The Mycenaean settlements in the Sparta plain and the ancient traditions

Richard Hope Simpson Studi Micenei ed Egeo-Anatolici 51 (2009) [2010]: 315-335.

Abstract (from the Introduction)

In this note I assess the main Mycenaean settlements discovered in and around the Sparta plain and also try to interpret the ancient testimonia related to them. It is both customary and correct to present the more definite (i.e. the archaeological) evidence first and separately in such cases, before any speculative attempts to assign ancient names to particular sites. For this reason my note is divided into two parts, the first confined to the (more objective) archaeological data, and the second consisting of arguments based on these data combined with indications derived from the ancient traditions. The interpretation of the latter is by nature more subjective, involving more diverse and complex factors, especially the historical and topographical, in addition to deductions from the ancient material found at the sites.