The Late Minoan II goblet: Some aspects of ceramic change at Early Final Palatial Knossos reconsidered

J. Arvanitakis Aegean Archaeology 9, 2007-2008 [2011]: 105-119.

Περίληψη (στα Αγγλικά)

This paper presents a re-reading of previously published evidence from Kastri on Kythera which compels us to reconsider the mechanisms by which Mycenaean ceramic traits such as the goblet spread to Crete. Possible links between Minoan goblets from the final Neopalatial levels at Kastri and a Marine Style goblet from Knossos are examined and the implications of such links for the date of the initial appearance of this shape on Crete are considered. Attention is drawn to the pronounced indigenous character of salient aspects of the Minoan goblet and the Minoan version of the Ephyraean Style. It is suggested that the LM II Ephyraean Style goblet is better conceived of as a novel hybrid form combining native and non-native elements, than as an intrusive mainland trait. An attempt is made to account for the changes in usage associated with the goblet at LM II Knossos in terms which do not invoke invasion by mainland Mycenaeans. It is suggested that the changes in question reflect a process of increasing uniformity in material developments in the southern Aegean, and that this process was the outcome of symbolic exchanges which elite groups at Knossos fostered with mainland elites following the demise of the Neopalatial system on Crete.