Water Science and Technology: Water Supply

A preliminary study on urban planning and water and drainage management practices
in the Ancient Greek settlement of the Aetolian Makyneia, Greece
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Full Title: A preliminary study on urban planning and water and drainage management practices
in the Ancient Greek settlement of the Aetolian Makyneia, Greece

Article Type: Research Paper (Editorial Office Upload)

Section/Category: Water Resources (including Groundwater and Reservoir Management)

Keywords: Aetolian cities; Ancient urban planning; Drainage systems; Hydraulic models;
Historic buildings; Makyneia; Water management systems

Corresponding Author: Konstantinos Kollyropoulos, MSc. Civil Engineer

Hellenic Open University
Patras, Achaia GREECE

Corresponding Author Secondary

Information:

Corresponding Author's Institution: Hellenic Open University

Corresponding Author's Secondary

Institution:

First Author: Konstantinos Kollyropoulos, MSc. Civil Engineer

First Author Secondary Information:

Order of Authors: Konstantinos Kollyropoulos, MSc. Civil Engineer

F. Georma

F. Saranti

N. Mamassis

I. K. Kalavrouziotis

Order of Authors Secondary Information:

Manuscript Region of Origin: GREECE

Abstract: The findings of a large - scale archaeological investigation, conducted from 2009 to
2013 at a site in the vicinity of Antirrion - Western Greece, most probably identified with
ancient Makyneia, provides interesting information on the architectural features and
urban planning of an ancient settlement in this area of Mainland Greece. Through an
interdisciplinary study of its morphological and technological characteristics water
management problems and solutions can be revealed. An interesting question to
investigate is whether water management systems of the ancient settlement represent
sustainable techniques and principles that can still be used today. To this aim the
functioning of systems is reconstructed and characteristic quantities are calculated
both for the potable water system and the drainage system.

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A preliminary study on urban planning and water and drainage management

