The enceinte Greek idol of the seas , Poseidon , will be no doubt pleased to hear that archaeologist have discovered a temple that once stood in his honor . Remarkably , the remains might even be those of an important shrine that was observe by the ancient Hellenic historiographer Strabo .
archeologist conduct by the Austrian Archaeological Institute say the ruins were find at a web site that was once a Poseidon sanctuary smother by a grove of wild olive and , as such , they believe the clay of the anatomical structure were a temple dedicate to the god .
" The location of this uncovered hallowed internet site agree the item provided by Strabo in his writings , " Dr Birgitta Eder , Director of the Athens Branch of the Austrian Archaeological Institute , said in astatement .
The outline of the modest temple lays in the ground. Image credit: ©Dr. Birgitta Eder / Athens Branch of the Austrian Archaeological Institute
The site can be regain among three Alfred Hawthorne near the petite Grecian village of Samikon and the beach that overlooks the Ionian Sea . Today , this is a sleepyheaded pouch of the Mediterranean seashore – but it was once an important hub of bodily function and locomotion used by theancient Greekssince the Mycenaean - era
" The elevated situation provided by the hills would have been of fundamental grandness in antiquity as it would have made it possible to move on teetotal land along the coast to the north and to the Dixie , " explained Professor Andreas Vött , a geoarchaeologist from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz in Germany .
When this 9 - metre ( 29 - foot ) wide-cut temple was in its heyday , the wafture of the Ionian Sea lave against the three hills , as if it had a front - row seat to the majesty of Poseidon ’s kingdom .
A bird’s eye view of the temple’s ruins. Image credit: © Dr. Birgitta Eder / Athens Branch of the Austrian Archaeological Institute
" The solvent of our investigations to date argue that the waves of the candid Ionian Sea actually wash up direct against the radical of hills until the 5th millennium BCE . Thereafter , on the side present the ocean , an extensive beach barrier system developed in which several laguna were isolated from the ocean , " added Vött .
Poseidon was the Olympian god of the sea , earthquakes , floods , drouth , and gymnastic horse . Among the manyancient Greek mythshe features in , Poseidon is often portrayed as one of the most violent and badly - tempered . If something wound him up the incorrect way , it was said he would strike the basis with his trident , stimulate earthquakes , violent storms , andtsunamis .
The researchers say this site near Samikon was belike select for the temple because the expanse was so prostrate totsunamis . Perhaps it was built in an effort to appease his furious soul …
Unfortunately , it looks like the temple may have fallen victim to his notorious wrath . geologic grounds suggests the field was hit by a number of tsunami at some dot during the most recently in the 6th and fourteenth centuries CE , while write history show how catastrophic wafture run into the region in both 551 and 1303 CE .
It ’s not clear when exactly the structure fell into ruin , but its risky location means it was always living life on the sharpness .
The new bailiwick was published in the Greek journalKalamata [ PDF ] .
