From west to west: Determining production regions of Mycenaean pottery of Punta di Zambrone (Calabria, Italy)

Abstract

The article reports on the results of provenance analyses by NAA on pottery of Aegean type found at the settlement of Punta di Zambrone in southern Calabria (Italy). The analyzed pottery predominantly consists of Mycenaean-type vessels and to a lesser degree of Minoan-type vessels and was excavated in strata dating to the Italian Recent Bronze Age. The majority belongs to the phase LH IIIC Early while a few pieces are of older date (LH IIIB). The NAA results assign the largest part of the 44 analyzed vessels to production regions in western Greece and mainly to the northwestern Peloponnese. Other Aegean regions represented among the sample include Laconia, Boeotia and western Crete. No local products of the region of Punta di Zambrone could be identified but some pots stem from workshops in northern Calabria. These results considerably change the picture of Mycenaean pottery use in southern Italy from the 13th to early 12th centuries BCE.