Peloponnese

The much shorter Archaiologikon Deltion for the single year of 2005 invariably offers far fewer reports on the work of the Archaeological Service than the four-year volume with which we were presented last year. This, in itself, is no bad thing, although the geographical and chronological balance generated by such a large dataset is notable by its absence. This unevenness is, as ever, partially offset by the publication of fieldwork, although certain areas maintain a far more visible archaeological presence than others. This is particularly true for the northeastern Peloponnese, which has, in recent years, been the recipient of an almost unparalleled focus of both research and rescue excavation; a fact reflected in the significant contribution made to this year's report by the edited proceedings of the conference The Corinthia and the Northeast Peloponnese: Topography and History from Prehistoric Times until the End of Antiquity (Kissas and Niemeier 2013). A total of 56 individual papers provide details on sites that range in date from the Neolithic to the Byzantine period. A great strength of this collection lies in the contribution of so many current and former staff of the Archaeological Service, and, of the numerous papers that engage directly or indirectly with the archaeology of the Archaic to Roman period, several are discussed in greater depth in the course of this report. A complementary Hesperia supplement detailing the current state of prehistoric and historic research on the Corinthian Isthmus is due to appear before the end of the year (Gebhard and Gregory forthcoming), as is a study of material from Henry Robinson's 1961–1962 excavation in the North Cemetery (Slane forthcoming). The study of religious practice during the Classical period benefits from the publication of the first volume of material from excavations conducted by the Canadian Institute in Greece between 1994 and 2001 in the Sanctuary of Athena at Stymphalos (Schaus 2014a), while the consolidation of synthetic regional studies and individual site reports within Villae Rusticae: Family and Market-oriented Farms in Greece under Roman Rule (Rizakis and Touratsoglou 2013) will no doubt ensure that it becomes a standard text for the study of the rural economy of Roman Greece (see Stewart, this volume).

Im Peloponnesischen Krieg (431 bis 404 v. Chr.) standen sich die Machtblöcke des Ersten Attischen Seebundes unter Führung Athens und des Peloponnesischen Bundes unter seinem Hegemon Sparta gegenüber. Dank Thukydides sind wir über den Verlauf dieses antiken Weltkriegs wie über kaum ein zweites Ereignis des Altertums informiert. Bruno Bleckmann erläutert die Kriegsgründe, die verschiedenen Etappen der Auseinandersetzung, den Ausgang sowie die historische Bedeutung dieses Konflikts.

""En Filipo II y el Arte de la Guerra tendremos la oportunidad de conocer en profundidad a uno de los más grandes reyes de la antigua Macedonia. Gracias a su habilidad como estratega, diplomático, político y soldado, heredó un reino pobre, débil y acosado por innumerables enemigos y lo transformó en el más poderoso de toda Grecia.

A lo largo de sus páginas podremos conocer la historia del reino Macedonio, desde sus orígenes míticos hasta la formación de un imperio, de la mano del que, a la postre, se convertiría en el padre del mítico Alejandro Magno y en el forjador de un nuevo ejército que cambiaria el devenir de la guerra en la Antigüedad. Filipo II fue el creador de la falange macedonia, formación que se demostraría como inigualable en el campo de batalla y que reportaría incontables victorias sobre poderosos enemigos, como los ilirios, los tesalios, los tracios, los beocios o los atenienses. Pero no sólo eso, logró integrar en el campo de batalla a la infantería y a la caballería para emplearlos en nuevas formaciones tácticas: armó a sus soldados con las míticas sarissas y apreció como pocos las posibilidades militares que la maquinaria de guerra podía proporcionarle, siendo el mecenas de numerosos avances en este campo. Soñó con conquistar el Imperio persa, cuando ya había logrado lo que nadie antes fue capaz: el control de Grecia.

Sólo la muerte le arrebató esa hazaña, pero sentó las bases de lo que más tarde conseguiría su propio hijo. Su figura levantó tanto odios como pasiones; se le conocía como mujeriego y bebedor, pero también por su habilidad para la oratoria, por sus astucia, determinación y valor. Siempre luchó en primera línea junto a sus soldados y nunca permitió que éstos le llamaran rey, sino solo "General".

