The Pythagoreion is the

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or recorded history, historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline ...

of the ancient town of Samos in

Samos Samos (, also ; , ) is a Greek island in the eastern Aegean Sea, south of Chios, north of Patmos and the Dodecanese archipelago, and off the coast of western Turkey, from which it is separated by the Mycale Strait. It is also a separate reg ...

, Greece. It is located in the area of the modern town of Pythagoreio, from which it got its modern name. The archaeological site contains

ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

and

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

monuments and a famous ancient tunnel, the

Tunnel of Eupalinos The Tunnel of Eupalinos or Eupalinian aqueduct () is a tunnel of length running through Mount Kastro in Samos Island, Samos, Greece, built in the 6th century BC to serve as an Aqueduct (water supply), aqueduct. The tunnel is the second known tunn ...

or Eupalinian aqueduct. Along with the Heraion of Samos, the Pythagoreion was registered as a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

in 1992 because of its testimony to the cultural, military, and economic importance of Samos during Archaic and early

Classical Greece Classical Greece was a period of around 200 years (the 5th and 4th centuries BC) in ancient Greece,The "Classical Age" is "the modern designation of the period from about 500 B.C. to the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C." ( Thomas R. Mar ...

History

The oldest archeological finds at the site date to the 4th millennium BC, during the

Neolithic Period The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wid ...

. However, the settlement began around the 16th century BC, when the Minoans colonized Samos. After the

Trojan War The Trojan War was a legendary conflict in Greek mythology that took place around the twelfth or thirteenth century BC. The war was waged by the Achaeans (Homer), Achaeans (Ancient Greece, Greeks) against the city of Troy after Paris (mytho ...

, the naval and economic importance of Samos grew until its zenith in the 6th century BC. Although it was conquered by the

Persians Persians ( ), or the Persian people (), are an Iranian ethnic group from West Asia that came from an earlier group called the Proto-Iranians, which likely split from the Indo-Iranians in 1800 BCE from either Afghanistan or Central Asia. They ...

shortly thereafter, the town remained an influential trading center until the 3rd century AD.

Description

The ancient town is surrounded by

fortification A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...

s which date back to the Classical Period during the 5th and 4th centuries BC. Excavations into the town itself have uncovered the street plan of the ancient city, including a sewage system and both public and religious buildings. In addition, the remains of Roman buildings can be found on the site, including an

agora The agora (; , romanized: ', meaning "market" in Modern Greek) was a central public space in ancient Ancient Greece, Greek polis, city-states. The literal meaning of the word "agora" is "gathering place" or "assembly". The agora was the center ...

public bath Public baths originated when most people in population centers did not have access to private bathing facilities. Though termed "public", they have often been restricted according to gender, religious affiliation, personal membership, and other cr ...

s, a

stadium A stadium (: stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage completely or partially surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit ...

, and town houses.

Museum

A recently built museum is located in the modern city centre. It displays over 3000 objects that present the cultural evolution of the ancient city of Samos and its rural surroundings from the 4th millennium BC until the 7th century AD.

References

External links

{{World Heritage Sites in Greece Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Greece Ancient Greek buildings and structures Ancient ports in Greece Archaeological sites on the Aegean Islands Former populated places in Greece Roman sites in Greece Tourist attractions in the North Aegean World Heritage Sites in Greece