Mycenaean Greece Research Articles

A Cycladic Perspective on Mycenaean Long-Distance Exchanges

Recent discussions of Mycenaean long-distance exchanges with the ‘East’ have focused on the goods exchanged, their means of production and shipment, and their significance for consumers. Despite voluminous research on these topics, consideration of Mycenaean long-distance exchanges with the eastern Mediterranean vis-à-vis the Cycladic islands during the Palatial Period has been minimal. Diachronic examination of the Late Bronze Age archaeological evidence from the Cyclades reveals the absence of certain defining aspects of Mycenaean palatial society. Missing, or at least not present to the extent seen before (and sometimes after) this period, are figured frescoes, sealings and seals, balance weights, inscriptions and imports from the Near East. Considered within the framework of ‘negative archaeology’, these objects are conspicuously absent from the Cyclades. When seen through the lens of the Mycenaean political economy, these absences shed light on the nature of Mycenaean long-distance exchanges and the place of Cycladic islanders in the Mycenaean world. Based upon this evidence, I propose that objects and absences alike served to integrate islanders into the Mycenaean culture of the Palatial Period, which in turn effectively excluded the Cyclades from participation in long-distance exchange networks. A model of directional Mycenaean long-distance exchanges that takes into account the negative evidence from the Cyclades is proposed.

A Cycladic Perspective on Mycenaean Long-Distance Exchanges

Recent discussions of Mycenaean long-distance exchanges with the ‘East’ have focused on the goods exchanged, their means of production and shipment, and their significance for consumers. Despite voluminous research on these topics, consideration of Mycenaean long-distance exchanges with the eastern Mediterranean vis-à-vis the Cycladic islands during the Palatial Period has been minimal. Diachronic examination of the Late Bronze Age archaeological evidence from the Cyclades reveals the absence of certain defining aspects of Mycenaean palatial society. Missing, or at least not present to the extent seen before (and sometimes after) this period, are figured frescoes, sealings and seals, balance weights, inscriptions and imports from the Near East. Considered within the framework of ‘negative archaeology’, these objects are conspicuously absent from the Cyclades. When seen through the lens of the Mycenaean political economy, these absences shed light on the nature of Mycenaean long-distance exchanges and the place of Cycladic islanders in the Mycenaean world. Based upon this evidence, I propose that objects and absences alike served to integrate islanders into
 the Mycenaean culture of the Palatial Period, which in turn effectively excluded the Cyclades from participation in long-distance exchange networks. A model of directional Mycenaean long-distance exchanges that takes into account the negative evidence from the Cyclades is proposed.

Grave Circle B at Mycenae in the Context of Links Between the Eastern Mediterranean and Scandinavia in the Bronze Age

Artifacts from royal burial graves Gamma and Omicron of grave circle B at Mycenae attest to cultural ties between the Eastern Mediterranean elite and that of the Scandinavian Early Bronze Age (mid- and late 2nd millennium BC). The appearance of the running spiral motif and representations of ships with rams in Scandinavia coincide with the beginning of the Mycenaean civilization. These facts, along with the finds of Baltic amber only in the royal burials at Mycenae but not in Crete, suggest that a principal role in the introduction of these cultural elements in Scandinavia during the Scandinavian Bronze Age (periods I–III according to Montelius) was played by the Mycenaean elite.

Book Review of Images of Woman and Child from the Bronze Age: Reconsidering Fertility, Maternity, and Gender in the Ancient World

Budin’s Images of Woman and Child from the Bronze Age is an ambitious overview of kourotrophoi, images of humans or gods holding or nursing infants or young children. Budin investigates the meaning of those images for third–first-millennia B.C.E. communities including Egypt, the Levant, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, Iran, Cyprus, Mycenaean Greece, and Minoan Crete. Her evidence comes primarily from figurines but also from carvings, seals, and more.