Archaeological digitisation turns to be a basic pillar of archaeology, supplementary to any conventional documentation, excavation, restoration or heritage management work because it covers efficiently and reliably multidimensional demands in every stage of traditional archaeology. The design of an archaeological narrative in digitisation projects constitutes an impressive procedure with great future but still many obstacles to overcome. The Digital Enhancement of the Peloponnese Castles was a project about the documentation and web digital promotion of 105 castles. The project included the digitisation of material, surveys with up-to-date digital methods, the creation of 3d representations, virtual tours, a website and smart phone applications in order to disseminate archaeological information and to support actual visits at the castles. In the current paper project’s experience will be presented as a way of questioning about the impact and perspectives of such an expanded documentation effort in educational, research, touristic and socio-economic terms with parallel reference to the emerging difficulties and challenges.

A revised and condensed version of my PhD research on the Secretaries of the Peloponnese.

Secretaries or officers who perform the duties of secretaries are known from many locations in the Peloponnese. Some poleis had their own specific types of officers, known from that polis (or a single inscription) only. Other designations are known from several poleis, but from no locations outside the Peloponnese. Still other offices were widespread throughout the ancient Greek world.

This paper aims to illustrate the range of duties associated with each of these offices, and any regional and contextual differences that occur.

The archaeological evidence has demonstrated that Ithaca and the Ionian Islands, from the Mycenean epoch to the dark age, had strong relationships with the western Peloponnesian regions, such as Elis and Messenia. Archaeologists use to call this phenomenon “western koiné”, but this term, in my opinion, can be applied also to the mythical and poetical tradition developed in the western areas of Peloponnese in the same period. The Odyssey can be safely inserted in this context, since it shows many and strict connections with western Peloponnese. Most of the main Odyssean character have genealogical relationship with Peloponnesian mythical figures, such as Penelope, whose father Ikarios was commonly regarded as Tyndareus’ brother, and Odysseus himself, whose grandfather Autolykos was well inserted in the Peloponnesian mythical traditions. In the Odyssey Pylos, Elis and Sparta appear as the most faithful allies of the Ithacan kings, because of the commercial and political relationships that are clearly presented in many passages and underlined by the use of some typical and recurrent formulas. Moreover, some Odyssean scenes, such as the encounter between Menelaus and Proteus or the theft of Helios’ cattle, present clear parallels with Peloponnesian traditions, particularly with Heracles’ saga: instead of thinking about any direct influence, it is more correct to state that both sagas developed in the same poetical tradition of the “western koiné”.

From the very initial versions of the saga of the Argonauts, the figure of Medea-bearer of superior knowledge expressed in her exceptional intellect-seems to be just as much of a cultural hero as Jason. Actually, Medea was a mythical figure with great expressive potential who must have caught the attention of the rulers of Corinth, which since the mid-8 th century BC had been experiencing incessant growth in terms of urban planning as well as production and commerce. Indeed, this development, traditionally attributed to the political activities of the Bacchiad dynasty, also corresponded to their need to address their lack of a glorious local tradition highlighting Corinth's independent and prestigious ancestry already in mythical times. Therefore, the Bacchiad poet Eumelus, while composing an epic dedicated to the story of Corinth starting from its origins, traced the saga of the Argonauts and the character Medea back to Corinth, adapting it to local political needs. By moving beyond the hypothesis of the existence of a Corinthian ancestral tradition regarding Medea, which is thought to have originated from the presence of a primordial local divinity connected to the natural world, the aim of this paper is therefore to reconstruct the figure of this heroine as she was perceived and hence adapted within the cultural context of Corinth using an archaeological stratigraphic approach. All the available clues as to her presence on the Isthmus have been systemised in order to reconstruct the role and significance of this multi-faceted figure with great communication potential in relation to the construction of Corinthian identity during the early archaic period.
Sin dalle prime elaborazioni della saga argonautica, la figura di Medea sembra emergere al pari di Giasone quale eroina culturale, portatrice di una conoscenza superiore che si esprime in un intelletto eccezionale. Una figura mitica dal grande potenziale espressivo che deve aver attirato l'attenzione dei governanti di Corinto, sito che dalla metà dell'VIII sec. a.C. cresce in maniera incessante sia da un punto di vista urbanistico che produttivo e commerciale. A tale sviluppo, attribuito dalla tradizione all'attività politica della dinastia bacchiade, corrispose infatti l'esigenza di far fronte alla mancanza di una gloriosa tradizione locale che evidenziasse l'autonomia e il prestigio della stirpe corinzia già in epoca mitica. A tal fine Eumelo, nell'elaborazione di un'epopea dedicata alla storia di Corinto a partire dalle sue origini, avrebbe ricondotto alla terra corinzia la saga argonautica e il personaggio di Medea, riadattandoli alle esigenze politiche locali. Superando l'ipotesi dell'esistenza di un'ancestrale tradizione corinzia su Medea, che avrebbe avuto origine dalla presenza di una primordiale divinità locale connessa al mondo naturale, il presente contributo ha quindi lo scopo di ricostruire con un approccio stratigrafico la figura dell'eroina così come è stata percepita e quindi riadattata nel contesto culturale corinzio. Tutti gli indizi disponibili sulla sua presenza nell'area istmica sono così messi a sistema al fine di ricostruire ruolo e significato di una figura dalle molte sfaccettature.

