Of Dykes and Men: Eretria in the Making

Ancient Eretria is located in a narrow coastal plain of central Euboea. The settlement developed over a deltaic lowland and a limestone hill which served as an acropolis. Excavations in the lower strata of the settlement uncovered important Early Iron Age remains, which were partially buried under thick layers of sand. Several walls made of large blocks were discovered in several parts of the settlement and interpreted as embankment walls for channeling torrential floods (Krause 1982). Recently, however, a more global approach led to a paleoenvironmental reconstruction of the landscape, assessing the impact of human occupation and landscape dynamics. The results shows how the inhabitants first adapted to the natural constraints and progressively reshaped their micro-environment (Ghilardi et al. 2016). Yet, the overgrowing impact of human activities on the ecosystem came with consequences, probably accelerating slope erosion, as well as provoking alluvial crises and the formation of marshes.