Geology of Corinth: The Study of a Basic Resource Author(s): Chris L. Hayward Source: Corinth, Vol.

20, Corinth, The Centenary: 1896-1996 (2003), pp. 15-42 Published by: The American School of Classical Studies at Athens Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4390714 . Accessed: 04/08/2011 11:50
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ChrisL. Hayward

GEOLOGY OF CORINTH
THE STUDY OF A BASIC RESOURCE

Geology has had a profound effect upon the development of the urban centers and agriculture of the Corinthia. It controls the abundance and distribution of groundwater supplies and the fertility of the soils; it has provided the vast majority of materials needed to construct Ancient Corinth and significant proportions of several other towns, sanctuaries, and cities within the Corinthia and beyond; and it has provided raw materials for a long-lived and extensive ceramics industry. The purpose of this article' is to outline the fundamentals of Corinthian geology and to describe the exploitation of the region's geological resources for construction stone. The information presented here represents current progress in a major study of the ancient Corinthian construction stone industry and the ancient quarries. Previous progress has been reported,2 and full details of the study and descriptions of stone and quarries will appear in a forthcoming publication.3 I also intend in the present article to demonstrate the wider relevance of geological information in applications to the archaeology of the region, and to emphasize the archaeological importance of the quarries. Stone extraction, transportation, and export were among the major industries of the region. Large num1. The workthateventuallymetamorphosedinto the present study was initiated by CharlesK. WilliamsII in the summer of 1993. During the subsequent years, I and my study have benefited, and continue to do so enormously,from Mr.Williams' generosity,knowledge, guidance, and sense of humor. He and Nancy Bookidis have made working at Corinth a pleasure and a rare experience. I thank them both for everything they have done for me. A great many people have made valuable contributions to mywork.I wishto thankthe Greekgovernmentand ZoeAslamatzidou of the GreekArchaeological Serviceat Ancient Corinth for permissionto samplethe ancient quarries; Katerina Grossou, YiannisMavraganis, EustathiosChiotis, and MarkMarkoulisat IGMEfor their advice and for sample preparation;MichalisSakalis,who made the thin sections;AthanasiosNotis, who greatly assistedin the collection of samples;SarahVaughan,Scott Pike, and KimTo at the WienerLaboratory; DavidRomanofor friendship, discussionsof ancient roads,and in-cardecoration;MarieDominique Nenna for discussion at Delphi; Charles K. Williams II and an anonymous reader for critical review of the

bers of ancient quarries occur throughout the Corinthia, and the extensive use of the region's stone over a considerable period of time is evident from excavated remains. The scale of quarrying activity would have varied with time. During certain periods this activity was intense and was carried out on an impressive scale. The quarrying and transportation of stone during these periods would have directly or indirectly employed many hundreds of people. The construction stone industry would therefore have made a significant impact on the region's economy and on other aspects of Corinthian life. The Corinthian archaeological literature contains numerous mentions of ancient quarries.4 The quarries, however, have never been described or studied in detail, and the true size and extent of the industry has previouslynot been fully established. Furthermore, very little is known about the operation or organization of the Corinthian quarries, and nothing is known about the provenance of the stone used in any ancient Corinthian buildings. The present study has revealed the presence of quarrying on a previously unsuspected scale in several locations, and offers a wealth of potential archaeological information concerning the quarries and their stone.
manuscript,and KerriCox Sullivanand her team for helpful editorial comments; Andrew Fleet, Monica Grady,Guy Sanders, David Price, KaterinaKitsou,Paul Scotton, MarkLandon, YannisPikoulas,YannisLolos, VangelisDafni, and MariaPapaconstantinou for discussion and support during variousstages of the work;YannisPapamichael,Mrs.Katsoulis,and the other residents of Ancient Corinth and the Corinthiawho have permitted me access to land and provided kind hospitality. Funding for the work has been gratefullyreceived from the Weinberg Fund, the 1984 Foundation, the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, the BritishAcademy,the Wiener Laboratoryand Corinth Excavationsof the American School of ClassicalStudies at Athens, and UniversityCollege London. The support of the NaturalHistoryMuseum,London, is also gratefully acknowledged. 2. Hayward1994, 1996, 1999. 3. Hayward,in prep. 4. E.g., Wiseman 1978; Scranton, Shaw,and Ibrahim 1978, X; p. 79; Corinth ZimmermanMunn 1983; see also references below.

16

CHRIS L. HAYWARD

THE GEOLOGY OF THE CORINTHIA5

BROAD REGIONAL CONTEXT The eastern Mediterranean is one of the most challenging and controversial areas of geological research. In the Aegean the most recent stages of a long and complex geological history have exerted a fundamental influence on the societies and events preserved within the archaeological record. The closure of the Mediterranean through subduction of the Mediterranean plate beneath Greece and Italy ensures that the Aegean is one of the world's most seismically active regions and is responsible for the volcanism of Santorini, Stromboli, and elsewhere, and for the frequent earthquakes suffered throughout the region. The subducted plate descends northward beneath the Peloponnese, causing uplift of the entire northern Peloponnese and extensional faulting and subsidence, which led to the development of the Gulf of Corinth.
THE CORINTHIA

The geology6 and topography observed today in the Corinthia result mostly from the combined effects of the regional uplift of the northern Peloponnese and changes in the relative sea level caused by the various Tertiary glacial and interglacial periods. Seismic activityis common, with frequent and sometimes violent earthquakes. The most powerful of these, such as the recent examples of 1952 and 1981 in the immediate vicinity of Corinth and in 1995 to the west at Aigion, cause serious damage to ancient and modern structures alike and occur approximately every 15-20 years.Ancient references to serious earthquakes in A.D. 365, A.D. 375, and other years indicate that there has probably been little variation in the frequency or intensity of seismic activity in the region during the last few millennia. The stratigraphy of the Corinthia is dominated by thick white and grayish Pliocene-Pleistocene marls, which were deposited in a sea that existed throughout the region and are capped by varying thicknesses of Pleistocene conglomerates, sandstones, and limestones, interbedded with thinner marl and other clay units. The high ground of Acrocorinth and Maritsa in the south of the region consist of Jurassic and Triassic limestone-dominated masses that have been

transported tectonically from the south. The coastal plain is covered by young eluvial deposits. The main features of the geology of the region are shown in Figure 2.1. In detail, the region has had a complex history of uplift and subsidence during its recent geological past. Regional uplift, changes in relative sea level, and faulting over the last 300,000 years have created a series of prominent terraces (Fig. 2.1) .7These terraces are flat, steplike topographic features, with scarps of various heights at their northern edges, which run approximately parallel to the coast of the Gulf of Corinth. Most of the terraces represent erosion during periods of relatively high sea level that existed during interglacial times. Coarse clastics (conglomerates and coarse sands), weathered from the surrounding high ground of Acrocorinth and Maritsa and hills to the north of Loutraki,were deposited unconformably over the weathered, eroded, and sometimes calcretized marl surfaces of the various terraces. Angular unconformities in two terraces are exposed in the cliffs to the south of the coastal road west of New Corinth and in the tunnel of the amphitheater of the Roman city. The grain size of the clastics decreases awayfrom the basal unconformity and grades upward into impure limestones and finally into relatively pure (poor in clastic particles) limestones. Because the creation of terraces occurred many times over hundreds of thousands of years, the stratigraphic sequences exposed above the marl in the various terrace scarps differ from one another. For example, compare the sequences that overlie the marl at the east end of Temple Hill and in the rock face outside the Lerna cisterns of the Asklepieion.8 Uplift of the region has occurred at a more rapid rate in the west, beyond the western borders of the ancient Corinthia, where a greater number of terraces have been preserved.9 This has also led to the complete removal by erosion of the Pleistocene transgressive units from above the marl in some localities to the west of Mavrospilies. The removal of the resistant, protective cap from the marl has created the badlands erosion observed several kilometers to the west of Ancient Corinth. Ancient Corinth lies on a marine terrace of approximately 200,000 years in age. The Asklepieion lies on
7. Keraudren and Sorel 1987; Roberts and Stewart 1994; Collier et al. 1992;Vita-Finziand King 1985. 8. Hayward,submitted. 9. Keraudrenand Sorel 1987.

5. Geological terms appearing in this article are listed and brieflydefined in Appendix 2.1. 6. A detailed summary of the geology of the Corinthia is given in Freyberg1973. Details of the geology of the excavated areas are described in Hayward,submitted.

GEOLOGY

17

Gulf of Corinth

Loutraki

Recent

l | INew _Co_ e rrinth l Lechaion l IIC ;Sand 'F I \ _ ~ _~ ,1 ::

.F..l I -I

Deposits Elluvial Deposits Red Clayey Marine and NearShore Deposits Fluvio-terrestrial Deposits I Marl Mesozoic Limestone Ophiolite

_s~L

",I

*~

c'
Kenchreai o i

_ ::Fault km 2 4

FIGURE 2.1. Simplified geological map of the Corinthia,

based on IGME sheetsSophikoand Korinthos (= Bornovas et al. 1972), showing the main lithological units

the next-youngest terrace to the north, which is approximately 120,000 years old.10The broad plain extending to the north toward the Gulf of Corinth is much younger, only several tens of thousands of years old. To the south of Ancient Corinth, up to the slopes ofAcrocorinth, a series of eight terraces dates back as far as approximately 300,000 years. The 200,000-year-old terrace represents a particularly significant period of Corinthian history, because it is on this terrace that submarine oolitic sand dunes formed. These sand dunes are of special importance, for they later became the source of the oolitic limestone used in almost all Corinthian construction. In the attempts of the present study to arrive at a practical means of provenancing the oolite, in addition to detailed petrographic observations of the stone itself, an understanding of the Corinthian palaeogeography of 200,000 years ago is of vital importance." At that time, a shallow sea covered the region and there was a narrow seaway that linked the present-day Gulf of Corinth and the Saronic Gulf. Currents passing along this channel and to its west and south banked the ooids, which were forming in the region, into large dunes, the remnants of which are preserved today at
10. Keraudren and Sorel 1987. 11. The palaeotopographic reconstruction used here is based on that of Collier and Thompson (1991). Modifications to the

Mavrospilies,Goumouradiza, Tsakiri,Ancient Corinth, Hexamilia, and Kenchreai. The currents also transported detritus eroded from the high ground of Acrocorinth, Maritsa, and the hills to the north and east of Loutraki. This eroded material became included in the oolitic dunes, and since the geology of the source areas of the detritus varies, the types and relative abundance within the oolite of components such as chert, quartz, Mesozoic limestone, and altered ophiolite vary across the region. This variation forms the principal means of establishing from which part of the Corinthia a particular oolite block was quarried. Dissecting the terraces are valleys and gulleys that run approximately perpendicular to the coast and have been cut by fast-flowing water in response to regional uplift. During the last tens of thousands of years, this fast-flowing water transported large rock fragments from the high ground at the south and deposited the coarse breccias and conglomerates that cloak the northern slopes of the high limestone hills, and cover parts of some of the marine terraces. In places, these Holocene terrestrial sediments have prograded as far as the 200,000-year-old terrace.
conclusions of Collier and Thompson, and to their reconstruction, have been made in the light of the detailed petrographic data collected during the present study.

