The site of Phylakopi on Melos occupies a special place in the prehistory of the Aegean Bronze Age. The first work there by the British School at Athens in 1896–99 (there were two further campaigns, in 1911 and 1974–77) was memorably described by Carl Blegen as ‘the first really serious effort to understand stratification, the first really good excavation in Greece’. The Field Director, Duncan Mackenzie, kept detailed day-to-day records of the work, later applying methods developed on Melos to the excavation of Knossos. The circumstances surrounding the initial excavation permit for Phylakopi and the role of Christos Tsountas, who later organised the Cycladic displays in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens, are here examined in an opening Chapter. Following the 1896–99 excavations, the retained finds were sent to the National Archaeological Museum, where they remain today, thus providing the basis for the studies published here. Although the first publication (1904) of the finds was of exceptional quality for its time — indeed Campbell Edgar’s exemplary account of the pottery provided the foundation of a sequence for the Cyclades — it lacked detailed catalogue descriptions and scale drawings, essential for archaeological analysis and comparison. This double Volume fills such gaps and re-examines the significance of the finds, taking advantage of recent developments in research and scientific techniques. Petrographic, chemical and pXRF analyses clarify the nature and sources of materials used, as well as technological aspects, helping to shed light on relationships with other Cycladic islands, Crete, and the Greek mainland. The coarse and undecorated pottery is fully described for the first time, providing a template for future work. Finds of post-prehistoric date, housed with the Phylakopi material but certainly not from the site, are presented with explanations as to their probable origin in other (unpublished) British School excavations on Melos. Chapters on bone/ivory, metals, and stone all contribute new insights into the discoveries at Phylakopi and their implications for our understanding of the Bronze Age Cyclades and beyond, while the Chapter on weaving undoubtedly has broader relevance to sites elsewhere in the Aegean. A major new study of the physically meagre fresco fragments, illustrated with fine watercolour visualisations, reconstructs the decoration of the Pillar Crypt complex and places it in the context of contemporary Aegean wall painting. Indeed the wealth of illustrations in this publication — line drawings, half-tone and colour plates — will now allow informed comparisons between Phylakopi and other sites of the Bronze Age Aegean.

This volume presents the pottery from a series of deposits excavated by Sir Arthur Evans in the palace at Knossos and assigned by him to the last part of the Middle Bronze Age or Middle Minoan III. The substantial architectural modifications seen in this period are examined along with stratigraphy to give proper context to the pottery deposits. Middle Minoan III was the time when Knossos appeared to expand its reach across Crete: from the First Palace Period, when palaces at Malia and Phaistos rivalled Knossos, to the Second Palace Period, when seemingly they diminished and other smaller palaces were built. These changes unfolded over the course of the Middle Minoan III period, divided by Evans into two sub-phases, MM IIIA and MM IIIB. He used many palatial deposits to define these phases. However, he did not present the pottery, stratigraphy and architecture in full, leading eventually to some ambiguity over the status of the period. This detailed study revisits more than a dozen of these contexts, to provide a more solid footing for the phasing and use of the Middle Minoan III palace. The investigation confirms that it is possible to distinguish not only between MM IIIA and MM IIIB, but also between early and late MM IIIA; this distinction enables a more nuanced understanding of the significant changes in architecture and material culture that were taking place. Furthermore, ceramic analysis highlights some of the functions of the palace at this time, with a plethora of conical cups and very few fine tablewares suggesting particular kinds of feasting; and a large number of imported transport and storage wares from off-island locales in the Aegean, such as the Cyclades, Dodecanese, and coastal Anatolia, pointing to a level of connectivity and exchange not previously recognised. This volume demonstrates that much new information can be extracted from legacy material excavated more than a century ago, through the use of a methodology that integrates ceramic, stratigraphic and architectural evidence.

This volume presents a complete study of the architecture and finds from the House of the Frescoes at Knossos, a Neopalatial building uncovered by Sir Arthur Evans and Duncan Mackenzie in 1923 and 1926. Located in a prominent position, a few meters south of the Royal Road and close to both the Theatral Area and the north-west corner of the Palace, the House of the Frescoes owes its name to the large deposit of painted plaster discovered within its ruins. Reinvestigation of the House took place in 2016–2019 and included: on-site cleaning of the remains in 2018; detailed analysis of the pottery and other finds; and study of archival material from the original excavations (excerpts presented in this volume). The results offer new insights into the architecture and finds’ contexts, as well as fresh perspectives on the building’s occupation, purpose and abandonment. They suggest that the House of the Frescoes was a non-residential building, and instead had a public role with strong ritual connotations. Its memory survived for a while after its abandonment, as demonstrated by the structured depositions – including the frescoes – found within. Finally, this analysis highlights the urban context of the House of the Frescoes and its connections with the Royal Road area, where much archaeological work has been carried out after Evans. The emerging picture helps to shed further light on the character of Knossos, pre-eminent centre of Minoan Crete at the height of the Bronze Age.