Argos, one of the leading poleis of southern Greece during the Archaic period (8th–6th centuries BCE), emerged from the Early
Iron Age as the most prominent settlement of the surrounding plain, in all likelihood establishing during the Archaic Age some sort of political control over neighbouring Mykenai and Tiryns. At the end of the 8th century it sacked another settlement - Asine - outside the central plain. The Argive plain was, however, not included directly into the Argive polis before the 460s. Instead, the Argives exercised their hegemony through the domination of crucial sanctuaries. This policy can be discerned on two distinct regional levels: the sanctuary of Hera on the central plain used for manifesting the hegemony in the closer vicinity and the cult of Apollo Pythaieus for rticulating the claims for a wider surrounding area outside the central plain. Connected to the cult politics, the Argives gradually manipulated the local legendary traditions, adjusting the originally Tirynthian and Mykenaian heroes into a pan-Argive stemma. It was organised around the specifically Argive figures Phoroneus and Danaos, articulated the ritual connection between Argos and the sanctuary of Hera, and provided a respectable pedigree for the ruling Temenid family of Argos.

The fortresses of the Peloponnese played a significant role during the Greek Revolution. They were main defensive positions, shelters for those escaping violence, and places of negotiation between the Ottoman forces and the Greek revolutionaries. The Ottoman centre was able to follow the trajectories of the uprisings in the Morea through communications from the few fortresses that were still in the hands of Ottoman forces. As they retained a few fortresses in the region, the Ottomans continued to claim their rule until their complete evacuation was forced by French forces in 1828. Where were the Ottomans in the Peloponnese? Where was Ottoman defence against the Greek forces? Why were the Ottoman defences in some fortresses successful whilst in others they failed to confront Greek forces? Did the physical situation of the fortresses, geography of the region and weather play a role during the Greek uprisings? These are some of the questions I aim to answer throughout this paper. Largely based on Ottoman archival documents, this paper discusses the Ottoman perspective and the Greek revolts, highlighting the Ottoman considerations of the uprising. It focuses on the fortresses of Anabolu (Napflio), Tripoliçe (Tripoli) Gördes (Acrocorinth), Balya Badra (Patras), Anavarin (Navarino), Moton (Methoni) and Koron (Koroni), as they were the main areas in which conflicts between Ottoman and Greek forces were concentrated. It also sheds light on the conditions leading to the extermination or evacuation of the Muslim population from the region and traces their journey towards the Anatolian shores or the Ottoman capital.

The Cambridge Ancient History. Vol. VI. IN RUSSIAN.

Четвертый век до нашей эры: в 2 полутомах / Под ред. Д.-М.Льюиса и др.; перевод с англ., подготов. текста, предисловие, примечания А.В.Зайкова. – М.: Ладомир, 2017. – Первый полутом. – 624 с. (Кембриджская история древнего мира. Т. VI, первый полутом [1–624 с.]). ISBN 978-5-86218-544-7  ISBN 978-5-86218-545-4 (п/т. 1). 45 у.п.л.