18

CHRIS L. HAYWARD

EXPLOITATION
DISTRIBUTION OF QUARRYING IN THE CORINTHIA

OF STONE
ACTIVITY

IN THE ANCIENT

CORINTHIA

Quarrying for construction stone has long occurred throughout the Corinthia in the conglomerates, carbonate-cemented sandstones, and limestones of the transgressive sequences that overlie the marl on the terraces. The location of the main centers of ancient quarrying and the lithology or lithologies exploited at each are shown in Figure 2.2. Most outcrops of these lithologies visible today have been quarried to some degree. There are also rare examples of white marl foundation blocks, but it is most unlikely that this lithology was ever deliberately quarried in significant quantities, given the abundance of easily accessible, harder stone in the region. I have located more than 130 ancient quarries12 during my survey of the region 2.2). These vary in size from small cuttings a few (Fig. meters across to huge quarries of hundreds of meters in length, and represent collectively at least 3 million cubic meters of stone extraction over a period of approximately one thousand years. Because of infilling and destruction of some ancient quarries over time, these estimates of the total volume of stone removed must be regarded as conservative. There are broadly two styles of quarrying in the region: the excavation of pitlike and trenchlike quarries of various sizes within oolite dunes and occasionally in impure limestone, and the removal of blocks of impure limestone, conglomerate, and oolite from the edges of scarps. In general, the pit and trench quarries have been best preserved. Quarrying activity at the edge of scarps is rarely well preserved because erosion is concentrated at these points, especially where the contact between the quarried lithologies and the underlying marl is exposed. Traces of quarrying at scarp edges are often patchy and indistinct, although the ones visible indicate that many scarpswere extensively quarried. The following descriptions, observations, and interpretations represent aspects of the work presently being carried out on the quarries by this author. A full description of the layout of the quarries and the features and forms displayed by their faces is beyond the scope of the present summary. Most of the description here focuses on the oolite quarries, on which much of the work to date has been carried out. Brief details of quarries in other lithologies are given here, and these quarries and those in the oolite will be described in fuller detail in a forthcoming publication.'3
12. For LIMESTONE: OOLITIC purposes of this survey, a quarry is defined as any MAVROSPILIES discrete area from which stone has been removed, as deterGOUMOURADIZA (GQL), (MSQL), mined from the presence of such visible traces as artificially

coalescence of separate, smaller quarries. It is not yet possible to delineate the extent of these smaller quarries, and so at this stage in the study a single identification number is used in these cases, in order to simplify discussion. 13. Hayward, in prep.

TSAKIRI (TQL), SOUTH of the created faces and tool marks.Some ANCIENT quarries,especially CORINTH (SACQL), HEXAMILIA the larger examples, undoubtedly were formed (EQL), the through
AND KENCHREAI

(KQL)

QUARRY

LINES

coalescence of separate, smaller quarries. It is not yet possible to delineate the extent of these smaller quarries, and so at this stage in the study a single identification number is used in these cases, in order to simplify discussion. 13. Hayward, in prep.

The most striking evidence preserved of ancient quarrying is in the oolitic limestone, from which almost

GEOLOGY

19

Gulf of Corinth
L?

Sst
|
\

_ \
C 00o Co

^ ~.
Lechaion

tNew Corinth

1II

ICo
FGR\ Goumoura/za rAcrocorinth Rbm

1I

Kenchreai

^^^^H

Oolitic limestone

Co _ L 11 Sst Bl
.... .. . X; Rbnm

Limestone, Impurelimestone, conglomerate, sandstone, and

bioclastic limestone

km
0 2 4

Recrystallized biomicrite

FIGURE2.2. Location of the centersof quarrying in the oolite, impurelimestone,conglomerate,and otherlithologies within the Corinthia

The Mavrospilies Quarry Line (MSQL) The MSQL comprises twelve quarries of various sizes along a length of 2,075 m of almost continuously exposed dunes, beginning approximately 2.3 km to the west of Ancient Corinth. The eastern and western ends of the quarry line are dissected by north-south-trending gullies, one of which exposes cross-sections of the dune in its sides. The dune rests directly on eroded marl throughout much of its exposed length or is separated from it by thin conglomerate and carbonatecemented sand beds. Quarrying has exposed the oolite-marl contact in the central section of the quarry line, which has been eroded following the cessation of stone extraction. The erosion has resulted in the collapse of sections of the southern quarry face to produce a series of caves, from which the area takes its name. Along much of its length the southern side of the dune is buried to over two-thirds of its height by Holocene sediments and soil, whereas remaining small unquarried sections indicate that the northern side

was exposed, prior to quarrying, as a steep heathercovered, northward-sloping break in slope (Fig. 2.3). Because of the burial of the southern side of the dune, extraction of oolite has taken place mostly from the northern two-thirds of the dune cross-section. The eroded crest of the dune and much of its northern side have been removed by quarrying to produce a high south face of between 5 and 13 m over much of the length of the line, and a low northern face of which only 1 to 2 m is visible above the fill. Near the eastern end of the line, less of the northern side of the dune has been removed and quarries in this part have northern and southern faces of approximately equal height. The MSQL contains the largest single length of quarry in the Corinthia, quarry MS6, which is 640 m long and 35-75 m wide. This enormous quarry is most likely to have formed over time through the coalescence of smaller working areas. Its northern face is largely hidden beneath piles of rock debris and dumped cut blocks and where exposed is never more than 2 m high. The southern face is generally verti-

20

CHRIS L. HAYWARD

FIGURE 2.3. View,looking eastward, of a quarry at the

eastern end of the MSQL (quarryMS4). The quarriedoolite with the northern dune is seen approximatelyin cross-section, side (heather-covered the left of thephotograph)sloping to steeplynorthward. The southern side is partially visible at the

right side of thephoto, and is partially buriedby Holocene sedimentseroded from high ground to the south. The height of the northernface is approximately m adjacent to the tree 5.5 at its top. growing

cal, without overhangs, and 5-13 m in height above the quarry floor fill. Along much of its length, this face consists of vertical sections ranging from a few meters to over 10 m in length, with narrow horizontal ledges marking the removal of courses of blocks. The lower half or two-thirds of the faces is often sheer, but the upper sections, and occasionally the whole height of the face, are commonly stepped from the removal of blocks. In parts of the quarry, sections of vertical face project into the floor between recessed sections in a buttresslike arrangement. In a few places there are small "spurs," stepped through block removal, which project from 5 to more than 10 m into the quarry from the face. These spurs are more common in the Hexamilia quarries and are described further in connection with the EQL. The depth of soil accumulation may be estimated in parts of quarry MS6. A narrow trench dug near its eastern end, the banking-up of soil for vineyard planting, and the presence of mature almond trees near the western end of this quarry show that there is at least 2 to 3 m of fill covering much of the quarry floor.

Beyond the western end of this large quarry,an area of smaller pits and superficial excavations continues westward to the edge of a north-south-trending valley that truncates the line of dunes. Extensive quarrying of the oolite exposed in the eastern side of this valley has occurred. Near the top of the slope, nearest to quarry MS6, outcrops of oolite that display signs of quarrying are in situ, but certain of the outcrops lower down the slope appear to be large blocks (up to 5 to 6 m across) that have been undercut by erosion and have toppled down the valley side. Across the valley, the flat-topped hill of Kastrakihas been quarried along its eastern, southern, and western edges, and pitlike quarries have been excavated at its southeastern and southwestern corners. The west and east sides of the hill are strewn with large toppled blocks, which have been undermined by the relatively rapid erosion of the underlying marl. It is possible that some of these fallen blocks were quarried, although no evidence for this has yet been observed. A second valley separates the western side of Kastrakifrom the continuation of the terrace to the west, where two shallow quarries in oolite mark the western end of the quarry line.

GEOLOGY

21

The Goumouradiza (GQL) and Tsakiri (TQL) Quarry Lines Two further major quarry centers in the oolite are located to the west of the MSQL at Goumouradiza and Tsakiri (Fig. 2.2).14 Both of these quarry centers exploit the same series of 200,000-year-oldoolite dunes exposed at Mavrospiliesand other locations to the east. This extreme western area of the Corinthia is of importance because of its proximity to the neighboring state of Sikyon and the consequent possibilities for trade across the border. The TQL extends for a distance of approximately 300 m. Its eastern end is marked by an exposure of the oolite dune at the top of the western side of the valley of the Raizani River, 1.3 km to the west-northwest of the western end of the MSQL. Erosion after the cessation of quarrying activity has lead to the collapse of sections of the extreme eastern end of the quarries down the valley side. No oolite exposure is visible in the opposite side of the valley, nor on the lobe of land that separates the western end of the MSQL and the TQL. The eastern quarries of the TQL are the best exposed in the area, but are thickly planted with olive trees. The quarries are formed from a series of interlinked pits. These pits, which may represent either separate contemporary working areas or workings of different ages, were abandoned before they were enlarged sufficiently to form a continuous trench, such as is seen in the MSQL, SACQL,and EQL. The pits occur in an elongated series that follows the west-northwest-east-southeasttrend of the dune in this location. The quarried width of the dune is up to 70-80 m, and the quarry faces rise up to approximately 4.5 m above the soil, which partially fills the quarry. These dimensions indicate that this dune is closely similar in size and form to those quarried to the east. The western end of the TQL is relatively poorly exposed. Two relatively small and apparently isolated pits are visible, but are largely obscured by reddish soil, free from oolite chips, in which olive trees and vines are growing. The maximum height of quarryface exposed above the fill is less than 2.5 m. An unusual feature of this quarry center is the presence of a column drum at the northern edge, towards the eastern end of the quarry line.15 The GQL, which is the most westerly Corinthian oolite quarry identified at the time of writing, is located approximately 2.6 km to the south-southwest of the modern village of Zevgolatio. It comprises a large,
14. At the time of writing, these centers have been located, but not studied in the same detail as the MSQL, SACQL, EQL, and KQL. Further work on the GQL and TQL will appear in Hayward, in prep.

west-northwest to east-southeast-trending, trenchlike feature approximately 300 m long and at least 70 m wide. The quarry and surrounding land have been planted with a dense olive and almond grove. The southern side of the quarry is marked by an almost continuous face that reaches a maximum height of approximately 3 m above the soil and rock debris fill that buries the quarry floor, and completely obscures the northern faces.16This pattern of exposure closely mirrors that seen at Mavrospiliesand Ancient Corinth. The fill that buries the quarry floor is uneven. In the western 200 m of the quarry, at a roughly constant distance from the southern face, the ground level is raised relative to that immediately to the north of the face. To the north of this raised, axial portion of the trench floor, the ground slopes downward toward the north. The raised area can be seen, in places, to be formed from piles of waste rock. It is possible that this waste rock represents debris that accumulated during the operation of the quarry.Further examination is needed, however, since the agricultural activity evident in the immediate area could have resulted in redistribution of deposits associated with quarrying after the cessation of quarrying activity. The South Ancient Corinth Quarry Line (SACQL) Quarrying of oolite on a large scale has occurred within and immediately to the west and east of the center of Ancient Corinth. A 1,250 m-long line of extensively quarried sand dunes, the SACQL, passes through the modern village. It is exposed discontinuously between the well-known Roman quarries at the east end of Temple Hill and the gully on the eastern side of the lobe of land on which the Potters' Quarter is located (Fig. 2.4). An eastern extension of the line of dunes is located 150 m to the north of the amphitheater. These quarries,poorly exposed beneath thick soil cover, form a line that is approximately 550 m long. The evidence for quarrying within the center of Ancient Corinth is less easily visible than that which exists elsewhere in the Corinthia, no doubt because the land has been in almost continuous use as a settlement since antiquity, whereas the other quarry centers are situated almost entirely outside of ancient or modern settlements. In particular, much of the quarried area within Ancient Corinth is today buried beneath many meters of soil and debris or has been built over, especially within the last century. My survey of the remaining visible evidence for stone quarrying within the modern village of Ancient Corinth has revealed that stone ex15. For a full description of this drum, see Lolos *2002. 16. Given the overall size of this quarry in relation to similar quarries in the region, it is anticipated that the fill is relatively deep, possibly up to five or six meters.

