SNSF-Agora project

Amarynthos – In Search of the Lost Temple

Thanks to the support of the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF-Agora), in 2020 the Swiss School of Archaeology in Greece launched an initiative to communicate the results of its current research to a wide audience. The project focuses on the site of Amarynthos, on the island of Euboea, where a team of Greek and Swiss archaeologists have made spectacular discoveries during the exploration of an important ancient place of worship dedicated to the goddess Artemis. This scientific investigation uses traditional approaches and state-of-the-art techniques, offering a great opportunity to build bridges between past and present.

The scientific outreach project “Amarynthos – In Search of the Lost Temple” promotes the study of archaeological heritage through workshops and meetings with researchers, in order to irrigate our cultures and take an original look at the challenges of the contemporary world. The program is primarily aimed at a young audience, namely schoolchildren from secondary schools in French and German-speaking Switzerland, but also offers training courses for teachers. The teaching resources are collected on a website dedicated to current research, scientific methods and ancient documents. Museum collections are also used for first-hand interaction with the rich material culture, as witnesses to ancient practices and beliefs that our societies have inherited.

At a time when the teaching of ancient languages and cultures tends to be neglected in school curricula, this project aims to stimulate a renewed interest in Antiquity by fostering a dialogue between specialists and society.