Search results for ""american school of classical studies at athens""

A chronicle of the second 50 years in the life of the American School (originally founded in 1881). Conceived as a companion volume to Louis Lord's 1947 history of the first half century, the text outlines the activities of the School both in Greece and in the United States, beginning with an absorbing account of the affairs of the School during World War II and continuing through the Centennial in 1981, with chapters on the Summer Session, the School's excavations, its publications, and the Gennadeion. The extensive appendixes include lists of all the Trustees, Cooperating Institutions, members of the Managing Committee, staff, fellows, and members of the School since its inception in 1881, and add greatly to the usefulness of this volume. The author's first-hand knowledge of the people and events of the period discussed contributes materially to its depth and detail.

Read more less

In 1947, the American School of Classical Studies at Athens commissioned a colour movie (Triumph over Time) to accompany its fundraising campaign. Directed by the archaeologist Oscar Broneer and produced by numismatist Margaret Thompson with the aid of staff from Fox Studios, the documentary shows Greece rebounding from the horrors of World War II and the staff of the American School hard at work preparing archaeological sites for presentation to post-war tourists. Footage of excavations at the Athenian Agora and ancient Corinth are mixed with scenes from everyday agricultural life. Famous people in the history of the School and Greece move in and out of the film's frames: King Paul and Queen Frederica attend a public lecture; the Librarian of the Gennadius Library, Shirley H. Weber, shows donor Helene Stathatou some of its priceless manuscripts; Homer A. Thompson, newly appointed Director of the Agora Excavations, displays treasures from the site. Such scenes from the American School's academic and social year show an institution at the forefront of Greece's march back to normality after almost a decade of unrest. In an accompanying essay, Natalia Vogeikoff-Brogan, the American School's Archivist, describes the making of the movie, the historical background to its production, and its place in both the institutional history of the ASCSA and the political history of Greece. She presents fascinating excerpts from previously unpublished correspondence and memoirs, as well as contemporary photographs. (This is the European edition, including a PAL format DVD.)

Read more less

In 1947, the American School of Classical Studies at Athens commissioned a colour movie (Triumph over Time) to accompany its fundraising campaign. Directed by the archaeologist Oscar Broneer and produced by numismatist Margaret Thompson with the aid of staff from Fox Studios, the documentary shows Greece rebounding from the horrors of World War II and the staff of the American School hard at work preparing archaeological sites for presentation to post-war tourists. Footage of excavations at the Athenian Agora and ancient Corinth are mixed with scenes from everyday agricultural life. Famous people in the history of the School and Greece move in and out of the film's frames: King Paul and Queen Frederica attend a public lecture; the Librarian of the Gennadius Library, Shirley H. Weber, shows donor Helene Stathatou some of its priceless manuscripts; Homer A. Thompson, newly appointed Director of the Agora Excavations, displays treasures from the site. Such scenes from the American School's academic and social year show an institution at the forefront of Greece's march back to normality after almost a decade of unrest. In an accompanying essay, Natalia Vogeikoff-Brogan, the American School's Archivist, describes the making of the movie, the historical background to its production, and its place in both the institutional history of the ASCSA and the political history of Greece. She presents fascinating excerpts from previously unpublished correspondence and memoirs, as well as contemporary photographs. (This is the North American edition, with NTSC format DVD.)

Read more less

Twenty-six papers on the epigraphy, history, and topography of ancient Greece presented to the famous scholar by his eminent students and friends. The contents are: A Lid with Dipinto (Alan L. Boegehold); Athenians, Macedonians, and the Origins of the Macedonian Royal House (Eugene N. Borza); Koroni and Keos (John L. Caskey); Epicurus in the Archives of Athens (Diskin Clay); The Nature of the Late Fifth Century Revision of the Athenian Law Code (Kevin Clinton); Theseus and the Unification of Attica (Steven Diamant); Onesippos' Herm (Colin N. Edmonson); Gennadeion Notes v. the Journal of Thomas Whitcombe, Philhellene (C. W. J. Eliot); A Lekythos in Toronto and the Golden Youth of Athens (Henry R. Immerwahr); The Leasing of Land in Rhamnous (Michael H. Jameson); Writing and Spelling on Ostraka (Mabel L. Lang); Some Attic Walls (Merle K. Langdon); Dodwellopolis: Addendum to "Fortified Military Camps in Attica" (James R. McCredie); Athens and Hestiaia (Malcolm F. McGregor); Thucydides and the Decrees of Kallias (Benjamin D. Meritt); Arrian in Two Roles (James H. Oliver); The Dedication of Aristokrates (Antony E. Raubitschek); The Pnyx in Models (Homer A. Thompson); The Alleged Conservatism of Attic Epigraphical Documents: A Different View (Leslie Threatte); Agora I 7181 + IG II, 2, 944b (Stephen V. Tracy); An Interpretation of Six Rock-Cut Inscriptions in the Attic Demes of Lamptrai (John S. Traill); PARADEIGMA (John Travlos and E. L. Smithson); Regulations for an Athenian Festival (Michael B. Walbank); The Final Battle at Plataia (Paul W. Wallace); An Attic Farm near Laurion (Livingston Vance Watrous); Sepulturae Intra Urbem and the Pre-Persian Walls of Athens (F. E. Winter).

