4th ARCHAEOLOGICAL MEETING OF THESSALY AND CENTRAL GREECE, 2009-2011
FROM PREHISTORY TO THE CONTEMPORARY PERIOD

Paper abstract

Lis Bartek
Polish Academy of Sciences
The Late Helladic IIIC pottery from Mitrou
(poster paper)

Our knowledge of the LH IIIC pottery in east Central Greece is defined by discoveries at three major sites: Lefkandi, Kynos and Kalapodi. When starting the excavations at Mitrou, supported by promising results of the CHELP surface survey, it was hoped that Mitrou would join the ‘big three’. It undoubtedly did, but not in an obvious way. At a site like Mitrou, it was reasonable to expect to find a LH IIIC Middle phase with elaborate, pictorial pottery and a rich repertoire of shapes, decent evidence for LH IIIC Late and, in fortunate circumstances, the transition to the EIA with the so-far elusive Submycenaean phase. After 5 years of excavation we are forced to verify these expectations. The LH IIIC Middle is difficult to define and there is nothing even remotely reminiscent of pictorial pottery. Surprisingly, the LH IIIC Late period is the most exciting one with an unusual array of finds. Submycenaean, apart from one or two graves with a few vessels, is not detectable. In this paper, I will briefly describe the local pottery sequence and highlight some of the major discoveries. I will also try to address the relation of the Mitrou pottery to the material from Kalapodi and Kynos. At the end of the paper, an interpretation of the pottery record for the LH IIIC period will be offered.

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