Greece Travel Guide the Peloponnese Corinth Prefecture: Ancient Sikyon Page Three

This newer city of 303BC was 3km from the sea on a plateau, triangular in shape, between the gorges of the Asopos and the Helison, a smaller river. The new acropolis was on a higher terrace, the older one on a lower, surrounded by a wall, which were in turn surrounded by vertical cliffs.

The Greek Archaeological Society uncovered only a small part of the city. There is an agora, large Roman Baths which houses the Museum, a Temple, reconstructed during the Hellenistic period, which may be the Temple of Apollo mentioned by Pausanius as having been rebuilt by Pythoklis.

A Hellenistic Stoa closed the end of the agora. The 3rd century BC Bouleuterion (Vouleftirion-or senate building) is an amost square hypostyle hall, the ceiling supported by 16 Ionic columns, and used for other purposes in later times.

There are extensive remains of the Gymnasium of Kleinias built on two levels, the lower from 300BC, the upper from Roman times, with a fountain on either side of the central stairway which links them. The Theater, which dates from the 3rd century BC, is one of the largest in mainland Greece (larger than the one at Epidavros), and occupies a natural hollow in the slope that divides the upper and lower terraces. It was excavated by the American School in 1889-91 and restored somewhat in 1951.

The Achaean League met here in 168BC according to Polybius. The Cavea is 120 meters across; there were two vaulted passages from which the lower diazoma could be reached and 16 staircases, fifty tiers of seats, mostly hollowed out of the rock, divided into 15 wedges, each of which forms one twenty-fifth of a circle. The front seats have backs, armrests, and foot rests carved in the shape of the feet meant to rest there. The Orchestra was of packed earth, with a drain around it, and with a diameter of around 20meters. The stage buildings had a Doric portico as its facade of 13 columns. Pine trees have grown in the upper half of the Theater, from which there are stupendous views, which include the site, the village of Vasiliko, olive and lemon groves around Kiato, gulfs and distant mountains.

The Stadium is west of the Theater, with the straight wall built with polygonal masonry, still partly standing. Remains of the Acropolis on the upper terrace are scant. Under the dividing slope are underground Aqueducts. The Cemetery was discovered in 1976 below the track from Vasiliko to Tragana. There isn't much to see of the old city down below in the plain, though in 1966 a necropolis and mosaics were found there. The site is open Tues to Sun, 8:30am-3pm; free.

Ancient Sikyon Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3