Read more less

As far as we know, the 5th-century B.C. Greek philosopher Socrates himself wrote nothing. We discover his thoughts and deeds entirely through the writings of his followers, disciples who accompanied him on his walks through the Athenian Agora and engaged in dialogue with him in the Stoa Basileios. Rather than examining his ideas in abstract, this stimulating little book aims to place Socrates in his physical setting, using textual references to follow his progress through the material remains that have been uncovered by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens since 1931. The author not only sheds new light on the great philosopher's life, but also provides a vivid reconstruction, through following the career of one of its most famous citizens, of daily life at the centre of classical Athens.

Read more less

In 2006, the American School of Classical Studies at Athens celebrated 75 years of archaeological work in the Athenian Agora, the civic centre of classical Athens. Since the first trench was dug on May 25, 1931, excavations have continued in a series of yearly campaigns, only briefly interrupted by World War II. The impact these discoveries have made on our understanding of Athenian history and topography is well documented, but relatively little has been published about the fascinating history of the excavations themselves. This book fills that gap, presenting a pictorial history of the project illustrated with many archival photographs and primary documents. Rather than presenting a continuous narrative, the author focuses on some key moments in the Agora's history including the reconstruction of the Stoa of Attalos, the restoration of the Church of the Holy Apostles, and the landscaping of the archaeological park.

Read more less

In a newly revised version of this popular site guide, the current director of excavations in the Athenian Agora gives a brief account of the history of the ancient centre of Athens. The text has been updated and expanded to cover the most recent archaeological discoveries, and the guide now features numerous colour illustrations. Each monument still visible on the site is described in turn, and helpful maps and plans are a particular feature of this edition. Birthplace of democracy, the Agora remains one of the most fascinating archaeological sites in the world, and this is the essential companion for any visitor.

Read more less

The scraps of pottery on which were written the names of candidates for ostracism are one of the most intriguing pieces of evidence for ancient democracy found in the Athenian Agora. This book is a complete catalogue and discussion of these sherds. Chapter One discusses the history of ostracism in Athens with brief remarks about the candidates for this procedure. Chapter Two concentrates on the physical evidence of the ostraka, their identification, appearance, and content. Chapter Three presents the groups in which most of them were found; their distribution is indicated on a plan of the excavation area. Chapter Four is the catalogue of 1,145 ostraka, arranged by candidates. To these pieces are appended the 191 ostraka, almost all nominating Themistokles, found by Oscar Broneer in a well on the North Slope of the Acropolis. A large number of the Agora ostraka are illustrated with line drawings, a representative selection with photographs.

Read more less

The author presents the Early Helladic III pottery from Lerna in all its aspects, cataloguing, describing, and classifying over 1,400 vessels. The classification systems are based on detailed analyses of vessel shapes and ornamentation, supported by shape and pattern charts and numerous tables and illustrations. The concluding chapter compares the Lernaean pottery sequences to contemporary developments in central and southern Greece and examines the lineage of Early Helladic III pottery, which differs so profoundly from the pottery of the preceding period. Physico-chemical analyses of ceramic material are presented in an appendix.

Read more less

In conjunction with the Seventh International Forum on the Art of Bookbinding, organized in November 2002 by the international association Les Amis de la Reliure d'Art (ARA), the Gennadius Library organized an exhibition of rare bindings from its extensive collection, curated by well-known bookbinder Vangelio Tzanetatou. Among the items on display were a rare Renaissance Italian leather binding dating to 1464, created for a philosophical treatise written by Manuel Chryssoloras and owned by Sigismondo Malatesta, member of a leading family of the time. Also in the exhibition was an example of one of the Library's Aldine bindings for a 1504 edition of Homer's Odyssey, printed in Venice. Later Italian bindings were represented by an elaborate cover gold-tooled with the arms of Pope Pius VI, produced in 1774. In selecting the bindings, curator Tzanetatou included examples of the variety of styles represented in the Gennadeion's collection, as well as those with special or unique characteristics. The exhibition catalogue, published thanks to the generosity of EFG Eurobank Ergasias, includes her detailed observations on over 70 bindings, with color illustrations of 16 of the most exceptional pieces.