The site of Karphi, situated in the Lasithi mountains of eastern Crete and occupied from c. 1200-1000 bc, provides a rare example of a large-scale creative response to the economic and political crisis that swept the Mediterranean c. 1200 bc. Other settlements established in this period indicate community fragmentation, relocation and defensive planning; but most excavated examples are small, while deposits at larger sites are masked by later remains. Excavations at Karphi in the 1930s undertaken by John Pendlebury for the British School at Athens uncovered roughly one-fifth of the settlement. The present volume publishes in full the data from excavation and survey work carried out at Karphi and in its surrounding area from 2008 to 2012, helping to confirm the complexity and coherence of this large crisis-period community. Key features include a new public building (differing from the Temple explored by Pendlebury); a hitherto unknown district or sub-settlement on Megali Koprana to the south (with evidence for selective re-use later in the Iron Age); and a fortification system (documented and explored for the first time). The project revealed that the site ended in a burnt destruction, suggesting that conflict accompanied territorial expansion as political conditions changed during the formation of Cretan polis-type states from c. 1000 bc. The first scientific studies, including soil and historic land-use surveys, reconstruct the landscape around this new community, together with its subsistence and exchange practices. Understanding of the Middle Bronze Age use of the Karphi peak as a sanctuary is also enhanced by the discovery of associated material, likely from an auxiliary area, under crisis-period buildings

The signs known as ‘masons’ marks’ were carved on blocks of stone in Bronze Age Crete over a period of some 500 years from around 2000 BC until the middle of the 15th century bc. The earliest examples seem to occur at Knossos, dating from the time when the so-called Early Palace was constructed there. Soon thereafter blocks with comparable signs were incorporated in the palatial centres at Phaistos and Malia. In due course, the practice spread elsewhere in Crete and to Akrotiri on the island of Thera, but is only rarely attested on the Greek mainland. By far the greatest number of these signs occurs at Knossos, making this site of unique importance for their study and interpretation. Volume I presents a typology and chronology of the signs, considers their distribution beyond Knossos, examines comparanda in other media and in cultures beyond Crete, and provides a detailed discussion of their purpose. It also offers a full catalogue of some 1600 signs in the Palace of Knossos and surrounding buildings. The commentary provides invaluable evidence for the architectural history of the Palace, drawing on copious unpublished observations made by Evans during the excavations and the work of later scholars. Volume II presents a complete photographic record of the Knossian signs, numerous line drawings, as well as plans and elevations showing their location. Much of the field work for this volume was undertaken from 1978-81, following the realization that many signs were disappearing rapidly, owing to weathering and flaking away of surfaces on which they had been cut. In the years since, further losses have occurred. Thus this monumental study provides crucial documentation, never to be repeated, for the major palatial site of Minoan Knossos and will serve as a key research tool for students and scholars of Bronze Age Crete.

Erected in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Crete’s coastal cities during the Thera eruption, Building 1, with its two-storeyed ashlar façades, must have been one of the finest at Palaikastro. Two conflagrations during the LM IB period largely obscured its original function and brought down much of the ashlar masonry. This was re-used in the substantial LM II and LM IIIA re-occupation phases, which ended with the widespread, perhaps natural, destruction that affected the entire town. The building’s last incarnation in LM IIIB contains the strongest evidence for ritual at its core with industrial and domestic activities in adjacent rooms in an otherwise largely abandoned coastal town

From at least 1700 BC, and for several centuries thereafter, a city of substantial houses flanked the palace of Knossos in north-central Crete. Those immediately adjacent to it, like the Royal Villa or the South House, excavated by Sir Arthur Evans, are well known, as are the Little Palace and Unexplored Mansion to the north-west. In fact the whole lower western hill-slope (Bougadha Metochi, the modern village) was terraced with fine, ashlar masonry buildings, served by well-engineered paved roads. The present volume publishes part of one such building, excavated by the Greek Archaeological Service. The pottery within it — as always at Knossos astonishing in quantity and excellent in quality — is particularly important for the first stage of these large buildings, Middle Minoan IIIA (Early and Late), the 17th century BC. One piece also throws light on bull sacrifice at Knossos. Another object, a stone weight, confirms the close relationship of the Minoan, Theran and West Syrian systems of mensuration. A later pottery deposit adds to evidence of wide destruction at Knossos at the final moment of independent Minoan civilisation, Late Minoan IB c. 1440 BC. The history of the building is also set within that of the wider Cretan and southern Aegean regions during the Bronze Age.

