Geophysical investigation, in a regional and local mode, at Thorikos Valley, Attica, Greece, trying to answer archaeological questions.

The area known today as Lavreotiki corresponds roughly to the ancient mining district of Lavrion, located in the south‐easternmost part of Attica in Greece. In Classical times, the 5000 hectares of mines and metallurgical workshops provided the wealth to enable the Polis of Athens (the Athenian city‐state) to become the leading hegemonic political power in the Greek world. During this time, Thorikos was one of 10 Attic Demes in the mining district, extending over a complex system of alluvial valleys and across the slopes of the surrounding hills. Archaeological research in this area has previously revealed a theatre, a double doric stoa, mines and metallurgical workshops, dispersed or in clusters. The geoarchaeological investigation presented in this paper attempts to shed light on the spatial organization of the ancient Attic Deme of Thorikos through developing an understanding of the contemporaneous palaeoenvironment. It is designed to test the hypothesis that the 'Double Doric Stoa' building was originally part of the Thorician community centre, that is, its Agora, and to suggest possible locations for the Deme's harbour. A geophysical survey of the Thorikos Valley was conducted in regional mode utilizing frequency electromagnetic method (FEM) measurements in order to accommodate a local salinization phenomenon and in local mode, around a 'Double Doric Stoa' building, with FEM and ground‐penetrating radar (GPR) measurements. The survey used electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) profiles for deep investigation. This multi‐proxy survey generated a stratigraphy for the palaeoenvironment around the 'Double Doric Stoa' building and revealed outlines of anthropogenic, probably ancient, structures. The results suggest that the surveyed area and its features lay on a peninsula‐like land formation, close to the palaeo‐coastline (thus providing clues to the location of the ancient harbour), and that the dispersion and outlines of the buried anthropogenic structures corroborate the interpretation of the site as the Thorician Agora. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]