Read more less

The famous monumental gateway to the Akropolis is a successor to a Mycenaean building. But what did this Bronze Age gateway, in use up to the 5th century B.C., look like, and what did the architect Mnesikles tear down before he started his construction? This detailed architectural study explores these problems, and reveals the existence of an earlier theatral area for viewing the Panathenaic procession, and some half-built trial runs, below the current Propylon.

Read more less

This publication presents the results of research conducted on the Propylaia of the Athenian Akropolis by William Bell Dinsmoor, who began his study in 1908, and William Bell Dinsmoor Jr., who took up the project in 1962. Part I comprises William Dinsmoor's account of Mnesikles' planning of this innovative and unique structure during construction, and will be of particular interest to theorists and historians of architecture. Part II, a product of the collaboration of father and son, presents the first complete documentation of the Classical building. Supported by drawings primarily by William Dinsmoor Jr., it includes much information that is no longer accessible on the site because of restoration, weathering, or loss by other means, along with scholarly proof and detailed argumentation that support the Dinsmoors' conclusions regarding design and construction.

Read more less

Objects made from bronze, iron, copper, gold, silver, and lead and recovered from the sanctuary of Poseidon at Isthmia are published in this volume. Many of the pieces, although very fragmentary, were recovered from the debris of the Archaic Temple of Poseidon and belong to the formative phase of the sanctuary during the 7th and 6th centuries B.C. They are representative of the range of offerings found in a major sanctuary during the period that saw development of the famous metalworking establishments at Corinth and the founding of Panhellenic games at Isthmia. Individual chapters focus on metal sculpture, vases, jewelry, horse-trappings, and tools, most of them from the Archaic period. Attention is given to metal used in architecture and to remains of foundry activity at the sanctuary. The author addresses the problem of the origin of the strigil, the chronology of horse bits, and questions of imports in relation to local production. She compares individual offerings with comparable pieces from other sanctuaries. Most of the objects are illustrated by line drawings, by photographs, or by both. Extensive bibliography, useful concordances and appendixes of uncatalogued objects make the material, although fragmentary, easily accessible. The armor will be published separately.

Read more less

Situated on the shores of the Argolic Gulf, only a few miles away from the much later prehistoric sites of Mycenae, Tiryns, and Midea, Lerna is one of the key building blocks in our understanding of Greek archaeology. The first evidence from the site is Neolithic, and the latest settlement evidence is Mycenaean. However, the most important material from the site comes from the middle of the 3rd millennium B.C. when a remarkable large, rectangular building known as The House of the Tiles was built. Possibly never finished, with unpainted walls and doors that lead nowhere, the purpose and meaning of this building has provoked vigorous debate. Was it the house of a chief and the precursor of the later Mycenaean palaces? Or was it a communal storage facility, designed to store the elaborately sealed chests and jars found inside? No less mysterious than its use is its destruction: After a violent fire, a huge mound was built on top of the charred foundations, the area avoided by later house builders. This guide is illustrated with many plans and black and white photos.

Read more less

The prominence of the Temple of Hephaistos, Greek god of metalworkers, situated on a hill to the west of the Agora, reflects the esteem in which bronzeworkers were held by the Athenians. Although many of the objects these craftsmen produced have now been melted down, the statues, lamps, and vessels that remain testify to the high standards of their craftsmanship. As well as illustrating some of the surviving finished products, the author discusses the techniques used to cast bronze and the level of skill involved in producing complex metal statuary.

Read more less

An unparalleled assemblage of Archaic black-figure painted pinakes (plaques) was uncovered near Penteskouphia, a village west of ancient Corinth, over a century ago. The pinakes-represented by over 1,200 fragments-and their depictions of gods, warriors, animals, and the potters themselves, provide a uniquely rich source of information about Greek art, technology, and society. In this volume, the findspot of the pinakes is identified in a contribution by Ioulia Tzonou and James Herbst, and the assemblage as a whole is fully contextualized within the Archaic world. Then, by focusing specifically on the images of potters at work, the author illuminates the relationship between Corinthian and Athenian art, the technology used in ancient pottery production, and religious anxiety in the 6th century B.C. The first comprehensive register of all known Penteskouphia pinakes complements the well-illustrated discussion.

