The excavations undertaken by the University of Innsbruck at the spring-water sanctuary of Demeter at Herakleia in 2004-2006 made a significant contribution to the understanding of the topography of the cult area, the division of the structures, the architecture of the sanctuary and the rituals carried out there.

In antiquity the area occupied by the sanctuary was more extensive than previously thought, in the light of the new excavations it is now thought to have covered an area of circa 110 m x 60 m. Several trenches were opened with the aim of reaching an understanding of the topographical relationships within the parts of the sanctuary that had remained unexplored, between the central zone, the recently uncovered rooms in the western zone and the ritual “tank” to the north-west. The discovery of a paved open space near the ritual “tank” and of several stretches of a probable internal road network, provided evidence for the organisation of the infrastructures within the sanctuary in its different phases. The discovery of fragments of terracotta polychrome geison and sima attest the sanctuary’s architecture was already monumental in the 6th century B.C.

The excavation of several votive deposits provided clear evidence of how rituals took place. Various levels of votives suggest that several rituals took place at different times but always in the same place. Two deposits of iron votives and a pair of slave shackles were discovered which may have been offered on the occasion of the large scale re-organisation of the cult area in the 4th century B.C. It appears that this ritual was dedicated to a particular deity (Artemis Bendis?) who was to protect the passage from the old to the new, thus consecrating the restructuring of the sanctuary. The offering of the slave shackles could attest the gratitude of the supplicants to a divinity of the sanctuary. It cannot be excluded that Demeter at Herakleia is seen not only as the liberator of slaves but also from slaves.