From Marking to Writing? A Picrolite Inscribed Plaque from Erimi in Cyprus

Luca Bombardieri, Yiannis Violaris, Demetrios A. Iosephides, Dante Abate, Thilo Rehren & Massimo Perna Studi Micenei ed Egeo-Anatolici, Nuova Serie 9 (2023): 9-30

This paper focuses on the possibilities inherent in a multi-scalar approach to the investigation of an inscribed picrolite plaque from Erimi (Cyprus), currently kept at the Iosephides collection. Results of macro- and micro-analyses allow for a preliminary interpretation of this unparalleled object in its background. A combination of different analytical data is discussed, including the morphological features and characteristics of the incised signs on an epigraphic ground. A comprehensive analysis of the Erimi plaque can provide us with a possible new element in the picture of social and economic complexity in Cyprus, where the evidence for control and management activities on a broader scale shows an increasing adoption of record keeping tools during the Middle Bronze Age.