![]() |
![]() |
Your cart is empty |
||
Books > Humanities > Archaeology > Archaeology by period / region > European archaeology > Classical Greek & Roman archaeology
Aby Thomas F Tartaron Drawing on environmental and artefactual data from the Nikopolis Project carried out in south-west Epirus from 1991 to 1995, this revised thesis focuses on Bronze Age settlement in the lower valley of the river Acheron. Using this evidence, as well as survey data and study of assemblages from previously excavated sites in the area, Thomas Tartaron argues that the climate and resources of the river valley would have provided a good environment for year-round settlement, especially when practising a diverse subsistence strategy. The importance of interaction with other areas, particularly the Mycenaean worldm and the impact of the foundation of a Mycenaean trading colony close by, are also discussed.
Permanent settlements were founded by Greek marine traders as early as the mid 7th century in and around the Black Sea region. This revised thesis seeks to describe and examine the nature of these permanent emporia from this period until 590/580BC, as well as well as determine the conditions under which they appeared and how they compared to other settlements traditionally labelled as colonies.
Based on the author's PhD thesis, this volume examines the possibility of a cult of the dead among the Mycenaean civilisations. Focusing on the period 1425/1390-1190/1180 BC, and drawing largely on archaeological evidence from tholos and chamber tombs from the regions of the Argolid and Corinthia, Attica and Samalis, Boeotia and Euboea, Gallou puts her theoretical ideas about the recognition of acts of ancestor veneration into action. Highlighting certain diagnostic traits among the evidence, she assesses the presence of notions of an afterlife, respect shown for the deceased, changes to tomb design and the funerary landscape as a whole, and differentiation among the burial facilities, offerings and acts associated with the dead.
This book investigates the lives of servile dependants and their role in the large households of the elite Romans. An uneasy proximity created by the cohabitation of the two opposite status groups (aristocratic masters and slaves) brought conflicts and contradiction. In attempting a new inquiry into such historically anonymous individuals and their res publica, the domus, this present work confines itself to analysis of a particular group of inscriptions from Rome (1st/2nd centuries AD), commonly referred to as the columbaria inscriptions. The 'columbarium', a dovecote-like burial structure, was designed to accommodate a number of epitaphs and urns of ashes and became particularly popular during the Julio-Claudian period. Such a communal burial structure appears to have been shared by people with a common background, in many cases the slaves and freedmen staff of a noble family. In other words, the set of epitaphs from a given columbarium is arguably representative of the familia urbana of a certain noble family. Once the group of individuals is thus given an identity, it opens the way to systematic examination of their lives and status from multiple angles. These inscriptions, relatively unexplored until recent decades, offer researchers unique insights into otherwise anonymous people.
First discovered in the 19th century, the remains of a Roman settlement at the site of Kuecuek Burnaz in the eastern area of ancient Cilicia, were investigated more fully in 1991 by the Ozgen/Gates survey. This volume presents an overview of this region of ancient Cilicia from the 1st century BC to the 14th century AD, providing the background to Tobin's discussion of the architecture, ceramics and small finds recovered from the site in the 1994 and 1995 seasons. The evidence suggests that the Roman settlement was most likely founded in the 1st century BC and was thought orignally to have lain on the coast, providing an important port for goods and troops entering and leaving the region.
This catalogue and guide to Neolithic pottery in southern Greece is geared towards those working with such material. Based on assemblages from sixteen sites, including Corinth, Nemea, Lerna and the Franchthi Cave, the catalogue and large number of illustrations trace the development of the pottery sequence through the early, middle, late and final Neolithic. Based on Bill Phelps' thesis of 1975, this present volume has taken into account much more recent scholarship and finds, although it was not possible to revise the text fully.
In this study Rae Ostman examines and contrasts Etruscan and Roman ceramic evidence from two distinct periods in Volterra to identify changes in social complexity. The first period, which covers the 3rd to 1st centuries BC, represents Volterra at its height while the second (2nd to 6th centuries AD) witnessed the city's first significant period of decline. The bulk of the study comprises a catalogue followed by analyses of techniques of pottery production, including clay and soil types, and a consideration of imported vessels. A final discussion draws conclusions about Volterra's relationships with other urban centres and the countryside during the two periods and considers how economic changes reflected changes in social complexity.