The archaeological sites on the Monastiriako Kephali hill analysed in this volume include the earliest known mortuary activity at the key Minoan centre of Knossos on the island of Crete. Two Bronze Age sites are presented, known as the ‘Tomb’ and the ‘Deposit’, originally excavated in the 1930s but until now never published in detail.The ‘Tomb’ represents the earliest known funerary site at Bronze Age Knossos, established in the late Prepalatial period and continuing in use until the Neopalatial. The function of the nearby ‘Deposit’ site is more ambiguous, but a mortuary interpretation is also possible for the phases contemporary with the ‘Tomb’, and is almost certain for the subsequent Late Minoan II–III era.This volume presents the excavated material held principally in the Stratigraphical Museum at Knossos. The stone artefacts, human remains, faunal remains, glyptic material and ceramics are described and discussed by Don Evely, Rebecca Gowland, Valasia Isaakidou, Olga Krzyszkowska and Laura Preston respectively, and the sites are placed within the broader framework of Minoan mortuary practices at Knossos during the second millennium BC.

The Middle Minoan III period on Crete was initially identified and studied in detail at Knossos by Sir Arthur Evans. Subsequent scholarly attention focused on the preceding Old Palace period and the apparent floruit of the New Palaces at the beginning of the Late Bronze Age. In consequence one of the critical transitions in Minoan culture has been virtually overlooked, giving rise to confused and ill-informed judgements concerning developments in Crete and further afield. With numerous innovations in art, architecture and material culture — notably an entirely new palace at Galatas — the changes in Middle Minoan III are striking, and appear to herald a new political organisation of the island, centred on Knossos. The papers in this volume, presented at the first colloquium to be held in the Villa Ariadne at Knossos, now restore the period to its rightful position. The specialist contributions cover most key sites where Middle Minoan III occupation has been identified. The aim has been to rehabilitate Middle Minoan III as a dynamic period in Crete and also on Thera, in order to provide a better understanding of socio-political change across the island and beyond in the latter part of the Middle Bronze Age.

How do the cultures of Crete and Cyprus, the two great islands of the eastern Mediterranean, compare in their history and development from the 3rd millennium to the 1st millennium BC? What was similar and what was different in their social and political, economic and technological, and religious and mortuary practices and behaviours, and in the natural settings and choices of places for settlements? Why, and how, did convergences and divergences come about? Why for instance did monumental buildings appear in Cyprus several centuries after they had emerged in Crete? And what was the impact on Cypriot society of the island's rich copper resources, while Crete as a rule had to import the metal? How and why did Cyprus manage an apparently much more peaceful transition from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age than Crete? These are among the important questions that a leading group of experts on the two islands addressed at Parallel Lives, a pioneering conference in Nicosia organised by the British School at Athens, the University of Crete and the University of Cyprus, to compare and discuss the islands' cultural trajectories diachronically from c. 3000 BC through their Bronze Ages and down to their loss of independence in 300 BC for Cyprus and 67 BC for Crete. Papers given then are now presented in fully revised form as chapters in this book, which is the first to bring together the study of Crete and Cyprus in this way, while starting with their insular geo-cultural identities. It will be a valuable resource for students of both islands, for all who are interested in ancient material cultures and mentalities in the Mediterranean, as well as those engaged in island studies across the world.

Block M is a substantial architectural complex comprising three large buildings at the heart of the Minoan town of Palaikastro. With traces of activity stretching back to the Prepalatial period, and occupation in the Protopalatial period, Block M sees its most intensive use in the Neopalatial period, in the 17th century BC. This period sees widespread construction, followed by two severe destruction horizons: the first seismic, the second associated with the Theran eruption, by which time the Block may already have been in ruins. Its subsequent history is very different from that usually encountered elsewhere in the town - it became an open area used only for the dumping of refuse in two abandoned wells, without widespread reoccupation in the LM II-III periods. This volume presents the results of excavations conducted by the British School at Athens, which uncovered these extensive remains in the late 1980s, 1990s and 2003. These investigations have helped to elucidate the character of this important town during the Middle and early Late Bronze Ages, and offer valuable evidence for relations between eastern Crete and sites in the centre of the island such as Knossos.

