Political Economies of the Aegean Bronze Age

Political Economies of the Aegean Bronze Age
Author: Daniel J. Pullen
Publisher: Oxbow Books Limited
Total Pages: 276
Release: 2010
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN:

This volume brings together an international group of researchers to address how Mycenaean and Minoan states controlled the economy. The contributions, originally delivered at the 2007 Langford Conference at the Florida State University, examine the political economies of state (and pre-state) entities within the Aegean Bronze Age, including the issues of centralization and multiple scales of production, distribution, and consumption within a polity; importance of extraregional trade; craft specialization; the role of non-elite institutions, and the political economy before the emergence of the palaces. The contributors address these issues from an explicitly comparative perspective, both within and across Minoan and Mycenaean contexts. The conclusions reached in this volume shed new light on the essential differences between and among "Minoan" and "Mycenaean" states through their political economies.

The Oxford Handbook of the Bronze Age Aegean

The Oxford Handbook of the Bronze Age Aegean
Author: Eric H. Cline
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 968
Release: 2012-01-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 019024075X

The Greek Bronze Age, roughly 3000 to 1000 BCE, witnessed the flourishing of the Minoan and Mycenean civilizations, the earliest expansion of trade in the Aegean and wider Mediterranean Sea, the development of artistic techniques in a variety of media, and the evolution of early Greek religious practices and mythology. The period also witnessed a violent conflict in Asia Minor between warring peoples in the region, a conflict commonly believed to be the historical basis for Homer's Trojan War. The Oxford Handbook of the Bronze Age Aegean provides a detailed survey of these fascinating aspects of the period, and many others, in sixty-six newly commissioned articles. Divided into four sections, the handbook begins with Background and Definitions, which contains articles establishing the discipline in its historical, geographical, and chronological settings and in its relation to other disciplines. The second section, Chronology and Geography, contains articles examining the Bronze Age Aegean by chronological period (Early Bronze Age, Middle Bronze Age, Late Bronze Age). Each of the periods are further subdivided geographically, so that individual articles are concerned with Mainland Greece during the Early Bronze Age, Crete during the Early Bronze Age, the Cycladic Islands during the Early Bronze Age, and the same for the Middle Bronze Age, followed by the Late Bronze Age. The third section, Thematic and Specific Topics, includes articles examining thematic topics that cannot be done justice in a strictly chronological/geographical treatment, including religion, state and society, trade, warfare, pottery, writing, and burial customs, as well as specific events, such as the eruption of Santorini and the Trojan War. The fourth section, Specific Sites and Areas, contains articles examining the most important regions and sites in the Bronze Age Aegean, including Mycenae, Tiryns, Pylos, Knossos, Kommos, Rhodes, the northern Aegean, and the Uluburun shipwreck, as well as adjacent areas such as the Levant, Egypt, and the western Mediterranean. Containing new work by an international team of experts, The Oxford Handbook of the Bronze Age Aegean represents the most comprehensive, authoritative, and up-to-date single-volume survey of the field. It will be indispensable for scholars and advanced students alike.

The Cambridge Companion to the Aegean Bronze Age

The Cambridge Companion to the Aegean Bronze Age
Author: Cynthia W. Shelmerdine
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2008-08-04
Genre: Art
ISBN: 0521814448

This Companion covers the history and the material culture of Crete, Greece and the Aegean Islands from c. 3000-1100 BCE.

Maritime Networks in the Mycenaean World

Maritime Networks in the Mycenaean World
Author: Thomas F. Tartaron
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 361
Release: 2013-05-27
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1107067138

In this book, Thomas F. Tartaron presents a new and original reassessment of the maritime world of the Mycenaean Greeks of the Late Bronze Age. By all accounts a seafaring people, they enjoyed maritime connections with peoples as distant as Egypt and Sicily. These long-distance relations have been celebrated and much studied; by contrast, the vibrant worlds of local maritime interaction and exploitation of the sea have been virtually ignored. Dr Tartaron argues that local maritime networks, in the form of 'coastscapes' and 'small worlds', are far more representative of the true fabric of Mycenaean life. He offers a complete template of conceptual and methodological tools for recovering small worlds and the communities that inhabited them. Combining archaeological, geoarchaeological and anthropological approaches with ancient texts and network theory, he demonstrates the application of this scheme in several case studies. This book presents new perspectives and challenges for all archaeologists with interests in maritime connectivity.