Bronzeworking was an important industry in the late Bronze Age Aegean and this thesis draws on a large database of material related to Late Minoan bronze objects, raw materials, evidence for workshops and so on. Lena Hakulin not only presents an overview of the bronzeworking industry on Late Minoan Crete but she also tackles some of the fundamental questions associated with identifying the sources used, where the skills and technology originated and how they developed, and seeks to account for changes in object types, find contexts, technology and copper sources over time. The text is short (36 pages) with much of the volume taken up by appendices presenting tables of data.
This substantial volume presents the proceedings of the LRCW I, the first international conference on Roman pottery other than tablewares held in Barcelona in 2002. The aim of the study is to demonstrate that studies of terra sigillata alone are not sufficient for reconstructing trade patterns in the Mediterranean and the food tastes of the empire. Arranged geographically the 48 papers examine evidence from the Iberian peninsula, the western Mediterranean islands, Gaule, Italy and the central Mediterranean islands, Africa, the eastern Adriatic and the eastern Mediterranean. A number of approaches are adopted, comprising archaeological papers, studies of transportation, trade and supply, and archaeometric analysis of fabrics. Papers in English, Spanish, Italian, French and German.
This study evaluates and critiques the traditionally held view that Late Bronze Age society was highly centralised on the Mycenaean palaces, especially in a political and economic sense. In seeking to test whether this is really true of the Late Helladic economy in the Argolid, Birgitta Sjoberg examines evidence for settlement patterns at Asine and the Argive Plain, economic activities and socio-economic information that can be gleaned from tombs. Her conclusion suggests that the picture of Mycenaean palaces as dominant, centralising, redistribution centres can not be confirmed for the Argolid and that a more diverse, decentralised, market-based economic system was more likely.
This dissertation focuses on the use and significance of gemstones in Greece during the Mycenaean period, drawing largely on material from sites in the Argolid, Messenia and Attica. Stamatatou's large catalogue includes information on object type, material, technique of production, provenance and context which helps to build a picture of the function and use of gemstones and their place in late Bronze Age society and belief systems.
In 1827, a local collector of antiquities encountered a vehicle carrying stones from the site of Kermenchik/Simferopol on the Black Sea near Chersonesos. The director of the Odessa Museum immediately recognized the importance of these finds and rushed to the site. In the first publication on the site, the author claimed to have discovered the Neapolis built by the Scythian, King Skiluros. Thus began the archaeological discoveries at a site that has fascinated excavators to this day. The author of this present monograph summarizes the decades of research and theories connected with this important site and its environs: features, architecture, rites, material cultural, trade, and cult objects. A uniform chronological and cultural model for Scythian Neapolis is proposed and phased characteristics show its historical evolution (c. 300 BC to 300 AD). A group of farmsteads developed into a settlement, then into a royal fortress with a palace/temple complex, then into a significant fortified settlement of some scale, then once more into a royal (?) fortress before becoming the unfortified centre of an agrarian territory as the headquarters of a Bosphorean deputy. One Appendix concentrates specifically on the Mausoleum of King Skiluros, while the other details the inscriptions and sculptures from the 'Southern Palace' site.
This volume represents the papers given at a session of the 8th EAA Conference held in Thessalonike in 2002. The session was based around four themes: The links between populations of Egypt and Europe (especially Hellas) in ancient times; the impact of the advent of Alexander the Great, and the current excavations in Alexandria; the political, economic and cultural contacts between Europe, Hellas and Egypt especially during the LP, Helleno-Roman and Early Christian (Coptic) Periods; and aspects of the history of European Egyptology and those European museums holding Egyptian antiquities today. The 9 papers are: (1) The Cretans in Egypt Galina A. Belova; (2) Among the Hidden Treasures of the National Archaeological Museum in Athens: Searching for Forgotten Mummies Amanda-Alice Maravelia and Eleni Cladaki-Manoli; (3) The Egyptian Collection of the Archaeological Museum in Bologna: Past and Future Daniela Picchi; (4) Ancient Egyptian Collections in Ukrainian Museums: The Case of B.I. & V.N. Khanenko's Museum in Kiev Sergej V. Ivanov; (5) La Musique Copte Ashraf-Alexandre Sadek; (6) Late Antique Textiles of the Benaki Museum with Bucolic and Mythological Iconography Sophia Tsourinaki; (7) Fantastic Discoveries in Archaeology: The Case of the Tomb of Alexander the Great Harry E. Tzalas; (8) Egypt and the Great Silk Road Tatjana A. Sherkova; (9) The Ancient Egyptian Roots of the Phoenix Myth: On the History of the Problem Helena G. Tolmatcheva.
