The „Lower Agora“ was excavated between 1900 and 1902 under the direction of Wilhelm Dörpfeld in the course of research conducted in Pergamon by the Royal Museums Berlin. The open space was surrounded by colonnades on four sides which were tentatively dated to the Hellenistic era. Dörpfeld only published a preliminary report, and details of the architecture remained unresolved, as well as the function and urban context of the square.

Due to this reason, a research project under the direction was carried out from 2013 to 2017, with financial aid from the Fritz Thyssen Foundation. One of the most striking results was a revised dating of the Lower Agora between 50 B.C.E. and 50 C.E., based on the finds from new sondages. Unfortunately, the untimely death of the architectural researcher Arzu Öztürk in 2016 impeded the final publication of the project.

The Fritz Thyssen Foundation has now kindly provided funds to finalize the project. Based on the architectural documentation of Arzu Öztürk and her team, Ursula Quatember will prepare the architecture of the Lower Agora for a final publication in collaboration with Burkhard Emme (FU Berlin), which will appear in the “Altertümer von Pergamon” series.

The project is kindly supported by the Pergamon Excavation of the German Archaeological Institute and the excavation director Felix Pirson.