[Handout/Culture Ministry]
A gate and adjoining section of the ancient walls of Piraeus will be conserved to address damage from rainwater erosion while the archaeological site that contains them will be expanded, the Culture Ministry said Monday.
A ministry statement said an extra 7,000 square meters will be added to the 20,000-square-meter site of the Eetioneian Gate, following an agreement with the Piraeus Port Authority. This will bring the site into close proximity with the former harbor warehouses where the ministry plans to build a new museum of underwater archaeology.
The statement said that work on the site will include drainage to keep rainwater away from the base of the two circular towers flanking the late 5th century BC Eetioneian Gate, while damage to the towers’ lower ashlar courses will be repaired.
The gate was added to the existing walls of Piraeus – which were also protected by a ditch and outworks – in 411 BC, and was intended for military use. The surviving fortifications date from the 5th to the 3rd centuries BC.
