The Late Bronze Age Settlement and Early Iron Age Sanctuary

by Catherine Morgan

Overview

Final report on the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age evidence (pottery, metalwork, terracottas, architecture and other constructions) from excavations conducted by the University of Chicago at the sanctuary of Poseidon at Isthmia between 1952 and 1989. Stylistic analysis of artifacts offers important new information on Corinthian production: Isthmia has produced the first substantial collection of Early Iron Age Corinthian terracottas, for example, as well as 8th-century human figure depictions. Functional analysis, developing established methodology for site characterization, distinguishes Late Bronze Age settlement from Early Iron Age cult activity. Thus Isthmia may be counted among the growing number of Greek shrines established during the Bronze Age/Iron Age transition, and the nature and variety of cult practices at the site may be compared with those elsewhere. In its Corinthian context, Isthmia offers unique insights into 800 years of development, from Mycenaean province to Archaic polis.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780876619384
Publisher:	American School of Classical Studies at Athens
Publication date:	12/31/1999
Series:	Isthmia , #8
Edition description:	8th Volume VIII ed.
Pages:	566
Product dimensions:	9.02(w) x 12.01(h) x (d)
Age Range:	17 Years

Table of Contents

	Preface	vii
	Acknowledgments	ix
	List of Illustrations	xi
	List of Tables	xv
	Abbreviations	xvii
Part I.	The Material Evidence
I.1	Introduction	3
I.2	The Pottery	35
I.3	Metal Objects	157
I.4	Three Possible Early Dedications of Arms and Armor at Isthmia	161
I.5	The Figurines	167
I.6	Late Bronze Age Activity in the Vicinity of the Temenos	177
I.7	The Location of Early Iron Age Activity	195
Part II.	Analysis
II.1	The Late Bronze Age Pottery	231
II.2	The Bronze Age/Iron Age Transition at Isthmia	251
II.3	The Early Iron Age Pottery	261
II.4	The Nature of Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age Activity at Isthmia	295
Part III.	Interpretation
III.1	Isthmia and the Late Bronze Age Corinthia	347
III.2	The Early Development of the Isthmian Sanctuary, CA. 1050-800 B.C.	369
III.3	The Eighth Century	401
	Site Summary	431
Appendix 1.	Late Bronze Age Activity in the Vicinity of the Isthmian Plateau	435
Appendix 2.	The Distribution of Nonceramic Finds	448
Appendix 3.	The Distribution of Early Iron Age Pottery	450
Appendix 4.	Gazetteer of Late Bronze and Early Iron Age Activity in the Corinthia	467
	References	483
	Concordance	519
	General Index	523

Editorial Reviews

"This is an extremely significant contribution to the study of the early development of Greek sanctuaries, demonstrating the variability of the material expression of Greek religion from period to period, from region to region, and even within a local setting" Blanche Menadier, Journal of Hellenic Studies 121 (2001), p. 211. "This book contains a wealth of thought-provoking information and interpretations. There is no doubt that it will come to occupy an important place in discussions of early Greek sanctuaries. The agenda and methods set out here point the way to what can be achieved in the future, and it is beyond dispute that this work will serve as one of the very models from which such work will proceed." Franco de Angelis, Phoenix 54 (2000), p. 365.

From the Publisher

The volume is a welcome addition to the early archaeology of the Isthmia and Corinthia, an important contribution to Early Iron Age Greece generally, and a critical volume in our understanding of the early history of the area that was to become the Sanctuary of Poseidon.
—Bryn Mawr Review

John K. Papadopoulos