Read more less

The analysis of stable isotope ratios of carbon and nitrogen in bone collagen provides a powerful tool for reconstructing past diets, since it provides the only direct evidence of the foods that were actually consumed. The chapters that comprise this volume describe the application of this methodology to the archaeology of Greece, a country whose archaeobotanical remains have been isotopically studied more extensively than any other place in the world. The archaeological issues that can be addressed using stable isotope methods include the importance of fishing; the possible early introduction of millet; the nature of childrearing including weaning age and weaning foods; temporal shifts in protein consumption; differential access to certain foods associated with social status as well as gender and age; and cultural differences in dietary patterns. Additionally, diet is strongly correlated with health or stress markers in the teeth and bones. Knowing what people ate has vital implications for our understanding of past environments and economies, subsistence strategies, and nutrition.

Read more less

Over 100 clay molds found between 1931 and 1977 in the fills within the three great Hellenistic stoas that once lined the Agora (the Middle Stoa, the Stoa of Attalos, and the South Stoa) are published in this book. While the repertory of images that could have been cast using them, comprising 25 subjects, is relatively conventional, the large size (up to 30 x 60 cm) makes their function a puzzle. The author concludes that they must have been for the casting of cheap funerary substitutes at a time when a decree of Demetrios of Phaleron prohibited the building of costly burial monuments in Athens. After the author's death in 1982, this volume was edited by Eileen Markson and Susan I. Rotroff.

Read more less

This volume discusses the important, mainly Roman, buildings at the east end of the Corinthian Agora; the Julian Basilica and the Southeast Building, the South Basilica (immediately behind the South Stoa), and the Mosaic House adjoining it. The Southeast Building is described first in its present state, and then as it must have looked in its two main periods of use, soon after 44 B.C. and in the second quarter of the 1st century A.D. It was probably known in ancient times as the Tabularium or Library of Corinth. The adjoining Julian Basilica was, with the South Basilica, built about A.D. 40; the interior colonnades of both were rebuilt in marble in the Hadrianic period. These basilicas have a cryptoporticus on the ground floor and on the main floor an interior colonnade supporting a clerestory and three exedras. Detailed descriptions of each building are followed by a reconstruction of the pair and by a comparative discussion of floor plans. Finally, the Mosaic House is discussed and analysis of the mosaics date it about 200 A.D.

Read more less

After a discussion of the fragmentary evidence for several buildings of the Greek period which were swept to construct it, the South Stoa at Corinth is treated in detail. Careful description of all the remains, both those in situ and reused blocks, forms the basis of the reconstruction of this extensive two-story building of the third quarter of the 4th century B.C. which stretched the full length of the south side of the Corinthian Agora and, more than any other single building, established the size and shape of the center of the Hellenistic and Roman city. One of the largest secular buildings in Greece, the South Stoa appears to have been planned as a kind of hotel to accommodate visitors at a time when Corinth served as the capital of a briefly united Greek world. After the destruction of the city, it remained comparatively undamaged and was taken over by the Roman Colony as the seat of its administrative offices. In its final phase various buildings, including a bouleuterion, a fountain house, a bathing establishment, and a public latrine were built into the ground floor.

Read more less

This beautifully illustrated book represents the first full publication of the most elaborate metal vessel from the ancient world yet discovered. Found in an undisturbed Macedonian tomb of the late 4th century B.C., the volute krater is a tour de force of highly sophisticated methods of bronze working. An unusual program of iconography informs every area of the vessel. Snakes with copper and silver inlaid stripes frame the rising handles, wrapping their bodies around masks of underworld deities. On the shoulder sit four cast bronze figures: on one side a youthful Dionysos with an exhausted maenad, on the other a sleeping Silenos and a maenad handling a snake. In the major repoussé frieze on the body a bearded hunter is associated with Dionysian figures. What was the function of this extraordinary object? And what is the meaning of the intricate iconography? The krater is placed in its Macedonian archaeological context as an heirloom of the descendants of the man named in the Thessalian inscription on its rim, and in its art-historical context as a highly elaborated, early-4th-century version of a metal type known in Athens by about 470 B.C.