Virtue in the Greek World: A Comparative Study of Odysseus and Themistocles

The “Homeric World”, as characterized by the epic poems of Homer, presents a fascinating glimpse into the heroic age of Mycenaean rule. Homer’s Iliad and his latter work the Odyssey provide modern scholarship with the earliest written accounts of Greek culture during the late Bronze Age. These two works expose the strengths and weaknesses of Greek society, while concomitantly providing a framework for understanding how the social, political and economic values of Greek society evolved. Interestingly, the values that so rigidly shaped the behavior of most Greeks during the “Late Bronze” period can also be seen influencing the Greek world of Athens one thousand years after the apex of Mycenaean civilization. This analysis will distinguish the relationship of these two periods by comparing the lives of arguably the two most indelible personalities of their age: Odysseus and Themistocles. Furthermore, cultural considerations will be compared within the scope of this study as it relates to the inextricable relationship between Odysseus and Themistocles in the ever-changing world they lived in.

Horseback Riding and Cavalry in Mycenaean Greece

This paper evaluates the evidence for horseback riding in Mycenaean Greece. This paper argues that horseback riding, which is widely held to be an Iron Age development (of especially the 9th and 8th centuries BC), was practised by members of the aristocracies throughout the eastern Mediterranean as early as the 13th century BC, and that the first cavalry can be identified around the same time in Mycenaean Greece and other regions in the eastern Mediterranean. To that end, a range of iconographical, physical-anthropological and archaeological evidence will be reviewed.

Being Mycenaean: A View from the Periphery

Ethnic or cultural designations of past societies have often been employed uncritically and even casually. This general situation applies specifically to Mycenaean civilization. This article therefore considers a set of interrelated questions: What or who was a Mycenaean? How did the people termed “Mycenaeans” come into existence? What did it mean to be Mycenaean? Could one choose to be, or not to be, Mycenaean? Was there a difference between being Mycenaean and becoming Mycenaean? And finally, how is Mycenaean identity related to culture, class, and social organization? After providing theoretical, methodological, anthropological, and archaeological contexts for these questions, this paper offers some suggestions about how or whether they can be answered, examining issues of ethnicity, cultural identity, and spatial organization. It concludes by considering these areas as they apply to the Aegean Bronze Age.

Mycenaean Greece, Mediterranean Commerce, and the Formation of Identity (review)

Mycenaean Greece, Mediterranean Commerce, and the Formation of Identity (review)

A Bronze Age Ship from Ashkelon with Particular Reference to the Bronze Age Ship from Bademgediği Tepe

Reexamination of a well-known pictorial sherd from Ashkelon demonstrates that it is almost a century older than originally thought; it is in fact a 13th-century import from Mycenaean Greece rather than a local 12th-century Philistine product. The type of vessel to which the sherd belongs is discussed and a possible date is offered. The scene that might have been depicted is examined with reference to other representations of ships on ceramic vessels, particularly the ship that appears on a vase from Bademgedigi Tepe, which is presented here with new sherds from the 2005 excavations included. This redating has consequences for tracing the development of ship iconography on ceramic vessels, since this representation is now one of the earliest Late Helladic III ceramic examples. * .

XRF analysis of glass beads from the Mycenaean palace of Nestor at Pylos, Peloponnesus, Greece: new insight into the LBA glass trade

In recent years there has been a growing interest in Mycenaean glass among archaeologists and scientists. Scholars have traditionally thought that all Mycenaean glass was imported either in finished form or as ingots and simply shaped or worked at the Mycenaean sites. Chemical studies of other Mycenaean glass ( Walton et al., 2009; Smirniou et al. in press) support the hypothesis that glass was imported into Mycenaean Greece, but there is also indication for glass production in mainland Greece at the palace of Thebes ( Nikita and Henderson, 2006). There is no evidence for glass making or working at the Palace of Pylos, yet there is an abundance of glass beads there. The aim of this paper is to identify the technology and source for the glass of these beads and thus to ascertain how Pylos was connected to the broader Mycenaean and Mediterranean economies. The composition of the glasses was determined by means of portable XRF analysis and compared to that of other Late Bronze Age glasses from Egypt, Mesopotamia and mainland Greece. Four blue beads coloured with cobalt and one blue bead coloured with copper have Ti and Zr compositions consistent with an Egyptian origin of manufacture while five other beads show Ti and Zr concentrations consistent with a Mesopotamian origin ( Shortland et al., 2007). Based on the dearth of Egyptian and Mesopotamian imports in Pylos, the presented data support the hypothesis that Pylos was receiving via internal Greek trade routes foreign-produced glass, which may have been worked abroad or in Greece.

