The Early Iron Age: The Cemeteries

by John K. Papadopoulos, Evelyn Lord Smithson

Overview

This volume, the first of two dealing with the Early Iron Age deposits from the Athenian Agora, publishes the tombs from the end of the Bronze Age through the transition from the Middle Geometric to Late Geometric period. An introduction deals with the layout of the four cemeteries of the period, the topographical ramifications, periodization, and a synthesis of Athens in the Early Iron Age. Individual chapters offer a complete catalogue of the tombs and their contents, a full analysis of the burial customs and funerary rites, and analyses of the pottery and other small finds. Maria A. Liston presents the human skeletal material, Deborah Ruscillo presents the faunal remains, and Sara Strack contributes to the pottery typology and catalogue. In an appendix, Eirini Dimitriadou provides an overview of the locations of burial activity in the wider city.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780876612361
Publisher:	American School of Classical Studies at Athens
Publication date:	01/23/2018
Series:	Athenian Agora
Pages:	1120
Product dimensions:	9.02(w) x 12.01(h) x (d)

About the Author

John K. Papadopoulos is a Professor in the Department of Classics and the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology at UCLA. Evelyn Lord Smithson (1923-1992) was a Professor of Classics and Archaeology at the State University of New York at Buffalo.

Table of Contents

Contents Preface Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: Four Cemeteries: A Catalogue of Tombs and Their Contents Chapter 3: Human Skeletons from the Athenian Agora Early Iron Age Cemeteries Chapter 4: Faunal Remains from Early Iron Age Tombs in the Athenian Agora Chapter 5: Burial Customs and Funerary Rites Chapter 6: The Early Iron Age Pottery Chapter 7: The Small Finds Other than Pottery Chapter 8: Epilogue: Social and Historical Conclusions

Editorial Reviews

"It would be hard to exaggerate the importance of this work. Papadopoulos has offered a landmark study of an important body of material and an authoritative analysis that is indispensable for anyone interested in the archaeology of Athens, the Aegean of the Early Iron Age, or burial and society. This is a major reference work, like many volumes in the series of the Athenian Agora, as well as a superb model for future publication of cemeteries in Greece and the Mediterranean." Antonis Kotsonas, AJA 123.3, (July 2019). "[The catalogue of tombs] is the core and the greatest achievement of the book, presenting much more data than was previously available in preliminary reports and on the Agora Excavation's online database. Tombs already more fully presented are completely republished, adding many pages to the book but nicely assembling all the information in a single volume . . . minor details are added even for burials previously presented in detail." Maximilian F. Ronnberg, BMCR 2018.09.09. "This new volume in the Athenian Agora series is a modern and well-produced study of the mortuary material from the Athenian Agora ...." Stefanos Gimatzidis, Journal of Hellenic Studies 139 (November 2019), pp. 270-271.

From the Publisher

It would be hard to exaggerate the importance of this work. Papadopoulos has offered a landmark study of an important body of material and an authoritative analysis that is indispensable for anyone interested in the archaeology of Athens, the Aegean of the Early Iron Age, or burial and society. This is a major reference work, like many volumes in the series of the Athenian Agora, as well as a superb model for future publication of cemeteries in Greece and the Mediterranean.

American Journal Of Archaeology

"Papadopoulos and his collaborators have done a wonderful job in presenting as
many aspects of the material as possible."

Bryn Mawr Classical Review - Maximilian F. Rönnberg