22

CHRIS L. HAYWARD

o0500

meters ~III1

Lerna Lerna

\ ,

X,-. ..-. ..
I/~

dT..heat\ .. ..-Ode...... Co

Amphitheater

_ (^^I\\Archaic
..

Quarried Lithologies
.Temple

--- ,/7 '(,.\ \< v xy Potters' -' / Potters Z

mottJer'

\.

Quarter

Gu\

G Glauke eI

la

Qolite Oolite(inferred) limestone I Impure Conglomerate

Conglor

FIGURE

2.4. Map showing the location of visible traces of

quarrying in oolite (the SACQL), impurelimestone,and near the centerof Ancient Corinth, and the conglomerate total extent of quarryingfrom the oolite dunes that probable extend westward from from the city center,reconstructed

surviving exposedquarry remains. Points labeledX, Y,and Z referto items discussed in the text and shown in Figure 2.6. The streetplan of the modernvillage and selectedarchaeological remains are shownfor orientation.

traction occurred on a large, and previously unsuspected, scale. Quarries up to 200 m long and 9.5 m deep have been discovered. Such stone extraction must have had a significant and highly visible impact upon the environment of the settlement during certain periods of its history. The identification of landscape modification produced as a result of stone extraction17and the determination of the ages of the quarries of the SACQL are of importance in attempts to determine the patterns of growth and urban development of Ancient Corinth. Many sections of north-facing quarry face are visible today, one of which is shown in Figure 2.5. The exposed faces are generally 2.5 to 7 m high above the top of the soil and rock chip accumulation, which covers the quarry floors, but can clearly be seen to extend downward below the surface of this fill at locations such as along the 35 m length of face located 200 m west-southwest of Glauke (quarry SAC12). During a recent excavation carried out by the Greek Archaeological Service in an ancient quarry, located 900 m west-southwest of Glauke (quarry SAC14), a
17. See Hayward, submitted, for discussion of the modifications.

FIGURE2.5. A section of north-facingquarryface 350 m west-southwest Glauke. Theface has a maximum height of of 6. 7 m above the level of the soil. The buttresslike projecting section offace and theflat, ratherfeaturelesssurfaces are commonelements.The quarryface shows severalgenerations ofjoist holes.

GEOLOGY

23

y
Gully

z z

Y
, Gully

FIGURE 2.6. Viewfrom point X in Fig. 2.4, looking

west-southwestward, showing the width of the approximately dune in the westernhalf of the SACQL. Two quarry quarried faces are visible in the near and middle distance along the left side of the view, roughlyin line with the balconyof the house. The nearerface is overhanging, while thefurther is approximatelyvertical. Thefurtherface has a maximum height of 3.5 m. A trenchin front of thisface (tracesof excavation are visible betweenthe orange trees)almost reachedthe quarry floor at a depth of 6 m belowthe modernsurface, and thus thisface has a total height in excessof 9.5 m. A small outcrop of in situ cut oolite is seen in approximatelythe centerof the view, 10 m north of the quarryface, acting as thefoundation an for afencepost; it probablyrepresents uncut "spur" from the quarryface into the quarryfloor many projecting metersbelow.The southernface of the quarry line is also seen trench was dug a few meters in front of the 3.5 mhigh quarry face exposed above the modern surface (point Y in Figs. 2.4 and 2.6). The excavation was stopped at a depth of 6 m below the modern surface at a level of loose centimeter-sized oolite chips and charcoal.18 Excavation did not reach the quarry floor, although this was probably not far below the bottom of the trench. The true height of the face at this point is therefore more than 9.5 m, which indicates that this quarry is of the same impressive scale as those at Mavrospilies and Hexamilia. Few sections of the northern faces of the quarries are exposed today. Where visible, these faces are gen18. Katerina Kitsou (pers. comm., 1994).

at point Z, hidden behind theface of the excavated quarry. The northernface of the quarriedarea is barelyvisible, threequartersof the way up the extreme right side of the image, 85 m to the north of point Z. The gully in which quarryfloor exposuresare seen passes in front of the house in the upper right side of the view. Quarryfloor exposuresare seen in the gully floor up to a point almost in line with the woman walking along the road, which crossesthe centerof the view. The house uses the quarry wall as part of itsfoundation. The westernmost section of the SACQL (the "smallandfertile mentionedin Robinson 1969a), from which thepoorly valley" consolidatedHolocene breccioconglomerate removed,is was visible among the treesin the right-hand side of the just background.The southernface of this quarry, largely overgrown,is markedon the line drawing. The northernface is hidden byforeshortening. erally 3 m in height or less. The discovery of the northern faces is of key importance to the reconstruction of the size of the quarries and the preextraction topography. At three points along the SACQL, at the western and eastern ends and in the central portion, a clear indication of the original size of the sand dune, prior to quarrying, may be obtained from observation of the traces of quarrying visible today. At the western end of the line is a fairly large quarry (SAC17) of 250 m in length and with an average width of 50 m. Near its western end, the southern face intersects a water line cut into the bedrock. The line has been dated to the Hellenistic period,19 which gives an
19. Robinson 1969a, pp. 4-5.

24

CHRIS L. HAYWARD

upper date of the late 4th century B.C. for the quarry excavations in its immediate vicinity during antiquity. The quarry contains small, scattered block-cut oolite outcrops, and there is a large face more than 3 m high in the southwestern corner. Most of the height of the faces, however, is formed of poorly consolidated Holocene breccioconglomerate, which overlies the oolite and of which approximately 20,000 m3 were removed from this quarry. The breccioconglomerate consists of clasts of gray crystalline limestone, dark green, altered basic rock, and chert, which are between a few centimeters and a meter in maximum dimension and occur within a soft, sandy matrix. Because the breccioconglomerate is poorly consolidated, with the exception of a 1 m-thick hardpan layer, it cannot be cut into blocks. The clasts it contains would, however, have been suitable for use in rubble wall or foundation construction, or as fill. Since it is not possible to identify any standing monuments that contain clasts taken from this lithology, it is possible only to speculate about the specific use(s) to which it was put, such as perhaps for construction of the city wall. The oolite in the quarry faces was exposed following removal of the breccioconglomerate, and was then quarried to produce blocks; it was obscured prior to removal of the breccioconglomerate in the western half of the quarry. The oolite in quarry SAC17 might have been found accidentally as a result of removal of the overlying sediment, but it is also possible that the ancient workers were aware of the continuation west of the ancient city center of the line of oolite dunes, as a section of the northern side of the dune is visible and would have been exposed during antiquity, approximately 110 m to the north of point Yin Figures 2.4 and 2.6 (approximately 660 m west-southwest of Glauke). In addition, outcrops of pink hardpan overlie the oolite immediately to the north of SAC17, and may have been exposed at the surface during antiquity, thus indicating the location of the dune beneath and to the south. A further possibility is that the ancient workers deduced the presence of the western section of the SACQL in the light of the linear form of the oolite outcrops at Mavrospilies and Hexamilia, if the quarries at Ancient Corinth postdate the main activity at these two centers. Small outcrops of oolite (quarry SAC18) on the western side of the bottom of the gully immediately to the west of this quarry indicate that the gully was not significantly deeper during antiquity than it is today. Quarry SAC17 has previously been interpreted as a "small and fertile valley" by Robinson, and the underground water line exposed in the southern face has been seen as the end of a pipeline for irrigation.20
20. Robinson 1969a, p. 1. 21. C. K. Williams (pers. comm., 1993). 22. C. K. Williams (pers. comm., 1996). 23. During an inspection of this location by the author dur-

This interpretation cannot be sustained in the light of the current study. The location of the "valley"in line with the SACQL and the presence of cut oolite within it clearly indicate that it is a part of the quarry line, and not a natural feature. The possibility that this feature might represent a quarry had previously been suggested by Williams.21 While it is possible that the pipe was laid with the intention of supplying water from the southern face of the quarry after it fell into disuse, it is also possible that the pipe was truncated by excavations that resulted from the extraction of the breccioconglomerate.22 Disused quarries in the Corinthia are used today for growing citrus fruits, olives, and almonds, and may have been used in this way during antiquity. The relative ages of the quarry and water line are obviously of critical importance to the dating of the quarry. The reconstruction of the extent of quarrying in the central section of the SACQL is especially difficult, because exposure of quarrying traces is poor. The discovery of the 9.5 m height of the face of quarry SAC14 is a key piece of evidence for the scale of stone extraction. Another important piece of evidence is a tiny exposure of badly calcretized oolite quarry face (point Z in Figs 2.4 and 2.6) in the east-facing side of a cutting on the western edge of the gully labeled in Figure 2.6.23This small fragment of southern face lies in the line of the break in slope that marks the position of the quarry faces of the SACQL to the east and west. The elevation of this exposure is approximately 6 m above that of the floor of the gully. The slope of the small area of the northern side of the dune is steep and truncated by the quarrying. It is likely that quarry faces many meters high lie beneath the soil in this immediate area. The distance between point Z and the northern quarry face opposite is approximately 85 m, which places this among the widest of all the Corinthian oolite quarries. A clear idea of the scale of stone extraction in this part of the SACQL will be gained from Figure 2.6, which shows a view of the western half of the SACQL. The view shows the whole width of the quarried dune to the west of the center of Ancient Corinth, and an indication is made of the probable area of quarry activity in this part of the ancient city. A steep slope, in line with visible faces at the southern limit of the quarrying, indicates a continuation of the line of faces between those exposed prominently to the east and those at the extreme west end of the line (SAC17). Land in front of this steep slope lies within space formerly occupied by the dune, since quarried away.The scattered visible traces of quarry face and floor in the area shown in Figure 2.6 indicate that a large quaning April 2000, this exposure wasfound to have been obscured by the construction of a concrete retaining wall immediatelyto the east of it.

