The Archaeologists on Mycenae, Pylos, and Troy VIIa

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The Archaeologists on Mycenae, Pylos, and Troy
VIIa

• ART/CNE 430
• 11/11/04

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Todays Readings

• Compare the styles/content of the Schliemann and
  Blegen readings.

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Troy VI (MBA-LBA 1800-1300 BCE)

• The 6th city built on the site. We dont know
  much about the top of the site because later
  builders (Hellenistic and Roman) shaved it down.
• Consists of 8 strata and 3 chronological phases.
• Fortification wall built at the beginning and
  repaired throughout took massive form at the end
  of the phase. Sloping face.
• The houses were free-standing and spread out.

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Troy VI Wall
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Troy VI Skull
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Troy VII

• Dorpfeld et al discovered in 1894 that Troy VII
  (7th city) had really 2 distinct strata, which
  differed from one another in a few important
  ways.
• He thought VII-1 represented a direct, unbroken
  continuation of the culture of Troy VI Troy
  VII-2, however, had new strange elements not
  seen before on the site.

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Blegen

• The Cincinnati Expedition, led by Blegen, studied
  the strata more intensively, confirming and
  refining Dorpfelds findings.
• Troy VI - destroyed by earthquake looks like
  inhabitants were able to escape beforehand.
• Troy VIIa - inhabitants returned, rebuilding the
  site.

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Earthquake Damage

• The fallen debris raised the ground level inside
  the fortress by as much as 6 feet.
• The new houses were built with their floors at
  this higher level.

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Troy VIIa Repairs

• Restoration of the fortification wall around the
  citadel.
• Addition attached to the wall by the East Gate.
• South Gate repaired and still used as the main
  entrance to the citadel.

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Non-Elite Housing

• The surviving remains of houses occur around the
  inner circuit wall.
• Troy VI large, free-standing houses
• Troy VIIa small houses constructed incorporating
  party walls. Built of heterogeneous material,
  including debris from the earthquake.

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Blegens Plan of Troy VII
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Troy VIIa House Plans
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House Arrangment

• A row of 20-30 lean-to apartments survive along
  the inner side of the circuit wall.
• On the terrace above, a few of the grander houses
  of Troy VI were repaired and reoccupied, but most
  of the others were apparently too damaged
  replaced by smaller structures also with party
  walls.

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House Plans

• Most have 1-3 rooms with no unity of design.
• Exception House 700, first on the right as you
  pass through the main entrance to the acropolis,
  the South Gate.
• 3-4 rooms one with a central, raised decorated
  hearth. Stone quern set into brick clay, tilted
  so that ground flour would fall into deep
  container hollowed out in the floor and lined
  with clay.
• Stone sink connected to drain which emptied into
  street.
• Remains of ovens, brick storage bins, carbonized
  wheat.

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Blegens Interpretation

• House 700 was not only someones living space,
  but also their business.
• A snack bar where people coming into or out of
  the citadel could get some lunch.

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Floors

• Hard-packed earth or clay.
• Distinctive feature of this period
• pithoi sunk so deeply into the ground that only
  their rims appear at floor level, covered with
  stone slabs. Numbers range from houses with 1-2
  to those with up to 24.
• Vary in size from 1.75- 2 m in height and 1-1.25
  m diameter.

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Storage Pithoi

• The site from EBA had always had these, but
  usually fewer, and usually free-standing.

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Blegens Interpretation

• Architecture and pithoi
• Siege. VIIa forced to shelter a larger and more
  concentrated population than VI.
• Resembles a refugee city space at a premium.
• The overall impression is of an emergency of some
  kind.

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Other Material Remains

• As far as other miscellaneous objects and
  pottery, however, there is no real difference
  from VI - no cultural break indicated.
• However, the number of imported Mycenaean pots
  seems to have dropped - out of 90 such sherds,
  there are 250 sherds of local imitations.

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Troy VIIa Mycenaean Pottery
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Destruction of Troy VIIa

• Estimated c. 1270-60.
• Destroyed by human agency - signs of fire and
  violence.
• In the wreckage of the snack bar (House 700) were
  frags of a human skull, with more skeleton bits
  outside the house (same?).
• Skeleton found on western slope of the hill
  outside the acropolis wall - struck down by
  debris, then buried by it? Crushed skull broken
  lower jaw. Victim or attacker?

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The Homeric Troy?

• Based on all this evidence (and more), and on the
  destruction dates of mainland sites, Blegen
  thinks that this is the Homeric Troy, and its
  destruction is in keeping with Homers depiction
  of raiding parties/town sackers.

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The Palace at Pylos

• Shelmerdine discusses the organization and
  functioning of the palace, especially in its
  final phase.
• What changes in plan/organization does she note
  take place in the 13th century, especially in
  terms of access into the central building?

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Defensive Remodeling

• Purpose to restrict access into the main bldg.,
  circulation within it, and to increase storage
  and workshop space.
• Details
• Creation of courts 42 and 47, blocking NE
  entrance construction of NE workshop.
• Frescoed rooms used now for storage.

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Interpretation

• The authorities anticipated trouble, either
  locally, from subordinate rulers/classes, or from
  abroad.
• We see this also in the mid-13th c. at other
  palaces, such as Mycenae. Outlying houses were
  burnt, triggering a massive construction project
  to extend/strengthen fortification walls and
  provide access to water within the citadel.

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Pylos Last Year

• Its economic activities survive in the tablets,
  and record normal operations.
• But the tablets also record what seem to be
  defensive actions - the references to the
  watchers on the coast, etc.
• Pylos was destroyed by fire c. 1200 BCE.
  Re-occupied by the Protogeometric period.

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Bronze Age Connections with Homer

• Both Shelmerdine and Bennet discuss these.
• The sudden richness of the archaeological record
  in the MBA (Shaft Graves, etc) show not only
  emergent social complexity but also exotic
  knowledge- influenced by Minoan culture, the
  Mycenaeans formed their ideal of kingship at this
  time, represented by the wanax (borrowed word).

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Expansion of Mycenaean Power

• By LHIIIA, Mycenaean power and influence had
  spread from the mainland to Crete, the Cyclades,
  Ionian islands and the coast of Anatolia (e.g.
  Miletos Mycenaean material culture appears
  there, can assume some Mycenaean inhabitants as
  well).
• Mycenaeans did not penetrate inland Anatolia -
  Hittite embargo on Mycenaean trade?

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Connecting Homer to the BA

• If not by social structure, then by narrative.
• Was there epic poetry in the BA?
• narrative in art (Theran frescoes, Pylian fresco
  simile on dagger human lion hunt vs. lion
  hunting deer)
• Frozen linguistic features in Homeric epic
• Bennet thinks it is reasonable to assume a
  tradition of oral performance connected with
  ritual in the BA.

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