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Early Neolithic Sites in Greece Bevond the Thessalian Region

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Early Neolithic Sites in Greece Bevond the Thessalian Region CHAPTER VII EARLY NEOLITHIC SITES IN GREECE BEVOND THE THESSALIAN REGION In the hist chapter we have seen that at other sites in settlements may be mentioned, without indicating Thessaiy people were living in much the same con- whether they were occupied during Early, Middle or ditions as at Sesklo. We were able to discem three Late Neolithic. Cave sites may easily be overlooked different types of settlement location. All three were in survey, often being difficult of access. Early situated on the boundary between two different topo- Neolithic sites have been recovered very rarely on graphic zones, but one group of settlements was the islands. Since those few settlements which have situated in low foothills near the plain, the second been found are always situated directly on the coast, group was situated on the boundary between a river we are led to believe that similar settlements have valley and terrace and the third group of settlements been drowned by the gradual rise in sealevel. was either on the shore of a lake or on the coast. In this chapter we will first investigate the regions There are some minor differences between the of Greece which surround Thessaiy, namely Mace­ groups which are largely due to slightly different donia, Epirus and Boeotia. Afterwards we will mo­ local conditions. During the period a certain regio- ve South to Attica and the Peloponnese. Finally we nalisni developed. which can be noted especially in will discuss some of the island sites. the most obvious material, the pottery. So far our discussion has been restricted to Early Neolithic settlements in Thessaiy, which are geo- vil. I. Macedonia graphically and climatically quite closely related to Sesklo and which are situated in an area which is Macedonia may be reached from Thessaiy by land, suitable for early agriculturalists. In this chapter we through the Vale of Tembe and the valley of the wil! investigate whether in other areas, which are River Xerias, and by sea. The region is quite diffe­ geographically and climatically different, a similar rent from Thessaiy. It consists largely of mountain development may still be noted. We have to keep in areas, separated by wide river valleys - those of the mind that in several areas which at first sight seem Aliakmon, Axios (or Vardar) and their tributaries - very suitable no traces of Neolithic settlements have and by two large plains, of which the plain of Mace­ been recovered, for the simple reason that these donia is the most important. In the Eastern part the plains are covered by recent alluvium. This is the peninsula of Chalkidiki stretches into the sea. It case with the plain of Arta in Epiros, the plain of the consists of rolling hills and mountain ranges. River Alphios and its tributaries in the Northwest In Pre- and Protohistoric times, a large part of the Peleponnese. the Kopaïs basin and the valley of the present plain of Macedonia, the wide delta of the River Spercheios in Boeotia and possibly with the Aliakmon-Loudhias-Axios was an arm of the sea, river valleys of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace (Vi- stretching deep inland (Bintliff 1976, 241-262). ta-Finzi 1969. pp. 77-82). In the remaining areas, The climate is in general colder than in Thessaiy, cxploration for prehistorie sites has begun only although the plain of Macedonia does not show a fairly recently. Systematic research and survey has large difference, and the distribution of annual pre- been carried out in a few regions of Greece only - cipitation is more even. The average January tem- like Macedonia, parts of Epiros, Thessaiy and Mes- perature increases from an average of 4° C in the senia. Even this does not always provide all the North to an average of 8° C in the South. In inland Information wanted. The presence of Neolithic areas winter may be grim, with much snow in higher 70 EARLY NEOLITHIC SITES IN GREECE BEYOND THE THESSALIAN REGION Fig. 22 Map of Greece - distribution of excavated Early Neolithic sites. 1 Nea Nikomedeia. 2 Servia. 3 Asfaka. 4 Sidari. 5 Nessonis. 6 Gendiki. 7 Soufli. 8 Argissa. 9 Sesklo. 10 AchiUeion. 11 Elateia. 12 Halai (Loeris). 13 Nea Makri. 14 Corinth. 15 Nemea. 16 Lerna. 