At the heart of this study of Carausius (286-93) lies an illustrated catalogue of his significant bronze coinage, incorporating recent, important hoard discoveries. The production and supply of this coinage is then investigated in order to throw light on the usurper's control of the First British Empire'. Alongside the evidence of the coins themselves, Hugh Williams examines archaeological evidence from late 3rd-century Britain, highlighting the significance of sites where the coins were minted or discovered. Williams concludes that the presence of Carausius' coinage in certain military and civilian sites indicates heightened activity and migrations of civilian populations. These were clearly dangerous times.
This Oxford-centric' book explores the history of classical reception by focusing on objects in the Ashmolean Museum and assessing the development of classical art studies at Oxford University. The seven papers are based on a series of lectures given at the University in 2003 to complement the Master of Studies in Classical Archaeology course. Contents: The study of art at Oxford befroe 1955 (Donna Kurtz); An introduction to the reception of classical art (Donna Kurtz); Nudity in art (John Boardman); Medals and the reception of antiquity (Henry Kim); Renaissance istoriato maiolica (Kate Nichols); The reception of classsical art - neoclassical gems (Gertrud Seidmann); The Sackler Library (Robert Adam). Fully illustrated throughout with some of Oxford's treasures.
Recent major excavations in the Palatine East of Rome uncovered fragments from some 2,100 African cookware vessels which dated from c.AD 270-550. Although cooking pots are often overlooked in favour of finer tablewares, this study stresses the importance of the humble cooking pot as one of the most important inventions in the history of technology'. African cooking pots also reveal much about late Roman trade. Ikaheimo discusses the framework of the excavations, the fabrics of the vessels, most of which hailed from Tunisia, their varied forms, their production, place of origin and their distribution. Includes an illustrated catalogue of fabrics and 91 forms.
This fascicle is the thirteenth in the series of Level One publications of the excavations at Franchthi Cave and is the third and final installment of the report on the site s chipped stone industries. The objective of Catherine Perles s study is to make sense of the chronology of the site in its economic, technological, and typological dimensions. All phases of the Neolithic are represented at Franchthi Cave. Rich with more than 3,000 reconstructed pieces, this study offers a representative and technical typology that is unequaled today. The first part of the analysis offers diagnostic elements to facilitate comparisons between the lithic sequence and surface dating and is more descriptive than interpretive. The second part is dedicated to a step-by-step analysis of the Franchthi material in a well-defined chrono-stratigraphical framework. The third and most interpretive portion of the study addresses itself more specifically to those who are interested in the socio-economic organizational problems of Neolithic societies. Excavations at Franchthi Cave, Greece Thomas W. Jacobsen, editor, with Karen D. Vitelli"
This study is part of a long tradition of antiquarian interest in the Roman town of Spoleto. Alessia Morigi examines what remains of the Roman town, heavily built-up in the subsequent medieval and early modern period, with a large part of this study given over to Spoleto's Roman monuments and architecture, its urban layout, walls, sewers and public buildings. Other sections discuss the written and epigraphic evidence relating to the town, and Morigi reviews the history of investigations at Spoleto. A large colour plan locates the major sites and excavated areas within the town, colour coded by period from the 3rd century BC to the 2nd century AD. Italian text.
Did the Romans survey the lands that they conquered? This study puts forward evidence in support of the idea that geometric patterns can be discerned in the angles of road alignments and the position of forts and towns to suggest that the Romans surveyed Britain shortly after the invasion. With lots of maps and diagrams, Ferrar and Richardson combine cartography, history and mathematics to argue for the use of surveying and centuration in Britain, going on to suggest how and why this was carried out. Detailed examinations of the geometric landscape of The Mickle Ditch in Manchester, and of the Antonine and Hadrian's Wall are included.
