The Humeitepe Harbour in Miletus. Results of the Excavations in 2011

Abstract

Excavations carried out in 2011 yielded important data about the harbour already localized by geophysical measurements in the east bay of Humeitepe hill. One of the entrances to the harbour plus one architectural structure were archaeologically surveyed. The gateway, largely constructed of marble spolia, was integrated into an older city wall made of gneiss blocks. On the basis of construction features, this building activity can be dated to the late Hellenistic or the early imperial period; this in turn corresponds with the ceramic record, which reveals more intensive use of Humeitepe from the Hellenistic period onwards. The Roman-era architectural structure northwest of the gateway could be part of a stoa that is to be expected for the commercial harbour. In the northeast of the hill, finally, a section of the late Roman defensive wall, the so-called Goths’ Wall, was (re)discovered. Built into this wall was a relief from the late 3rd century A.D., a find that is not consistent with the current dating of the ›Goths’ Wall‹, necessitating a re-evaluation of the feature.