17 Franchthi Cave. 18 Cave of Nestor, Pylos. MACEDONIA 71 parts, but summers are never as extremely hot as in couple of post-holes on the extreme edge of the Thessaly. The highest summer temperatures are still trench. found inland - they vary between 26°C on the coast to 28°C inland. Coastal Saloniki has an average Having studied rather superficially a limited sam­ annual temperature of 15.9°C. The annual average ple of the Early Neolithic pottery', we concluded of precipitation decreases from 800 mm in the West that it consistently showed the same characteristics to some 400 mm in the East. and that it could be described as follows: The data on the vegetation of Macedonia during Ware: Medium and fine ware most common. Coarse the Early Neolithic indicate that regions below a ware present, but rare. height of 500 m were covered with a dense deci- Appearance: Handmade ware of good to high qua- duous oak forest (Bottema 1974). The faunal re- lity. Manufactured by a combination of modelling mains are very scarce and will be discussed with the and coiling techniques. Medium sized vessel walls sites on which they were discovered. most common; both thin and heavy walled vessels occur. Paste: Micaceous clay. Non-plastics include quartz, VII I. \.Servia (fig. 22 no 2) quartzites, fine limestone chips, possibly fine pot­ tery grit. Grains generally < 1 mm, most not excee- Until 1974, when flooding by an artificial lake ding 4 mm; coarser sand rare. brought an end to its existence, the site of Servia Firing conditions: Open fire, not entirely controlled could be found in West Macedonia, some 6 km firing atmosphere. Temperature 750-850°C. Hard- North of the present village of the same name, near ness in most cases around 3; fine wares > 3 < 5 on the road connecting Thessaly and Macedonia. It was Mohs' scale. a low spreading mound on a river terrace, about 17 Colour: Light or dark uncertain buffish/reddish m above the Aliakmon and in the vicinity of the only most common with a tendency to dark. Non-oxidi- convenient ford across that river. It was discovered sed dark rare. Relatively few fully oxidised. Bumis­ in 1909 by A.J.B. Wace (1913-14, P. 123) and hed ware often mottled black-red: 'Buntpoliert'. excavated in 1931 by W.A. Heurtley. When it be- Red slip over buff surface. came clear that the site was immediately threatened White ware extremely rare. by flooding a rescue excavation was undertaken by Core mostly oxidised. the Greek Archaeological Service and the British Surface finish: Mostly disappeared, due to weathe- School in Athens (Ridley and Wardle 1979, pp. ring. Rest well to highly bumished. Large part of 185-230). The main area did not contain any Early fine ware red slipped, prone to scale; sometimes Neolithic material, but it was found in some tren- with high bumishing gloss. Fine 'Buntpolierte' ches laid out 500 m downstream, east of the main ware highly bumished. site. Both areas stand on the lowest river terrace, Accessories/Decorations: Pierced lugs rare. within a few hundred meters of a good spring. The Plastic decoration: oblong and round knobs, raised soil in this region probably consisted of riverine bands. clay. Painted decoration: red-on-red and red-on-buff. Li- We have a little additional data on the vegetation near patterns and solid triangles. during the Early Neolithic period from charcoal Incised decoration: nail impressions, very rare. analysis, which so far has revealed maple, plum-ty- Vessel shapes: Plate-like vessel rare. Open bowl pe, ash and poplar, with pine and deciduous oak with flaring vessel wall, convex-walled open bowl, dominating (Hubbard 1979, p. 228). The wild ani- slightly closed globular jar, hole-mouthed jar and mals represented in the Early Neolithic faunal sam­ low collared vessel occur in all ware types. ple are red deer, roe deer, bear and a small canid. Rim: usually plain, a few ledge-rims. Lip: blunt, The only architectural remains of the Early Neo­ interior tapered or uptumed/folded over. lithic settlement consist of a large cobbled yard and a Base: low plain and higher widely flaring ring-base; 72 EARLY NEOLITHIC SITES IN GREECE BEVOND THE THESSALIAN REGION may be oval. Few high trumpet-bases; few flat foot- noted by Ph. Petsas, then ephoros. It was excavated ed ones. under the aegis of the British School at Athens by RobertJ. Rodden, during the years 1961-1963. The All things considered, it seems to us that the Early deposit was rather shallow, varying between 0.70 Neolithic pottery from Servia compares either with and 1.30m inthickness. itconsistedlargely of Early transitional Early Neolithic II/III or with the begin­ Neolithic material, overlain by a thin level of Late ning of Early Neolithic III from Sesklo. On the one Neolithic. hand we have the presence of early painted material During the period of first occupation the knoll from the very lowest Ie vel to the surface, on the was probably surrounded by lacustrine silts. Accor- other hand we have the repertory of shapes (necked ding to Bottema (1974 pp. 147-148) "the first far­ jars, many offset and roUed rims), the plastic deco- mers found the area covered with deciduous oak rations as well as the very highly burnished red forest. To the East and Northeast the forest gave way monochrome.
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