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practices in the Ancient Greek settlement of the Aetolian Makyneia, Greece
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4 K. Kollyropoulos 1, F. Georma 2, F. Saranti 3, N. Mamassis 4, I.K. Kalavrouziotis 1
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5 School of Science and Technology, Hellenic Open University, Aristotelous 18, GR 26335, Patras,
6 Greece, civilmovri@yahoo.gr ; ikalabro@eap.gr
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8 Ministry of Culture and Sports, Greece, Ephorate of Antiquities of Corfu, Old Fortress of Corfu,
9 GR 49 100 Corfu, Greece, fgeorma@culture.gr
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10 Ministry of Culture and Sports Greece, Ephorate of Antiquities of Aetolia-Acarnania and Lefkada,
11 Ag. Athanasiou 4, GR 30 200 Messolonghi, Greece, fsaranti@yahoo.gr
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Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Civil Engineering,
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14 National Technical University of Athens, Heroon Polytechneiou 5, GR 15 780 Zographou, Greece,
15 nikos@itia.ntua.gr
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19 Abstract
20 The findings of a large - scale archaeological investigation, conducted from 2009 to 2013 at a site in
21 the vicinity of Antirrion - Western Greece, most probably identified with ancient Makyneia,
22 provides interesting information on the architectural features and urban planning of an ancient
23 settlement in this area of Mainland Greece. Through an interdisciplinary study of its morphological
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25 and technological characteristics water management problems and solutions can be revealed. An
26 interesting question to investigate is whether water management systems of the ancient settlement
27 represent sustainable techniques and principles that can still be used today. To this aim the
28 functioning of systems is reconstructed and characteristic quantities are calculated both for the
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potable water system and the drainage system.
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33 Keywords:
34 Aetolian cities; Ancient urban planning; Drainage systems; Hydraulic models; Historic buildings;
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36 Makyneia; Water management systems
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39 I. Introduction
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The archaeological site by the name of «Rizò» is situated some 1.100 m to the south-east of
42 an acropolis called «Palaiokastro» and at a distance of about 4 km north – west of modern Antirrio
43 in Aetoloakarnania, Greece. This has been identified as the site of ancient Makyneia, an originally
44 Lokrian, but subsequently Aetolian city (Woodhouse 1897, 326-331; Lerat 1952, I, 189-191;
45 Κolonas 1994; Freitag, Funke & Moustakis 2004, 379-390). The section of the city that was
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47 excavated extended to some 4.190 m² in an area overall measuring 32.000 m² on the south slope of
48 «Kokoretsa» hillock (H. 253,00 m) and was delimited by two water streams to the east and west.
49 Τhe settlement of Makyneia, at least its excavated Hellenistic section, was nonetheless built
50 in clusters or building units, extending across overlaying terraces and looking south, i.e. following
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the known as optimal orientation. All buildings appear to have been private houses. Among these, a
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53 monumental tower was discovered at the eastern edge of the settlement (fig. 1), a structure which,
54 apart from its other potential uses, was probably overlooking a passage of the nearby stream. The
55 walls of houses were, generally speaking, following N-S and E-W directions, whereas retaining
56 walls and enclosure walls followed a more random direction depending on ground formation. Due
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to the natural southbound inclination, buildings had their narrow or, rather, their wider side turned
59 to this direction. House entrances were most likely situated on the sides of the houses, mainly to the
60 east and rarely to the south.
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19 Figure 1: The remains of the Tower (Early Hellenistic Period) at the east side of the settlement (image
20 courtesy by Dr. Olympia Vikatou, Director of the Ephorate of Antiquities of Aitoloakarnania and Leukada)
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22 It is unfortunate that due to the hill’s inclination and the damaging effects of modern
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24 cultivation many of the buildings are missing their south side and their architectural plans are thus
25 incomplete. The buildings remained plain and simple during their whole life duration, a general
26 picture matching that of Athenian houses of the Classical period, as well as the available
27 documentation of houses in north-western Greece. No specific house type is adopted. At least two
28 of the excavated buildings, Building Delta (fig. 2) and Building Ypsilon (fig. 3) appear to have
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30 possessed an upper floor, whereas the tower was also a multistory building (Young 1956). During
31 the Classical and the Hellenistic periods buildings were defined by enclosures which flanked them
32 at three sides. This most probably occurred as a means of protection against landslides from the hill
33 which are principally formed during winter on account of heavy rain falls; the results of such a
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phenomenon were detected among the northern houses.
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55 Figure 2: Building Delta Figure 3: Building Ypsilon
56 (images courtesy by Dr. Olympia Vikatou, Director of the Ephorate of Antiquities of Aitoloakarnania and
57 Leukada)
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II. Evidence of water management in the settlement

