scholarly journals Dating the Thera (Santorini) eruption: archaeological and scientific evidence supporting a high chronology

Antiquity ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 88 (342) ◽  
pp. 1164-1179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sturt W. Manning ◽  
Felix Höflmayer ◽  
Nadine Moeller ◽  
Michael W. Dee ◽  
Christopher Bronk Ramsey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seventeenth Century ◽  
Bronze Age ◽  
Eastern Mediterranean ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Radiometric Dating ◽  
Late Bronze Age ◽  
Recent Issue ◽  
Minoan Eruption ◽  
Alternative Approaches ◽  
Thera Eruption

The date of the Late Bronze Age Minoan eruption of the Thera volcano has provoked much debate among archaeologists, not least in a recent issue of Antiquity (‘Bronze Age catastrophe and modern controversy: dating the Santorini eruption’, March 2014). Here, the authors respond to those recent contributions, citing evidence that closes the gap between the conclusions offered by previous typological, stratigraphic and radiometric dating techniques. They reject the need to choose between alternative approaches to the problem and make a case for the synchronisation of eastern Mediterranean and Egyptian chronologies with agreement on a ‘high’ date in the late seventeenth century BC for the Thera eruption.

3.2 ka BP Megadrought and the Late Bronze Age Collapse

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Kaniewski ◽  
Elise Van Campo
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Prime Factor ◽  
Eastern Mediterranean ◽  
Late Bronze Age ◽  
Southwest Asia ◽  
Aegean Region ◽  
Climate Shift ◽  
Dark Ages ◽  
Political Unrest ◽  
Mediterranean Archaeology

The collapse of Bronze Age civilizations in the Aegean, southwest Asia, and the eastern Mediterranean 3200 years ago remains a persistent riddle in Eastern Mediterranean archaeology, as both archaeologists and historians believe the event was violent, sudden, and culturally disruptive. In the first phase of this period, many cities between Pylos and Gaza were destroyed violently and often left unoccupied thereafter. The palace economy of the Aegean Region and Anatolia that characterized the Late Bronze Age was replaced by the isolated village cultures of the Dark Ages. Earthquakes, attacks of the Sea Peoples, and socio-political unrest are among the most frequently suggested causes for this phenomenon. However, while climate change has long been considered a potential prime factor in this crisis, only recent studies have pinpointed the megadrought behind the collapse. An abrupt climate shift seems to have caused, or hastened, the fall of the Late Bronze Age world by sparking political and economic turmoil, migrations, and famines. The entirety of the megadrought’s effects terminated the Late Bronze Age in the eastern Mediterranean.

scholarly journals Volcanic ash, victims, and tsunami debris from the Late Bronze Age Thera eruption discovered at Çeşme-Bağlararası (Turkey)

2021 ◽  
Vol 119 (1) ◽  
pp. e2114213118
Author(s):  
Vasıf Şahoğlu ◽  
Johannes H. Sterba ◽  
Timor Katz ◽  
Ümit Çayır ◽  
Ümit Gündoğan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Volcanic Ash ◽  
Thick Layer ◽  
Archaeological Site ◽  
Tsunami Deposit ◽  
Late Bronze Age ◽  
Mediterranean Studies ◽  
Ash Layer ◽  
Time Capsule ◽  
Thera Eruption

The Late Bronze Age Thera eruption was one of the largest natural disasters witnessed in human history. Its impact, consequences, and timing have dominated the discourse of ancient Mediterranean studies for nearly a century. Despite the eruption’s high intensity (Volcanic Explosivity Index 7; Dense Rock Equivalent of 78 to 86 km) [T. H. Druitt, F. W. McCoy, G. E. Vougioukalakis, Elements 15, 185–190 (2019)] and tsunami-generating capabilities [K. Minoura et al., Geology 28, 59–62 (2000)], few tsunami deposits are reported. In contrast, descriptions of pumice, ash, and tephra deposits are widely published. This mismatch may be an artifact of interpretive capabilities, given how rapidly tsunami sedimentology has advanced in recent years. A well-preserved volcanic ash layer and chaotic destruction horizon were identified in stratified deposits at Çeşme-Bağlararası, a western Anatolian/Aegean coastal archaeological site. To interpret these deposits, archaeological and sedimentological analysis (X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy instrumental neutron activation analysis, granulometry, micropaleontology, and radiocarbon dating) were performed. According to the results, the archaeological site was hit by a series of strong tsunamis that caused damage and erosion, leaving behind a thick layer of debris, distinguishable by its physical, biological, and chemical signature. An articulated human and dog skeleton discovered within the tsunami debris are in situ victims related to the Late Bronze Age Thera eruption event. Calibrated radiocarbon ages from well-constrained, short-lived organics from within the tsunami deposit constrain the event to no earlier than 1612 BCE. The deposit provides a time capsule that demonstrates the nature, enormity, and expansive geographic extent of this catastrophic event.

scholarly journals Mortuary Landscapes Revisited: Dynamics of Insularity and Connectivity in Mortuary Ritual, Feasting, and Commemoration in Late Bronze Age Cyprus

Religions ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 877
Author(s):  
Teresa Bürge
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Eastern Mediterranean ◽  
Mortuary Practices ◽  
Late Bronze Age ◽  
Faunal Remains ◽  
Mortuary Ritual ◽  
Sacred Landscapes ◽  
External Objects

The aim of the paper is to discuss mortuary contexts and possible related ritual features as parts of sacred landscapes in Late Bronze Age Cyprus. Since the island was an important node in the Eastern Mediterranean economic network, it will be explored whether and how connectivity and insularity may be reflected in ritual and mortuary practices. The article concentrates on the extra-urban cemetery of Area A at the harbour city of Hala Sultan Tekke, where numerous pits and other shafts with peculiar deposits of complete and broken objects as well as faunal remains have been found. These will be evaluated and set in relation to the contexts of the nearby tombs to reconstruct ritual activities in connection with funerals and possible rituals of commemoration or ancestral rites. The evidence from Hala Sultan Tekke and other selected Late Cypriot sites demonstrates that these practices were highly dynamic in integrating and adopting external objects, symbols, and concepts, while, nevertheless, definite island-specific characteristics remain visible.

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