Olympia - 2023

Ancient Olympia - Sanctuary. Oliver Pilz (DAI) reports on a project with Andreas Vött (University of Mainz), Dennis Wilken (University of Kiel) and Erofili-Iris Kolia (Ephorate of Antiquities of Elis) in Olympia in 2023.

Geoarchaeological, geophysical, and archaeological fieldwork was conducted in the immediate periphery of the sanctuary to investigate the area to the south of the Southwest Baths. Electro-magnetic induction (EMI), electrical resistivity measurements (ERT), and the extraction of drill cores were applied to get information about the metre-high alluvial deposits covering the ancient site.

The so-called 'Blue Structure', discovered in a 2021 survey, was framed by walls to the east and west. Drill cores from the interior of the anomaly contain sediments that indicate the presence of standing water. A section of the so-called ‘Kladeos wall’ excavated in 1995 south of the ‘Blue Structure’, was cleaned and partially redocumented.

In addition, a larger area north of the stadium on the southeast slope of the Kronos hill was surveyed, revealing a significant rectangular building structure, previously identified in 2021, which had been built upon two terraces cut into the slope. Further surveys were carried out in the vicinity of the sanctuary of Eileithyia on the northern slope of the Kronos hill, providing, yet, inconclusive results.