Mud Bricks and Tiles at Lerna

on the bus

In classical Greece, Lerna (Greek: Λέρνη) was a region of springs and a former lake near the east coast of the Peloponnesus, south of Argos. Its site near the village Mili at the Argolic Gulf is most famous as the lair of the Lernaean Hydra, the chthonic many-headed water snake, a creature of great antiquity when Heracles killed it, as the second of his labors. The strong Karstic springs remained; the lake, diminished to a silt lagoon by the 19th century, has vanished. Lerna is notable for several archaeological sites, including an Early Bronze Age structure known as House of the Tiles, dating to the Early Helladic period II (2500–2300 BC). ~wiki

This site was small, but interesting to me because it featured mud bricks that have survived since the Early Bronze Age (that's really old, folks!!).

rocks on the bottom for a foundation, then the sun-dried mud bricks;
archaeologists added the tile roof to keep the bricks from eroding

Adjacent to the archaeological site there was a church - not that this would be unusual, as there are churches everywhere (and very close together, as well). However, I got an opportunity to snap a few pics of their style of very well-kept cemetery, which  remind me of those in New Orleans.

Another tidbit I picked up while at Lerna is about the citrus groves. Surrounding this site, and many others, are acres upon acres of orange and lemon groves (mostly orange). The air smelled of citrus as we were at the site, and even one of our students picked one to eat later! According to my prof, citrus is not native to the Peloponnese, but was brought in by the Turks in the 11th century, so rather late (!!).