The site of Karphi, high above the Lasithi plateau, remains one of the most extensively investigated settlements of Early Iron Age Greece; it was excavated by the British School at Athens under the direction of John Pendlebury in 1937-39. In the report that swiftly followed the pottery was not presented in detail, though much was discussed in a later article by Mercy Seiradaki. Consequently there existed serious problems in dating the remains and understanding their meaning. This volume now presents a thorough study of the Karphi pottery, much hitherto unpublished, accompanied by copious new drawings and photographs. The author's expertise with material from contemporary Cretan sites, especially from the Kavousi excavations, provides major insights. Moreover, thanks to careful recording by the excavators and the survival of the excavation notebooks, the material can be presented here by context, which permits the date of the settlement to be clarified and its history to be re-evaluated. While early pottery appears as small fragments from under floors, streets, and courts, later LM IIIC whole vessels seem to have been abandoned on floors. The tombs continued in use long after the abandonment of the settlement. Ceramic assemblages also help to determine room and building functions, leading to a reconstruction of social practices at this key site. A chapter by Eleni Nodarou and Ioannis Iliopoulos presents the results of petrographic and SEM analyses. Thus, this study serves as a significant contribution to our overall understanding of Early Iron Age Crete.

This is the account of an excavation by the British School at Athens at the major Mycenaean settlement in the central Eurotas valley of Laconia, close to the site of ancient and modern Sparta, in the south-central Peloponnese. The site was first identified and partly explored by the British School (under its sixth Director, R. M. Dawkins) in 1909-10. This volume presents the results of fieldwork undertaken by the School in 1973-77, 1980 and 1985, led by the then Director, H. W. Catling. Excavation of the Mycenaean settlement concentrated on the upper part of the Menelaion ridge - comprising the North Hill, the Menelaion and Prophitis Elias Hills, and Aetos - covering an area of not less than 10 hectares. The ridge may have been first occupied during the Final Neolithic; there had certainly been a small Early Helladic settlement. All three hilltops had traces of Middle Helladic use, including several burials. Reinvestigation of the 1910 complex on the Menelaion Hill revealed superimposed 'Mansions', the earlier built in the 15th c. BC (LH IIB), the later in the earlier 14th c.(LH IIIA1). Their plans suggest prototypes for the much larger 13th c. palaces at Mycenae, Tiryns and Epano Englianos (Pylos). On the North Hill remains were damaged by severe erosion, but on Aetos a 15th-13/12th c. building sequence was associated with a ruined, once massive terrace wall. The present volume presents an exhaustive account of the Bronze Age structures (ca 50 in all) spread across the Menelaion Ridge. Detailed considerations of the stratigraphy and architecture are supported by approximately 175 plans and sections; a further 25 in-text illustrations elucidate specific features. The pottery from each deposit is presented in catalogue format, supported by statistical analyses, drawings and photographs. In addition, there is an overall appraisal of the ceramic finds, in relation to those attested elsewhere in mainland Greece and beyond. Also catalogued and discussed are 'small finds', including objects of metal, terracotta figurines, spinning and weaving equipment, and objects of stone. The few seals and sealings are described by H. Hughes-Brock. Painted wall plasters and architectural stone are also fully treated. A final chapter considers topographical and environmental issues, and places the Menelaion within the context of both Laconian and wider Aegean developments Much further information is gathered in CD-Rom form, including the 1910 excavation records and commentary; and full qualitative and quantitative tabulations of uncatalogued pottery. Appendices by R. E. Jones present technical analyses of plasters and pigments; XRF analysis of bronzes; the proton magnetometer survey; and chemical analyses of pottery (with J. Tomlinson). Further appendices concern human skeletal material (N. Brodie); and animal bone (G. Jones).

The crucial earliest phases of palatial Knossos are not well known, in part due to over-building by neopalatial structures and floors. This volume represents the first complete publication of substantial deposits dating to this period, specifically the Middle Minoan IB and IIA phases. This is a first not only for Knossos but for Crete as a whole, and will act as a crucial point of reference for future work on these key phases in the islands prehistory. The five Protopalatial deposits in question, excavated in 1973, 1987 and 199293, are fully published with their contexts, the stratified pottery and small finds including the earliest inscribed clay document from Crete, clay sealings, horn-cores and chipped stone; radiocarbon dates are also presented. The deposits come from the south-west of the palace area, and provide evidence for a range of activities such as ceremonial feasting, workshop production and administration, as well as showing the early development of individual town dwellings on terraces just a few metres from the palace. The volume concludes with a full discussion of the form and function of the Old Palace, stressing that the plans laid down in the first 150 years were far more closely followed over the next 400 years than has hitherto been suspected.

In 1999 a collection of documents were found in the archives of the Italian Institute of Human Palaeontology belonging to Luigi Cardini, one of the founders of the Institute. These documents included site notebooks, photographs, drawings and maps relating to work carried out in Albania from 1930-39 where he was sent on a governmental mission to `reinforce Italian supremacy in Albania through archaeological research'. This monograph publishes extracts from these notebooks within a historical, political and archaeological context. The work he carried out is synthesised and a report is included on survey work carried out in 2000 and 2001 to attempt to relocate many of Cardini's cave sites described in his notebooks.