the latter at this point. Its contents, which consist of fill from the area and homogeneous pottery dating down to the beginning of the 13th century A.D., form a secure terminus post quern for the erection of the Rizokastro. Conclusions and observations House A is dated by the pottery found on the floor and in pithos 3 to the period from the end of the 11th to the beginning of the 13th century. The fact that the Rizokastro was erected on the ruins of this house cannot therefore be reconciled with the J. Travlos's dating of the fortification wall to the 11th century. Moreover, recent observations made by M. Korres appear to indicate that the section of wall in the Stoa of Eumenes belongs not to the Rizokastro but to the late Roman defence wall. In contrast, an addition to the defences of the Klepsydra is dated by coins to 1250. There is no doubt that, on the basis of the finds from the cistern, the section of the fortification that follows the outline of the Theatre of Dionysos and cuts diagonally across the Odeion of Pericles, to connect with the Late Roman wall to the north, should be dated to the same period. This wall was probably part of the efforts of the Franks to strengthen the defences of the hill of the Acropolis, which were certainly necessary after the destruction of the city by the Saracens and by Leo Sgouros. K. T. III. POTTERY FROM THE BYZANTINE HOUSE A House A was part of the Byzantine settlement on the south slope, from which survive remains of walls, built pithoi, cisterns, pottery etc. A cup (no. Δ.Θ. 85/44, Fig. 39) mended from sherds found scattered over the preserved floor of house A is similar to vases discovered in pithos 3, below the wall of the Rizokastro; the abandonment of the house and the pithos may be dated by it to the 13th century. It was probably initially abandoned in the face of a hostile raid, but was certainly deserted so that the Rizokastro could be built over it. Built pithos 3 This was found filled with earth, fragments of blocks from the Theatre of Dionysos, part of a Byzantine colonette, fragments of roof-tiles, two damaged coins, a coin of Leo IV (886-912 A.D.), a few damaged ancient and Byzantine (12th century) sherds, and a large number of sherds dating from the 13th century. Pottery from built pithos 3 The sherds fall into the following groups: A. Byzantine with painted or incised decoration from the end of the llth-12th centuries, the most important being the following: with painted decoration (Fig. 29), and with incised decoration (Fig. 30). B. Byzantine from the beginning of the 13th century (Figs. 31-39). C. Functional vases (Fig. 40). A. V.-C. IV. GENERAL CONCLUSIONS The two buttresses and the masonry between them above the orthostats of the rear wall of the Stoa of Eumenes can now certainly be assigned to the Late Roman wall (Fig. 42). In addition to their structural similarities with the remains of the fortification wall in the ancient Agora, noted by S. Koumanoudis as long ago as 1877 (Figs. 43-44) there are other arguments supporting this view. The main ones are: the incorporation into the Late Roman wall of the Odeion of Herodes Atticus, the Stoa, and the south retaining wall of the Peripatos would account for the fact that they are preserved to a relatively great height, as was observed by M. Korres in 1980. Furthermore, in time of siege, this would guarantee a supply of drinking water from the spring in the rock behind the Stoa, which was of such great importance that it was never left outside the walls in periods when the Acropolis was used as a fortress. Finally, it would account for the opening of the second gate in the Acropolis, below the tower of Nike. The use of bricks and a greyish mortar in the construction of the remains behind the Stoa to the east of those mentioned above precludes the assignment of them either to the Late Roman wall, made by M. Korres in 1980, or to the Rizokastro, made by J. Travlos (Figs. 46-47). On the other hand, the Travlos's dating of them to the 11th century is completely reasonable and, in combination with the way in which they are incorporated into the rear wall of the Stoa, indicates that they were repairs to the Late Roman wall. The additions to the orthostat at the east end of the Stoa and to the 5th apse from the east in the rear wall are now assigned to the Rizokastro, since they have the same characteristic features as the other surviving remains of the wall: the building material on the façade is irregularly arranged, and use is made of a very friable mortar (Figs. 48-49). It is thus now demonstrated that the Late Roman wall (267-282 A.D.) was extended to include the south slope, following the course illustrated in Fig. 50, and that it was repaired in the 11th century. Furthermore, the contents of pithos 3 in house A and the dating of the Rizokastro by A. Parsons assign the construction of this defence wall to the Frankish period, before 1250. The course for the wall suggested by J. Travlos gains rather more confirmation from the sections that have recently come to light (Fig. 51). Another section, which has not yet been interpreted, was found in 1984 in the Stais house at Odos Epicharmou and Odos Prytaneiou 1; it suggests that at this point the wall had a tower, or more probably a gate with an entrance from the southeast (Figs. 52-54). E. M.
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