GEOLOGY

25

tity of oolite has been removed from this area. These exposures may represent small isolated pits or, more probably,the exposed fragments of one or more larger quarry complexes. At the eastern end of the SACQL, within the center of the ancient city itself, the problem with reconstructing the distribution and extent of ancient quarrying activityis not the degree of exposure of quarried faces, but rather the extensive modification of the original landscape that occurred during successive phases of development of the city center. Despite these difficulties, however, the original extent of the oolite dune and the amount of it removed by quarrying may be readily determined. The full width of the dune is exposed between the Odeum and the north wall of the present archaeological museum. The lower section of the curving and steeply northward-sloping northern side of the dune was used as the foundation of the Odeum. Hardpan that would have been immediatly beneath the geologically ancient land surface is visible directly beneath the concrete and rubble construction of the upper seating tiers. Immediately behind the semicircular corridor, several quarries were exposed during excavation in the late 1920s.24Some of these are visible today,and the remainder are buried beneath the modern road separating the Odeum and main archaeological site. To the southeast, a substantial area of oolite, the fountain of Glauke, has been left unquarried. The lamination of the oolite here indicates that it lay adjacent to the south crest of the dune. Quarry marks on the top of Glauke show that blocks have been removed and thus that the original height of the ridge was at least 1.5-2 m above its present level. Traces of quarrying were observed in a test trench dug 5.45 m north of the southeast corner of the peribolos of A Temple C.25 30 m length of stepped quarryface runs parallel to the northern wall of the archaeological museum, approximately 25 m to the south of Glauke. Prior to quarrying,a steep-sided hill would have sloped from the crest of the ridge near the location of Glauke, northward to the level of the stage of the Odeum, and southward into the area presently covered by the archaeological museum. A series of three small exposures of quarried oolite link the area of Glauke with the eastern end of the discontinuous line of southern quarry faces exposed farther west. These small exposures are seen in the modern path leading into the site approximately 25 m southwest of Glauke and in two small excavations 100 m and 120 m to the westsouthwest of Glauke. The exact prequarrying topography in this region is difficult to determine because of the extensive stone removal that has occurred, but
24. Corinth pp. 16, 23, pl. III. X, 25. Williamsand Zervos 1984, p. 97. 26. This is also the case at Isthmia:Hayward Isthmia in *VIII, pp. 3-14. 27. See Hayward, submitted, for a study of the palaeo-

from the evidence that remains exposed today, it is likely that the height of the ridge crest fell to a relatively low level in the region approximately 110-120 m west-southwest of Glauke, and rose again toward the quarryfaces visible 150 m to the west-southwest of Glauke. The implication of the observed oolite outcrops in the vicinity of Glauke is that the space between Glauke and the Odeum, the archaeological museum, the western end of the stylobate of the Archaic temple (Apollo), and the excavation 130 m westsouthwest of Glauke was originally occupied by the dune, which would have formed a low ridge, and which has since been removed by quarrying. The level platform on which the stereobates of the Archaic temple and its 7th-century predecessor were laid was created by cutting into the calcrete overlying the oolite bedrock. During the cutting-back of the bedrock that preceded construction of the temples, the pink hardpan layer and nodular calcrete layerwere not completely removed, which indicates that the (geologically) ancient topography has been modified relativelylittle in the immediate vicinity of the temples. This represents an economy of effort, allowing removal of the minimum thickness of rock necessary for the creation of a level surface for the temple foundations.26The sides of the dune and some of the underlying sandstone and an earlier, more geologically ancient calcrete layer have been removed to produce the vertical north and south sides of Temple Hill. Prior to this, the area now known as Temple Hill would have been an approximately east-west-trending ridge, the elevation of which decreased toward the east, with an abrupt termination at the Lechaion Road valley. The north and south sides of the ridge would have sloped more gently than they do at present. These slopes would have extended southward into the area leveled for the Roman Forum and northward through the area occupied by the Northwest Stoa. The ridge formed by the dune would have increased in height and become broader toward the west, in the area surrounding the location of the fountain of Glauke.27 It is likely that the dunes continued on the eastern side of the Lechaion Road valley, opposite the east end of Temple Hill, but no exposure is presently afforded by the archaeological excavations, and beyond the eastern boundary of the site the ground surface of antiquity is covered by several meters of accumulated soil and the modern village of Ancient Corinth. Quarrying activity at the west end of Temple Hill, in the test trench dug to the north of the peribolos of Temple C, has been dated to the 1st century A.C.28 Remains found in the pit dug in quarry SAC14,900 m to the west-southwest of Glauke, have been provisiontopography of Corinth that makes use of both geological and archaeological evidence, and a comparison with the previous reconstruction of Williams (1970a). 28. Williamsand Zervos 1984, pp. 97-98.

26
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CHRIS L. HAYWARD
: : . ii~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~ ~~~~ ~ ~ ~~~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~~ ~ ~ ,....:..,.. ~
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FIGURE 2.7. View of quarry E13 at Hexamilia, which is one

of the largestin the region, looking northeastward.The quarried oolite dune is seen approximatelyin cross-section.The width is approximately78 m and the total length 230 m (only part of the quarry is shown). The northernfaces are typically around 5-8 m high and the southernfaces 4-6 m high.

Note the split level of the quarryfloor, which is deeperin the northernhalf and separated from the shallowersouthernpart a low cutface, part of which is seen in the central middle by distance. The rounded hillock with patchy heathercover(lower left corer of thephoto) is a stratifiedspoil heap. Much of the quarryfloor has beenplanted with olive trees.

:::1::
tot

:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Z1 ~ ~
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FIGURE2.8. Viewof the west end of quarryE13, looking northward. Twoprominent "spurs" blockapproximately of

cut oolite extendfrom the top of the quarryface into the quarryfloor, the nearerone almost dividing the quarry.

GEOLOGY

27

ally dated also to the 1st century A.c.29 Although there is still little information about the age of the quarries, it appears that a major episode of quarrying occurred within the ancient city following the Roman colonization of Corinth. The Hexamilia Quarry Line (EQL) This quarrying center, the one best known to archaeologists,30 extends northeastward from the modern village of Hexamilia, along the road to Kyras Vrysi. The EQL served as a preliminary case study for the present work31and has been the subject of a detailed The Hexamilia dune sedimentological investigation.32 stands out at the surface as a low, roughly symmetrically exposed ridge for most of its length, disappearing beneath the soil cover at intervals. The core of the dune has been removed to produce twenty-nine trenchlike and pitlike quarries of various sizes along a 4.3 km length. As with the MSQL, the largest quarries at Hexamilia are found toward the center of the quarry line. The small pit E29, which marks the northeastern extreme of the EQL, is separated from the nearest quarry in the line by a distance of 700 m. At this point, the oolite is thin and the underlying impure limestone has been exposed and quarried as well. Elsewhere, oolite was the only lithology extracted. The EQL provides a great deal of evidence relating to the development and operation of the quarries. The large central quarry,E13 (Fig. 2.7), contains many features of interest. This quarry has a complex layout and has developed from the coalescence of a number of distinct areas. The main area of the quarry is divided longitudinally, with a split-level floor, 5-8 m deep (above accumulated soil and rock debris fill) in the northern half and 3-6 m in the southern half, with the two sections separated by a discontinuous line of faces of up to 5 m in height. The floor of the deeper northern area becomes progressivelyshallower toward the eastern end, eventually reaching the original surface level near the eastern limit of the quarry complex. This shallow eastern area is almost separated from the main quarry area by a narrow, uncut spur of rock, which extends nearly to the north face from the median face that links the deeper northern and shallow southern floor levels. At the eastern end of the main quarry area, a similar spur extends across the entire width of the quarryand separates it from a small, bowllike quarry (E12). To the east of this is another spur, with prominent block-cuts giving a stepped appearance (Fig. 2.8). This partially separates a short section of quarry from the main area. Immediately to the south of these spurs is a rounded mound of stratified earth and angular oolite chips. The strata within this mound contain rock fragments of different sizes and varying proportions of fragments
29. See note 17. 30. E.g., Wiseman 1978; CorinthI; Salmon 1984. 31. Hayward 1994, 1996.

and soil. In some layers the soil is reddened. Reddening of carbonate-rich rocks and soils occurs over periods of centuries through the oxidation of iron present within carbonate minerals in the rock and in clay minerals within the rock and soil. The observation of these reddened horizons may suggest that certain of the levels exposed in the side of the mound lay for extended periods of time at the surface. Further support for long-duration, discontinuous quarry operation is the presence of truncated and unconformable levels of debris in the interior of the mound. This implies that the stratawithin the mound accumulated discontinuously, with significant intervals of nondeposition, and hence that at least this area of the quarry has a discontinuous history of operation that extends possibly over centuries. The mound itself represents the remnants of accumulated waste rock chips from quarrying, but at present cannot be reliably associated temporally with any particular phase of quarrying activity at this location. An alternative explanation for the presence of fine-grained reddened material could be that the red soil within these layers may originate from the dumping of locally occurring red soil along with the rock chips. This is considered the less likely explanation, as no reason for transportation of soil into a quarry during operation can be envisaged, and also as there is insufficient soil for this material to represent an attempt to improve the sediment in order to make it viable for agricultural usage. It is clear from the evidence of the complex layout of the quarry and of the stratigraphy of the area of waste dump that this quarry and others in the Corinthia have had long histories. When the present study of the oolite has been completed, it may be possible to determine ages for different parts of some of these large quarries by correlating stone in their faces with that in archaeologically dated constructions. Quarry faces in the EQL exhibit a wide variety of forms. They are commonly vertical and sheer, with only faint traces of cuttings, and individual sections of face can be a few meters to tens of meters in length. Other common features include overhanging sections, and steplike "spurs"mentioned above, which project from the quarry edge into the floor (Fig. 2.8). Faces may have narrow ledges that mark the levels from which blocks were cut. Rarely, broad chisel or pick marks may be preserved. Sections of the north face of quarry E13 have collapsed, owing partly to cavelike excavations cut into the faces during block extraction, and partly to the weakening effect of fires lit within these caves, the soot from which can be seen on their roofs. In other parts of quarry E13, and in other quarries, fig trees growing at the edges of faces are levering away sections of the tops of faces many meters
32. Collier and Thompson 1991. These authors also carried out studies at Ancient Corinth and Kenchreai.

28

CHRIS L. HAYWARD

FIGURE2.9. A view looking northwestward a section of at the Kenchreaioolite quarries.A length of the hillside, between the pale treein front of the dark-leavedcitrus treesat the left of the view and the car to the right, has been cut back to produce a complexseriesof verticalfaces and stepped flat areas below

34. Scranton, Shaw, and Ibrahim 1978, pp. 8, 79.

across from the main body of the face by the force of their roots. It is likely that many of the blocks of this size lying at the foot of faces at Hexamilia and elsewhere are in this position because of similar erosion from long-dead trees, rather than because of a deliberate quarrying technique. Quarry E13 has overhanging sections in its northern faces, but all southern faces are vertical and mostly without ledges. Lines of rectangularjoist holes have been cut into sections of the faces, indicating use of the face following extraction of stone, although the date at which these joist holes were cut cannot be determined.33Immediately beyond the northern end of the quarry are three pits, now filled with rock fragments, described by a local landowner as having relatively narrow and short entrance shafts with a wider chamber below. These pits are too shallow to be wells. No further information is available, and their purpose, possibly for storage or burial and not necessarily connected with the nearby quarries, can only be guessed at. Unfortunately, the Hexamilian quarries have suffered greatly in recent decades through dumping of various wastes, with the result that many have been filled in or otherwise severely damaged. This damage continues to mount.
33. Also seen in quarry faces at Ancient Corinth (Fig. 2.5). thefaces. One of theseareas is visible above the citrus trees. To the left of thepale tree,the original slope of the hillside has beenpreservedbetweenquarriedsections. A notch (quarryK2) has been quarried throughthe section of the dune above the house, which is built in the quarry (K1). 34. Scranton, Shaw, and Ibrahim 1978, pp. 8, 79.