Здесь представлен первый полутом VI тома "Кембриджской истории древнего мира" (перевод английского 2-го издания The Cambridge Ancient History, vol. VI). В этой книге рассказывается о истории греческого мира от конца Пелопоннеской войны до крушения фиванской гегемонии, о Сицилии этого же времени, о перипетиях персидской истории до столкновения Ахеменидов с Македонией;  представлены также региональные обзоры (в основном по IV в. до н. э., но не только): персидские сатрапии, Карфаген, кельты, иллирийцы, фракийцы и скифы, Боспорское царство. "Закрывает" этот полутом обстоятельное рассмотрение системы коммуникаций в Средиземноморье.
Книга снабжена большим количеством рисунков (академического свойства) и картами.

In this book, Georgios C. Liakopoulos presents a unique insight into late Byzantine Peloponnese society and its economy, and how these were incorporated into the Ottoman Empire, using as reference the cadastre compiled immediately after the Ottoman conquest. What makes this study imperative is the fact that no similar Byzantine document of the period has survived. The author offers a thorough analysis of the demography of the Peloponnese and its categorisation into urban/rural and sedentary/nomadic, concentrating on the Albanians, the second largest ethnic group after the Greeks. A detailed presentation of the level of agricultural production, livestock, fishing and commerce is illustrated with tables and charts. The book is complemented with a diplomatic edition of the transcribed Ottoman text and facsimiles of the cadastre.

The imperial cult, emerging at the end of a long evolutionary process including the worship of notable individuals, Hellenistic kings, Roman officials and the goddess Roma, and based upon the same model of benefactory exchange, constituted the natural reaction of Greek cities to the appearance of dominant Rome, the characteristically Greek way of incorporating the superior emperor into the familiar political and religious order. The traditional cult provided the requisite institutions: priests, temples, statues, sacrifices, festivals and games. In the Peloponnese, the onomastic and iconographic assimilations of emperors to traditional Greek gods, their shared worship, the reuses and reconsecrations of temples and the festivals of the Kaisareia and Sebasteia constituted the primary expressions of the imperial cult. The worship of members of the domus augusta as well as of prestigious local benefactors, its complex ritual, the grandeur of the sacred procession, the duties of the city officials and their control mechanism are laid out in elaborate detail in the lex sacra of the city of Gytheion. In the brief reply letter of Emperor Tiberius, the polite refusal of isotheai timai manifests the self-restricting tendencies of the Roman emperors in the handling of their own cult.

Η κατάρρευση του βυζαντινού συνόρου στα Βαλκάνια υπήρξε σταδιακή και η πτώση των τελευταίων βυζαντινών οχυρών στον κάτω Δούναβη ολοκληρώθηκε, σύμφωνα με τα νομισματικά ευρήματα, στην αρχή της βασιλείας του Ηρακλείου (614/15). Η σλαβική εγκατάσταση στη Βαλκανική άρχισε στο α΄ τέταρτο του 7ου αι. και συνεχίσθηκε καθ’ όλον τον 7ο αι. Ειδικότερα για την Πελοπόννησο, πληροφορίες για την σλαβική κάθοδο αντλούμε από περιορισμένες, αμφιλεγόμενες πηγές, που επιδέχονται ποικίλες ερμηνείες ως προς τη λογοτεχνική μορφή και πολιτική σκοπιμότητά τους. Αδιάψευστη, μαρτυρία για την παρουσία των Σλάβων στην Πελοπόννησο αποτελούν, μεταξύ άλλων, τα νεκροταφεία τους που ανασκάφηκαν στην Ολυμπία και την Αρκαδία.

The aim is to set out the evidence for burial practices in the southern and western Peloponnese of Greece during the Middle Helladic and Early Mycenaean periods (circa 2050/2000BC to 1445/1415BC), and to interpret the evidence in terms of human agency and in relation to wider social structures. The analytical methodology allows for examination of the evidence in terms of four main areas of human activity: grave location, grave construction, pre-mortuary rites, and rites in the tomb. Evidence from 62 sites is analysed in order to provide answers to the following questions: where were tombs situated, how were they occupied and what was their place in the encultured landscape; what was the meaning and effect of architecture; what did people do in tombs and as part of mortuary rites; how were practices and structures maintained and altered through time, and what brought about their widespread reproduction? Themes include the place of the grave in the landscape, funerary architecture, evidence for preparatory acts before funerals, and mortuary practices. The conclusions trace the inception and proliferation of different practices at different times, questioning the notion of a uniform early Mycenaean culture, and offering ways in which instances of burial practice can be understood in local and regional, rather than global, contexts.