Read more less

Hundreds of life-size human limbs made from terracotta, including the remains of at least 125 human hands, testify to the efficacy of the medicine practiced at the Aklepieion, on the hillside north of ancient Corinth. Made as votive gifts to thank the god for a cure, these were among many extraordinary finds made during excavations at the Temple of Asklepios and Lerna spring between 1929 and 1934. As well as providing a helpful guide to the site, this fascinating booklet also offers a unique insight into the work of physicians in the Greek world, and the types of diseases they had to contend with.

Read more less

This definitive guide to the archaeological remains in the civic and commercial centre of ancient Athens is an essential companion to the interested visitor, as well as to students of the topography of the classical city. A large-scale map provides an overview of the site, keyed to descriptions and plans of every monument still visible from the majestic Temple of Hephaistos to the utilitarian Great Drain. The fifth edition retains many of the elements that made the earlier editions so popular, but also takes full account of new discoveries and recent scholarship. It is intended for visitors touring the site, and is arranged topographically, monument by monument. Also included are an overview of the historical development of the site and a history of the excavations. A companion guide to the Agora Museum in the Stoa of Attalos is also available (The Athenian Agora: Museum Guide, by Laura Gawlinski, 2014).

Read more less

Twenty-one papers on various aspects of Athenian art and society by the students and friends of Homer A. Thompson, a noted classical archaeologist and excavator of the Athenian Agora. The volume includes many papers on sculpture (including Nancy Bookidis on Attic terracotta sculpture and Brunhilde Ridgway on the features of kouroi and korai in Archaic Athens), some on architecture (including William B. Dinsmoor Jr. on the Pinakotheke), and a few on topography (including Sara Immerwahr on "the earliest known grave in Athens" and Evelyn Smithson on evidence for a prehistoric Klepsydra).

Read more less

Between 1931 and 1939, central Athens was transformed by the expropriation and demolition of the Vrysaki neighborhood at the foot of the Acropolis. In these few years, more than 5,000 inhabitants were displaced and 348 properties were torn down so that the American School of Classical Studies at Athens (ASCSA) could excavate the ancient Agora; the scale of the project and the degree to which it was documented make this a unique episode in the history of Greek archaeology. Using materials from the ASCSA Archives and a large collection of photographs from the 1930s, this volume details the history of the negotiations, the expropriations, and, most importantly, the Vrysaki neighborhood itself. Illustrating its streets, shops, houses, names, and faces, the author provides a vivid recreation of the community that was Vrysaki.

Read more less

Rescue excavations were carried out along the terrace north of Ancient Corinth by Henry Robinson, the director of the Corinth Excavations, and the American School of Classical Studies at Athens on behalf of the Greek Archaeological Service, in 1961 and 1962. They revealed 70 tile graves, limestone sarcophagi, and cremation burials (the last are rare in Corinth before the Julian colony), and seven chamber tombs (also rare before the Roman period). The burials ranged in date from the 5th century B.C. to the 6th century A.D., and about 240 skeletons were preserved for study. This volume publishes the results of these excavations and examines the evidence for changing burial practices in the Greek city, Roman colony, and Christian town. Documented are single graves and deposits, the Robinson "Painted Tomb," two more hypogea, and four built chamber tombs. Ethne Barnes describes the human skeletal remains, and David Reese discusses the animal bones found in the North Terrace tombs. The author further explores the architecture of the chamber tombs as well as cemeteries, burial practices, and funeral customs in ancient Corinth. One appendix addresses a Roman chamber tomb at nearby Hexamilia, excavated in 1937; the second, by David Jordan, the lead tablets from a chamber tomb and its well. Concordances, grave index numbers, Corinth inventory numbers, and indexes follow. This study will be of interest to classicists, historians of several periods, and scholars studying early Christianity.

Read more less

This volume represents the product of 25 years of study conducted by the Pylos Regional Archaeological Project, a multidisciplinary, diachronic archaeological expedition formally organized in 1990 to investigate the history of prehistoric and historic settlement in western Messenia in Greece. An introduction, setting the project in context, and an extensive gazetteer of sites precede a collection of eight previously published articles, which appeared in Hesperia, the journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, between 1997 and 2010. Taken together, these contributions document a comprehensive methodological approach by an archaeological project that was one of the first to incorporate new technologies such as digital mapping tools and online databases. The results of such a long-term and multifaceted research program illuminate the shifting relationships between humans, their landscapes, and historical forces, both local and distant. The Pylos Regional Archaeological Project: A Retrospective provides an invaluable resource not only for those interested in the history and development of southwestern Greece but also for researchers interested in exploring the full range of methodological approaches to archaeological survey.

