Samos

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clyde E. Fant ◽  
Mitchell G. Reddish
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Fine Arts ◽  
Aegean Sea ◽  
Public Works ◽  
Small Island ◽  
Asia Minor ◽  
Western Turkey ◽  
Naval Power ◽  
The North

The island of Samos, one of the most pleasant of all the Greek islands, played an important role in both Greek and Roman history. The significance of Samos was due to its strategic location and its fame from three sources: the Great Temple to Hera, one of the most renowned in the ancient world; the Tunnel of Eupalinus, one of the great engineering feats of antiquity; and two of its most famous citizens, the moralist Aesop and the mathematician Pythagoras, of Pythagorean theorem fame. Samos is located only 1 mile from the shore of western Turkey. It received its name, according to Herodotus, because of its mountainous terrain. Samos means “high land” and seems to have been derived either from the Phoenician word sama or from the Ionian word samo, both of which have the same meaning. (Another island to the north has a similar name, Samothrace, which means the samos of nearby Thrace.) This relatively small island, 14 miles wide and 27 miles long, shows evidence of occupation at least as early as the 4th millennium B.C.E. Later, abundant evidence attests to further occupation in the Early Bronze Age by the Mycenaeans. Likewise, the Ionians established colonies on the island during the early Iron Age and it subsequently became a great naval power. Sometime during the 8th century B.C.E., Samos obtained land on the opposite coast of Asia Minor, which led to ongoing conflict with neighboring Priene. The most famous, and infamous, ruler of Samos was Polycrates, the tyrant who ruled from approximately 550 B.C.E. until 522 B.C.E., when he was lured to Asia Minor and subsequently crucified by the Persians. During his reign, according to Strabo, the naval fleet of Samos became the first to rule the Aegean Sea since the days of the Minoan civilization. Polycrates established a cultured court, encouraged fine arts, and invited the famous hydraulics engineer Eupalinus of Megara to construct the great water tunnel that became known as the Tunnel of Eupalinus. Other public works projects included the construction of great walls around the city.

scholarly journals ROME AT SEA: THE BEGINNINGS OF ROMAN NAVAL POWER

2017 ◽  
Vol 64 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. V. Harris
Keyword(s):  
West Coast ◽  
Asia Minor ◽  
North Coast ◽  
The West ◽  
Naval Power ◽  
The North

Between the Battle of Mylae in 260 bc (when Rome defeated Carthage off the north coast of Sicily) and the Battle of Myonnesus in 190 (when Rome defeated the Seleucid navy off the west coast of Asia Minor), the Romans established naval domination over the whole Mediterranean. Scholars generally believe, for quite good reasons, that this process of naval aggrandisement began abruptly, the Romans having previously taken no interest in the sea. That, after all, is what Polybius quite clearly says.

Bronze Age Barrows on Charmy Down and Lansdown, Somerset

1950 ◽  
Vol 30 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 34-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Audrey Williams
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
The South ◽  
Stream Flows ◽  
North East ◽  
The North

Charmy Down is a plateau three miles north-east of Bath (fig. 1, 1), east of the Bath-Tetbury road. About a square mile in extent it has a general height of well over 600 ft. To the north the scarp falls swiftly, on the east more gently, to the wooded valley of St. Catherine's Brook, a tributary of the Bristol Avon and the modern Somerset–Gloucester boundary. At the foot of the steep western scarp a second stream flows south to the Avon. On the south Chilcombe Bottom separates Charmy Down from Solsbury Hill, distinguished by its Iron Age earthwork. The underlying rock is oolite, a southward continuation of the Cotswold formation.

Forerunners of the Romans. II.

Antiquity ◽  
1928 ◽  
Vol 2 (6) ◽  
pp. 133-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Randall-MacIver
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
Central Italy ◽  
Asia Minor ◽  
Central Apennines ◽  
North West ◽  
The North ◽  
Adriatic Coast ◽  
Different Origin ◽  
Burial Rite

At the date of about 1000 B.c., that is to say a little after the A beginning of the Iron Age and two centuries before any effective colonization by the Etruscans coming from Asia Minor, northern and central Italy may be partitioned into five distinct spheres of civilization. For convenience of treatment I shall assume that each of these spheres represents a comparatively homogeneous people, passing over the question whether there may not have been submerged minorities of some local importance. And I shall give each of these five peoples, or nations as they may not unfairly be called, a conventional name of geographic derivation, to avoid the endless and futile controversies as to tribal nomenclature. As the accompanying map therefore will show the north-west is occupied by the Comacines, part of Venetia by the Atestines, the Bolognese region by the northern Villanovans, Tuscany and part of Latium by the southern Villanovans. East of the Apennines, from Rimini to Aufidena, the Adriatic coast and the central Apennines were held by the Picenes, who must be understood for this purpose to include some of the tribes known to history as Samnites in addition to a small number of Umbrians. The first four of these nations were related by more or less close ties of kinship and practised the same burial rite of cremation, but the Picenes were of wholly different origin and used only the rite of inhumation. Of the Ligurians, occasionally mentioned by classical writers as occupying the coast of the Italian Riviera, it is impossible to say anything as they have left no remains by which their civilization in the Iron Age can be judged.