1 The presence of two water streams at its eastern and western edges, as well as the short
2 distance of the south side of the settlement to the sea (nearly 600 m.), rendered the location ideal for
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the installation of a habitation nucleus.
5 The present paper includes a number of selected, characteristic instances of water
6 management structures and implements from the site of Makyneia, which will serve here as a case
7 study for water management problems in Western Greece during the historical periods previously
8 specified. The town plan was to a large extent dependant on its position on the southern slope of a
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10 hill. For this reason it has been necessary to take measures against eventual landslides coming down
11 during the winter on account of heavy rainfall, by reinforcing the northern walls of buildings with
12 retaining constructions. To this day, during the winter rainfall small waterways are created between
13 buildings, while water makes its way downhill. Therefore, ground morphology and waterways, as it
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has been documented during the excavation, must not have been very different in ancient times.
16 Apart from this, a number of other structures relating to water management, both drinking and
17 waste-water, has been discovered. These are mainly internal and external drains, water reservoirs,
18 water wells and irrigation wells.
19 Three wells were discovered in the excavated part of the settlement, all located in its eastern
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21 sector and dating to different periods, as indicated by the buildings to which they were connected:
22 two of these date to the Hellenistic period and one to its preceding Classical. They were all stone –
23 lined, well-built and well-preserved; however, it is not certain whether they were wells, i.e. if they
24 were constructed around natural water sources in antiquity or if they functioned as water collectors.
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An overground water reservoir made of ashlar, rectangular stones, measuring 3,60 x 2,00 x
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27 2,50 m, was discovered on the south-east side of the well and had a maximum capacity of about
28 28,8 m³ (fig. 3 & 4). The slab joints in the interior of the reservoir were covered by partially
29 preserved hydraulic mortar for optimal insulation. Access to the reservoir, in all probability for
30 maintenance and cleaning reasons, was facilitated through a permanent stone staircase made of five
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steps, located in its south-west corner. Judging by the layer of collapsed roof tiles that was found
33 inside the reservoir, it is most likely that it was protected by a tiled roof and that this water tank
34 served as a collector of rainwater through the roof. At the east side the opening was probably
35 shaped in order to facilitate water overflows.
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55 Figure 4: The water reservoir at the east part of Building Ypsilon (image courtesy by Dr. Olympia Vikatou,
56 Director of the Ephorate of Antiquities of Aitoloakarnania and Leukada)
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58 The reservoir was connected to buildings and constructions that date to the 5th cent. BC.
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60 Nonetheless, there is nothing to exclude its use also during the Hellenistic period, when the
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settlement grew bigger and the water supply needs also increased. In fact, it is probably not
1 accidental that two pottery kilns of this period were located nearby, since water was absolutely
2 necessary in making pottery.
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The sector of the settlement with three wells, the reservoir and a notable number of internal
5 and external drains overlied a water stream called «Haloul-Aga», one which continues to flow until
6 today. Its flow is abundant even in the summer and forms small waterfalls in the winter further
7 north. A modern watermill, nowadays abandoned, lied at a short distance to the northeast of the site
8 of the ancient settlement. The position of the Tower in the same sector cannot be irrelevant to the
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10 water stream, which, already since the Early Hellenistic period, was a reference point for the site’s
11 inhabitants. This sector reveals, at least for the Hellenistic period, central planning and communal
12 organization by a larger group of people.
13 At the western edge of the excavated section of the settlement the second water stream
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(“Nyforema”), a considerably smaller one than its eastern counterpart, can be found flowing until
16 this day. Through a path running along its eastern bank, there was an easy access to the acropolis of
17 the city (Saranti 2013). In this sector of the settlement buildings of the Classical period were
18 uncovered and therefore, we are dealing with a situation corresponding to the eastern edge of the
19 settlement.
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23 III. Hydraulic calculations
24 From preliminary hydraulic calculations it might be suggested that during an extreme flow
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flood (with a return period more than 250 years), the stone drain could not seem efficient enough to
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27 drain the rainwater from the upwards hill. Nonetheless, further calculations should be needed in
28 order to prove this statement by using analytical methods such as reported in Koutsoyiannis (2011).
29 Since it is known that there is an extended drainage system around the houses and that are
30 dispersed wells are present (fig. 3) and one water reservoir, as well (fig. 4), all situated in the
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“connective tissue” of the town, a critical reflection can be stated that these constructions were
33 made for the protection of the city and relief from the flood runoff, since in one hand, the town is
34 bordered by two streams (westwards and eastwards) and on the other hand, it seems like there was
35 initially a wrong design in the construction of the main sewage of the town.
36 Thus, obviously, various corrective interventions had been made firstly to protect the town
