Blue is the dominant color at the "Municipal Theater" station in Piraeus Metro, with the choice not at all accidental. Inside the station, the history of water unfolds and its significant importance is highlighted.

The permanent exhibition highlighting the water supply system of the ancient city of Piraeus at the "Municipal Theater" station was presented to the citizens of the city today with the three stations of the Piraeus Metro, which were inaugurated by the Prime Minister of Greece. The Minister of Culture and Sports, Lina Mendoni, spoke about the doctrine of the harmonious coexistence of archeology and the Metro, which has as its principle respect for archaeological finds without them being a brake on the implementation of large-scale infrastructure projects.

During the excavation research, the largest ever carried out in the city of Piraeus, 150 structures related to ancient water systems, characteristic of the ancient city of Piraeus, were uncovered. These come in addition to the more than 345 wells and 388 tanks already found in earlier excavations in the city.

The total area archaeologically controlled by the Ephorate of Antiquities of Piraeus and Islands in 5 Stations and 7 Ventilation Shafts, approaches 30,000 sq.m., while the rescue excavations were carried out on a total surface of 7,500 sq.m. All the excavation work was carried out under permanent archaeological monitoring, as well as the opening of the 7.6 km of the train passage tunnel.

The long historical duration of the Greek civilization - in time and space - has as a consequence, the activities of the modern era intersecting with the material testimonies of the past preserved underground.

The term "archaeological palimpsest" is used to denote the overlapping layers of material remains of human activity, which continues for centuries in the same areas, especially in the urban fabric of modern Greek cities. Especially in the case of a large area or the wide geographical distribution of public utility infrastructures, this meeting, between the works of today and the tangible evidence of history, becomes almost unavoidable.

The total area, which was archaeologically controlled by the Ephorate of Antiquities of Piraeus and Islands in 5 Stations and 7 Ventilation Shafts, approaches 30,000 sq.m., while rescue excavations were carried out on a total surface of 7,500 sq.m. All were carried out under permanent archaeological monitoring the excavation works, but also the opening of the 7.6 km of the train passage tunnel.

During these excavations, 150 structures related to ancient water systems, characteristic of the ancient city of Piraeus, were uncovered. These come to be added to the more than 345 wells and 388 tanks, which have been found in earlier excavations in the city.

In accordance with the provisions of the archaeological law, the Ministry of Culture asked the Attica Metro to implement a permanent exhibition on the Water Supply System of the ancient city of Piraeus at the "Municipal Theater" station. The challenge was particular for the Ephorate of Antiquities, as the museum exhibition had to be integrated into a crowded and bustling space.

The central idea was also the starting point for the composition of the museological concept: "The connection of water management with the historical and social development of the city of Piraeus from the Classical period to Late Antiquity".

The station, but also the center of the city of Piraeus, are decorated with an archaeological exhibition, which can act as a starting point for the interconnection - through cultural routes - of the residential and fortified remains, visible in the open archaeological sites of the modern city, of the Neosoicon and the Theater of Zea with the Archaeological Museum, creating a dynamic nexus of culture.

The 5 thematic sections are supported by four main exhibition types:

• The exhibition of copies of the water pumping, collection and transport systems, as they evolved from the founding of the city in the 5th century. e.g. to the Roman period (units 1 and 2)

• The exhibition of original exhibits related to the way a Piraeus house was designed and operated in relation to the management of the city's water resources. The central exhibit was placed under a glass floor of the underpass. It is about the reconstruction of a male classical house that was revealed in the rescue excavation during the construction of the Deligianni Well and which was detached and preserved for this purpose.

• The presentation of the use of water in the daily life of the ancient inhabitants of Piraeus with digital exhibits. On a video wall, figures from ancient iconography are projected on a human scale and in interaction with scenery that changes referring to the activity at hand. (section 4)

• The narrative concludes with the surveillance material that frames the country-by-country promotion of the preserved reservoir 27, at the level of the square of Ag. Konstantinou, near the central entrance of the station (section 5).