A wooden statue unearthed during work to extend Metro’s line 3

Archaeologists also found a fragment of a marble statue showing a female form

A wooden statue depicting a standing clothed male form was discovered during works to extend line 3 on Athens ‘Attiko Metro’, in the section from Haidari to Piraeus, according to the announcement of Ministry of Cultyre.

The statue was found at a depth of 14.17 metres resting against the north wall of the well, with its rear side looking up and the upper section facing west. In the same level pieces of pottery and parts of clay vessels and other domestic items like roof tiles, metallic objects and small pieces of wood were also found which are dated to the end of the Hellenistic era (100-86 B.C.).

Also, at the same level as the wooden statue, archaeologists found a fragment of a marble statue showing a female form sitting on the back of a deer, possibly of the goddess Artemis.

The wooden statue is missing its head, the upper and lower limbs. The maximum height of the surviving sections is 0.47 m and the maximum width is 0.21m. It is standing and the legs are shown moving in opposite directions: the right bent forward and the back leg extended behind. It wears a short robe and has the elbows bent at the waist, with the arms extended forward.

It was transferred immediately to the Ephorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities conservation laboratory following the rules for the safe transfer of antiquities.