Miletus 2003–2005. Preliminary Report on the Excavations, Monument Restoration, Ruin Preservation as well as Natural Scientific Investigations – an Introduction and Overview

Abstract

The article offers an overview of the activities of the Miletus excavation in the years 2003–2005 and thus functions as an introduction to the articles that follow in this and the next volume of the Archaeologischer Anzeiger. As in the last years, the work at Miletus consisted of excavations, the restoration of monuments and the preservation of ruins as well as certain natural scientific investigations. The main project was the excavation of the Archaic sanctuary of Aphrodite on the hill known today as Zeytintepe: a preliminary report specifically devoted to this subject follows in this volume, while a certain amount of material recovered during the excavations will be published in the next half-volume of the journal. The results of the geophysical prospection undertaken as part of interdisciplinary programmes of the Miletus excavation will be discussed in greater detail in the introduction, and the attempt will be made to integrate them into the overall picture of scientific research on the ancient city. In addition, there is a brief summary of the work done to present and develop the archaeological site for tourism, no report having yet been dedicated to the question. The introduction ends with an account of restoration work on the theatre of Miletus by B. F. Weber.