Kerameikos Cemetery

Hurrying through my impromptu church tour, I wanted to enter the cemetery before it’s early closing at 3:00 pm due to the Holy Week schedule.  Having read many good things about the cemetery, I was determined to arrive with enough time to visit both the grounds and the museum.

Easy to reach, by walking the length of Ermou Street or via the metro (Keramiekos station, line 3), Kerameikos is just past the Monistiraki Flea Market and the Ancient Agora.  Near the end of Ermou, there is signage pointing you in the correct direction and you can actually gaze upon the ruins below though the gates while walking to the entrance.

 After paying my entrance fee of 2 euro, I made my way to the neo-classical styled museum.  Informed by the ladies in the ticket office that the museum would take about 40 minutes, I started first by inspecting the statuary located outside under the portico, then finally moving in to the interior.  Here, there is a vast display of burial-related artifacts, including marble sculptures, funerary urns, pottery, jewelry and toys.  Most notable is the stunning bull, in the interior courtyard, from the tomb of Dionysios of Kollytos.  A large number of original burial monument sculptures and grave markers are displayed at the museum in the outer courtyard, with plaster replicas replacing in them in their original sites.

The immense number of grave markers, located just outside of the museum are small and plain and not quite what one would expect in a graveyard, resembling more of an ancient road marker or small sign post.  These stark gravestones resulted from a a decree in 317 BC that prohibited more elaborate monuments, such as those with statues, that were in vogue at the time.  After passing the grave markers while exiting the museum, I moved out to the paths that clearly define and move you throughout the site.

The ancient district of Kerameikos was located within the city walls of Athens with many ceramic workshops in the area.  The outside part of Kerameikos served as the burial grounds.  Located within Kerameikos was the Sacred Gate, and the start of the Sacred Way, or Iera Odos, which connected Athens with Eleusus and used by the many pilgrims traveling between the two cities during the procession of Panathenia.  The Dipylon Gate, the main entrance to the city, was the spot where Pericles gave his most notable speech honoring those who died in the first year of the Peloponesian war.  State graves were built on either side of the Dipylon Gate, for Athens notable warriors and statesmen, including Pericles and Cleisthenes.  The Dipylon Gate was also the starting point of the ancient Dromos (Road) leading to the Platonic Academy.

The Pompeion, the preparation site for the Panathenaic procession in honor of Athena, was located between the Sacred Gate and the Dipylon Gate.  The original building was destroyed in 88 BC during the conquest and plundering of Athens and the Building of the Warehouses replaced it in the 2nd Century AD.  The Eridanos river which once passed through the Sacred Gate still flows beneath the site, having been covered over since the Roman period.

On the Street of Tombs, replicas of gravestones of some of the most prominent citizens of Athens, can be seen here.  These graves were part of the public graveyard and these notable citizens were buried here at the public expense. The original gravestones are now housed in the National Museum.

Often overlooked by visitors, Kerameikos is one of the most significant historical monuments in Athens.  Comprising much historical value, it assists visitors in understanding the ancient Athenian way of life and therefore is a “must-see”.  The church of Agia Triada serves as a beautiful background to the cemetery and outstanding views of many other Athens sites can be seen from Kerameikos, such as the Acropolis and Lycabettus Hill.  The area has been planted with Mediterranean vegetation and is large and open.  Not crowded and easy to navigate, the cemetery is a wonderful way to spend part of a day in Athens!

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