At the Sanctuary of Zeus at Nemea, our efforts include excavation, study, conservation, and public presentation of the sanctuary area, including the Hellenistic Stadium. Recent excavation and conservation work focused on broadening our understanding of hero-cult and early activities on the site as well as reconstructing some of the 4th-century temple’s Doric columns. 

Future excavation at Nemea will happen over several multi-season campaigns interspersed with seasons of study and museum research and will encompass many different areas geographically within and around the site, as well as chronologically distinct periods. One interest is to discover more information and evidence of the early prehistory and history of the site, including the possibility of occupation and/or cult continuity down to the 6th century sanctuary and its development. Other important areas of interest include the exploration of the area west of the Temple where the early stadium and hippodrome should be located, and the space between the two “sites” (sanctuary proper and stadium) to understand the circulation routes, access, and structures associated with this part of the festival and to create a single unified archaeological park.

Bringing public awareness to Nemea through educational initiatives and creative presentation of the site has always been of primary importance to UCB Nemea Excavations and we will continue and expand on this through undergraduate/ graduate archaeological field schools, improvements to the site and museum set-up, academic-led tours, seminars and conferences in Berkeley and in Greece, and through encouragement of local interests such as the Revival of the Nemean Games.