benedict lanaras - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by benedict lanaras

The fourth decade (1997-2007) of archaeological activity at Akrotiri, Thera, saw the completion o... more The fourth decade (1997-2007) of archaeological activity at Akrotiri, Thera, saw the completion of the excavation of the shafts for the foundations of the pillars of the new bioclimatic shelter, and the satisfactory progress of study of the finds. Since the presentation of our excavation and research work at regular intervals is almost and institution, one more colloquium was organized in 2007, in order to present the particularly important new discoveries and the multifaceted scientific approach to the diverse issues arising from the recent excavations. Needless to say, our obligation to make known to the scholarly community, as well as to the general public, the significant work being carried out at Akrotiri could not be met fully without the publication of the proceedings of that meeting. in 2021, fourteen years after the 2007 colloquium, our initial aim was eventually fulfilled, with the publication of the Proceedings of the Two-day Colloquium on 40 Years of Research at Akrotiri (1967-2007). This exceptionally long delay, which was due to many and varied setbacks, certainly beyond our control, in no way diminishes the scientific interest of this volume, the contributions to which are the fruit of many years of research and experience in the scientific field, offering a rich body of new material and expressing interesting interpretations and fresh ideas. indeed, in order to reach as wide a readership as possible, it was decided to publish the book in english. The grouping of the articles in this volume in five thematic units follows the programme of the papers presented at the two-day colloquium. The introductory chapter 40 Years of Research, which precedes, is the compte rendu of work at Akrotiri over 40 consecutive years: excavation, conservation, documentation, infrastructure, management, protection and enhancement. The first thematic unit, Stratigraphy-Chronology, deals with the geology and terrain of the area in which the prehistoric settlement at Akrotiri developed, and sketches the gradual cultural development of the settlement during the Neolithic, early Cycladic and Middle Cycladic periods. in the second unit, Urban Planning and Architecture, relevant articles present a part of the large 'public' building Xeste 4, trace over time the constructional development of Building Complex delta from its founding to its final phase, propose the restoration of the picture of a quarter of the settlement in the northwest sector of the excavated site, attempt to remodel the open spaces and the drainagesewerage network of the city, and, last, attempt a 3d virtual reconstruction of Xeste 3. The third unit, Technology-Economy, refers to important productive activities and attempts to link some products with the economy. Presented are the preliminary results of an interesting study of inorganic material found in small quantities, mainly as residues on the surface of stone tools. Most samples are related to pigments, which were used widely for colouring the outside of the buildings and for the decoration of their interior spaces with wall-paintings, as well as to produce even cosmetics. The finding of a quantity of pulverized quartz suggest the possibility of local production of faience. The confirmation of the widespread use of zeolite points to its use in diverse applications, such as detergent, disinfectant, filtering. At Akrotiri, the preservation of textiles is a unique challenge for studying the technology of spinning and weaving, as attested by tools of cloth production-spindle whorls and loom-weights-and by actual textiles. 8. MartHari 1990. 9. DouMas 1984 and 1985. 10. at this point i would like to thank the Director of the Excavation, Professor Christos Doumas, who, believing that the publication of new material is not just a right but mainly an obligation of each excavator, entrusted me with the material relating to the subject in hand, at the same time allowing me access to the daybooks, drawings, plans and photographs of the excavation. i thank also my colleagues, contract archaeologists who excavated the trenches-shafts, for sharing with me further information: natasha akrivaki, Kiki birtacha, Frangoula Georma, Eleni Goula, athina Maniki, angeliki Moschou, Maria Photia, nikolaos sigalas, Mary tsoulakou. last, thanks are due to Professor iris tzachili for her advice and remarks, as well as to Christos boulotis, with whom i enjoyed profitable discussions on this subject. venediktos lanaras 430 Foundation Deposits at akrotiri, thera 441 27. see MartHari 1984. 28. the dating of the pottery is based mainly on the unpublished PhD thesis of M. MartHari (1993a), as well as on more recent data that emerged from the material of the 1999-2001 excavation. venediktos lanaras 442

