Locating and Mapping the Traces of the Covered Ancient Theater of Amphipolis (Eastern Macedonia, Greece)

Abstract

Ancient Amphipolis (Eastern Macedonia, Greece) is one of the most important archaeological sites of Greece. Despite the restricted excavation studies, important monuments have been discovered, such as the city walls and the Macedonian burial site at the Kasta hill, etc. Currently, the location of the ancient theater is unknown and only assumptions can be made regarding its location. In the current study, we aim to detect the accurate location of the ancient theater using archaeological prospection tools, data collected from the excavated sites, and testimonies of people of the modern city. For the first step of the approach, the approximate location of the ancient theater was determined using information derived by archived geospatial data (multi-temporal aerial photographs, satellite image, and Digital Terrain Model (DTM) of the area) as well as information regarding the neighboring excavated sites. For the in-depth study of the area of interest, a drone was used for the acquisition of high-resolution geospatial data. The generated orthorectified image (3 cm spatial resolution), DTM, and Digital Surface Model (DSM) allowed the determination of the potential location of the buried orchestra’s center using geometric rules for the design of ancient theaters. Furthermore, using the produced DSM and DTM, terrain cross-sections were generated.