Piraeus

Piraeus (pop. 196,400), city in Greece. It is the port for Athens and the largest Greek port, handling most of Greece's importing and exporting. The port is very modern, and is linked by railway and highway to Athens. Piraeus is also a manufacturing center, producing cloth, leather-goods, soaps, metals, and alcohol. Athenians created a port in Piræus in the 5th century B.C. The arrangement of streets in modern Piraeus is based on a city plan developed in 460 B.C. Romans destroyed Piræus in 86 B.C. Piræus' harbors remained unused until A.D. 1834, when the Greeks rebuilt it. It has been an important port ever since. Artifacts from early Greek and Roman times are on display in the Archeological Museum in Piræus.

See also: Greece.