Read more less

The first publication of a complex and well-preserved Athenian law of great interest to historians. Discovered in the Agora Excavations in 1986, this hitherto unknown law rivals in importance that of the law on silver coinage of 375/4 B.C., which was published by the author some twenty years ago. In addition to the complete text, translation, and notes on readings, the author, a superb epigrapher, provides commentary on the many parts of this document, which contributes significant new information on the history, law, economy, topography, and public finance of Athens in the Classical period. The first section of the volume includes an expert analysis of the layout of the inscription and useful notes, while the major portion of the text is devoted to detailed commentary on the law, its purpose, and implementation. The historical setting of the law is well-illuminated in the final section. The authors analyses of this important inscription provide a solid foundation for new avenues of research.

Read more less

This book presents the first well-preserved set of sympotic pottery which served a Late Archaic house in the Athenian Agora. The deposit contains household and fine-ware pottery, nearly all the figured pieces of which are forms associated with communal drinking. Since it comes from a single house, the pottery also reflects purchasing patterns and thematic preferences of the homeowner. The multifaceted approach adopted in this book shows that meaning and use are inherently related, and that through archaeology one can restore a context of use for a class of objects frequently studied in isolation. Winner of the 2013 James R. Wiseman Book Award given by the Archaeological Institute of America.

Read more less

This volume of essays focuses principally on the collection of books of British and Irish antiquarian scholars held in the Gennadius Library. Collectively, the essays are the product of two thematically-linked conferences: the first of these was held in Athens in June 2010, and was organised by the School of Art History and Cultural Policy, University College Dublin, in collaboration with the Gennadius Library, and graciously hosted by the Irish Institute of Hellenic Studies; the second, held in Dublin in June 2011, was organized by the School of Art History and Cultural Policy, and hosted by the Humanities Institute of Ireland. The major premise explored in the paper sessions of those conferences, and in this volume, concerns the work of some of the most pioneering British and Irish 18th and early 19th century antiquarians, artists, and architects who voyaged into the Mediterranean. The publication of their findings in architectural treatises, travelogues and illustrated books came, in turn, to inform international movements of art and architecture; specifically, the Neoclassical and Greek Revival styles. Collectively, these books capture the allure of the broader Mediterranean world for scholars of antiquity - ever expanding beyond the well-traveled boundaries enjoyed by Grand Tourists - exploring issues such as topography, history, cultural mores, dress and, of course, art and architecture. Print and book culture was at the core of the early modern period, not least in the world of architecture, and the conscious effort to gather and disseminate knowledge of the wider classical world through this medium is remarkable. The significant contribution of British and Irish scholarship to this broader European discourse is here viewed through the lens of the extraordinary book collection held in the Gennadius Library.

Read more less

Text in Greek This official guide to the site of Samothrace and the Sanctuary of the Great Gods appears now as revised by longtime director of excavations James R. McCredie. Two initial chapters helpfully provide background information on the history of Samothrace and the religion of the Great Gods. Following this are two tours. The first takes the reader through the sanctuary itself, home to cryptic mysteries where a variety of gods were worshiped, including the Great Mother, Hades, and Persephone; there are numerous plans and drawings of the monumental structures, such as the Rotunda of Arsinoe and the Propylon of Ptolemy II, allowing the reader to visualize what the sanctuary would have looked like when it was still an active religious center. The second tour takes the reader through the museum and highlights the most important pieces in the collection, including a large statue of a winged Victory and gold ornaments from a Hellenistic tomb. The guide also includes a description of excavations on Samothrace outside of the Sanctuary of the Great Gods, as well as bibliography for further reading.

Read more less

The definitive publication of the Temple of Apollo at Bassai, in the northwest Peloponnese, this is one of four volumes representing the culmination of years of study by Professor Fred Cooper of the University of Minnesota and other scholars throughout the world. An identifiable work of Iktinos, the architect of the Parthenon, the building exhibits numerous unusual and uncanonical features that heralded a revolution in Greek architectural design. Volume II contains Brian Madigan's study of the sculptural program and Cooper's analysis of the relevant parts of the entablature.