The Kenchreai Quarry Line (KQL)

GEOLOGY

29

chreai. On this part of the hill, the oolite is thickest and forms virtually the entire height of the hillside. Toward the east, the oolite thins and becomes restricted to the top of the ridge, and the impure limestone that forms the hillside does not appear to have been quarried significantly.The vertical or steeply stepped profile of the oolite hillside nearer Kenchreai contrasts markedly with the far more gentle slope of the hillside along the track to the north, where it is formed of impure limestone. Originally, the oolite would have formed a similarly gentle slope, which can be seen in small surviving fragments of bedrock in areas where relatively little quarrying has been carried out. Erosion of most faces has been severe, probably because of their rather exposed location at the edge of the scarp, and details of most of the original flat quarried surfaces have been, at best, poorly preserved. The most prominent quarry in this cliff line (KI), now partiallydestroyed by the construction of a house, is located 65 m west-southwest of the geodetic pin at an elevation of 85.27 m (Fig. 2.9). A large section of the scarp has been cut back to produce a flat area, which occurs at the foot of most quarry faces in the line to the west, and in places extends for up to several tens of meters from the present position of the quarry faces. For most of the length of the quarried hillside, a further slope, often steep, is found at the southern extreme of the flat area. Poor exposure makes it difficult to be certain about the precise extent to which the hillside has been cut back, but the artificial-looking stepped lower section of the hillside, together with the fragmentary outcrop evidence that is visible, indicates that much of the space covered by these flat areas is likely to represent space from which oolite has been removed. This represents a very significant volume of construction stone. At the top of the ridge, in the vicinity of the geodetic pin, there are clear traces of the outlines of blocks removed in a rare area of exposed quarry floor. From this location a notch has been cut into the top of the cliff (Fig. 2.9) and the floor of this undulates in places, because the quarrymen used natural bedding surfaces in this area as planes of weakness for the extraction of blocks. The top of the ridge contains numerous isolated and interconnected shallow pits of various sizes. Many of these have stepped faces around 2 m in height (above quarryfill), with two or three courses of blocks removed. The northern end of the ridge has been quarried, but activity here was far less intense than it was to the southwest.

Minor Centers At several points on its northern and western sides, the broad ridge between Rachi Simitri and Rachi Marias has been quarried on a small scale for oolite. The best-preserved quarries are seen 1.5 km southwest of the Temple of Poseidon at the Isthmian sanctuary,where prominent block-cuts in relatively coarse and pale oolite are observed at the edge of the ridge. Well-preserved small and shallow pitlike quarries occur on the summit of the Rachi, overlooking Ancient Isthmia. Evidence is also observed at the southern end of the ridge near to the geodetic pin at 143 m above sea level. A small pit in oolite is visible adjacent to a track approximately 600 m to the north of the northeasternmost quarry in the EQL. Oolite has been quarried from either side of a small gully, 550 m to the north-northeast of the eastern end of the GQL. Quarrying has created flat terraces on each side of the gully.
IMPURE LIMESTONE AND

NONOOLITIC

LIMESTONE

The impure limestone quarried in the Corinthia is located on several of the marine terraces, and consequently varies in age and lithological detail. In general, it is pale to mid-brown in color and contains between 10% and 25% quartz and chert ? AMRFgrains of<150->450 timin size. Quarries in the impure limestone are smaller in scale and more scattered throughout the region, because the distribution of the lithology is more extensive than is that of the relatively localized oolite dunes. Quarrying has been mostly at scarp edges with small and shallow pitlike quarries also occurring in places. The most significant centers of activity in the impure limestone are shown in Figure 2.2. They are: fromthe Sanctu(1) in the line of cliffsextendingwestward of Asklepiosand the hill 600 m to itswest,and immeary diatelyto the south,wherepartof the Romanroad grid cut occurreddurpassesthrougha quarry (or quarrying the constructionof the road);35 ing 1.5 (2) 900 m to the northwestof the EQL,approximately km to the northeastof Hexamilia,36 wherea line of shallow pits has been cut; (3) at the edge of the hill 3 km to the north of Hexamilia beside the old road leadingfrom the villageto New Corinth (the conglomerate underliesthe limestonewas that also quarriedin the immediatearea); (4) the largestsurviving group of quarries,to the north of the modern village of Kenchreai,where the limestone underlyingthe oolite dunes has been cut at the edge of the ancient sea cliffs and also in a series of minor pits behind these cliffs. immediately
36. At the location of the modern gypsyvillage.

35. Romano 1993; Romano and Tolba 1995.

30

CHRIS L. HAYWARD

Minor centers, or those for which little evidence remains, are seen to the west of KyrasVrysi, on the north side of Rachi Boska and Rachi Simitri, and in the series of gulleys that lead westward from Kenchreai. Stone exploitation may have been more extensive in the latter area, but only a few tiny areas showing block-cuts remain today,owing to severe disruption caused by agricultural activity. Within the defensive walls ofAcrocorinth, two quarries have been identified. The lithology is pale gray, crystalline, hard, recrystallized micritic or biomicritic limestone. In places, white calcite veins are prominent. In thin section the limestone is very fine-grained and contains microfossils. Acrocorinth is the location nearest to Corinth in which this type of hard limestone outcrops. The rock appears similar macroscopically to that used for the paving slabs of the Lechaion Road. A mere visual comparison is, however, insufficient for the assignment of provenance of this lithology, and further investigation is needed before the origin of these slabs can be determined. Bioclastic limestone (composed partly from highly fragmented shells and similar debris, together with other carbonate grains and a minor component of noncarbonate grains) has been quarried at a low scarp 750 m southwest of the ancient harbor of Lechaion. This quarry was damaged during the construction of a road bridge and the coastal railwayleading west from New Corinth. Only a few small areas of block-cutting are visible today, and the true extent of stone extraction in the immediate area cannot be determined.
CONGLOMERATE AND SANDSTONE

Today, traces of quarrying in the conglomerate are the most difficult of all to see because of erosion. Several traces of stone-cutting of significant extent are preserved, for example, along the edge of the scarp that runs immediately to the north of the amphitheater at Ancient Corinth. Block-cuts are observed 600

m to the west of the amphitheater. It is possible that conglomerate was cut from a greater length of this scarp, but undercutting by erosion of the marl has caused toppling of the scarp edge, probably with the loss of some traces. Well-preserved cuts are seen 600 m to the north of the amphitheater. A significant quantityof conglomerate was removed during the construction of the amphitheater, and this may have been quarried as blocks. Conglomerate has been quarried at two locations to the north of the SACQL: 100 m to the north of quarry SAC15, and 175 m to the west of the Odeum. Conglomerate underlies the hill to the north of Hexamilia, and in addition to impure limestone, conglomerate was extracted from this vicinity. A few minor traces of block extraction are preserved beside the old road linking Hexamilia and New Corinth. Conglomerate was quarried at many locations to the north of Kenchreai, most notably at the edges of gorges 3 km to the north and 2.6 km east-northeast of the ancient harbor. Again, erosion of the sides of these gorges is likely to have destroyed further evidence of blockcuts. The scarp at the end of the 200,000-year-old terrace has been quarried approximately 500 m to the northwest of the western end of the MSQL. Distinct block-cuts are seen only in a small area, although the erosion that has affected the scarp may have obscured further traces of quarrying. Badly eroded cuttings in conglomerate and also possibly limestone, which may represent ancient quarrying, are just visible 1 km to the west of the GQL. Quite extensive quarrying of fine- to mediumgrained sandstone has occurred 1.4 km to the northwest of the western end of the TQL. Quarries are located on the 120,000-year-oldterrace scarp, and there are several pits on the level land 200 m to the south of the scarp. These pits may be cut into sandstone or limestone. Access to them could not be obtained because of the presence of a gypsy encampment.

THE OOLITE STUDY

ARCHAEOLOGICAL STUDY DATA FROM OOLITE THE

OF CORINTHIAN

In addition to locating and describing the ancient Corinthian quarries, the main aims of the present study are to identify characteristics of the lithologies used in ancient construction that might be utilized as provenancing tools, and having done this, to apply these tools to problems in Corinthian archaeology. Provenance information-useful in its own rightforms the starting point from which to answer a wide varietyof important archaeological questions. The key to the answers lies in the stone itself, and the study of

the oolite and other construction stones of the Corinthia has far-reaching implications for Corinthian archaeology. The work is now reaching the stage where it can make direct contributions to important archaeological arguments concerning the development of Ancient Corinth. Dating of Quarry Activity No known ancient sources refer to specific Corinthian quarries or specific stone-producing localities. Determination of the approximate period in which quarries were operational may be possible from observa-

GEOLOGY

31

tion of tool marks and extraction techniques.37 Tool marks, however, are rarelypreserved in visible sections of the faces of the oolite quarries and almost never in impure limestone and conglomerate quarries. They are of little practical use for the dating of the ancient quarries. The only way to date the periods of operation of the quarries is to determine a provenance for stone that is present in its original usage in archaeologically dated constructions, with the assumption that stone was utilized in construction shortly (i.e., within one or two years) after being quarried. It is important to remember that evidence in some quarries, e.g., at Hexamilia, indicates that they remained operational discontinuously over periods of time that spanned centuries. The complex internal layout of the largest Corinthian quarries suggests multiple and discontinuous periods of operation. A single date from a monument is therefore unlikely to be sufficient to date all of the workings in the larger Corinthian quarries, although it may provide a meaningful single date for the smaller ones, which might have remained in operation for shorter periods of time (i.e., years rather than a decade or more). Distribution of Quarrying Activity within the Corinthia during Different Periods: Stone Transportation and Trade One aim of this study is to determine a sufficient number of dates for the quarries, so that a picture of the extent and distribution of the Corinthian stone industry at different times may be determined. Archaeological and epigraphical evidence shows that stone was required in quantity at certain times-for example, for new construction projects, repair following earthquakes, and the recolonization of the city in 44 B.C.and also for export to Delphi and Epidauros.38We know nothing, however, about the locations of the quarries that supplied the stone for the construction of oolite monuments at sites such as Corinth, Isthmia, Delphi, Epidauros, and Perachora. In the absence of any real facts, archaeologists have been restricted to conjecture when making judgments about where stone for individual construction projects was quarried. As no complete survey of Corinthian quarries had been carried out prior to the present study, individual authors were sometimes unaware of all of the potential stone sources when drawing conclusions
37. Hayward, in prep. 38. Burford *1969. 39. Detailed investigation of the oolite from the different quarry centers has revealed sometimes dramatic small-scale variations in the properties of the stone that may have affected its behavior when being shaped or carved (e.g., for an Ionic or Corinthian capital), but little overall variation capable of affecting the choice of stone used for wall blocks and other similar architectural members. The small-scale variations include certain beds, such as are observed in quarry E13, in which the oolite is exceptionally well cemented and/or lacks strongly

