LECHAION, WESTERN PORT OF CORINTH: A PRELIMINARY ARCHAEOLOGY AND HISTORY

Lechaion was the western port of the prosperous city of Corinth, and thus much of the Corinthia, Argolid and Peloponnesos. The position of Lechaion ensured that the port was used for traffic with the western Mediterranean as well as central Greece. Lechaion was separated from the city by agricultural land, but remained a dependent entity; in the classical period the port was connected to the city by long walls. The port contained an outer and inner harbor with a combined area of approximately 150,000 m² The outer harbor works consisted of two large moles; the inner harbor was artificially excavated. Multiple periods of construction are suggested by the archaeological remains. The construction phases of the harbor may be related to the expansive economic activity in Corinth at the beginning of the sixth century B. C., c. A.D. 45, and perhaps again c. A.D. 355.