ELLINIKA Kopani - 2008

Ellinika, Kopani. C. Kleitsas (ΙΒ' ΕΠΚΑ), E. Kotjabopoulou and A. Panatsi (Archaeological Institute for Epirotic Studies) report on the first season of excavation at the site of Ellinika, on the SE flanks of Mt Olytsika (anc. Tomaros) at an elevation of 550masl. (Figs 2,3).
Positioned along a possible anc. mountain route, the site commands a panoramic view of the complex valley network that ultimately leads from the Ionian coast to the oracular sanctuary of Dodona. A number of fortified citadels, as yet unexcavated, are scattered close by (for example, Kalogeritsa − Theriakision, Ag. Georgios Kopanis, Mirodaphni Peston). Visible architectural remains, along with plundered Hel cist graves, were first reported here by I. Vokotopoulou (ADelt 23 [1968], B 292), but no systematic exploration was undertaken at that time.
The principal aim was to explore the extent and character of the remains and establish the chronology of their use(s). A total area of some 400m² was systematically investigated. All deposits were dry sieved. The outlines of at least 3 structures were revealed, aligned and juxtaposed along an E-W axis (Fig. 4). The periboloi are made of limestone blocks quarried from nearby exposures and finally shaped in situ.
Structure 1 has a ca. 6.3m long façade and contained a single plundered cist grave. The largest, Structure 3, is a Π-shaped burial enclosure (Fig. 5). Its façade faces S and is 16.5m l. as currently revealed. The 2 sides are probably different in length, the E side measuring 5.4m. Worked blocks of local limestone, with signs of advanced erosion, were used for the construction. The façade is preserved to a h. of 4 courses (2m). Three limestone cist graves, all plundered, were excavated in the W part of the interior (Fig. 1). The E part of the interior appears to have been modified at a later date, probably for non-funerary purposes.
Structure 2 lies between Structures 1 and 3 and is later in date. Building materials and/or spolia from the enclosures were reused to demarcate a non-funerary activity space. This could be an ephemeral production and/or residential site on a trail linking the lowlands with high summer pasture. Further E of the structures mentioned above, 2 more plundered graves were cleaned.
The construction technique both of the enclosures and of the 6 graves investigated, in conjunction with the scanty pottery and other artefacts recovered, points to their initial close chronological association in EHel times (late fourth and third centuries). The site probably served, perhaps intermittently and/or in part, as a burial complex until the LRom period, to judge from 8 third-century coins found in one of the graves inside the largest enclosure. However, the large quantity of domestic handmade and wheelmade pottery, and the significant amount of animal bone found within the fill of the 2 enclosures and the area in between, suggest that at various times the limestone structures served non-funerary purposes.
The burial enclosures at Ellinika form a rare example of this type of funerary monument in the interior of Epirus. The custom is most often associated with coastal cities such as Ambrakia, Leukas and Anaktorio. The continuing collaborative project will also aim to identify the organized settlement(s) associated with this cemetery.