The decorated spindle-whorls from prehistoric Akrotiri, Thera

Sophia Vakirtzi in Papadopoulos, A. (ed), Recent research and perspectives on the Late Bronze Age eastern Mediterranean, Talanta XLIV (2012) [2013]: 227-244.

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to discuss the presence of decorated spindle-whorls in the archaeological record of Bronze Age Akrotiri, Thera. Although they primarily comprise evidence for the technical evaluation of a craft (making thread with a spindle), these artifacts will be viewed here through a cultural prism. Focus is on the decorative elements of the objects and on the search for comparable assemblages from other Bronze Age insular sites. This comparison, attempted on a geographical basis at ‘site level’, reveals both a geographical and a chronological pattern regarding the presence (or the absence) of similarly decorated spindlewhorls. This examination shows that in the advent of the Late Bronze Age, plain, non-decorated forms of these objects are preferred. An interpretation of this tendency is attempted, taking into consideration the gradual development of a textile ‘industry’ beyond the household level, which is observed in the Aegean world during the 2nd millennium BC.