Chavdar Tzochev | National & Kapodistrian University of Athens (original) (raw)

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Books by Chavdar Tzochev

The Athenian Agora XXXVII, 2016

Papers by Chavdar Tzochev

Bulletin de Correspondance Hellénique , 2023

A series of setting lines from the 4th century BC tholos tomb at Starosel (Bulgaria) reveal a st... more A series of setting lines from the 4th century BC tholos tomb at Starosel (Bulgaria) reveal
a story about an architect faced with an unusual task: adapting the Doric order to the interior design of a circular burial chamber. The tholos stylobate in Starosel preserves incised setting lines, which served as guides to the builders. I argue that these lines also represent two versions of the building plan. The implemented second version reflects a correction, in which the intercolumniation at the entrance was extended, and the remaining intercolumniations were equalized. The miscalculation that prompted this correction, and the subsequent issues in the design of the Doric interior expose the complex logistics involved in this ambitious and innovative building project.

Αρχαιολογία και Τέχνες, 2023

Archäologischer Anzeiger, 2022

The article presents a reconstruction and a first architectural analysis of the largest and most ... more The article presents a reconstruction and a first architectural analysis of the largest and most elaborate monumental tomb in ancient Thrace. Discovered in 2000, the tomb at Starosel, central Bulgaria, comprises an array of diverse plan components, structures, and decorative elements, masterfully blended into a unified composition. The outstanding craftmanship and skilful engineering indicate that it was the work of an experienced architect and stone-carvers of mixed backgrounds, with extensive knowledge of monumental architecture from across the Aegean. The analysis of the architecture, archaeological evidence, and historical context shows that the tomb was built between 350 and 330 B.C., most likely as a heroon for one of the last Odrysian rulers before Philip II of Macedon’s conquest of Thrace in 341 B.C. The article offers a new explanation of how tholos tombs appeared in Thrace: not through gradual local development, or import of a ready prototype, but as a fusion of architectural forms conceived by an itinerant architect for the needs of an Odrysian patron. Besides its significance for understanding the development of monumental architecture in Thrace, the Starosel tomb is particularly important for providing new insight into the process of hybridization of building traditions that came to define Hellenistic architecture.

Archaeological Reports , Volume 66 , 2020 , pp. 117 - 144 , 2020

Research on transport amphorae in the Aegean and the Black Sea regions during the past decade has... more Research on transport amphorae in the Aegean and the Black Sea regions during the past decade has progressed significantly, both accumulating, synthesizing and interpreting new and old data, and increasing attention given to previously neglected areas and periods. Much work has been done on identifying places of production, defining typological development and refining chronologies. Greece and Turkey are achieving greater prominence in the field, as is attention to the Early Iron Age. Old debates – such as on the purposes and the meanings of amphora stamps – have been reignited with new ideas and the roles of transport amphorae in socio-economic systems continue to draw attention. Another emerging trend is the effort to consider amphorae in the longue durée. As material grows and the field becomes more cosmopolitan, amphora studies increasingly face the challenge of aggregating and synthesizing data in a way that can encourage participation in the broader dialogues of economic historians.

Annual of the British School at Athens, 2020

In: Stephanos archaeologicos ad 80 annum professoris Ludmili Getov (Studia archaeologica universitatis serdicensis Supplementum VI), Sofia 2018, ed. I. Valchev, 2018

At the beginning of the 4th century BC, the city of Thasos launched an innovative system of contr... more At the beginning of the 4th century BC, the city of Thasos launched an innovative system of control over the production of bulk ceramics. Transport amphoras and rooftiles made on the island of Thasos during the next two and a half centuries were marked with stamps that indicated the year of production (by an annually changing official) and the producer (fabricant).
Thasian ceramic stamps are traditionally divided in two chronologically successive categories: ‘early’, in which the producer is indicated by a name and a device, and ‘late’, in which the producer is indicated by a device only. A commonly accepted theory holds that the transition between ‘early’ and ‘late’ stamps happened somewhere between 340 and 330 BC as a consequence of an administrative reform and a related change in the stamping system.
The present article offers a critical review of the evidence of systemic change(s) in Thasian stamping. It argues that the transition from two-name to one-name stamps did not happen abruptly, and did not result from administrative change. It suggests that the ‘early’-‘late’ stamp dichotomy be abandoned and that the chronology of the 4th century Thasian officials be reconsidered.

