The Ministry of Culture is proceeding with the promotion of the archaeological site of Peristeria, in Messinia.

As stated in an announcement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the works include fixing the Mycenaean vaulted tombs and the architectural remains, as well as improving the infrastructure for serving visitors and maintaining the vaulted tombs through the Ephorate of Antiquities of Messinia.

the project, with a budget of 500,000 euros, is included in the projects carried out by the Ministry of Finance with resources from the Recovery and Resilience Fund.

The hill of Peristeria is located at a distance of 8 km. from Kyparissia. It was the richest residential center of the Western Peloponnese, during the early Mycenaean period. It was inhabited until the end of the Mycenaean era (1680-1180 BC) and dominated Messinia before the development of the Palace of Nestor. In addition to the Mycenaean, residential remains of the early Roman times of the era of Nero (54-68 AD) have also been identified.

“Peristeria is an important archaeological site-evidence of the history and prehistory of Messinia. The restoration and highlighting of the Mycenaean vaulted tombs, the main archaeological remains of the site, is a key priority of the intervention, with the aim of solving the aesthetic and structural problems, alongside the improvement of the services provided to the site’s visitors,” said Minister of Culture Lina Mendoni. And he continued: “The project includes the study of the restoration of the burial monuments, a proposal for the location of the buildings for supporting functions, a proposal for shaping the course of the visitors and highlighting the three burial monuments. The aim of the interventions is to protect the remains and improve their recognizability, where they become indiscernible. By upgrading the entrance and the infrastructure of the archaeological site, these largely unknown Mycenaean monuments dynamically introduce the archaeological site of Peristeria to the cultural map of Messinia”.

As the YPPO informs, in the current state of the monuments, in terms of their pathology, it differs for each monument in the area. In Vaulted Tomb 1, the most important problem is the inflow of rainwater into the burial chamber. Vaulted tomb 2 was in a dangerous condition from the time of its exhumation and the masonry of the burial chamber remains in critical condition. Vaulted tomb 3 has similar problems to vaulted tomb 2, while the lack of legibility is also important. Regarding the infrastructure in the archaeological site, the approved entrance and parking facilities are located further south of the provincial road with the aim of expanding the archaeological site. The construction of two independent buildings is planned. Building A houses the publishing house-outpost and the shop and building B houses an information point and sanitary facilities. A courtyard roofed with a pergola is formed between the building volumes. The courtyard functions as an entrance and gathering place for the public.

As for the visit routes, the main paved path, common for pedestrians and for the disabled, starts from the entry point and ends at Vaulted Tomb 1. It follows a route formed by means of ramps and platforms with specifications for the movement of the disabled. The platforms from which the individual antiquities can be viewed occupy a larger area and are equipped with sitting benches. The secondary visit route has a freer course and allows visitors to tour west of Tombs 2 and 3.

Within the archaeological site, the existing natural paths are preserved which give the possibility of an alternative tour and ascent to the top of the hill. On most of the landscaped platforms of the routes and, above all, at the viewing points of the individual antiquities, wooden seating areas, signs with informative material and small waste bins are placed. The electromechanical facilities for the project include water supply, drainage, cooling-heating, electricity, lightning protection, active fire protection facilities.