ΑΡΓΟΝΑΥΤΗΣ. Τιμητικός τόμος για τον καθηγητή Χρίστο Ντούμα, 2003

The fourth decade (1997-2007) of archaeological activity at Akrotiri, Thera, saw the completion o... more The fourth decade (1997-2007) of archaeological activity at Akrotiri, Thera, saw the completion of the excavation of the shafts for the foundations of the pillars of the new bioclimatic shelter, and the satisfactory progress of study of the finds. Since the presentation of our excavation and research work at regular intervals is almost and institution, one more colloquium was organized in 2007, in order to present the particularly important new discoveries and the multifaceted scientific approach to the diverse issues arising from the recent excavations. Needless to say, our obligation to make known to the scholarly community, as well as to the general public, the significant work being carried out at Akrotiri could not be met fully without the publication of the proceedings of that meeting. in 2021, fourteen years after the 2007 colloquium, our initial aim was eventually fulfilled, with the publication of the Proceedings of the Two-day Colloquium on 40 Years of Research at Akrotiri (1967-2007). This exceptionally long delay, which was due to many and varied setbacks, certainly beyond our control, in no way diminishes the scientific interest of this volume, the contributions to which are the fruit of many years of research and experience in the scientific field, offering a rich body of new material and expressing interesting interpretations and fresh ideas. indeed, in order to reach as wide a readership as possible, it was decided to publish the book in english. The grouping of the articles in this volume in five thematic units follows the programme of the papers presented at the two-day colloquium. The introductory chapter 40 Years of Research, which precedes, is the compte rendu of work at Akrotiri over 40 consecutive years: excavation, conservation, documentation, infrastructure, management, protection and enhancement. The first thematic unit, Stratigraphy-Chronology, deals with the geology and terrain of the area in which the prehistoric settlement at Akrotiri developed, and sketches the gradual cultural development of the settlement during the Neolithic, early Cycladic and Middle Cycladic periods. in the second unit, Urban Planning and Architecture, relevant articles present a part of the large 'public' building Xeste 4, trace over time the constructional development of Building Complex delta from its founding to its final phase, propose the restoration of the picture of a quarter of the settlement in the northwest sector of the excavated site, attempt to remodel the open spaces and the drainagesewerage network of the city, and, last, attempt a 3d virtual reconstruction of Xeste 3. The third unit, Technology-Economy, refers to important productive activities and attempts to link some products with the economy. Presented are the preliminary results of an interesting study of inorganic material found in small quantities, mainly as residues on the surface of stone tools. Most samples are related to pigments, which were used widely for colouring the outside of the buildings and for the decoration of their interior spaces with wall-paintings, as well as to produce even cosmetics. The finding of a quantity of pulverized quartz suggest the possibility of local production of faience. The confirmation of the widespread use of zeolite points to its use in diverse applications, such as detergent, disinfectant, filtering. At Akrotiri, the preservation of textiles is a unique challenge for studying the technology of spinning and weaving, as attested by tools of cloth production-spindle whorls and loom-weights-and by actual textiles. 8. MartHari 1990. 9. DouMas 1984 and 1985. 10. at this point i would like to thank the Director of the Excavation, Professor Christos Doumas, who, believing that the publication of new material is not just a right but mainly an obligation of each excavator, entrusted me with the material relating to the subject in hand, at the same time allowing me access to the daybooks, drawings, plans and photographs of the excavation. i thank also my colleagues, contract archaeologists who excavated the trenches-shafts, for sharing with me further information: natasha akrivaki, Kiki birtacha, Frangoula Georma, Eleni Goula, athina Maniki, angeliki Moschou, Maria Photia, nikolaos sigalas, Mary tsoulakou. last, thanks are due to Professor iris tzachili for her advice and remarks, as well as to Christos boulotis, with whom i enjoyed profitable discussions on this subject. venediktos lanaras 430 Foundation Deposits at akrotiri, thera 441 27. see MartHari 1984. 28. the dating of the pottery is based mainly on the unpublished PhD thesis of M. MartHari (1993a), as well as on more recent data that emerged from the material of the 1999-2001 excavation. venediktos lanaras 442

ΑΡΓΟΝΑΥΤΗΣ. Τιμητικός τόμος για τον καθηγητή Χρίστο Ντούμα, 2003