TRADITION AND INNOVATION IN AEGEAN IRON TECHNOLOGIES: A VIEW FROM EARLY IRON AGE IONIA

Abstract

This article argues that Ionia, located in the central part of western Anatolia, was one of key areas of metallurgical innovation in the Aegean during the transitional period from the Late Bronze to the Early Iron Age. Recent evidence from this region challenges the established narrative that envisions a rather consistent diffusion of iron technologies from Cyprus arriving predominantly via the western part of the Aegean region. This contribution provides a new understanding of the spread of iron technologies in the Aegean by paying particular attention to the social context of technological change and by stressing the need for regional approaches within the Aegean. Crucially, it reassesses the latest evidence from central western Anatolia, and contextualises it within the key cultural, social and technological axes of continuity and change between the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age. This study complements the recent methodological discussions related to the integration of bronze and iron technologies that foreground regional perspectives and pay attention to local knowledge-scapes.