BASSAE / EXPLORE THE MONUMENT
The Modern Restoration Programme
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The early interventions
Early Interventions
Following the establishment of the Greek State, particularly in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, many scholars studied the monuments at Bassae and undertook the exceptionally difficult task of conserving and restoring the Temple of Apollo Epicurius.
The first protective intervention took place in 1880 and concerned three columns at risk of collapse. A severely leaning column on the west side was supported with oak beams, while the drums of two other columns were reinforced with wooden inserts and metal hoops.
The Early Twentieth Century
In 1902, systematic investigation was undertaken by the Archaeological Society at Athens, initially under the general direction of K. Kourouniotis, with the assistance of the Ephors K. Romaios and P. Kavvadias.
Panagiotis Kavvadias, General Ephor of Antiquities, was responsible for the restoration, working with Nikolaos Balanos, the engineer responsible for corresponding work on the Parthenon. The draughtsman Nikolaos Ioannitis also made an important contribution.
1902–1908
By 1908, most of the cella walls had been reconstructed, and work had been carried out on the crepidoma and peristyle. Despite the limitations and errors of this early restoration, it established much of the temple’s present appearance and made the qualities and beauty of its architecture more readily apparent.
Assessing the restoration of 1902–1908
“The restoration work of that period has been praised, but has also been subjected to well-founded criticism. In any case, despite the damage observed in repositioned stones as a consequence of their restoration, it should be stressed that Nikolaos Ioannitis, who led the work, was largely isolated and lacked specialist collaborators. Nevertheless, in a short time he succeeded in returning the building very close to its original form, restoring a significant part of the temple’s lost splendour.
Since then, informed visitors to Bassae have been able to understand the arrangement of the monument’s distinctive interior spaces, its ingenious combination of the three orders of ancient architecture and, more broadly, the coexistence within the building of features from different historical periods.”
Dr Konstantinos Papadopoulos · Civil Engineer
Head of the Restoration Project of the Temple of Apollo; Head of the Department of Archaeological Works and Studies, Ephorate of Antiquities of Ilia
Source: K. Papadopoulos, The Temple of Apollo at Bassai. The Least Known of the Famous Monuments of Ancient Greek Architecture, Hellenic Ministry of Culture, Ephorate of Antiquities of Ilia, Pyrgos 2023.
The Archaeological Society and Other Researchers
The temple’s significance for the development of ancient Greek architecture also attracted distinguished scholars from abroad. Its architectural peculiarities and dating were studied in detail by W. Dinsmoor, W. Hahland, C. Hofkes-Brukker, G. Roux, A. Mallwitz, H. Knell, U. Pannuti and F. Cooper.
1950–1980
In 1959, 1970 and 1975–1979, the archaeologist N. Yalouris investigated the area north and northwest of the temple and the interior of the building through trial trenches. The architect and archaeologist I. Travlos also participated in this research.
Interventions in 1965–1966
Research by the Archaeological Society and the Archaeological Service continued in subsequent years.
Limited restoration followed the earthquakes of 1965–1966. Supervised by the Director of Restoration, Charalambos Bouras, it included emergency work on three architrave blocks and the dismantling and re-erection of the second column from the east on the north side. Detailed drawings and photographic records documented the intervention.
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ESNEA: studies & planning
The Committee for the Conservation of the Temple of Apollo Epicurius (ESNEA)
The establishment of ESNEA in 1975 marked the beginning of a systematic modern programme for the temple’s restoration. The committee was responsible for planning and supervising the work required for its conservation.
Comprising archaeologists, architects, civil engineers and chemists, the committee investigated the temple’s needs and structural weaknesses through systematic excavation and detailed architectural surveys.
Preparatory work carried out by 2000 included installing a large gantry crane around the monument to lower and lift architectural members, providing facilities for staff and visitors, and procuring tools.
Preparation of Studies
During the 1980s and 1990s, ESNEA focused on protecting the monument and preparing architectural, structural and geotechnical studies, together with tests of the limestone’s strength, to guide its restoration and conservation.
Arrangement of Architectural Members
Scattered architectural members were collected and classified on specially prepared terraces west and southwest of the monument.
International Scientific Meeting
The First International Scientific Meeting on the Temple at Bassae, held in 1995, concluded that extensive intervention in individual architectural members and the foundations was necessary to address the monument’s problems comprehensively.
Approval of the Studies
Following approval of the studies in 1997, the restoration programme was divided into two major parts: restoration of the peristyle and restoration of the cella.
Objectives of the Interventions
The programme aims to correct geometric deformation of the building’s load-bearing structure and improve its resistance to natural forces; arrest deterioration and conserve its building materials; and enhance the monument’s significance and presentation.
Beginning of the Work
Restoration of the peristyle was planned in five successive stages, beginning with the northern pteron, restored between 2001 and 2015.
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Scaffolding & protective shelter
Anti-seismic Support Structure
A new anti-seismic support structure was installed in 1985. Fully reversible, it improves the structural stability of the architraves and columns pending the comprehensive restoration of the monument. It replaced an earlier wooden support structure.
