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Aegeus Society For Aegean Prehistory

BOOK REVIEWS | 2010

Wild nature? Human–animal relations on Neopalatial Crete

Andrew Shapland Cambridge Archaeological Journal 20.1 (February 2010): 109–127.

The Neopalatial period of Middle to Late Bronze Age Crete is marked by a dramatic increase in the depiction of non-human animals. In contrast to the domesticates listed in the Linear A documents, the animals which appear on frescoes and seals are largely wild or supernatural, or in non-domestic scenes (particularly bull-leaping).

Hearsay about the “Keros Hoard”

Giorgos Papamichelakis & Colin Renfrew American Journal of Archaeology 114 (January 2010): 181-185.

The authors present new oral testimony on the illicit excavations at Dhaskalio Kavos, on Keros

Identifying the geochemical taphonomy of the osteological material from Katsambas rockshelter

George Iliopoulos, Nena Galanidou, Spiros A. Pergantis, Vicky Vamvakaki & Nikos Chaniotakis Journal of Archaeological Science 37.1 (January 2010): 116-123.

We report analytical work undertaken in order to identify the geochemical taphonomy of the osteological collection (human and animal bones) recovered from a 1950s excavation at Katsambas, a small cavity in the marly limestone on the west bank of Kairatos River, Crete.

The double-axe: A contextual approach to the understanding of a Cretan symbol in the Neopalatial period

Matthew Haysom Oxford Journal of Archaeology 29 (February 2010): 35-55.

The Double-Axe has always been considered as one of the most important religious symbols in Minoan Crete. This paper reassesses the significance of the Double-Axe and puts forward a new interpretation for it. It recognizes the great potential for change in symbolic meanings during the Bronze Age and seeks to understand the Double-Axe in as narrow a period as is realistically possible by filtering out evidence from other periods. Central to the argument is the principle that the meaning of symbols is contextually dependent.

Agency matters: Seal-users in Pylian administration

Georgia Flouda Oxford Journal of Archaeology 29 (February 2010): 57-88.

This study aims to provide insights into the patterns discernible in the Pylian sealing practices with regard to the identity of the seal-owners involved. The focus is on reassessing the problem of the function of glyptic imagery and on testing the working hypothesis that differences in the subject matter of the seal devices used to produce the seal impressions may have reflected the hierarchical status of the Pylian seal-owners.

Review of The Cave of the Cyclops: Mesolithic and Neolithic Networks in the Northern Aegean, Greece. Volume 1, Intra-site Analysis, Local Industries, and Regional Site Distribution

Efstratiou, N. American Journal of Archaeology

Efstratiou, N., 2010. Online review of A. Sampson, The Cave of the Cyclops: Mesolithic and Neolithic Networks in the Northern Aegean, Greece. Vol. I. Intra-site Analysis, Local Industries, and Regional Site Distribution (Philadelphia 2007), American Journal of Archaeology 114, No. 1 (January).

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