the Greek and Roman world. It was used for food, cooking, lighting fuel in lamps, perfume, medicine and bathing. Olive oil was also in high demand for athletics. Providing olive oil to the young athletes in the gymnasium, was a highly celebrated act of philanthropy in the Hellenistic and Roman periods. At Athens, athletes competing at the annual Panathenaic games in disciplines such a boxing and running. Used to receive as prizes, olive oil from the sacred trees of the goddess Athena, lavishly packed in vases called Panathenaic Amphoras, the left. Famous high quality oils were considered to be luxury products. In many ways comparable to our famous wines protected by controlled designation of origin. Produced in Samos, Atica, or Cyrenaica, these expensive olive oils could travel far away, and were part of a Pan-Mediterranean exchange network. By analyzing the various amphoras in which olive oil was stocked, and transported. Archaeologists can track down these networks and study the main markets and production centers. For example, huge quantities of olive oil from the Mediterranean were shipped to Britain for the needs of the Roman auxiliaries who were gathers along Hadrian's Wall. But today we will not ramble in this globalized market. We will experience that, case of low scale production of olive oil, at the level of a small, ancient village in the Greek countryside. Where oil is produced and consumed locally. A typical Greek city states called Polis was composed of a city, functioning as a civic and administrative urban capital. And a territory called chora, literally, the country, which was the economic surface essential to the city's existence producing mainly cereals, wine, legumes, and olive oil. The countryside was never the main interest Trist of classical scholars working in the Mediterranean. It is only recently, thanks to the development of regional field survey, a new tool in archaeological methods. That archaeologists started to focus on the long-term occupation of the countryside. Discovering small hamlets, isolated farms, threshing floor, kilns, quarries, workshops, even dumps. Scatters of amphora shards are commonly found during survey, attesting the processing and consumption of olive oil and wine in the countryside. On some occasion, other finds can pinpoint small centers of production. In a survey conducted on the island of Euboea, in Greece. More precisely, in the territory of Eretria. Archaeologists intensively surveyed the site of an ancient team/g. The Greek word for village. This nucleated settlement was located on the limestone outcrop. Dominating a large and fertile plain, well watered by several streams and a higher than average precipitation rate. This region was among the most fertile of the island. It formed an ideal setting for the Mediterranean triad, olive, wine and cereals. It's no surprise It was exploited very early for agriculture, already in the Neolithic period. The survey was able to delimit the approximate size of the settlement, which was fortified, but also to highlight features, such as terrace walls, graves, roads leading to it. In the settlement itself were discovered several dwellings. Connected by small streets and alleys with stairs, spring, and even a network of canalizations carved in the rock. But one puzzling feature situated in the center of the settlement retained additional attention. It consisted of a flat, rounded surface. Carved in a local bedrock. Although hypothesis concerning its function was made, it is not until an excavation permit was delivered the following year. That the archaeologists were able to interpret it more thoroughly. This feature was an oil press, carefully carved in the rock. The press surface, circular and flat has diameter of 65 centimeters. The spout was carefully carved allowing to guide the flow of the liquid in a movable container. Which would have been disposed on the ground some 50 centimeters below. Thanks to parallels known elsewhere in Greece. And to the iconographic evidence from ancient vases, the processing of such a press could be described as follows: The olives were initially crushed, packed in bags, and subsequently disposed on the press bed. A large wooden beam would be fixed on top exerting the necessary pressure to extract the oil from the olives. The precious liquid would leak out of the bags, drip on the stone press bed, flow out through the sprout. And then be collected in amphoras or large ceramic storage vessels called pythoi . The first press produced the best virgin oil. The process could be repeated by adding hot water on the bags. Therefore, obtaining a second press but of lower quality. The position of this permanent oil press in the settlement is intriguing, because it was impractical for the production of oil. Since the olive trees were in the plain it would have been easier to build such an oil press in a farm, or in the olive groves, therefore avoiding transportation. Instead, it was built up on the mountain at an altitude of 168 meters above sea level. Concretely, this means that the olives had to be carried uphill to the settlement. This represents a 20 to 30 minutes walk. Although impractical, two good reasons would justify this choice. First, since most of the olive oil would be consumed locally, it would make more sense to produce it inside the settlement and directly stock it in the various households. It was easier to transport bags of olives uphill, than amphoras of olive oil. Second, and oil press represented a costly investment. Built in an isolated farm or an oil producing center somewhere in the plain it could be pillaged or destroyed by bandits. Here instead it was safe inside the fortification walls of the settlement. The discovery of this oil press following archaeological survey and then excavation. Can help us reconstruct a small rural producing center. And understand some of the local needs and strategies adopted by the common people living in a micro region, outside big cities. And far away from the big scale networks of olive oil trade in the Mediterranean.