Read more less

Final report on the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age evidence (pottery, metalwork, terracottas, architecture and other constructions) from excavations conducted by the University of Chicago at the sanctuary of Poseidon at Isthmia between 1952 and 1989. Stylistic analysis of artifacts offers important new information on Corinthian production: Isthmia has produced the first substantial collection of Early Iron Age Corinthian terracottas, for example, as well as 8th-century human figure depictions. Functional analysis, developing established methodology for site characterization, distinguishes Late Bronze Age settlement from Early Iron Age cult activity. Thus Isthmia may be counted among the growing number of Greek shrines established during the Bronze Age/Iron Age transition, and the nature and variety of cult practices at the site may be compared with those elsewhere. In its Corinthian context, Isthmia offers unique insights into 800 years of development, from Mycenaean province to Archaic polis.

Read more less

This is the catalogue of an exhibition held at the National Archives in Washington D.C. to celebrate the 2,500th anniversary of the beginnings of democracy in Athens, interpreted as the implementation of Cleisthenes' governmental reforms. This informative catalogue includes colour illustrations of the objects displayed: sculptures, architectural models, and small objects from Athens and from museums in America and Europe. The objects are set in context with nine short essays.

Read more less

This volume presents the results of the medieval component of the Nemea Valley Archaeological Project (NVAP) survey conducted from 1985-1990. The archaeological evidence points to a proliferation of sites dating to the 12th-13th century A.D. There are two large sites and a substantial number of small sites on the lower slopes of the hills surrounding the Nemea Valley and in smaller valleys in the southern part of the survey area. Archaeological evidence of settlements from the late 13th-15th century is scarce, providing a contrast to the patterns documented for the 12th-late 13th century. This study is thus also concerned with general trends and important sociopolitical changes that affected such developments in the Nemea region in the medieval period.

Read more less

This volume presents the Late Classical through Roman pottery from the University of Chicago excavations at Isthmia (1952-1989). In a series of three chapters-on the Late Classical and Hellenistic pottery, the Roman pottery, and the pottery from the Palaimonion-a general discussion is followed by a catalog presenting datable contexts and then by a catalogue of other noteworthy pottery. Appendixes discuss the stratigraphy of the Palaimonion and observations on new and previously published lamps. Amphora stamps are the focus of a further appendix, followed by a catalogue of the Slavic and Byzantine pottery found in the sanctuary area. Although the pottery is sometimes fragmentary, the range of materials over this thousand-year period is typical of Corinthian sites. The finds presented here provide critical information about the history of the Panhellenic sanctuary of Poseidon and the ritual activities that took place there.

Read more less

As well as being an archaeological guide, this beautifully illustrated volume tells the story of 30 years of fieldwork and study at one of the lesser known, but most intellectually fascinating, sites in Crete. In prehistory, Kommos was a busy harbor town with trading links extending to Egypt and Sardinia. The author traces the development of the settlement, its mysterious abandonment, and then resurrection as a religious site around 1000 B.C.

Read more less

Athens was a famously litigious city in antiquity, as the sheer quantity of evidence for legal activity found in the Agora makes clear. Every kind of case, from assault and battery to murder, and from small debts to contested fortunes, were heard in various buildings and spaces around the civic centre, and the speeches given in defence and prosecution remain some of the masterpieces of Greek literature. As well as describing the spaces where judgments were made (such as the Stoa Basileios, office of the King Archon), the author discusses the progress of some famous cases (known from the speeches of orators like Demosthenes), such as the patrimony suit of a woman named Plangon against the nobleman Mantias, or the assault charge levelled by Ariston against Konon and his sons.

Read more less

As well as the Little Owl or glaux, so often seen accompanying the goddess Athena, many other birds played an important role in Greek art and symbolism. This booklet describes the ways in which the Greeks viewed birds, from useful hawks and fowl to exotic parakeets and peacocks. Some of the birds most often depicted are imaginary, from the griffin to the phallos bird, whose head and neck consisted of an erect penis. The book ends with a field guide to species likely to be seen on a visit to the Agora archaeological park today.

Read more less

This concise and beautifully illustrated book demonstrates the many roles played by the horse in the lives of the Greeks, from its place in myth and early history to its significance as a marker of social status and its use in warfare, transportation, games, and festivals. From their arrival in Greece, at the start of the Middle Bronze Age (ca. 2000 B.C.), horses were a powerful symbol of rank. Bridles and other horse trappings are often found in graves, alongside vases depicting horses grazing, racing, and parading. Sculpture is also full of horse imagery, from monumental equestrian statues (a bronze leg and gilded sword are all that remain from one of these) to tiny terracotta figurines, perhaps the toys of a child. As well as presenting many examples of horse imagery found in the Agora, the author reports on recent finds near the ancient hipparcheion, the stables of the Athenian cavalry.