The Collapse of the Mycenaean Economy

The Collapse of the Mycenaean Economy
Author: Sarah C. Murray
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 369
Release: 2017-04-24
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1107186374

This book provides a comprehensive treatment of change in long-distance exchange systems during this tumultuous time, combining a formidable array of evidence to demonstrate that Greece underwent a serious economic crisis, but one that gave rise to a whole new set of institutions and economic structures.

A Companion to the Archaeology of Early Greece and the Mediterranean, 2 Volume Set

A Companion to the Archaeology of Early Greece and the Mediterranean, 2 Volume Set
Author: Irene S. Lemos
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 1484
Release: 2020-01-09
Genre: History
ISBN: 1118770196

A Companion that examines together two pivotal periods of Greek archaeology and offers a rich analysis of early Greek culture A Companion to the Archaeology of Early Greece and the Mediterranean offers an original and inclusive review of two key periods of Greek archaeology, which are typically treated separately—the Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age. It presents an in-depth exploration of the society and material culture of Greece and the Mediterranean, from the 14th to the early 7th centuries BC. The two-volume companion sets Aegean developments within their broader geographic and cultural context, and presents the wide-ranging interactions with the Mediterranean. The companion bridges the gap that typically exists between Prehistoric and Classical Archaeology and examines material culture and social practice across Greece and the Mediterranean. A number of specialists examine the environment and demography, and analyze a range of textual and archaeological evidence to shed light on socio-political and cultural developments. The companion also emphasizes regionalism in the archaeology of early Greece and examines the responses of different regions to major phenomena such as state formation, literacy, migration and colonization. Comprehensive in scope, this important companion: Outlines major developments in the two key phases of early Greece, the Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age Includes studies of the geography, chronology and demography of early Greece Explores the development of early Greek state and society and examines economy, religion, art and material culture Sets Aegean developments within their Mediterranean context Written for students, and scholars interested in the material culture of the era, ACompanion to the Archaeology of Early Greece and the Mediterranean offers a comprehensive and authoritative guide that bridges the gap between the Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age. 2020 CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title Winner!

Collapse and Transformation

Collapse and Transformation
Author: Guy D. Middleton
Publisher: Oxbow Books
Total Pages: 273
Release: 2020-04-09
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1789254280

The years c. 1250 to 1150 BC in Greece and the Aegean are often characterised as a time of crisis and collapse. A critical period in the long history of the region and its people and culture, they witnessed the end of the Mycenaean kingdoms, with their palaces and Linear B records, and, through the Postpalatial period, the transition into the Early Iron Age. But, on closer examination, it has become increasingly clear that the period as a whole, across the region, defies simple characterisation – there was success and splendour, resilience and continuity, and novelty and innovation, actively driven by the people of these lands through this transformative century. The story of the Aegean at this time has frequently been incorporated into narratives focused on the wider eastern Mediterranean, and most infamously the ‘Sea Peoples’ of the Egyptian texts. In twenty-five chapters written by 25 specialists, Collapse and Transformation instead offers a tight focus on the Aegean itself, providing an up-to date picture of the archaeology ‘before’ and ‘after’ ‘the collapse’ of c. 1200 BC. It will be essential reading for students and scholars of the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean regions, as well as providing data and a range of interpretations to those studying collapse and resilience more widely and engaging in comparative studies. Introductory chapters discuss notions of collapse, and provide overviews of the Minoan and Mycenaean collapses. These are followed by twelve chapters, which review the evidence from the major regions of the Aegean, including the Argolid, Messenia, and Boeotia, Crete, and the Aegean islands. Six chapters then address key themes: the economy, funerary practices, the Mycenaean pottery of the mainland and the wider Aegean and eastern Mediterranean region, religion, and the extent to which later Greek myth can be drawn upon as evidence or taken to reflect any historical reality. The final four chapters provide a wider context for the Aegean story, surveying the eastern Mediterranean, including Cyprus and the Levant, and the themes of subsistence and warfare.

