Offshore soil investigations on the bottom of Ohrid Lake and authentic reconstruction of timber piles settlement

摘要

In 2008, the activities for construction of museum complex started on wider scale at the archeological site on the peninsula Gradishte Ohrid Lake, by patronage of the Board for cultural heritage of the Republic of Macedonia. The works are to create an authentic reconstruction of prehistoric palafitte settlement on timber piles, located in the place called “Bay of the bones”, which dates from the late bronze age and beginning of iron age, in the period of 1500–700 BC. The aim of such activities was to build a Museum on water that would be unique to the Balkans by its form, construction and cultural heritage. In the first phase, an offshore investigations with CPTu tests was conducted for the means of this construction, for definition of the geotechnical characteristics of the soil in the bottom of the lake, as well as defining of the depth on the base rock material. In accordance with the results from the geotechnical investigations, the timber piles construction is designed and executed, on the same place in the lake where prehistoric artifacts were found. In this paper the geotechnical investigations, technical characteristics and details of the authentic reconstruction of the timber pile construction are detailed.