regarding the provenance of stone. The Hexamilian quarries are the best known, and have been invoked by most researchers as the supplier of stone for construction throughout the Corinthia and beyond. These quarries may indeed have supplied the oolite used at Ancient Corinth, Isthmia, Delphi, and Epidauros. As mentioned above, however, the Kenchreai quarries have not been listed as possible sources of stone for export to Epidauros, but must be considered because of their proximity to the probable location of the Greek port. Similarly, the TQL, MSQL, and SACQL quarries have never been considered as sources of stone for export to Delphi, but are among the closest to the northern port of the Corinthia. Transportation of cut stone blocks over land was one of the most timeconsuming and expensive stages in the supply of stone, and in the absence of preferential extraction from specific locations,39 it is most likely that the users of the oolite would have chosen quarries closest to the point of use or export. The extent of quarrying has implications for the state of the contemporary economy and political institutions. The amount of stone cut and transported would have varied from year to year. At times of peak production, the quarrying and transportation industries would have employed hundreds, either directly in the actual quarrying, cutting, and transportation of stone, and in the manufacture of tools, carts, and ropes, or indirectly in activities such as supplying food for workers and fodder for animals, or the animals themselves. The number of people involved and the volume of quarry traffic on roads during periods of intense quarrying activitywould have had a significant impact on life in the region. In close spatial association with the majority of the quarries in the region is a network of tracks and roads, some of which are in use today. The proximity of these roads to the quarries appears both too common and too widespread to be purely coincidental, and strongly suggests that at least some of them represent routes for the transport of stone from the quarries, and tools and other supplies to them. In rare instances, the wheel ruts from undoubtedly ancient roads are observed adjacent to quarries (e.g., near the center of the EQL), and some of these ruts are truncated by quarries. The identification of ancient quarry roads, and of the intersection of these localized networkswith
defined lamination along which the stone might split easily.In defined lamination along which the stone might split easily. In some ornately carved column capitals and architravesections, some ornately carved column capitals and architrave sections, similarverywell cemented oolite has been observed.Conversely, similar very well cemented oolite has been observed. Conversely, has oolite has been statuary been observed in which poor-quality oolite has been statuary has been observedin which poor-quality used and covered with a thick layer of plaster.At the present used and covered with a thick layer of plaster. At the present stage of the study,it therefore is unclear what degree of selecstage of the study, it therefore is unclear what degree of selectivitywas employed in the choice of stone for use in a specific tivity was employed in the choice of stone for use in a specific context. The detailed investigation of stone used in ancient context. The detailed investigation of stone used in ancient monuments, currentlyin progress,will determine whether oomonuments, currently in progress, will determine whether oolite of different qualities and physical properties was selected lite of different qualities and physical properties was selected for these reasons. for these reasons.

32

CHRIS L. HAYWARD
or the movement of quarry traffic via routes that avoided poorly drained ground. 42. The conflict over use of labor and other resources for agricultural and nonagricultural activities would have been greater in the early centuries of quarrying activity in the Corinthia. 43. Washington *1923. 44. CorinthI, p. 116, note 1. 45. CorinthI, vi, p. 16.

regional communication networks, is important for the understanding of transportation of stone around the Corinthia, and to ports for export. The dating of quarries will potentially enable the dating of some of these roads, and will contribute to the understanding of the development of the regional transportation network. The Organization of the Stone Industry There has been almost no investigation of how stone production was organized in antiquity. This reflects, to a large degree, the almost total lack of ancient sources on the subject. It is nevertheless essential to use the available evidence to address key questions, and again, we must turn to the stone itself for answer.40 The cuttings made during block extraction and the blocks in ancient monuments can reveal a great deal about operational aspects of stone production, and when this information is combined with provenance data and information on transportation routes, it will be possible to develop a good picture of how the stone industry actually functioned. When stone was ordered from quarries, how specific were the instructions issued to quarry workers regarding the sizes of blocks to be supplied? From how many quarries were blocks for a single construction project cut, and what implications does this have for the issue of contracts? How did stone production fit in with other activities such as agricultural production, in terms of availability of manpower and draft animals? How seasonal were the activities of stone quarrying and transportation? Specifically, what impact did the winter rains have on the ability to transport stone on carts,41and how did the demands of the agricultural cycle affect stone production and These questions are fundamental to the transport?42 understanding of the stone industry of the ancient Corinthia and elsewhere. Many of these questions obviously will have a variety of different answers depending on which period of antiquity is under consideration. It is essential to have a good understanding of quarry ages and transportation networks before such questions can be adequately addressed. Observation and measurement of the cuttings in the ancient quarries is providing good evidence for the accuracy and precision with which quarrymen were able to extract stone blocks, using a variety of different methods. The cuttings preserved on blocks in ancient constructions reveals information about the way in which the blocks were shaped prior to being
40. The what types of shaping are outlined briefly in used, and types of investigations that were carried out below are under way the time of publication the quarry and atat theconstruction site. and will be reported in Hayward, in prep. 41. In early centuries of stone quarrying, when no paved

TERMINOLOGY may have been passable on a seasonal baroads existed, roads sis. Manyof the likely routes by which stone would have been There is a tradition areas in which the bedrock is marl or a transportedpass over among archaeologists working in the Corinthia of referring torouteswillbecome muddyand similarly clay-rich lithology.Such the Corinthian oolite by difficult to travel in The origins especially for which has the term "poros."rainy periods, of this term,heavily laden carts, in use for over transportation during drier periods, been thus necessitating2,000 years, are unclear, and its

or the movement of quarry traffic via routes that avoided poorly drained ground. 42. The conflict over use of labor and other resources for agricultural and nonagricultural activities would have been greater in the early centuries of quarrying activity in the Corinthia. 43. Washington *1923. 44. CorinthI, p. 116, note 1. 45. CorinthI, vi, p. 16.

definition is equally difficult to determine. An attempt to tackle what is meant by "poros"was made by Washwho describes a soft limestone used in monu-

GEOLOGY

33

THE OOLITE: ITS CHARACTERISTIC

PROPERTIES AND CAL SIGNIFICANCE THEIR ARCHAEOLOGI-

The oolite is a soft, fine-grained, granular, finely laminated pale gray to yellowish limestone of rather uniform macroscopic appearance. A typical quarry face exposure displaying lamination is shown in Figure 2.10. The granularity of the limestone derives from the fact that it is made up mostly of spherical to ovoid particles called ooids-hence oolitic limestone, or oolite. Ooids are coated particles that form by the precipitation of calcium carbonate from seawater containing high concentrations of dissolved calcium carbonate around particles in a series of thin layers (see Figs. 2.12-2.14 below). The particles onto which the coatings are deposited are known as nuclei, and the coatings are collectively referred to as the cortex of the ooid.46The ooids in Corinthian oolite are generally 125-300 g[macross, and because of their size it is necessary to view samples of the limestone under a petrological microscope in thin section. In thin section, considerable variation within the rock is revealed, and this variation can be used to determine the provenance of individual samples. An understanding of the palaeogeography of the Corinthia is of importance for the interpretation of such variations within the oolite, and hence for the use of these variations to solve questions of the type outlined above. Work by Collier and Thompson47 has provided a reconstruction of the main features of the region at the time when the oolite dunes were forming (Fig. 2.11). The nuclei of the Corinthian ooids are mostly composed of fragments of rocks, which outcrop in the area surrounding the shallow sea. These fragments were deposited into the sea by erosion from streams and small rivers as the ooids were forming 200,000 years ago. Because the geology surrounding the sea is varied, so too are the types of rock fragments forming the nuclei. The main types and distribution of clastic input into the Corinthian sea that have been deduced from my thin section study are indicated in Figure 2.11. The thin section observations reveal variations in the composition of the ooid nuclei throughout the region that reflect (a) a broad regional variation in the types of rock eroded into the shallow sea from the surrounding high ground and their transportation by currents (Fig. 2.11), and (b) local environmental variations that are superimposed upon the regional trends. These observations support the current patterns deduced by Collier and Thompson from measurements of lamination in the sand dunes at Ancient Corinth, Hexamilia, and Kenchreai. The oolite is composed mostly of coated and uncoated grains of (in approximately decreasing order of abundance) micrite, altered chert and Mesozoic biomicritic limestone, al46. For a more detailed description of ooids and limestones in general, see Tucker and Wright *1990.

FIGURE

2.10.

A section offace in quarry E9 at Hexamilia.

The view is looking toward the west, approximately along the axis of the dune and lamination slopes toward the north down the northernside of the dune. The alternating positive and negative weatheringof the laminae is a typical weatheringfeature of the oolite. Cuttingsfrom blockremoval in the upper half of theface are eitherhorizontal orfollow the lamination, which has been used as planes of weakness along which to separatethe lowersurfaces of blocks from the quarryface.

tered mafic rock fragments (AMRFs), fresh chert (some with radiolaria), quartz, a metamorphic rock, probably an amphibole-chlorite schist, bioclasts (mostly bivalve fragments with some gastropods and algal fragments) and, rarely, unaltered or partially altered pyroxene, plagioclase, and white mica. Not all of these types occur in all areas, and their relative abundances vary considerably. In the east of the area, AMRFs of ophiolitic origin were transported from their outcrops to the east of Loutraki into the Isthmia Graben, a shallow narrow seaway that covered the area of the present Isthmus and connected the Gulf of Corinth and the Saronic Gulf (Fig. 2.11). These fragments became incorporated in significant quantities within the ooid sands of the Kenchreai dunes and those at the northeastern end of the EQL. A representative thin section of this type is shown in Figure 2.12. The abundance of AMRFs decreases abruptly in the center of the EQL, in the area now occupied by quarry E13, and the oolite of the western quarries of the EQL contains only occasional clasts of this type (Figs. 2.13, 2.14). In the quarries around Ancient Corinth and Mavrospilies, the generally micritic particles frequently contain recognizable microfossils and relic calcite veining, which indicate that they represent eroded fragments of altered chert and the Mesozoic limestone, and other sediments of Acrocorinth. Present in greater abundance in this area than to the east are fragments of a foliated amphibole-chlorite-quartz rock, which probably represent fragments of a schist. By using the abundance of AMRFs, altered chert and Mesozoic lime47. See note 11.

