Research

This section provides access to all the digital archaeological data from the Athenian Agora. You can use the index of categories to the left to browse this data, or search using the toolbar above. Material which has been published is made completely available to the public. Material which is unpublished is only available to researchers who have already obtained the necessary permission to study the material in person. Following is a general overview of how the archaeological data has been recorded and organized.

Notebooks

Archaeological excavation in the Athenian Agora is recorded in a series of three separate notebooks: the field notebooks, the pottery notebooks, and the find notebooks.

A field notebook contains a daily diary that records the results of excavation. This notebook contains a textual description of the excavation process, dividing an area into Contexts (independent archaeological contexts such as layers, walls, rooms, etc.). This notebook also contains Photographs, Plans and Drawings, and references to Objects found during excavation.

A pottery notebook contains a list of the material contents from each archaeological context. This notebook organizes the archaeological contexts into chronological and hierarchical structures. It records the pottery and other non-inventoried objects, using these objects to determine a date for each context.

A find notebook contains a catalog of objects found during excavation. This notebook records more detailed information on each inventoried object (such as title, description, date, dimensions, etc.). A catalog card is created for each object based on these initial descriptions.

Sections

The Athenian Agora has been excavated in sections. As land is acquired for excavation, each new section is designated by a series of Greek letters (Α-Ω). Some of these sections have been subdivided after work began and are distinguished by adding a prime after the Greek letters (Δ'). Other sections have been given combinations of letters indicating initials or abbreviations of the names of the actual areas or buildings (ΔΕ = Doerpfeld Excavations, ΜΣ = Middle Stoa, ΠΑ = Panathenaic Way, etc.).

Each section contains its own series of field, pottery, and find notebooks. Each inventoried object is also initially given a section number (a internal tracking number) consisting of the section where it was found and a running serial number (ΣΑ 2414).

The Card Catalog

In addition to the find notebooks, a card catalog system has been used since the beginning of excavations to record the important information related to inventoried objects.

When objects are inventoried, they are classified and given a inventory number (e.g. P 24113) based primarily on function (i.e. architecture, inscriptions, sculpture, pottery, etc.). Classes are as follows, with the class letter always preceding the catalog number of the object:

A		Architecture
B		Bronze
BI		Bone and Ivory
G		Glass
I		Inscriptions
IL		Iron and Lead
J		Jewelry and Gems
L		Lamps
MC		Miscellaneous Clay Objects
N		Coins
P		Pottery
S		Sculpture
SS		Stamps and Seals
ST		Stone Objects
T		Terracotta Objects
W		Wooden Objects

Contexts

For historical reasons, several types of archaeological contexts have been given specific names.

A Basket is the smallest unit of excavation that is recorded in the field notebooks (one floor layer, one layer in a well, one wall, etc.). All pottery and objects found within a basket are initially kept separate for analysis.

Lots are made up of one or more baskets and represent a single archaeological context. Lots are the smallest unit of storage in the Agora. All material from each lot is stored separately and can be re-analyzed later if necessary. Lots are designated by the section and a serial number (e.g. Lot ΠΘ 145).

Deposits are contexts (one or more lots) that refer to any closed physical unit (well, cistern, grave, pit, etc.) in which the recovered finds present sufficient homogeneity to be of value in the study of type, style, and/or chronology.

Deposits are designated by a grid location (a 20-meter square) and a group number within that particular square (e.g. C 10:2).

The general word Context is used here to designate any of these named archaeological contexts, be it a basket, a lot, a deposit, a room, a building, or even an entire excavation trench.

Photographs

Photographic negatives in the Agora have been traditionally given accession numbers. All digital Images presented here (whether they are scanned negatives or new digital photographs) are given an Image Archive Number consisting of three pieces of data: the year they were digitized, a group number, and a serial number (e.g. 2003.02.0001).

Plans and Drawings

Outdoor plans and object drawings are each given unique serial and version numbers (e.g. PD 1190-23d). Three-dimensional data is recorded in the field using Leica Total Stations. Modern contexts and objects can be plotted using the map and plan views.