Read more less

Between 2007 and 2014, a Greek-American team investigated an impressive array of Early Roman to Early Byzantine buildings and burials on the Koutsongila Ridge at Kenchreai, the eastern port of ancient Corinth. This volume presents the project's final results, revealing abundant evidence not only for the history of activity in a transitional urban/suburban landscape, but also for the society, economy, and religion of local residents. Important structural and mortuary discoveries abound, including a district of lavish houses with exquisite mosaic pavement and an Early Christian Octagon. The large artefactual assemblage encompasses a variety of objects from pottery and lamps to glass, coins, and jewellery. Bones and teeth from over 200 individuals illustrate differences in health over time, while thousands of bones and shells from a variety of animals attest to diet and subsistence. This study paints a picture of a Corinthian community, small but prosperous and well connected, actively participating in an urban elite culture expressed through decorative art and monumental architecture.

Read more less

This volume publishes the editiones principes of the most fragmentary inscriptions found during excavations in the Athenian Agora between 1931 and 1967. These comprise parts of 100 decrees of the Athenian state and other political bodies. Each of the inscriptions is illustrated and described, with a transcription of the legible letters and commentary.

Read more less

This work presents a classification system and absolute chronology for black-gloss wares from Crete, establishing the first local and regional ceramic sequences during the period from 600 to 400 B.C. This new chronological foundation of datable pottery from excavated sites fills in the so-called 6th-/5th-century gap and dispels the prevailing view that this was a period of decline in population and one of artistic and cultural impoverishment. The 6th century heralded important changes in Cretan society, reflected in the reorganization of burial grounds, new patterns of sanctuary dedication, and the circulation of exotica among the elite. The study reveals unsuspected connections with mainland Greece, especially Sparta and Athens. Historians and archaeologists will find the author's conclusions, and their implications, to be of considerable interest.

Read more less

Intended as a tribute to a pioneer in the field of Cretan cult study, 28 of Geraldine Gesell's former students and colleagues present aspects of ritual and religion on Crete. In a variety of approaches the discourse ranges in time from the Iron Age to the Bronze Age and in subject matter from cult practices to sacred landscapes. A combined bibliography provides a useful reference tool for a survey of literature on the subject.

Read more less

This detailed report describes archaeological fieldwork conducted between 1995 and 1997 in rural northeast Crete. Excavations were made in two locations: a metallurgy workshop (abandoned in EM III) and a nearby rural habitation site, perhaps a farmhouse (used until LM III). An intensive survey of the vicinity revealed other activities in the area from the Early Neolithic onwards, and placed the sites in a micro-regional context. A publication of the Minoan farmhouse will appear subsequently, but this volume stands on its own as both an overview of the project and as a detailed study of the copper smelting workshop.

Read more less

This tribute to Sara A. Immerwahr comprises a short biography, her full bibliography, and 20 articles written by fellow scholars celebrating her contributions to the field, as well as her encouragement and generous support of students and colleagues over many years. Thirteen scholars of Bronze Age archaeology present papers that address aspects of social, political, religious, and ritual significance in wall paintings, matters of chronology, regional trade and interaction, and Cretan architecture. Seven scholars of the Archaic, Classical, and Roman periods explore issues of sculpture, architecture, pottery, and dedications.

Read more less

This volume presents an in-depth study of the Late Minoan IA cross-draft kiln found in excavations at Kommos, Crete. The kiln is of a type popular during the Neopalatial period, and its good state of preservation has allowed the authors to speculate about its original internal layout and use, as well as about the roof that covered it. Much of the large quantity of pottery found associated with the kiln is analyzed in detail, allowing for the first time the study of the shapes, decoration, and technical characteristics of vases known to have been fired in a specific LM IA kiln. The book presents an integrated program of analytical techniques used to illustrate the range of firing temperatures, the compositional similarities and differences in the clays used, and aspects of the firing process and the upper kiln structure. Offered here is a valuable contribution to our knowledge of the technology and organization of ceramic production at the beginning of the Late Minoan period, which will form a basis for studies of pottery provenience and exchange.

Read more less

The author investigates the appearance of a fashion in clothing, involving a knotted mantle worn across the chest, on many Attic stelae of the Roman period. She suggests that this style can be traced to Egyptian roots, and might have been particularly associated with a cult of Isis, popular among wealthy Athenians. The book presents a catalogue of the 106 known Isis reliefs from Attica and a review of all forms of evidence for the cult.

Read more less