Urban Development in Central Transcaucasia in Anatolian Context: New Data

2011 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 135-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vakhtang Licheli
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Asia Minor ◽  
Early Bronze Age ◽  
Southern Slope ◽  
Eastern Slope ◽  
The North ◽  
Lower Terrace ◽  
The Hill ◽  
Northern Wall ◽  
North Western

Abstract The settlement and necropolis of Grakliani Hill are located in Central Transcaucasia, Georgia. Excavations of the settlement on the eastern slope and the necropolis on the south-western part of the hill demonstrated that the site had been occupied between the Chalcolithic and the Late Hellenistic periods. The most interesting remains of buildings belong to 2nd and 1st millennium BC. Several sanctuaries of this period were excavated. A monumental altar was discovered in the eastern part of the settlement. The altar was located in the north-western corner of a building. On its eastern side there was an ash pit with a platform along the northern wall. The platform was used for placing offerings, including a South Mesopotamian seal. An architectural complex of the following period (450-350 B.C) was discovered in the western part of the lower terrace. It consisted of three main rooms and three store-rooms. Burials of various periods were discovered in the western part of the hill’s southern slope. The earliest one is a pit-burial dating to the Early Bronze Age, the latest one belongs to the 2nd century BC. After analyses of the finds several directions of cultural and commercial links were identified: Colchis, Persia, Phoenicia, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Asia Minor.

Excavations and Metal-working at Llwyn Bryn-dinas Hillfort, Llangedwyn, Clwyd

1992 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 265-283 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. R. Musson ◽  
W. J. Britnell ◽  
J. P. Northover ◽  
C. J. Salter ◽  
P. Q. Dresser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Copper Alloy ◽  
Radiocarbon Date ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Metal Working ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Alloy Casting ◽  
The North ◽  
Local Evidence

Small-scale rescue excavations at Llwyn Bryn-dinas hillfort, on the Welsh Borderland, showed that the earliest fortification belonged to the late Bronze Age, with radiocarbon dates in the late 9th and 8th centuries be. A terrace, subsequently cut into the rear of the rampart to accommodate a metal-working floor, was associated with a radiocarbon date centred in the late 3rd century bc. Detailed analysis of the metal-working debris suggests that copper-alloy casting, iron forging and possibly bronze production were carried out within a single workshop. The finds include a distinctive form of handled crucible. The industry appears to have been fairly small-scale, of short duration, and probably only designed to meet the internal needs of the hillfort population. The excavation adds significantly to the local evidence for metal-working during the later prehistoric period. A distinctive zinc-impurity pattern in the copper alloy and raw copper, previously identified in material from other sites nearby, confirms the suggestion of an Iron Age bronze-working industry based on a specific metal source in the north Powys area. In addition, analysis of the iron-working debris suggests the exploitation of a distinctive local ore body. The metal-working activity appears to have come to an abrupt end, possibly with the enlargement or local repair of the rampart. Later phases of activity include a final occupation deposit with an associated radiocarbon date centred in the mid 2nd century bc.

building techniques and materials, Roman

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roger B. Ulrich
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Architectural Design ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Practical Knowledge ◽  
Eastern Mediterranean ◽  
Central Italy ◽  
Roman Architecture ◽  
The North ◽  
Mediterranean World

