History of research | Πολιόχνη

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The chance find of the Kaminia Stele, an inscribed grave stele of a warrior, dating from 510 BC, in the village after which it is named, triggered investigations in the area. Consonant with the trend of the time for tracing ancestors and forging national ideals through demonstrating historical depth, the observed linguistic similarities between the text of the stele and Etruscan inscriptions brought the then director of the Italian Archaeological School at Athens (henceforth IASA), archaeologist Alessandro Della Seta, to Lemnos. There he initiated extensive archaeological investigations, among the fruits of which was the unearthing of the prehistoric settlement at Poliochne. Excavations by the IASA commenced in the summer of 1930 and were cut short in 1936.

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During the Second World War, Poliochne became a minefield, and the portable findings from this location, scattered in Athens, Mytilini and Lemnos, turned into a shapeless pile.

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In 1950, the Italian Archaeological School of Athens returns to Poliochne with Doro Levi as director, who assigns Luigi Bernabò-Brea the monumental task of archaeological publication of the site. L. Bernabò-Brea manages over a decade (1951-1961) to organize excavation records and photographs, reconstruct the stratigraphic sequence of findings, conduct new excavations, and publish in Italian the first volume in 1964 (Poliochne I) and the next in 1976 (Poliochne II), presenting the findings of his research. Since then, prehistoric Poliochne has been abandoned for a long period, and the remains of the site have remained untended and exposed.

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In 1986, for the first time, a collective and systematic program of rescue interventions begins in the long-suffering remains of the settlement. With coordinated efforts of the Ministry of Culture, the competent Ephorate of Antiquities (then 4th Ephorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities), and the Italian Archaeological School, a multi-year program of restoration and rehabilitation is implemented in prehistoric Poliochne.

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In 1994, in anticipation of the signing of the Poliochne Declaration for the protection of the Archipelago by personalities from politics, intellect, science, and art, restorations are carried out in a large part of the settlement. Necessary building infrastructure is constructed to organize the area for visitation. Maintenance work for this program is completed in 1997, however, leaving a large portion of the settlement in the condition it was already in since Della Seta’s excavations.

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In 2015, with the aim of protecting the beleaguered monument and completing the comprehensive restoration of prehistoric Poliochne, the Ephorate of Antiquities of Lesbos submitted a plan for the conservation and enhancement of the archaeological site. This plan was approved the same year by the relevant central services of the Ministry of Culture and Sports (Directorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities, Directorate of Ancient Monument Restoration, Directorate of Conservation).

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With the commencement of the new Operational Program for the North Aegean 2014-2020, in July 2016, the Region of North Aegean included the action ‘Restoration, maintenance, and enhancement of the archaeological site of Poliochne on Lemnos’ with the self-reliance of the Ephorate of Antiquities of Lesbos. In October of the same year, fieldwork began. The project was completed in March 2023. During this period, extensive field surveys were conducted, and the central part of the settlement as well as the southwest enclosure were restored and maintained. At the same time, the infrastructure of the archaeological site was modernized to enable access for all visitor groups. Educational programs were implemented, and materials for documentation and information accessible to children and people with disabilities were created.

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By the end of 2022, the Ephorate of Antiquities of Lesbos, through retrospective evaluation and self-reliance, initiated a new project in prehistoric Poliochne, integrated into the Recovery and Resilience Fund, titled ‘Restoration of the western sector of the prehistoric settlement of Poliochne in Lemnos.’ The project aims to restore the western part of the monument, gradually preserving the prehistoric settlement in its entirety.