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38 and secondly, to enrich the aquifer (wells and reservoir, due to lack of wells or other pipeline
39 downwards of the city), in order the water could be pumped in arid days for various uses.
40 From some other preliminary calculations, it might be suggested that these water wells and
41 reservoirs infrastructures would be sufficient for less than 100 inhabitants who lived in this area,
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should it be used an interpretation of a Solons’ law, for regulating the use of wells in ancient
44 Athens, where a minimum water need of 8 lt per capita per day, is assumed (Mamassis et al. 2015),
45 combined with the estimation that standard density population in ancient cities was about 170-250
46 people per ha (Finkelstein 1990, see Table 1 in Zorn 1994).
47 In any way, this estimation would have effect, whether there was a feedback of the reservoir
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49 and the wells from a steady water fountain/s.
50 This fact has not been obvious from the archeological findings, thus, a critical statement can
51 be claimed that the reservoir, along with the other wells, played the role of water reserving for the
52 arid days or even worse, for the difficult days of warfare, when, for instance, the town was under
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siege.
55 According to geological surveys, the soils of the region have low water permeability
56 properties (Lekkas 1997) and this fact limits the infiltration of rainwater and thus, the enrichment of
57 the aquifer is not easy.
58 This fact might be an explanation to the already mentioned presence of many structures such
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60 as reservoir, wells, etc., since a soil of low permeability acts as a geological barrier, causing to the
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creation of an overhanging aquifer in the depth where the geological barrier is identified (Mylona &
1 Xenidis 2010).
2 Therefore, it can be alleged that the many existing structures were acting as an overhanging
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aquifer, while with the free disposal of rainwater by the great stone drain was tended to make efforts
5 in order to enrich the aquifer, despite the low water permeability.
6 Here it must be taken into account, that as it concerns the period 1962-1993 in the vicinity of
7 Nafpaktos, the annual amount of precipitation was about 830 mm (Mariolakos et al. 2001), while
8 always the surrounding area of Western Greece has presented, until today, annual amount of
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10 precipitation comparatively larger than in the rest of Greece.
11 Nevertheless, the amount of precipitation should be generally estimated the same as today, if
12 not more, since it may be reported as an informative element that in ancient Athens the annual
13 amount of precipitation was 400 mm (Krasilnikoff 2013), a quantity which is very close to the
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current average annual level.
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17 Conclusions
18 From all that has been mentioned above, it is obvious that the town of Makyneia is an
19 interesting example, from an interdisciplinary point of view, not only because of the successive
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21 phases represented in the residues, but also because of its spatial elements combined with its
22 infrastructure projects, with particular emphasis on water storage system and the sewer system.
23 The evidence laid previously with regard to water management in the settlement of
24 Makyneia shows clearly that the inhabitants were diligent and cautious on the matter and that the
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choice of the site was far from a random selection, but on the contrary it was a place offering
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27 convenient access to water sources. Despite the relative simplicity which buildings exhibit,
28 especially during the Hellenistic period, its water management system demonstrates characteristics
29 of solid planning and communal organization, otherwise absent in other levels of community life,
30 with the possible exception of road construction. The lack of more wells or reservoirs in the
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settlement, in contrast to other settlements in the region which had reservoirs in their courtyards,
33 could be indicative of potable flowing water abundance and sustainability on account of the site’s
34 proximity to the two water streams. In any case it seems that the basic principle of water supply was
35 to utilize all the available exploitable water resources with the least physical effort, according to the
36 general manners of ancient Greek water management (Crouch 1993, 152, 312-317).
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38 It is also evident that there was provision and care for the disposal of waste and storm waters
39 through drainage channels inside the houses and in public areas, which could be possibly reused for
40 irrigation purposes. On the other hand, clay pipelines are surprisingly completely lacking, a fact that
41 shows that fresh drinking water was mainly provided from the wells or the two nearby streams.
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Additional water may have been supplied by pithoi standing at courtyards and used as rain – water
44 collectors in the manner well known from many ancient Greek cities.
45 Water management requirements obviously affected the architectural form of the houses,
46 since a network of built channels following the natural ground inclination was in most cases
47 necessary in order to lead rain and waste water away, whereas cisterns and wells were adapted in
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49 houses plans and adjacent to places were water was mostly needed.
50 Concerning also the storage system of water it has been found that serious efforts had been
51 made through the infrastructures, in order to ensure storage capacity of water, on a basis of a
52 sustainable philosophy. As it concerns the sewer system, it can be alleged that due to the wrong
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initial design and estimation of the carrying capacity, a number of constructing operations had been
55 made over the time, to render the whole system sustainable, since the idea of sustainability was
56 diffused in the constructions of the ancient Greeks (Kollyropoulos et al. 2014).
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