Book Review of Mycenaean Greece, Mediterranean Commerce, and the Formation of Identity, by Bryan E. Burns

Book Review of Mycenaean Greece, Mediterranean Commerce, and the Formation of Identity, by Bryan E. Burns

Mycenaean Greece, Mediterranean commerce, and the formation of identity

Introduction: effects of trade 1. Aegean agency in Mediterranean exchange 2. Becoming Mycenaean: definitions of civilization, style, and art 3. Imports in the early Mycenaean period 4. Crafting power through import consumption 5. Import consumption in palatial centers 6. Funerary consumption and competition in the Argolid 7. Conclusions: foreign and domestic in the Mycenaean world.

Mycenaean cultural impact on the Çine (Marsyas) plain, southwest Anatolia: the evidence from Çine-Tepecik

AbstractTepecik is situated in the province of Aydın, on the edge of the Çine valley that forms the southern branch of the Maeander river system. It is located on a mountain pass extending towards the south, as well as on a natural passageway through the mountain range on the western side of the Çine plain. Its location on a number of natural routes is reflected in the material culture of the site, which displays both local (western Anatolian) and Aegean elements. The Late Bronze Age cultural remains from Çine-Tepecik include a group of Mycenaean pottery, presented and assessed in this study, that can be dated to the LH III B1 to LH III C period (ca. 1320/1300–1190/1090 BC) based on decorative style and typology. Both the locally produced and imported Mycenaean ceramics at Çine-Tepecik reflect characteristic vessel forms and decorative elements of Mycenaean decorated pottery. In particular, the motifs used in the decoration of the vessels resemble those of the later phases of the Mycenaean decorative style and exemplify the decorated pottery tradition of the period. The later phases of Mycenaean culture are noteworthy for the distribution of the culture across a wide area, including the eastern Aegean islands and the coastal region of western Anatolia. The Mycenaean finds from Çine-Tepecik demand a re-evaluation and an extension of the Mycenaean cultural sphere in this period to include Çine (Marsyas).

Approaches to the study of personhood in the early Mycenaean era

In the brief space allotted for a comment, with respect to the theoretical discussion I will say only that I find the argument insufficiently developed and would rather that Voutsaki had paid closer attention to Dornan's useful critique of Bourdieu and Giddens and the uses to which their sociological theories have been put by archaeologists (Dornan 2002). As a proponent of adding moral philosophy to the archaeological arsenal of theory, Voutsaki might also have dwelt on Walzer's powerful argument about the interrelationship between ‘thin’ minimizing and ‘thick’ maximalizing moralities, since they disabuse us of the restraints of our local and universal ideologies and help us understand how individual actors and the groups of which they are a part are constrained by a plurality of moral decisions. My thoughts here, however, will focus on the case study, since that is the area of my own primary interest and expertise.

Agency and personhood at the onset of the Mycenaean period

AbstractThis paper offers a critical evaluation of the debate on agency and personhood in archaeology. Despite some very interesting and sharp discussions, the debate has suffered from the projection of anachronistic definitions of the person and an overreliance on specific ethnographic readings. In addition, little attempt is made to integrate abstract theoretical discussions with close analyses of empirical data. I would like to suggest that this should be our priority. In the second part of the paper, I will apply these ideas by examining notions of personhood and agency held by the inhabitants of the southern Greek mainland between ca 1800 and 1600 B.C. The analysis will be based on the mortuary practices and imagery of the period.

