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Dimotiko Theatro Metro Station

Dimotiko Theatro metro station is a real museum, dedicated to water.

  1. Modern and Contemporary era (1821 - )


    2022 Inaugurated.

  2. Ottoman era (1453- 1821)


  3. Byzantine era (331 AC- 1453)


  4. Roman era (30 BC- 330 AC)


  5. Hellenistic era (322- 31 BC)


  6. Classical era (478-323 BC)


  7. Archaic era (800-479 BC)


  8. Geometric era (-1100- 800 BC)


  9. Prehistory (-1100 BC)


What I can see

It is a “museum” station with detailed information, diagrams, maps, findings and video projections. The passenger has the opportunity to be involved in a cultural experience. One of the entrances “welcomes” us with the relief mural “Stories about invisible water”, in which water is translated into several languages and prepares us for the theme of this museum station. Passengers walk over mosaics, vases, wells, and other antiquities, while the history of water in ancient Piraeus unfolds next to them, both through ancient findings and a video projection. The ceiling of the central part of the ticket level draws the eye, in which modern and ancient Piraeus are depicted, through a relief work of art. Among the important exhibits are the large bell-shaped tanks with a diameter of 3.2m – 6m. Cavities in their walls gave access to their interior. The inner wall of tanks or tunnels was coated with hydraulic mortar, which sealed them. The tunnels are narrower at the top for stability reasons. We also see the “sand collector”, a cylindrical pit at the bottom of the tanks, where the heavier elements of the water were collected. At a depth of 7.5m, an aqueduct from Roman times that supplied water to mansions, baths and fountains was found. For its construction, first wells were dug or old reservoirs were used, from where the workers would descend to open the tunnel and then they could maintain the aqueduct. In the recesses of the aqueduct tunnel workers used to place lamps for lighting.

What I can't see

The station is dedicated to the history of the water supply in Piraeus during antiquity. It tells the story of water from the first wells of the 5th century BC, while a brief reference is made to the history of ancient Piraeus and its urban planning. The history of water management also indicates the city’s social evolution. For example, from the 3rd century BC, the older small houses were joined together and larger houses were created, thus the need for water also increased. As a result, the inhabitants opened dead-end tunnels in the pre-existing reservoirs, in order to increase their capacity. The archaeological excavation carried out during the construction of the station covered a total area of 7,500 sqm.

Bibliography

Field observation by scientific editors

 

Explanatory inscriptions by the Ministry of Culture