Methana

Greece (Argolid)

"The territory of Methana was a volcanic peninsula on the south coast of the Saronic Gulf (...); the peninsula is separated from the mainland by an isthmus 1,200 metres long and 300 wide. It was an ideal military base, and in 425 the Athenians occupied Methana and built a wall across the isthmus. The Peace of Nicias stipulated the return of the peninsula to the Lacedaemonians" (Hansen, 2005: 611).
"The city lay on the west coast of the peninsula and covered an area of 5 hectares in the Archaic period and 8 hectares in the Classical period. The acropolis was protected by a trapezoidal defensive circuit (...) Besides the urban centre there were two second-order settlements on the east side of the peninsula, one at Oga and the other at Magoula" (Hansen; Nielsen 2004: 611).

Forms of occupation of the khóra

Work areas

L. Foxhall, H. Forbes and C. Mee carried out systematic studies on the Methana peninsula, one of the main ones being the "Methana Archaeological Survey". H. Forbes developed research along the lines of what he calls "Archaeological ethnography", studying the relationships between the present-day population of Methana and the landscape they experience in daily life. As in antiquity, the present inhabitants of the peninsula live on farmsteads and cultivate the gentle hills of their territory, planting olive trees and cereals. The earliest occupation, from prehistoric times to the Early Iron Age, seems to have been more coastal than inland.

Bibliography (2)

Forbes, H.; Meaning and Identity in a Greek landscape An Archaeological Ethnography
Foxhall, L.; Olive Cultivation in Ancient Greece: Seeking the Ancient Economy.