Lefkandi I & Tiryns cultures

Lefkandi I EH IIB 2450/2400-2200/2150
Mainland equivalent of Kastri Group ECIIIA
widespread appearance of Western Anatolian pottery in the central Aegean and eastern seaboard
Pefkakia, Kolonna on Aegina, Lefkandi on Euboea, Raphina in Attica, Eutresis, Orchomenos, Thebes
in some places, Kastri Group pottery appears a minority beside holdovers from EH IIA, in other places not so much
Thebes has longhouses/megara, which haven't appeared before but are later going to become *the* architectural plan
burials found only at Manika on Euboea: multiple inhumation in rock-cut chamber tombs, identical to Korakou practices
red & black burnished, lots of favorite new shapes, all of which are Anatolianizing
trans-Aegean population movement from western Anatolia, through the Northern Cyclades (Kastri Group ECIIB/ECIIIA) to the eastern seaboard (but no Lefkandi culture further west than Boeotia or south into the Peloponnese)
pottery could be trade, but burial customs? probably population movement
at least one person thinks ancestor of Tiryns culture
big chronological debate

Tiryns culture EH III
In Laconia and Messenia, no evidence for Lefkandi or Tiryns...MH appears after Korakou
Tiryns shows up in Kolonna, Argolid, Achaea, Arcadia, Elis, Boeotia, Phocis, Locris, Euboea, Ithaca
PATTERNED WARE
descended directly from Urfirnis of Korakou EH II
houses usually apsidal, sometimes longhouses/megara
only Olympia and Kolonna known to be fortified
Kolonna V has blocks of houses similar to insulae of Troy II, significant departure from previous architectural traditions
little known about the burials
infants in pithoi, pits, a possible cist
adults extramural if buried at all
imported stones/stone tools decline between EH II and EH III...disruption of trade networks?
evidence for true horses in Tiryns and claimed at Thebes

Tiryns = cultural fusion of Korakou + Lefkandi
sometimes violent, sometimes peaceful

Western Anatolian EBA

Troy was first occupied ca. 3100-3000
BA already underway for a century or two
Only one of a string of impressive fortified coastal settlements

Troy I 3100/3000-2600/2550
fortification wall
megaron
metal present from the beginning
marble/limestone human figurines but no FAFs, no specific occupations like warriors
dark monochrome burnished ware
pit burials, infants in pithoi
There is evidence for a destruction by fire of Troy Ij.

Early Troy I contemporary with Eutresis culture EH I and advanced Kampos phase of Grotta-Pelos culture EC I
Middle & Late Troy I contemporary with Korakou EH IIA and Keros-Syros EC IIA on the basis of imported urfirnis and sauceboats

Troy II 2600/2550-2250
no cultural break from Troy I or in Troy II
fortifications extended, rectangular projecting towers
end of IIa, citadel destroyed by fire
megara
antae: shaped stone bases attached to the thickened ends of the lateral walls
no evidence for the throne found in later Mycenaean megara or the specifics of Myc. megara (but circular hearth yes)
large amounts of gold and silver
Kastri on Syros shows clear Trojan influence (metalwork and pottery), may have been settled by refugees after Troy II destruction
pottery becomes more red and tan and less black as Troy II progresses
evidence for use of fast wheel
intramural child burial, adults outside the settlement
contemporary with middle & later stages of Korakou EH IIA and Kyros-Seros EC IIA

Troy III 2250-2100/2050
town demolished at end of Troy III for no obvious reason
free-standing houses rare, mostly apartment complexes
tendency to construct buildings entirely of stone instead of mudbrick on stone socle
not much metal found
terracotta animal figurines appear for the first time, can't tell if they're dogs, sheep, cattle, or what
pottery virtually indistinguishable from Troy II
more deer bones than anything, so increase in hunting, but we're not sure why
contemporary with EC IIB Lefkandi I & Kastri Group, BG & HoT (Lerna III) EH IIA

I-III should be viewed as a unity, Maritime Troia culture

Troy IV 2100/2050-2000/1950
traces of fortification wall, not substantial
houses built on a different orientation, once again mudbrick on a stone socle
little metal
at least partially contemporary with EH III (wing-handled Troy cup found at Lerna IV, EH III pottery fragment at Troy IV)

Troy V
2000/1950-1900/1850
no evidence of destruction at the end
no fortification wall found, but evidence that there may have been one
better architecture, cleaner rooms = less material for archaeologist
general rise of living
pig & cow bones overtake deer
probably contemporary with Phylakopi I MC I and earlies MH I and MM IA

Troy IV-V viewed as Anatolian Troia culture

Limantepe central west coast, near modern Izmir
impressive fortifications now extending underwater where the sea has risen
Kastri group pottery, this area may have been the origin of the Anatolian influence on Cyclades, whether peacefully or by warrior bands moving east to west

Thermi on Lesbos clearly belongs to Maritime Troia culture
more egalitarian walled town in contrast to hierarchically organized royal fortress of Troy

Early Minoan tombs

no evidence for cult of the dead in the Neolithic

Minoan house tombs EMII - MM II
seem to mimic domestic architecture, may have been intended to serve as "houses of the dead"
can get impressively monumental
Chrysolakkos has weird non-Minoan features that may be Egyptian-inspired
no preserved entrances in the second phase of construction. access may have been through the roof

Cist tombs
rare, not beyond EM
result of strong Cycladic influence

Tholos tombs of the Mesara
more than 75, from FN to LM I or even LMIIIA
circular, founded on bedrock
Mycenaean subterranean tholoi corbelled to redistribute the weight, keep the lintels from snapping
Not so the Minoan tholoi, with one known exception
annexes, some with rooms that can only have been entered from the roof
but no doorways to the tomb so small to suggest that burials were made from the roof

big debate whether they were roofed with a stone vault

hundreds of inhumations, no attention to earlier burials
period fumigations
social groups served by tholoi quite small, clan or nuclear family
suggests more egalitarian society

grave goods: personal belongings, food & drink
EM I - EM II, fewer grave goods, relatively small numbers of celebrants
EM III expansion


Theories on the origin of the tholos tomb form
External origin
1. mudbrick tholoi of the Syrian Halaf culture (5th millennium BCE, too early, evidently domestic)
2. circular tombs in Nubia or OK vaulted Egypt tombs (Egyptian imports EM I, so too late to be evidence)
3. EN circular Cyprus houses by way of small FN Keos circular tombs (too small, geographic restrictions, no good reason to connect EN Cyprus houses with FN tombs on Keos)
Internal origin
1. free-standing imitations of caves

Larnax
low, elliptical, no legs, never painted

Pithos
end of EM period, more popular in MM
mostly used for children & infants

Regional burial styles:
house tombs: north
tholoi: south central (Mesara)
cave: far east & far west
cist: northeast

collective burials in large numbers, sometimes same structure used for 1,000 years
lived at Knossos together for 1500 years before spreading out in 5th millennium BCE
maybe more traditional here than elsewhere in the Aegean