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Excavation

  • Siris Herakleia
  • Policoro
  • Siris Herakleia
  • Italy
  • Basilicate
  • Province of Matera
  • Policoro

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Credits

  • The Italian Database is the result of a collaboration between:

    MIBAC (Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali - Direzione Generale per i Beni Archeologici),

    ICCD (Istituto Centrale per il Catalogo e la Documentazione) and

    AIAC (Associazione Internazionale di Archeologia Classica).

  • AIAC_logo logo

Summary (English)

  • In 2010 the investigation of the spring-water sanctuary of Siris-Herakleia concentrated on two distinct areas of the sanctuary. In the western part, trench 3/07 produced Hellenistic material attesting the occupation of the sanctuary in that period. In the eastern part of the trench an extensive layer of cobbles constituted a floor surface of Hellenistic date. To its west was a stone structure whose function is still unclear.

    In trench 5/04, in the central part of the sanctuary, bedrock was reached. Materials datable to between the 4th and 3rd century B.C. were found directly above the sterile gravel. Among the later material there was also Archaic material, but an actual Archaic horizon was not identified. The later finds were mainly concentrated close to an alignment of stones about 2 m long, probably what remained of an altar. Excavation of trench 1/07 was interrupted due to the presence of the water table.

    During the 2010 campaign a zone to the north of the springs was investigated for the first time (Trench 1/10). Here a large building came to light (Oikos H). From east to west it was 5.30 m long, whilst its northern limit has yet to be uncovered. The walls were 0.45 m thick and built of various stone materials, tile fragments and reused earlier architectural fragments. The building was on a much lower level than the other structures found within the sacred area. Therefore, it was seen that the late Classical sanctuary extended not only over the three terraces hypothesised to date, but occupied at least four terraces, and the presence of another terrace to the north cannot be excluded.
    Numerous small votive deposits were found to the east and west of the building. Building H was probably abandoned at the end of the 4th century-beginning of the 3rd century B.C. as attested by a very extensive votive deposit found overlying the walls of the structure. This votive deposit (US295) produced a vast assemblage of pottery forms which constituted the typical ritual banqueting service for the 4th century B.C. sanctuary. The deposit contained at least four cooking pots whose use was demonstrated by traces of burning, eight hydriai, some with painted crossed torches and two with deliberately-made holes in the bottom, two hydria necks with dedicatory inscriptions from male individuals following the model: “….. OS DAMATRI ANETHEKEN“, one mortar, one lamp, a few fragments of busts of Demeter, miniature vases, black-glaze and Gnathian table ware dating to the end of the 4th century B.C. The implements used for the banquet were placed together with the animal bones (at least one adult bovine and one pig) in a pit probably surrounded by the tiles that were found.

  • Michael Tschurtschenthaler - Univ. Innsbruck Institut fur Klassische Archeologie Leopold-Franzens 

Director

Team

  • Brinna Otto - Università di Innsbruck
  • Veronica Gertl - Università di Innsbruck
  • Salvatore Bianco - Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici della Basilicata
  • Gerhard Forstenpointner - Università di Innsbruck
  • Barbara Welte - Università di Innsbruck
  • Otto Defranceschi - Università di Innsbruck

Research Body

  • Università di Innsbruck, Istituto di Archeologia Classica e Provinciale Romana

Funding Body

  • Università di Innsbruck

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