Transport Stirrup Jars of the Bronze Age Aegean and East Mediterranean

Transport Stirrup Jars of the Bronze Age Aegean and East Mediterranean
Author: Peter M. Day
Publisher: INSTAP Academic Press
Total Pages: 385
Release: 2011-10-31
Genre: History
ISBN: 1623030064

The transport stirrup jar was a vessel type used extensively in the Late Bronze Age III Aegean world. Found in a variety of contexts, the type was used both to transport and to store liquid commodities in bulk. The peak of the production and exchange of this jar corresponded with the time of economic expansion on the Greek mainland. On Crete, stirrup jars appeared at most major centers on the island. Their presence in large numbers in storerooms indicates the movement of commodities and the centralized storage and control of goods. The broad distribution of stirrup jars at coastal sites in the eastern Mediterranean and their presence in the cargoes of the Uluburun, Gelidonya, and Iria shipwrecks clearly shows their role in the extensive exchange networks within the Aegean and beyond. Because they represent significant Aegean exchange, tracing their origins and movement provides information regarding production centers and trade routes. This study concentrates on determinating of provenance of the jars and the subsequent tracing of exchange routes. The fully integrated research design is an interdisciplinary, collaborative archaeological project that embraces typological, chemical, petrographic, and epigraphic approaches in order to shed light on the jars' classification and origin. The results of the chemical and petrographic work constitute primary parts of the study. By establishing the origins and distribution of the jars, these vases are placed within their historical context. The identification of production centers and export routes is critical for a full understanding of the economic and political conditions in the Late Bronze Age Aegean and eastern Mediterranean.

The Aegean Bronze Age

The Aegean Bronze Age
Author: Oliver Thomas Pilkington Kirwan Dickinson
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 368
Release: 1994-03-03
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780521456647

Oliver Dickinson has written a scholarly, accessible, and up-to-date introduction to the prehistoric civilizations of Greece. The Aegean Bronze Age, the long period from roughly 3000 to 1000 BC, saw the rise and fall of the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations. The cultural history of the region emerges through a series of thematic chapters that treat settlement, economy, crafts, exchange and foreign contact (particularly with the civilizations of the Near East), and religion and burial customs. Students and teachers will welcome this book, but it will also provide the ideal companion for amateur archaeologists visiting the Aegean.

Human Mobility and Technological Transfer in the Prehistoric Mediterranean

Human Mobility and Technological Transfer in the Prehistoric Mediterranean
Author: Evangelia Kiriatzi
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 499
Release: 2016-12-24
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1316798925

The diverse forms of regional connectivity in the ancient world have recently become an important focus for those interested in the deep history of globalisation. This volume represents a significant contribution to this new trend as it engages thematically with a wide range of connectivities in the later prehistory of the Mediterranean, from the later Neolithic of northern Greece to the Levantine Iron Age, and with diverse forms of materiality, from pottery and metal to stone and glass. With theoretical overviews from leading thinkers in prehistoric mobilities, and commentaries from top specialists in neighbouring domains, the volume integrates detailed case studies within a comparative framework. The result is a thorough treatment of many of the key issues of regional interaction and technological diversity facing archaeologists working across diverse places and periods. As this book presents key case studies for human and technological mobility across the eastern Mediterranean in later prehistory, it will be of interest primarily to Mediterranean archaeologists, though also to historians and anthropologists.