Spatial analysis in archaeology. A study of case: Hagia Triada, Crete

Este trabalho exemplifica o emprego da análise espacial em um sítio arqueológico do Mediterrâneo e estará centrado em uma análise de Hagia Triada, assentamento localizado na ilha de Creta, durante o Período Minóico Recente III (1430-1100 a.C.), conhecido como também como Período Micênico por conta da forte presença de traços da cultura micênica na região. Observa-se neste sítio, a partir 1370 a.C (MRIII A 2) uma série de reconstruções e novas construções. Pretende- -se, com este estudo, investigar as estruturas construídas no sítio e explicar o possível aparecimento, na área norte, de evidências arquitetônicas similares às presentes nos assentamentos micênicos continentais: mégaron, stoa e um espaço público aberto (identificado como uma espécie de ágora). As novas construções em Hagia Triada seriam imediatamente posteriores à destruição do palácio de Cnossos e assim o novo arranjo espacial do sítio poderia configurar, segundo os escavadores do sítio, uma tentativa da elite micênica em instituir uma capital administrativa no sul vinculada a um reino micênico centrado em Cnossos. Neste sentido o estudo dos edifícios de Hagia Triada não pode ser realizado sem se levar em consideração as relações políticas entre a Planície de Messara - área em que o sítio de insere juntamente com o palácio de Festos e o porto de Commos - e o centro-norte da ilha, i.e., a região do palácio de Cnossos

Phases of Childhood in Early Mycenaean Greece

The paper examines the question of whether or not it is possible to distinguish age grades within childhood in Early Mycenaean Greece. The analysis centres upon burial evidence from the Argolid, the core-area of Mycenaean civilisation, from where the largest amount of material suitable for such an analysis is available. The study concludes that on the basis of the available evidence three major phases can be identified within childhood – up until 1–2 years; 1–2 to 5–6 years and post 5–6 years. These approximate age grades, however, appear to have been somewhat fluid and changed over time.

Evidence for the trade of Mesopotamian and Egyptian glass to Mycenaean Greece

The origins of raw glass used to fashion Mycenaean beads were explored using trace elements analyzed by laser ablation ICP-TOFMS. The use of this minimally destructive technique for the in-situ analysis of these beads was ideal given that the material is exceedingly rare and thus too sensitive to make use of traditional micro-sampling (e.g., by scalpel). A wide range of trace elements were measured to compare these Greek glasses to other Late Bronze Age glass coming from Egypt and Mesopotamia. Of the eleven beads analyzed, four blue glasses colored with cobalt and two blue/green glasses colored with copper have trace element compositions consistent with an Egyptian origin of manufacture. The other five of the glasses, all colored with copper, were found to conform to the composition of Mesopotamian glass. These data are the first to demonstrate direct and clear evidence for the trade of raw glass to the Mycenaean states.

The South-Eastern Aegean in the Mycenaean Period: Islands, Landscape, Death, and Ancestors. By Mercourios Georgiadis.

Previous articleNext article No AccessBook ReviewsThe South-Eastern Aegean in the Mycenaean Period: Islands, Landscape, Death, and Ancestors. By Mercourios Georgiadis.Kazimierz LewartowskiKazimierz Lewartowski Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by American Journal of Archaeology Volume 113, Number 1January 2009 The journal of the Archaeological Institute of America Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/AJS20627550 Copyright © 2009 by the Archaeological Institute of America. All rights reserved.PDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.

The Archaic wall of Athens: reality or myth?

This paper reviews the philological and archaeological evidence for an Archaic, pre-Persian, city wall of Athens, and concludes that there was no Archaic enceinte separate from the fortifications of the Acropolis and Pelargikon. The extant testimonia, primarily Thucydides and Herodotos, can be interpreted in different ways, but there is nothing in these sources to suggest categorically fortifications other than those of the Acropolis/Pelargikon. Previous arguments put forward for the existence of such a putative wall do not stand up to closer scrutiny and, despite extensive excavations in those areas where the wall has been claimed, there is to date no archaeological evidence for an Archaic wall. The wall that the Persians breached in their sack of Athens in 480/79 B.C. was the Mycenaean circuit wall surrounding the Acropolis and Pelargikon; together these walls, built in the Mycenaean period, continued to serve through the Archaic period until 479 B.C. when work was begun on the Themistoklean Wall.