Evidence for Two Planned Greek Settlements in the Peloponnese from Satellite Remote Sensing

Abstract

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Integrating legacy survey data into GIS‐based analysis: The rediscovery of the archaeological landscapes in Grevena (Western Macedonia, Greece)

“…Remote-sensing sources illustrated well the terrain changes that occurred during the last decades and confirmed local testimonies about the existence of traditional field systems but also the impact of the reclamation process that followed and altered the agricultural Central Macedonia and Thessaly (Alexakis et al, 2009;Andreou et al, 1996;Orengo et al, 2015), or linear features based on cropmarks and modern land division (Donati & Sarris, 2016;Orengo et al, 2015;Orengo & Knappett, 2018), in Grevena, the irregular topography of the landscape coupled with visible erosion marks obstruct the aerial identification and delimitation of archaeological sites. Lastly, geomorphometric analysis using the geomorphons analysis provided a fast and large-scale morphological recognition of the located sites that can be used to prioritize geoarchaeological, sitespecific fieldwork.…”

“…Historical photographs and satellite imagery, for instance, brought important yet geographically limited results about site recognition, particularly concerning forested areas, as the case of Kastri Philippei shows. Unlike other regions of Greece where archaeological sites may present a certain morphology, such as the tell formations in Central Macedonia and Thessaly (Alexakis et al, 2009; Andreou et al, 1996; Orengo et al, 2015), or linear features based on cropmarks and modern land division (Donati & Sarris, 2016; Orengo et al, 2015; Orengo & Knappett, 2018), in Grevena, the irregular topography of the landscape coupled with visible erosion marks obstruct the aerial identification and delimitation of archaeological sites. Lastly, geomorphometric analysis using the geomorphons analysis provided a fast and large‐scale morphological recognition of the located sites that can be used to prioritize geoarchaeological, site‐specific fieldwork.…”

“…Historical aerial photographs, nevertheless, have the potential to reveal archaeological imprints nowadays covered by vegetation or destroyed due to land flattening and reclamation processes that took place in Greece between the 1970s and 1990s (Agapiou et al, 2022; Alexakis et al, 2009; Donati & Sarris, 2016; Orengo et al, 2015; Stoker, 2010). In the case of Grevena, the aerial imagery we used included three single‐band greyscale datasets, the British Royal Airforce (RAF) series acquired in 1944 and 1945, the 1960 US Air Force (USAF) series and the 1984 series made by the Hellenic Military Geographical Service (HMGS).…”

Urban Networks in the Roman Province of Achaia (Peloponnese, Central Greece, Epirus and Thessaly)

“…251). Recent evidence from satellite remote sensing and geophysics has shown an orthogonal town plan occupying c. 150 ha (Donati and Sarris 2016;Donati 2017), but not all of this area was built up. Moreover, a significant part of the city was occupied by buildings/facilities which were used only periodically, by the athletes who took part in the Olympic Games and with their attendants, who were obliged to stay in the city of Elis for a fixed period of time before the games (Andreou and Andreou 2010: 11).…”

“…281;Hansen 2006: 170 n. 23). Recent evidence from satellite remote sensing and geophysics has shown an orthogonal town plan covering all the intra-muros area, but large parts of this area remained devoid of buildings; a size suggestion for the built-up area is still lacking (Donati and Sarris 2016;Donati 2017). In R times at least the southern half of the city was active (Strabo 8.8.2;ADelt 29, 1973-74, B2: 296-301), and we cannot be sure that the R city was smaller than the C-H one; based on the above we can broadly guesstimate the size of the C-H and R city as c. 40-80 ha; R interventions in agora and theatre, mention of stadion, uncertain aqueduct (Paus.…”