34

CHRIS L. HAYWARD

Modern Coast

Mez w Gulf ofa n CShorinth

Spilies

Acient M Corinth

Oph

Submarine ooid sands Submarine high

Fault Ooid dune

ZjI

Shallowwatersiliclasticsands Beach I

Oph = Ophiolite (altered mafics and chert)* Mez = Mesozoic limestone & chert* CS = Chlorite Schist N

Mesozoicbasement/ Ophiolite

km

Pleistocene and pre-Pleistocene land and sources of elastic detritus

FIGURE 2.1 1. The palaeogeography of the Corinthia at

approximately200, 000 years ago (after Collierand Thompson 1991). Arrowsindicate the main typesof clastic input

into the oolitic dunes during theirformation, as determined during thepresentstudy.

stone, and schist fragments it is possible to determine from which part of the Corinthia any given oolite sample was quarried. It is also possible to achieve greater precision in the determination of the locations of samples retrieved from the ancient quarries through detailed observations of the oolite in the ancient quarry faces. The faces display numerous small-scale heterogeneities caused by local microclimates, changes in local conditions with time, and sedimentary structures. An example of the type of variation present in some faces is shown in a section of the northern face of quarry E13 (Fig. 2.15). Three stratigraphic units are observed: a lower cross-bedded, a central planar-bedded, and an upper relatively severely weathered unit. Each produces oolite that can be distinguished from the other in two48 thin section and from samples collected from other quarries.
48. For a full description, see Hayward 1996.

FIGURE 2.12. Photomicrograph of a sample from the north-

eastern end of quarryEl3, showing generalfeatures typical of oolitefrom this area. Most particles in thefield of view are ooids, which have mid-graymicriticcoresand pale sparry corticesor (lowerright corner)pale sparry coresand darker micriticcortices.The darkparticles are AMRFs, which are characteristicof oolitefrom the easternpart of the Corinthia. Whiteooid nuclei are quartz grains. Curved elongateparticles in the left half of the view arefragments of bivalve shell. The particles are separated from one another bypale sparry calcite cement.Plane polarized light, magnification x50, field of view 2 mm across.

GEOLOGY

35

2.13. Photomicrograph from the centralpart of unit shown in Fig. 2.15). Most of quarryE13 (planar-bedded the ooids have micriticcoresand sparry cortices,which are usually difficult to distinguishfrom the cement.A few dark AMRFs are visible. Plane polarized light, magnification x50, field of view 2 mm across. FIGURE

FIGURE

2.14. Photomicrograph from the central part of

unit shown in Fig. 2.15). Ooids quarryE13 (cross-bedded have well-definedcorticesconsisting of at leastfive layers. Thereare no AMRFs, but quartz and micriticnuclei are abundant. A fragment of bivalve shell is visible to the right of center.Small, dark round objectsare bubblesin the resin bonding of the thin section. Plane polarized light, magnification x50, field of view 2 mm across.

::: ?
Pa

PL,X

pg :L3.L.

1167 IlliW

PC)&F--..I::.Xgl11

""r''''''';;i.

?1:?, "-

FIGURE

2.15. A section of the northernface of quarryEl3, an exampleof the typeof macroscopic variation showing visible in the quarryfaces. Below the overhang to the right of and the degreeto center,the oolite is prominentlycross-bedded which the lamination has beenemphasizedby weathering

shows that this unit is relativelypoorly cemented.Above the overhang, the bedding is moreplanar, and the smootherface indicates that the limestoneis bettercemented.In thin section (Figs. 2.13 and 2.14), thereareprominent differencesbetween samplesfrom the two stratigraphicunits.

36

CHRIS L. HAYWARD

Gulf of Corinth

MS/M MSIO;

SAC17

........

<

MS8

?E2

AC1s
,K5

SAC1

K3

transgressive sequences Ancient centres of oolitic limestone quarrying

2 4
T

FIGURE2.16. Map showing the locations of oolite quarries from which point counting data has been collected
AND QUANTIFICASAMPLING QUARRY PETROGRAPHIC TION OF THE OOLITE'S BY POINT COUNTING VARIATION

The faces of all surviving quarries have been surveyed in detail to determine the types and scales of heterogeneity present, and then sampled in detail sufficient to provide a truly representative reference collection of the quarried oolite. Samples have been collected from all surviving ancient oolite quarries from vertical intervals of approximately 1.5-2 meters and lateral intervals of approximately tens of meters (see Fig. 2.16). In many faces, weathering has obliterated all traces of lamination, bedding, or other sedimentary features. These faces were sampled using the same lateral and vertical sampling intervals as the faces with visible heterogeneity, so that an approximately uniform sampling density was maintained for the whole region.49Approximately 1,000 oolite specimens have been retrieved from the quarries, and these are representative of most of the exposed oolite quarries in
49. Details of typical sampling density are shown in Hayward 1996.

the Corinthia. At the time of publication, the GQL and TQL had not been sampled. From these specimens, 970 thin sections have been made and a detailed petrographic study is in progress. Because of the large number of samples involved in the study, and because of the often subtle differences between the oolite in different parts of individual quarries and quarry centers, it is essential to gain a quantitative measure of the oolite from each sample point. To achieve this, approximately half of the sections, chosen to be representative of the total sample set collected from each quarry, are being studied by point counting.50Each thin section is described qualitativelyto determine the range of grain types and sizes present, and then point counted. In my study, the point counting was carried out in the following way: the sample was viewed at xl0 or x250 magnification to ensure correct identification of both larger and smaller particles. The mechanical point counting stage was set to steps of 0.3 mm and 450 points counted for
50. For details of point counting, see Harwood *1988.

GEOLOGY

37
4

each thin section in six traverses parallel to the length of the thin section at 2-3 mm separation from each other. The thin sections had been made so that the lamination of the oolite was approximately perpendicular to the length of the sections. This is because the maximum variation in the composition of the limestone occurs between the various lamellae, and thin sections counted in this waywill provide data that represent the whole sample. For each thin section, 51 variables are noted; these variables were chosen following a preliminary qualitative survey of 200 randomly chosen thin sections from each of the quarry areas sampled, together with the results of the preliminary study.51This enabled the determination of those variables most likely to permit differentiation between oolite samples. These variables include the type of material forming the uncoated particles and the nuclei of coated particles of the two size-ranges <100-250 jm and >250 Jm.
ANALYSIS DISCRIMINANT FUNCTION DATA: THE POINT COUNTING PRELIMINARY RESULTS OF

C2 -4 4 ?

LL -6

-9

-7

-5

-3

-1

1 Function Quarry Region Group centroids

@ Mavrospilies

A Ancient Corinth * Hexamilia * Kenchreai

The point counting data have been analyzed using discriminant function analysis (DFA),52which identifies groupings in data that consist of a large number of variables. Preliminary DFA and the qualitative petrographic study of 200 thin sections have identified 18 variables that show significant variation across the region and permit the clearest differentiation between samples from the major quarry centers. These variables are listed in the caption of Figure 2.17. At the time of writing, approximately 230 samples had been point counted. This representsjust under half the total number of sections to be point counted. Qualitative observation of all samples is carried out in order to maintain a check on the statistical results. The statistical analysis of the petrographic data is still under development, and further work is required. The results shown in Figures 2.17-2.19 represent preliminary findings, but these data amply illustrate the potential of the study. The results of DFA on all point counted quarry samples are shown in Figure 2.17. Three groups have minimal mutual overlap: the EQL, the SACQL + MSQL, and the KQL. The poor separation between MSQL and SACQL samples is expected as the oolite from these quarries appears qualitatively quite similar. However, if the samples from Kenchreai are omitted from the analysis, and the same variables used, a better separation between SACQLand MSQL samples is achieved (Fig. 2.18), although there remains a significant overlap. The reason (s) for these results and a full assessment of their validity require further work;
51. Hayward 1996. 52. DFA was performed using SPSS for Windows software. For a detailed description of DFA, see Baxter *1994.

FIGURE2.17. Discriminant function plot of point counting used: data for the MSQL, SACQL, EQL, and KQL. Variables coated (ooid nucleus) and uncoated AMRFs, bioclasts, Mesozoiclimestone,amphibole-chlorite schist, recrystallized quartz, chert, and coatedsparry calcitegrains.
32-

*.
-2
C

A A AA A

-3-

A A
AA

0 LL -4

-8

-6

-4

-2

Function1 Quarry Region I Group centroids o Mavrospilies

A

Ancient Corinth

Hexamilia

FIGURE2.18. Discriminant function plot of point counting data as for Fig. 2.17, but with data from the KQL omitted. Variablesused are the same as listed in Fig. 2.17.

38

CHRIS L. HAYWARD

however, these initial analyses indicate (1) that samples from quarries in the EQL, KQL, and MSQL + SACQL are distinguishable from one another, and (2) that some differentiation between samples from MSQL and SACQL quarries will be possible. It is therefore apparent that each of the four main quarry areas in the oolite can be distinguished one from another. The ultimate aim of the point counting study is to determine the limits of the geographic and stratigraphic resolution to which oolite samples may be provenanced to Corinthian quarries. The quarry center with the most complete point counting data set at the time of writing is the MSQL, for which approximately 70% of the total planned number of sections have been point counted. The MSQL was therefore selected to test the ability of the study to distinguish between samples from points within a single quarrying center. Point counting data from the MSQL was subjected to the same DFA as that used to produce separations between the four main quarry areas. The aim was to determine whether localized quarried areas form separable groups (Fig. 2.19). Although this figure shows only about 60% of the eventual total number of data points, the following are apparent from the DFA results: (1) that quarries with the largest numbers of sections counted (MS4, MS5) form fairly tight clusters of points; (2) that the grouping of points from the various quarries broadly mirrors their mutual disposition within the MSQL, i.e., that quarries from the western end of the quarry line (MS8 and MS10) appear close together on the plot, and those from eastern quarries (MS2-5) appear close together. Three groups appear from the DFA. These are (MS2+4), (MS3+5+6), and (MS8+10). At this stage, it is not certain whether the two points from quarryMS1 form a discrete group of their own or will become linked to one of the other groups when more data points are added. While it is not possible to draw firm conclusions from the statistical analysis of the point counting data at this stage, largely because of the relatively small number of samples studied at the time of writing, it may be stated with some confidence that the four main areas of Corinthian oolite quarrying sampled at the time of writing-the MSQL,SACQL,EQL, and KQLare distinguishable from one another by the DFA of petrographic variables of samples of the oolite quarried from them. It also appears likely that it is possible to isolate localized areas within an individual quarry line using the point counting data. It has been

I.

Nol

~A

C 0

Function 1
Li Group

centroids

* Quarry 1
A

Quarry 2

* Quarry 3 * Quarry 4 * Quarry 5

4 Quarry 6

* Quarry 8
v Quarry 10 FIGURE2.19. Discriminantfunction plot of point counting data from the MSQL only. Variablesused are the same as listed in Fig. 2.1 7, exceptthat AMRFs werenot included (none appear in the MSQL samples).

recognized that data fields tend to expand as more data points are added.53 Although such an enlargement of the fields on the DFA plots (Figs. 2.17-2.19) is inevitable, they have remained relatively tightly contained in the cases of the MSQLand SACQL,for which the majorityof data points have been plotted.54Therefore, it is anticipated that this will not represent a serious problem once all of the data have been collected. The collection and analysis of petrographic data are ongoing, and full details will be published on completion of the study.

53. E.g., Herz *1987, *1988. 54. Approximately 170 further data points have been collected during the time between the writing and the publication of the present article. These new data will appear in a fu-

ture publication (Hayward, in prep.). The additional data, mostly for the EQL and KQL, do not result in significant expansion of the fields as they appear in Figs. 2.17-2.19.

