Description
Book SynopsisThe island of Crete was an important place for cultural and economic exchanges between Greeks and Near Easterners in the Aegean during the 1st millennium BC. Kommos and its temple provided materials that attest the connections between different populations, such as Greeks and Phoenicians. An examination of these objects and those from other Cretan sites such as Knossos, the Idaean Cave and Eleutherna is presented in this book. Moreover, the case of Kommos is compared to other Aegean cult structures with similar characteristics, such as the Sanctuary of Apollo in Eretria, the Heraion of Samos, the temple of Kition in Cyprus and the Temple of Vroulia in Southern Rhodes. These appear to be not just religious spaces but also economic and social meeting points, integrated into networks of commercial districts connected by land and sea routes. The book aims to understand the Phoenician presence and trade in Aegean temples, as well as how Crete shaped its role within the context of Mediterranean trade routes from the East to the West.
Table of ContentsAbstract ;
Preface and acknowledgments ;
Introduction ;
Contextual analyses ;
Aim and methodology ;
The site of Kommos ;
The Commercial temple of Kommos ;
Temple B ;
The commercial district of Kommos ;
Observations ;
Kommos and its connections within Crete ;
Knossos ;
Eleutherna ;
The Idaean Cave ;
Other sites ;
Land routes ;
General observations on Cretan sites ;
Other possible commercial sanctuaries ;
Cyprus ;
Rhodes ;
Samos and the Temple of Hera ;
Euboea ;
Observations ;
Further Eastern and Phoenician presence ;
Sea routes ;
General observations on commercial temples ;
Conclusions ;
Bibliography
