At the 7th of July YSMA welcomed the new specialised personnel, recruited and appointed to the work Restoration-Conservation-Enhancement. The work, of a 10,000,000.00€ budget, incorporated in Greece 2.0 – National Recovery and Sustainability Plan, will be implemented by the Acropolis Restoration Service. The intended works, whose aim is to deal with serious damages the monuments suffer, involve the consolidation and anchoring of rocky masses, the enhancement of the visitors’ accesses, the documentation of the monuments with the use of conventional and digital means and the organisation of special events to inform the public.
Specifically, on the Parthenon, the works will comprise the entire restoration of its west pediment, the continuation of the restoration works on the north wall of the cella and the commencement of works on its south wall. In addition, flutes will be carved on the fillings of a column of the Pronaos, while part of the coffer ceiling of the west wing will be restored. The Topographic and Photogrammetric surveying and the production of 3D models of the architectural members of the monument will be contracted. The works on the Wall include the restoration of the area on the SE corner and part of the north wall in the area B15. Other works involve the consolidation of rocky masses on the north incline of the Acropolis. Surface conservation works will also be carried out in parallel with restoration works, even on monuments that are not being restored, like the Erechtheion and the Pinakotheke of the Propylaia. The programme focusing on the Management of scattered architectural members will continue, part of which will be the arrangement of specific architectural ensembles in the area of the Chalkotheke. Systems of instrumental observation placed on selected areas of the monuments will continue to collect data of their micro-movements; analyses conducted in laboratories will try to identify the nature of the original materials and degradation products; appropriate materials will be tested and selected for the conservation interventions in marble and limestone areas. Work projects that will be undertaken for the Documentation and Promotion of the works and for providing Information to the public include an update of the database and the systematic storage of new documents in it, the digitalisation of conventional material, filming the works, digital and printed publications about the restoration and conservation works on the Acropolis monuments, educational activities etc. The work also includes the enhancement of the visitors’ accesses to the archaeological site.
Although the restoration and conservation works will be supervised in-house, the employment of 80 new members of specialised scientific personnel and qualified labour is proposed. The worksite equipment will also be reorganised, scaffolds will be attached to the intervention areas, and new material such as marble and limestone, will be obtained. The work will have been completed by 2025.