GEOLOGY DISCUSSION The geology of the Corinthia played a crucial role during antiquity,and today it provides tools with which to investigate that role in relation to the archaeological record. In the Corinthia the stone industry has a history spanning a millennium and has made a significant impact upon several periods of Corinthian history and on the Corinthian landscape. The extensive quarries at Mavrospilies, Ancient Corinth, Hexamilia, Kenchreai, and a host of other, smaller centers throughout the Corinthia contain a wealth of archaeological evidence in their layout, and in the objects and cuttings they contain. Within Ancient Corinth itself, the evidence suggests that large volumes of stone were extracted from the exposed dunes that extend westward from Temple Hill to the gorge at the east side of the Potters' Quarter. The impact of this quarrying activity and the resulting modifications made to the topography have implications for the development of the city and for the interpretation of some archaeological evidence.55 The greater level of knowledge about the ancient quarries that will result from the present study will be of value in helping to explain various features of the city and of the surrounding region. Although the detailed study of the oolite samples is only partially completed, the results so far show that it is possible to differentiate oolite collected from Mavrospilies, Ancient Corinth, Hexamilia, and Kenchreai, and that the assignment of samples of unknown provenance to one of these areas should be possible with a very reasonable degree of confidence. Furthermore, there are strong indications that it will be possible to make high-resolution provenance determinations56 to certain laterally and/or stratigraphically restricted areas withinthese large quarrycenters. This would represent an unprecedented resolution for provenance determination of an ancient construction stone. Further work is being carried out to ascertain the resolution that will ultimately be possible from the study in different parts of the Corinthia. The present work represents the first study of its kind on a series of ancient quarries. It has shown that construction stones must be studied within their geological context in the ancient quarries in order to obtain the highest possible resolution provenance data. The ability to identify and to distinguish between stone from four of the main centers of oolite quarry55. Hayward,submitted. 56. Hayward1996. 57. E.g., Burford *1969; Scranton,Shaw,and Ibrahim 1978; Wiseman 1978. 58. Burford *1969. 59. At a later stage in the study, the data from the quarry sampleswill be compared with corresponding data from oolite

39

ing opens up many possibilities for interpretation of archaeological findings. For example, the proximity of oolite quarries to the ancient Greek and Roman port at Kenchreai suggests the possibility that they may have supplied stone exported to Epidauros for construction of the theater and sanctuaries. This has not previously been considered.57 Most of the small number of publications that mention the ancient quarries implicate the EQL alone in the supply of stone for the Corinthia and beyond. It is possible that the EQL did supply stone used in construction at Epidauros, but given that much of the cost of transportation of stone occurs during passage over land,58and that there was a plentiful supply of high-quality oolite adjacent to the port that was used to export stone to Epidauros, the use of these quarries should be considered.59 The organization of the ancient Corinthian stone industry, in terms of labor supply, transportation of cut stone on the region's roads, and export, is important as it would have had an impact on other aspects of Corinthian life. The quarry workforce in pre-Roman times would probably have been drawn from the local population and migrant skilled stone workers in some combination. At periods of intensive construction, it is likely that a relatively higher proportion of local workers would have been involved in stone extraction and transportation. Because the demand for stone would have occurred only periodically, local, nonmigrant, workers would not have been employed full-time in occupations related to stone extraction or transportation, and would have performed other functions, such as involvement in agriculture. A different situation would have pertained in Roman times, since the labor force could have included a component of slave labor. During the relatively wet autumn and winter months, unmetaled roads in many areas throughout the Corinthia become difficult to pass, especially where the roads pass over marl or similarly clay-rich bedrock and drainage consequently is poor. Such road conditions would be expected to hamper the passage of carts laden with stone blocks, and suggest the possibility that stone transportation may have been a seasonally restricted activity.Research into the road network associated with the ancient quarries is currently under way as a part of this study, and will be discussed in a forthcoming publication.60
samples retrieved from ancient monuments, including examples from Delphi and Epidauros. This will enable, for the firsttime, the determination of the locations of the stone quarries used to supply the stone used to construct these monuments. 60. Hayward,in prep.

40

CHRIS L. HAYWARD

The cutting of stone, according to Vitruvius and Pliny the Elder,6'should have occurred seasonally, for both authors state that stone should be quarried during the summer (Pliny, however, states this only in reference to instances "where stone is of doubtful quality"). These ancient texts also suggest that soft stone, or stone whose quality is in doubt, should be left for two years in the open after extraction, so that blocks with weaknesses would become damaged and could be rejected for use in construction. This would imply the existence of stone "curing yards,"and would have implications for the degree of advanced planning and finance required for the supply of stone for major construction projects. No references to such areas are made in any ancient sources.62In particular, there are no surviving ancient Greek sources that either mention a preference for quarrying at certain times of the year, or give any indication as to whether stone was left in the open for a period to weather as a test of quality and suitability for use in construction. Quarries are important archaeological remainsas important as the constructions for which their stone
61. Vitr.,De Arch.2.7.5; Pliny,NH 35.170. 62. My observations of the oolite indicate that such a precaution would have been unnecessary.

was obtained. They represent the largest and best-preserved artifacts of ancient industry in the Corinthia. The Corinthian quarries are important because the region's stone industry existed during the earliest period in which monumental construction in stone first reappeared in Greece (during the 7th century B.C.) and continued almost uninterrupted until late antiquity. The study of the Corinthian stone industry therefore affords a unique opportunity for the investigation of stone production from almost every period of antiquity. Progress on this study of ancient Corinthian quarries has so far indicated the potential for provenance determination of the oolite and for archaeological investigations dependent upon knowledge of provenance. In the second stage of this study, I plan to sample ancient monuments and to use the results of the present quarry study to help establish more precisely the development of the urban centers and sanctuaries, and of the stone industry in the Corinthia.

GEOLOGY
APPENDIX 2.1

41

GEOLOGICAL

GLOSSARY

AMRF altered mafic rock fragments.

ANGULAR UNCONFORMITY

MICRITIZATION

an

UNCONFORMITY

in which

the process by which crystalline carbonate is altered to MICRITE.

there is a discontinuous angular relationship between the strata above and below the unconformable boundary.
BED

MSQL Mavrospilies quarry line.

NUCLEUS grain at the center of an ooid or other coated

grain. OOID a carbonate particle of size <2 mm comprising a nucleus (e.g., quartz, shell fragment, mud pellet) onto which carbonate has been precipitated from seawater to form a series of one or more concentric cortex layers.
OOLITICLIMESTONE limestone of OOIDS.
OPHIOLITE

a laterally extensive layer of sedimentary material.

BRECCIA

a rock made up of coarse angular fragments of rock in a finer-grained MATRIX.

CALCITE

a mineral composed of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) with trigonal crystal symmetry.

alteration profile developed in carbonate-rich

composed

predominantly

CALCRETE

rocks by in situ subaerial weathering in a semiarid (e.g.,

Mediterranean) climate. Known as CALICHE by Ameri-

can geologists.
CALICHE CEMENT

a body of igneous rock representing oceanic crust that has been thrust onto the top of continental crust.

alternative term for CALCRETE used by American crystalline, SPARRY material that precipitates be-

geologists. tween the particles in some limestones and binds them together.
CHERT
CLAST

PLAGIOCLASE PLEISTOCENE

PEBBLE sedimentary particles of size 64-4 mm. a type of feldspar with the composition

CaAl2Si2ONaA1Si308.
the epoch of geological time covering the

microcrystalline

any broken fragment of a preexisting rock that is incorporated into a sediment. CLINOPYROXENE a type of the igneous mineral PYROXENE. CONGLOMERATE a rock made up of coarse rounded fragments of rock in a finer-grained matrix. CORE the part of an ooid inside the cortex. May be synonymous with the NUCLEUS. CORTEX the outer, laminated part of an ooid.
CROSS LAMINATED

silica (SiO,).

last 2 Ma.
PYROXENE iron-magnesium silicate mineral that forms in

igneous and metamorphic rocks, usually dark green in color.

QUATERNARY

the latest period of geological time, covering the last 2 Ma.

single-celled microfossils with tests composed

RADIOLARIA

lamination at angles to sedimentary boundaries within a sediment or sedimentary rock unit.

of silica (SiO2). After death, the tests fall to the ocean floor and accumulate as deep ocean muds. After metamorphism, these muds form CHERT. If radiolaria are observed in the chert, it is known as RADIOLARIAN CHERT. ROUNDNESS the degree of rounding of the edges of a sedi-

EQL Hexamilia quarry line. FAULT a brittle fracture of the Earth's crust.
GRABEN

mentary particle.
on

an elongated

sunken block of crust bounded

SACQL South Ancient Corinth quarry line.

SAND sedimentary particles of size 2-0.062 mm. SILICA SiO2
SILICATE

each edge by subparallel faults. HARDPAN a hard, brittle, and usually very fine-grained subaerial alteration layer that forms by in situ weathering of carbonate-rich rocks in a semiarid (e.g., Mediterranean) climate. KQL Kenchreai quarry line. Ma 1 million Earth years.
MARL
MATRIX

any mineral whose structure is based on the SiO4 tetrahedron.

particulate sediments composed mostly of

SILICLASTICS

a carbonate-rich

clay rock.

the fine-grained, noncrystalline material occupying the spaces between the particles in some sediments; often muddy in nature. MICA aluminosilicate minerals with complex compositions and structures built up of distinct layers so that crystals of mica are commonly flakelike in appearance. Can be white-brown-green in color. MICRITE MICRocrystallinecalcITE mud with grain size <64 pm.

silica (quartz, chert) particles of silt size or greater. Siltstone, sandstone, and conglomerate are examples of siliclastic sediments. SILT sedimentary particles of size 0.062-0.004 mm. SORTING the degree of heterogeneity of grain size in a sedimentary rock.
THIN SECTION

to examine microscopic properties and mineralogy under a petrological microscope.

UNCONFORMITY

a polished

30 pm-thick

slice of rock used

a boundary between two rock units that represents a discontinuity in the geologic record.

42

CHRIS L. HAYWARD

REFERENCES
Multivariate Baxter, M.J. 1994. Exploratory Analysisin Archaeology,Edinburgh. Builders LiverBurford, A. 1969. TheGreek Temple atEpidauros, pool. Harwood, G. 1988. "Microscopic Techniques II: Principles of Sedimentary Petrography,"in Techniques Sedimentolin ogy,ed. M. E. Tucker, Oxford, p. 111. Herz, N. 1987. "Carbon and Oxygen Isotopic Ratios:A Data Base for ClassicalGreek and Roman Marble,"Archaeometry 29, pp. 35-43. - . 1988. "The Oxygen and Carbon Isotopic Data Base for ClassicalMarble,"in Classical Marble: TechGeochemistry, nology, Trade(NATO ASI series 153), ed. N. Herz and M. Waelkens, London, pp. 305-315. IGME Sheet Sofikon. 1:50,000 series, 1975. IGME,Athens. Lolos, Y.A. 2002. "APublic Column Drum from a Corinthian Quarry,"Hesperia71, pp. 201-207. SedimentolTucker, M. E., and V. P. Wright. 1990. Carbonate ogy,Oxford. Washington, H. S. 1923. "Excavationsat Phlius," AJA27, pp. 438-434.