Dissertation committee:
Πλάτων Ελευθέριος, Αναπλ. Καθηγητής Προϊστορικής Αρχαιολογίας, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, ΕΚΠΑ
Μαντζουράνη Ελένη, Καθηγήτρια Προϊστορικής Αρχαιολογίας, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, ΕΚΠΑ
Βαβουρανάκης Γεώργιος, Αναπλ. Καθηγητής Προϊστορικής Αρχαιολογίας, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, ΕΚΠΑ
Παπαδάτος Ιωάννης, Αναπλ. Καθηγητής Προϊστορικής Αρχαιολογίας, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, ΕΚΠΑ
Κοπανιάς Κωνσταντίνος, Αναπλ. Καθηγητής Αρχαιολογίας Ανατολικής Μεσογείου, Τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας, ΕΚΠΑ
Βουτσάκη Σοφία, Associate Professor of Greek Prehistory and Theoretical Archaeology, University of Gronigen
Παναγιωτόπουλος Διαμαντής, Professor, Universität Heidelberg
Summary:
The thesis focuses on the study of the basic social group during the Neopalatial period in minoan Crete. The domestic group is perceived as the smallest social formation, which is studied as to its composition and structure and also as to its activities and character. Despite their variability and multiple forms, the domestic groups, during the centuries and in many different civilizations, similarly express the same needs, the identity and the effort of their members. The thesis uses as a case study one of the biggest and most important buildings of the settlement at Zakros, the “Strong Building”, which is mainly dated in the LM IB phase (1600/1500-1490/1470 B.C. or 1480-1425 B.C.). The architectural elements and the finds are used equally in order to track down the domestic group of the Strong Building as completely as possible. The number of the residents is around 10-15 to 19-20 individuals, an estimation that is further supported by the high quantity of objects and the storage capacity of the vessels. Furthermore, the existence of twin rooms with similar characteristics and functions suggests the double structure of the group, which formed a flourishing household, with multiple activities and in close interaction with the palace. In correlation with the Strong Building, other houses of the settlement at Zakros are examined too (Building of the Cyclopean Tower, Building F, Building of the Dithyra, Building G, Building H, Building of the Pottery Deposits, Oblique Building, Building A Hogarth, Building of the Polythyra, Building of the Niches, House I/J Hogarth, House A at Agios Antonios, House B at Agios Antonios, House Δα at Agios Antonios). In the aforementioned houses, we can discern a certain similarity concerning the composition of the domestic groups but, on the other hand, there are differences in their expression, their activities and their association with the palatial centre. We also locate the possible transformations of the domestic groups and the architectural modifications that took place during the LM IB phase. In a wider scale, various sites (Petras, Gournia, Mallia, Knossos, Phaistos, Palaikastro, Mochlos, Pseira, Galatas, Agia Triada, Kommos, Achladia, Klimataria, Profitis Ilias Praissou, Chalinomouri, Sklavokampos) are taken under consideration, in order to ascertain whether our conclusions upon the Strong Building and the settlement at Zakros can find a general application. In the selected sites, there seem to be similarities in the structure of the domestic groups, and moreover in their activities and the multiple aspects of their lives. Finally, the picture is verified and completed by the burial practices of the Neopalatial period, although the available data are incomplete. In the course of time, until recently, the bonds of the domestic groups in Crete remain extremely powerful and form the main regulating factor in their function. The first volume of the thesis includes the text and the bibliography, while the second volume contains the catalogue of the finds of the Strong Building, the mentions from the excavation diary, statistic tables concerning the number and the dispersion of the finds, excavation and recent photographs of the building, drawings and photographs of the finds, and additionally relevant material for other buildings of the settlement at Zakros and in Crete.
Keywords:
domestic group, basic social group, Neopalatial period, minoan Crete, family, kinship, household, Oikos, Kato Zakros, Strong Building
