Supervisors info:
Μαντζουράνη Ελένη, Καθηγήτρια Προϊστορικής Αρχαιολογίας, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών.
Παπαδάτος Ιωάννης, Αναπληρωτής Καθηγητής Προϊστορικής Αρχαιολογίας, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών.
Βαβουρανάκης Γιώργος, Αναπληρωτής Καθηγητής Προϊστορικής Αρχαιολογίας, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών.
Summary:
The subject of this dissertation is the examination of two raw materials, obsidian and marble, respectively which were selected due to the significant role they played for the Cyclades of the Early Bronze Age. It aims at addressing queries regarding their importance, the ways in which the production was organized, as well as their possible symbolism.
Initially, reference is made to the researchers who dealt with these two stones and to the basic studies about them. The second chapter comprises an introduction to the materials themselves regarding their main characteristics and properties. Obsidian is also distinguished from other stones with similar appearance and qualities, such as the flint and the green stone, with which it is often confused. Then, the sources of each stone and its dispersion are noted, before the description of the technical process, discussed in chapter four, begins. Chapter four, refers to the theoretical framework in which the study of technologies for the prehistoric era, followed by the organization of production and the methods of processing of each stone separately.
In the case of obsidian, the technique of pressure, dominant during the EC period, is important. The study of the technique used in the case of marble, is based on later evidence, coming from the Archaic period onwards, or on scarse traces, mainly found in limestone and sandstone quarries in Crete. Attempts are also being made to trace sites which are referred as workshops, something difficult to discern, since such activities usually were taking place in open sites. In the few examples that have been located indoors, the accumulation of various raw materials has been observed, making it difficult to determine the kind of activity to which they corresponded. With regard to the technical expertise in the field of these two materials, it is also difficult to support such a hypothesis or to consider for instance the construction of figurines or blades as a full-time job.
The next chapter discusses the presence of obsidian and marble in the burials. The deposition of marble objects in tombs is a practice usually associated with the emergence of elite groups during the EC II, since such objects fall into the category of prestige goods.
The same applies to the on-site production of obsidian blades in the cemetery area, leading to the assumption that such an 'act' would take place within the context of mortuary rituals.
The appearance, use and management of these two stones in the Cyclades but also in the rest of the Aegean region indicate differences in the perceptions, practices and as well as religious beliefs of the EBA social groups that used them.
Keywords:
Prehistoric Archaeology, Aegean, Obsidian, Marble, technologies, dispersion, Early Bronze Age society
