All this is described in Professor Meriç’s new book, ‘Metropolis, City of the Mother Goddess,’ sponsored by Philip Morris/Sabanci. Excavations eventually revealed one of the finest theatres of the Hellenistic world, reflecting outstanding aesthetic achievement and craftsmanship of the age in the tiers of seats culminating in carved lion's feet, sacrificial altars, and magnificent carved seats for the city's nobles. It was in an excellent state of preservation, conveying the atmosphere of that distant time 2150 years ago, when audiences of four thousand people watched plays here. Restoration work began, and within eight or nine years the theatre was able to seat 900 people. In the course of restoration and example of the engineering skills of the people of Metropolis was revealed. Foreseeing the damage that could be done by rainwater pouring down the rocky slope on which the theatre was built, a deep drainage channel with a system for precipitating silt had been dug along the upper wall to divert and water to nearby fountains.