Kerameikos

Kerameikos (Greek: Κεραμεικός, pronounced ) is an area of Athens, Greece, located to the northwest of the Acropolis. It was an important place in ancient times.

Kerameikos was known as the potters' quarter of the city. Many potters worked here, and this is where the English word "ceramic" comes from. It was also the site of a big cemetery. Along the Sacred Way, the road that led from Athens to Eleusis, many beautiful stone carvings were placed to honor people who had passed away.

History and description

The area of Kerameikos in Athens, Greece, was named after the potters who lived there long ago. The word "ceramic" comes from the Greek word for pottery clay, which was found in this area. Kerameikos had two parts: the Inner Kerameikos, where potters worked inside the city, and the Outer Kerameikos, which was a cemetery just outside the city walls. Important roads, like the Sacred Way to Eleusis, started here.

Over many years, people have dug up old items in Kerameikos, learning about life from thousands of years ago. Big graves and monuments were built along the Sacred Way. After a big attack on Athens, the city walls were rebuilt, and many old grave monuments were placed into the walls. Important people were buried near the main gates. Later, rules changed how graves could look, and big monuments were no longer allowed. Even after many changes and attacks over time, Kerameikos remains a place where we can learn about the past.

Archaeology

Archaeological work in the Kerameikos began in 1870 and has continued since 1913 under the German Archaeological Institute at Athens.

Recent discoveries include a very tall stone figure called a Kouros, found by the German team led by Professor Wolf-Dietrich Niemeier. This Kouros is one of a pair made by the same unknown artist known as the Dipylon Master.

When building the Kerameikos metro station for the Athens Metro, workers found an old burial place and about 1,000 graves from around the 4th and 5th centuries BC. In 1992, archaeologist Efi Baziatopoulou-Valavani studied these graves.

Scientists examined bones from the burial and found signs of a sickness. This helps historians learn about the past.

Many pieces of pottery were found in the graves, helping experts figure out when people were buried there. The items found show that people were treated differently. Some were buried carefully, while others were buried quickly.

Some children were buried with extra care, covered with broken pottery pieces. One child's face was studied and is now known as Myrtis.

More areas around Kerameikos have not yet been explored because they are part of modern Athens.

Museum

You can visit the Kerameikos area by entering through a gate on Ermou Street near where it meets Peiraios Street. Inside, you’ll find the Kerameikos Museum in a small, beautiful old building. It holds many important items from old burials in Greece, like big marble statues, special stone plates called stelae, shiny pieces of jewelry, and even toys. The real statues from old burial places are kept inside the museum, and copies made of soft material stand in their place outside.

The museum has inside and outside spaces where you can see the larger statues. When you go down the hill, you can explore old ruins from a place called the Outer Kerameikos, walk along the old road called the Sacred Way toward Eleusis, and see parts of another road called the Panathenaic Way that leads to the Acropolis. Much of this old area is lower than today’s streets because over many years, dirt from flooding has built up.

Metro station

Kerameikos is a metro station in Athens. It is on Line 3 of the Athens Metro and is near the Technopolis of Gazi.