Тhe Ancient Greek Economy: Markets, Households and City-States. Harris, E.M., D.M. Lewis & M. Woolmer (eds.), Cambridge & New York, CUP, 2016, 2016

‘At once a dream and a nightmare’ is how John Davies (2001: 27) has characterized the potential o... more ‘At once a dream and a nightmare’ is how John Davies (2001: 27) has characterized the potential of transport amphora evidence for economic history. Davies’ pithy observation rightly points out both the enormous potential of amphora studies and the well-known difficulties in using this evidence. His review of amphora studies emphasizes two related problems. On the one hand, working with this type of evidence requires specialized knowledge, which makes it unattractive for some economic historians. For most ancient historians the study of amphoras appears to be a very specialized field, the domain of a small group of international specialists communicating in their own languages (literary and figuratively). The other side of the problem is the scarcity of analytical works, which bridge the gap between ‘raw’ amphora data and their potential ‘consumers.’ It is true that during the 80s and 90s amphora studies were dominated by debate about the problems associated with deriving economic figures and historical conclusions from amphora sherds, much of it very pessimistic (Empereur 1982; Garlan 1999b: 140). Nevertheless, this sceptical approach brought several benefits: first, it prevented misguided conclusions based on improper methodology, and second, it stimulated the development of an improved methodology. After all, knowing what cannot be done with the amphora evidence is the right place to start when trying to discover what can be done with this evidence. At the same time, there has been a growing recognition that ‘if amphora studies are to contribute to economic history, there must be interpretation’ (Lawall 2001: 105). Since the late 80s there have been an increasing number of attempts to use the data of amphora stamps to analyze the dynamics of trade and production and to place such data in their historical context (e.g. Avram and Poenaru-Bordea 1988; Avram 1996; Finkielsztejn 1999; 2001; Lund 1999; 2011; Conovici 2005). There have been fewer studies based on amphoras without stamps, and such studies are less ambitious in terms of precision, but address a wider range of issues in economic history (Lawall 2002; 2005). At present, the growth of published material and the improved understanding of the chronologies of amphora production have provided scholars with much more information, but this information will contribute little to our knowledge of the ancient economy unless there is a parallel improvement of the methodologies used to interpret this evidence.

This chapter presents an interpretative study of amphoras from Thasos during the 4th and 3rd centuries BCE based on statistical analysis of the data provided by amphora stamps and aims to make a positive contribution to our understanding of the Thasian wine trade. The chapter includes an extensive methodological discussion and some suggestions about how to improve current methodology and then applies these suggestions to the Thasian data. The results thus obtained are used to consider the role of markets and market mechanisms in the production and transport of wine and wine- containers.

Θ΄ ΕΠΙΣΤΗΜΟΝΙΚΗ ΣΥΝΑΝΤΗΣΗ ΓΙΑ ΤΗΝ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΣΤΙΚΗ ΚΕΡΑΜΙΚΗ. ΘΕΣΣΑΛΟΝΙΚΗ 5-9 Δεκεμβρίου 2012, 2018

Many scholars have tried to make sense of the puzzling situation in the Mal Tepe tomb, which cont... more Many scholars have tried to make sense of the puzzling situation in the Mal Tepe tomb, which contained traces of multiple burials and objects of Greek, Thracian and Celtic origin. A widely accepted view holds that the monument had three phases of use, with four successive burials in the tholos, the two antechambers and the corridor. By rethinking the dates of the grave-goods and their connections with individual burials, as well as by considering previously overlooked evidence, the present paper challenges this view and suggests a simpler scenario.

Authorship identification has been developed as a reliable practice for handwriting and has been ... more Authorship identification has been developed as a reliable practice for handwriting and has been successfully implemented on ancient Greek stone inscriptions. In a similar way, inscriptions on ancient amphora stamps can be attributed to individual hands. This paper advances a methodology for studying the lettering of the craftsmen who engraved the dies. The identification of engravers’ hands offers a chance to refine stamps chronologies, especially when combined with archaeological evidence. A case study presented here shows how the sequence of the annual officials mentioned on Thasian amphora stamps can be refined using this method.

Archaeologia Bulgarica, 2009

FOR AN UPDATED VERSION OF THE THASIAN STAMP CHRONOLOGY, SEE: Amphora Stamps from Thasos (Athenian... more FOR AN UPDATED VERSION OF THE THASIAN STAMP CHRONOLOGY, SEE: Amphora Stamps from Thasos (Athenian Agora XXXVII), Princeton, 2016

Edited volumes by Chavdar Tzochev