The project, which took 22 years to complete, unearthed more than 300,000 treasures now on display across its subway stations.
It caused untold commotion, decades of disruption and – among historians and archaeologists – controversy and despair. But at midday on Saturday, the antiquities-rich subterranean world of Thessaloniki will open to a world of driverless trains and hi-tech automation with the inauguration of its long-awaited subway.
The excitement on the streets of the northern Greek port city is almost palpable. “Archaeologically, it has been an extremely complex and difficult endeavour,” said the culture minister, Lina Mendoni, of the more than 300,000 finds made since construction began 22 years ago. “To get here required a battle on many fronts.”
The discovery of treasures never before seen – many to be exhibited in the stations themselves – promises a modern ride through the multilayered history of a metropolis that dates back 2,300 years and through which the Romans, Byzantines and Ottomans all passed. Two marble squares, an early Christian basilica, a Roman-era thoroughfare, water and drainage systems and ancient Greek burial sites brimming with jewellery and gold are among the trove.
Signature pieces will be showcased in the 13 “archaeo-stations” opened in central Thessaloniki this weekend. More will be added when a second line is completed next year.
Read more in The Guardian.
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