Grand public buildings and opulent villas more often than not steal the limelight from more mundane structures such as shops and workshops which, nevertheless, played a vital role in catering for the needs of Roman Britain. This thesis assesses evidence from major sites across the country to present a systematic study of the range of tabernae that have been discovered whilst discussing their significance for our understanding of local urban economies as well as the wider Romano-British economy. Drawing on archaeological evidence from sites in Verulamium, Cirencester, Wroxeter, London, Caerwent, Vindolanda and elsewhere and, making comparisons with the well-preserved structures of Pompeii, Herculaneum, Rome and Ostia, MacMahon examines the construction of tabernae, their plan, counters, and doorways as well as covered walkways, methods of selling and display, the economics of tabernae and their location across Britain.
Our picture of Iron Age and Archaic Crete is constantly changing due to the increasing number of field investigations that reveal new information on these centuries. Results from many recent excavations (at sites like Azoria in Eastern Crete and Thronos/Kephala (ancient Sybrita) in the Western region of the island) will eventually transform our view of the period. The focus of this particular study is centred on sites with a long-established history of research. Sites like, for example, Phaistos, Knossos, Praisos, Axos, Dreros, Gortyn, Vrokastro, Kavousi, Kato Syme and Aphrati have thus received a large amount of attention in the analyses. However, the author has also tried to introduce lesser well-known sites of a rural character in order to obtain a more varied rendering of Iron Age and Archaic Crete. As the title indicates, she is interested in site variations within the different site-categories and how these change during the 8th, 7th and 6th centuries. 84 tables, figures, maps, plans; illustrations and drawings; site Gazeteer.
Subsistence practices are frequently argued to have been important factors in the Neolithic-Bronze Age transition, although all too often very little systematic research has provided any empirical data on which to base such arguments. The research on which this volume is based analysed archaeobotanical evidence retrieved from five sites in Macedonia and Thrace covering the late Neolithic and early Bronze Age period. Valamoti aims to provide a better understanding of the nature of settlements, settlement expansion and the development of hierarchies during this period through the interrogation of plant remains. In so doing, she provides valuable insights into aspects of land use, plant exploitation (wild versus cultivated), husbandry methods, seasonality, grazing patterns, animal feeding and so on and is able to make some preliminary arguments for the role of agricultural practices in socio-economic organisation and settlement patterns, leading the way for future research.
Al Mina, at the mouth of the Orontes, some 75 km SW of Chatal Huyuk, has long dominated Greek-Levantine discussions in the Geometric Period (c. 1000-700 BC); the site was the first to reveal an abundance of Greek pottery generally, and still is the findspot of the greatest quantity of Greek Geometric pottery in the Levant - about 1500 sherds. In this volume, the author undertakes an analysis and review of this 'Greek emporion', taking as her main topics for discussion - Al Mina as a 'port of trade', the evidence for Greek residence on the site, Greek geometric pottery in the Levant, and Geometric pottery in Greek-Levantine trade.
Tarquinia was one of the principal cities of ancient Etruria, the most powerful nation in pre-Roman Italy, and has been at the forefront of Etruscan studies since the early days of antiquarian scholarship. The lack of Etruscan literature and problems with the interpretation of ancient sources have given archaeology a very significant role to play in understanding this elusive civilisation. Robert Leighton charts the history of the site and its interpretation, from its use in early propaganda under the Medici and other Tuscan rulers, to nineteenth-century interest in the discovery of the painted tombs, for which the site is famous, and twentieth-century concentration on the extensive prehistoric burial grounds which provide evidence for the 'proto-Etruscan' Villanovan culture. He considers the significance of Etruscan art in the Archaic period, a topic of hot debate, setting it in the context of economic organisation, long-distance trade and the important role of Tarquinia's port of Gravisca. Recent explorations of the city walls and public and religious buildings of Hellenistic and later date are also discussed.
The Poseidonian chora encompasses the plain South of the Sele River, which formed the ancient boundary between the Greek lands and the Etruscan territory to the North, East to the Alburnus Mountains and South to the Punta Licosa. The aim of this study is to understand the nature of the relationship between the Greek settlers of Poseidonia, founded at the turn of the sixth century BC in the Sele Plain (in modern Campania), and the Italic peoples indigenous in the plain. The Greek city flourished from its foundation until about 400 BC when it came under the control of Lucanians from the nearby Apennines. Recent attention has focused on its three well-preserved temples, the rich cemeteries, and the sanctuaries outside the walls. This present study examines the hypothesis that not only was the relationship cordial during the 200-year tenure of the Greeks, but that the indigenous groups actually collaborated in the founding of the city. |
![]() ![]() You may like...
|