Argos, Ancient Agora - 2009

Argos, Ancient Agora. Christos Piteros (Δ’ΕΠΚΑ) reports on the completion of the joint Greek-French excavation project carried out at the ancient agora of Argos since 2003. During the final excavation season, a pit containing a section of a stone enclosure belonging to an altar was investigated (Fig. 1). The altar was located to the south of the northern stoa of the agora and was dated to the 4^th c. BC The pit was dated to the Late Roman period and associated with a workshop. It contained architectural remains, pottery sherds from the 5^th to 6^th centuries AD, animal bones and a limestone statue plinth dated to the 1^st century AD. The following inscription was preserved on the front of the plinth (Fig 2).

Αὐ]τοκράτορι

Βεσ]πασιανῶι Καίσαρι

Θε]ῶι Σεβαστῶι

Πόπλ]ιος Τυράννιος

ἀγορανόμος κατὰ διαθήκην.

Also excavated was a Late Roman rectangular altar, built using limestone and poros blocks and with the interior filled with reused architectural material (Figs. 3, 6, 7, 8). It had been constructed in the same location as one dated to the Classical period (Figs. 4, 5).