www.nemea.org For 35 years, the University of California, Berkeley, has promoted research at the site of Ancient Nemea in the Peloponnese. Stephen G. Miller was hired in the summer of 1971 to begin his position in the summer of 1973; he served as Professor of Classical Archaeology and Director of the Nemea Excavations until his retirement in 2004.  Through those years he acquired land with funds he raised, and by his purchase after negotiations with dozens of individual owners or, when outright purchase was impossible, by expropriation proceedings which he initiated and pursued to their conclusion through the government and the courts; he also donated a piece of property which he purchased with his personal funds and later gave to the Greek State for the use of the University.  During his tenure, two full programs of excavations took place as well as short-term projects; a museum was built and frequently updated; reconstruction of a number of columns of the Temple of Zeus was initiated; the modern Nemea Games were organized; and several volumes were published presenting the results of excavations. With his retirement, the Department founded the Nemea Center for Classical Archaeology to continue research and teaching in Nemea and the vicinity. The Director of the Nemea Center is Dr. Kim Shelton, Adjunct Assistant Professor of Classics. Over time, this web site will be updated to reflect the newest developments. Most of the current information was created by Professor Miller and his students in his graduate course Classics 275. Only minor amendments have been made so far (September 2007, February 2008). ANCIENT NEMEA University of California, Berkeley The site of Ancient Nemea lies in an upland valley in the modern Greek province of Korinthia, and in the eastern foothills of the Arkadian mountains. The valley is about a mile wide and three miles long, and is traversed from south to north by a man-made drainage channel that drains the valley toward the north, ultimately to the Gulf of Corinth. The floor of the valley is about 330 meters above sea-level, and it is occupied by a modern village of about 400 inhabitants, the ancient site, and fields of grapes surrounded by hills filled with olive trees. The northern end of the valley is dominated by the flat-topped Mt. Apesas where an altar of Zeus had been established by Perseus. A word of caution must be noted. In the larger valley immediately to the west lies a modern town with a population more than 10 times that of Ancient Nemea. In antiquity, the city-state of Phlious was located in this larger valley, and until the 19th century a town called Aghios Georgios. But toward the end of the 19th century that town took the name of Nemea. Hence, modern references to Nemea are almost always to that town and not to the ancient site of Nemea. One must therefore specify -- whether to bus drivers or modern topographers -- one's interest in Ancient Nemea.     Top of Page All materials from this site are copyrighted. Materials may be used with permission upon request. This web site was designed and developed by Susannah L. Van Horn; please direct comments and inquiries to: nemeaucb@berkeley.edu