During summer of 1968 in the area of "Akovitika" (municipality of Kalamata) remains of an ancient building came to light during anti-flooding works on the Ari River. In the same area, ten years earlier, the Pyrrhus brothers had randomly collected bronze findings, which testify the existence of important antiquities in the area. Among them was a dedicated bronze hippocampus figurine of the mid-5th century B.C., which is on display at the Archaeological Museum of Kalamata.
The excavation followed by the Archaeological Service revealed the northern part of a rectangular building with a central patio, surrounded by arcades. The building probably had been covered with Laconic type tiles, many of which had engraved letters D and DA, namely: ΔΑ[ΜΟΣΙΟΣ] that in Greek means “of public character”. Among the findings were iron dinghies for boats and boats, in the shape of a paddle or rudder, most likely offerings made by sailors'. A fragment of an earthenware cup bears the inscription Π]ΟΗΟΙΔΑ[ΝΙ showcasing that the deity worshipped was probably Neptune.
The potteries found in this area, show that human presence and activity existed at this particular site already back to the Protogeometric period all the way to the Classical period. From the rest of the excavations we conclude that there are two building phases in the revealed building. The first period of construction should be placed in the 7th century. B.C. while the remains of the building we see today date back to the 6th century. B.C. and do not originate from the temple of the god Neptune (located northeast of this area).