The inherent strengths, weaknesses, and availability of diverse Roman building materials governed the techniques used in construction and greatly influenced the final appearance of Roman architecture. Trace archaeological evidence exists of buildings and burials in Rome from the Italian Bronze Age (second millennium bce) or earlier, and substantial physical remains, in the form of Iron-Age huts and grave goods, roughly correspond to the Romans’ own belief of the foundation date of their city (traditionally 753 bce). Rome’s earliest builders sourced materials obtainable from the immediate environment and transformed them using practical knowledge. Within the span of a couple centuries, architectural design, implementation, and decoration reflect a broad interaction between Roman builders and their counterparts in the regions around central Italy (particularly Etruria to the north and Campania to the south) and also the wider Mediterranean world, particularly those areas where Greeks traditionally lived or had placed colonies. While southern Italy and Sicily represent the closest areas for the transmission of Greek ideas, Greek building practices on the Greek mainland and in Asia Minor also influenced Roman projects from the Archaic period onwards. As Rome grew wealthier and expanded abroad, patrons and builders imported marble to the capital from the Aegean, well before the discovery of more local, Italian sources. The importation of exotic stones grew exponentially over the period of the late Republic and the first two centuries of empire. The coloured marbles that embellished the buildings of Rome served as physical testimony to Rome’s control over the eastern Mediterranean. Nothing, however, was as transformative as the adoption of concrete in the late 3rd century bce, the mass production of fired brick, and the ensuing experimentation that resulted in the vaulted structures that have become the hallmark of Roman architecture.

scholarly journals Application of Image Analysis for the Identification of Prehistoric Ceramic Production Technologies in the North Caucasus (Russia, Bronze/Iron Age)

Heritage ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 2327-2342 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ki Suk Park ◽  
Ralf Milke ◽  
Erik Rybacki ◽  
Sabine Reinhold
Keyword(s):  
Image Analysis ◽  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Polarized Light ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Ceramic Production ◽  
North Caucasus ◽  
Archaeological Ceramics ◽  
The North ◽  
Production Technologies

The recent advances in microscopy and scanning techniques enabled the image analysis of archaeological objects in a high resolution. From the direct measurements in images, shapes and related parameters of the structural elements of interest can be derived. In this study, image analysis in 2D/3D is applied to archaeological ceramics, in order to obtain clues about the ceramic pastes, firing and shaping techniques. Images were acquired by the polarized light microscope, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and 3D micro X-ray computed tomography (µ-CT) and segmented using Matlab. 70 ceramic sherds excavated at Ransyrt 1 (Middle-Late Bronze Age) and Kabardinka 2 (late Bronze–early Iron Age), located in in the North Caucasian mountains, Russia, were investigated. The size distribution, circularity and sphericity of sand grains in the ceramics show site specific difference as well as variations within a site. The sphericity, surface area, volume and Euler characteristic of pores show the existence of various pyrometamorphic states between the ceramics and within a ceramic. Using alignments of pores and grains, similar pottery shaping techniques are identified for both sites. These results show that the image analysis of archaeological ceramics can provide detailed information about the prehistoric ceramic production technologies with fast data availability.

Курган ямной культуры на южном берегу р. Егорлык

2020 ◽  
pp. 10-31
Author(s):  
Erdni A. Kekeev ◽  
◽  
Maria A. Ochir-Goryaeva ◽  
Evgeny G. Burataev ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Transition Period ◽  
Early Bronze Age ◽  
Early Iron Age ◽  
Eastern Slope ◽  
The North ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
Excavation Work ◽  
The Bronze Age

The article presents materials from the excavation work of the mound 1 from the Egorlyk group. The mound was formed over two burials of the Yamnaya culture of the early Bronze Age era. The only inlet burial was placed in the center of the mound during the transition period from the late Bronze Age to the early Iron Age. The discovery of this monument is significant because it is the first monument of the Bronze Age explored on the north-eastern slope of the Stavropol height, in-between the rivers Egorlyk and Kalaus and bounded from the east by the lake Manych.

Changing social inequality from first farmers to early states in Southeast Asia

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (47) ◽  
pp. e2113598118
Author(s):  
Mattia Fochesato ◽  
Charles Higham ◽  
Amy Bogaard ◽  
Cristina Cobo Castillo
Keyword(s):  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Social Inequality ◽  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Rice Farmers ◽  
Early States ◽  
The North ◽  
Agricultural Revolution ◽  
Phase Sequence ◽  
Wide Range

When the first rice farmers expanded into Southeast Asia from the north about 4,000 y ago, they interacted with hunter-gatherer communities with an ancestry in the region of at least 50 millennia. Rigorously dated prehistoric sites in the upper Mun Valley of Northeast Thailand have revealed a 12-phase sequence beginning with the first farmers followed by the adoption of bronze and then iron metallurgy leading on to the rise of early states. On the basis of the burial rituals involving interment with a wide range of mortuary offerings and associated practices, we identify, by computing the values of the Gini coefficient, at least two periods of intensified social inequality. The first occurred during the initial Bronze Age that, we suggest, reflected restricted elite ownership of exotic valuables within an exchange choke point. The second occurred during the later Iron Age when increased aridity stimulated an agricultural revolution that rapidly led to the first state societies in mainland Southeast Asia.

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