Wooden collars encircle the upper parts of the columns and support the architraves.
A tubular truss links the peristyle to the upper parts of the cella walls.
A lightning-protection system was also installed.
The Protective Shelter
Installation of the Shelter
Between 1984 and 1987, measures to protect the temple from continuing environmental deterioration included a protective shelter and a Faraday-cage lightning-protection system. The latter was initially installed directly on the ancient building. After the shelter was erected in 1987, it was transferred and adapted to the shelter. Comprehensive protection was necessary because lightning had previously caused serious damage. In December 1965, a lightning strike brought down an architrave block and damaged two columns on the east side.
The Shelter: Benefits and Criticism
The shelter has understandably been criticised for separating the monument from its natural setting. Nevertheless, it protects the vulnerable limestone from rain and snow and allows staff to carry out structural consolidation and other interventions without interruption. The restoration programme envisages its removal once the temple’s protection and restoration works have been completed.
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Restoring the northern side
Restoration of the Northern Pteron, 2001–2015
Work on the northern pteron began in January 2001, funded first by the Community Support Framework 2000–2006 and subsequently by the National Strategic Reference Framework 2007–2013. The first phase continued until June 2009. The second began in the latter half of 2011 and was completed at the end of 2015.
- lowering the architrave blocks;
- removing the columns as complete units;
- dismantling the blocks of the three crepidoma steps and the uppermost foundation course, the euthynteria;
- consolidating the foundations, restoring the dismantled blocks and conserving their material;
- reinstating the blocks with new titanium connectors;
- returning the columns to the monument;
- restoring, reinstating and reconnecting the architrave blocks.
In total, restoration of the northern pteron between 2001 and 2015 involved 212 restored architectural members, 190 carved supplements fitted to ancient members, 1,204 joins, and ten entirely new stone members.
The work completed during these fourteen years restored the northern part of the ancient building: the six columns of the north façade, the northernmost sections of both long sides, each including one column, and the enclosed floor area.
The scale of the work on the northern pteron of the Temple of Apollo Epicurius can be compared with the complete restoration of a small ancient monument, such as the Temple of Athena Nike on the Athenian Acropolis.
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The long sides, 2019–2023
Project background
Following the dissolution of ESNEA, responsibility for the programme passed to the central services of the Ministry of Culture.
After approval in September 2015 of the study by K. Papadopoulos and V. Savvatianou, the first phase of consolidation of the long sides—the third phase of the overall restoration programme—was included in the Operational Programme Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship and Innovation 2014–2020, under the title “Restoration and Enhancement of the Temple of Apollo Epicurius at Bassae — Phase III”.
Implementation
The subproject “Restoration of the Northernmost Sections of the Long Ptera of the Temple of Apollo Epicurius at Bassae” was carried out directly by the Ephorate of Antiquities of Ilia. It ran from February 2019 to November 2023, at a cost of €1,276,443.84.
The two principal objectives
(a) to consolidate two sections of the monument: one on the east side, comprising the third and fourth columns from the north, and one on the west side, comprising the third column from the north; and (b) to restore and reinstate three of the six missing blocks of the north architrave. A recent study indicates that one of these blocks fell in the thirteenth or fourteenth century AD, probably during a strong earthquake together with a few others. The other two were deliberately brought down by the excavators in the summer of 1812 to prevent them from falling during the work.
Dismantling, foundations & conservation
To achieve these objectives, work in the intervention areas included:
(i) lowering architrave blocks, removing complete columns (Fig. 1), and dismantling blocks of the crepidoma and euthynteria;
(ii) strengthening the foundations by constructing supporting and retaining walls at the western foundation and forming a layer of stabilised clay between the bedrock and the euthynteria blocks;
(iii) restoring the integrity of dismantled blocks by joining fragments and supplementary pieces (Fig. 2);
Reinstatement & reconnection
(iv) reinstating the three north architrave blocks (Figs 3–4), returning restored blocks to the long sides and reinstalling the three columns (Figs 5–6); and
(v) reconnecting blocks that had originally been joined, using new titanium connectors.
Returning the columns & the result
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The work in numbers
Totals for the Restoration Programme, 2001–November 2023
1341
reinforced joins of large fragments and supplements to architectural members
226
carved supplements fitted to ancient members
270
architectural members restored and reinstated on the monument
13
entirely new members carved and installed in the ancient temple
These works continued the restoration of the northern pteron undertaken between 2001 and 2015 under ESNEA’s supervision. They successfully completed the first phase of restoration of the long sides and established a firm basis for the programme’s continuation. Three important architectural members were returned to the north façade—one after approximately seven centuries and the other two after about two centuries—restoring the continuity of its architrave for the first time since 1812.
This multifaceted programme seeks not only to conserve and structurally strengthen an ancient building, but to preserve for future generations a monument of worldwide significance. The Temple of Apollo Epicurius has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1986. The project also enhances a site in a remote part of the Peloponnese, a landscape of exceptional natural beauty with many other important archaeological sites, including ancient Phigaleia, the sanctuary of Zeus on Mount Lykaion and ancient Alipheira.
