CLAY VASE MOULDS FROM PELLA. A CONTRIBUTION TO THE STUDY OF HELLENISTIC POTTERY

THE STUDY DEALS WITH 330 MOULDS AND FRAGMENTS OF MOULDS FOR MOLDMADE RELIEF VASES OF THE HELLENISTIC PERIOD. THE MOULDS WERE FOUND IN A POTTERY WORKSHOP LOCATED IN THE MARKET PLACE (AGORA) OF HELLENISTIC PELLA; ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY WEREDISCOVERED IN THE DESTRUCTION DEBRIS OF TWO CONSECUTIVE ROOMS, WHICH FORMED THE WORKSHOP. THEY WERE MADE OF LOCAL CLAY AND TURNED ON THE WHEEL. THEIR DECORATION WAS ACHIEVED BOTH BY HAND AND BY THE USE OF STAMPS. MOST OF THE PIECES ARE ADORNED WITH FLORAL DECORATION. A NUMBER OF THEM, HOWEVER, CARRIES A NARRATIVE FREIZE. THE MOULDS WERE DECORATED BY MEANS OF 108 FLORAL STAMPS, 90 HUMANFIGURES, 16 ANIMAL STAMPS AND 8 STAMPS WITH VARIOUS OBJECTS. THESE STAMPS HAVE BEEN RECOGNIZED IN A SERIES OF FRAGMENTARY VASES MADE IN PELLA AND FOUND IN VARIOUS MACEDONIAN SITES. FLORAL DECORATION CONSISTS MOSTLY OF LEAVES, ROSETTES, PALMETTES AND TENDRILS. NARRATIVE FRIEZES ARE DECORATED WITH SCENES INSPIRED BY ANCIENT TEXTS. THESE SCENES ARE CLOSELY RELATED TO ABSTRACTS OF THE WORKS OF EURIPIDES, SOPHOCLES ETC. THE MOULD WORKSHOP PRODUCED VARIOUS DIFFERENT KINDS OF PRODUCTS. THE MOULDS WERE MADE AND DECORATED BY FOUR ARTISANS. THE SAME WORKSHOP MADE THE STAMPS, TURNED THE VASES ON THE WHEEL, SAW THEM THROUGH THE KILNS AND FINALLY DISPOSED THE PRODUCTS. THE NATURE OF THE DESTRUCTION DEBRIS OF THE MOULD WORKSHOP, AS WELL AS MANY OTHER ROOMS IN THE AGORA INDICATES THAT THE COMPLEX WAS DESTROYED BY A NATURAL VIOLENT CAUSE, AND EARTHQUAKE. THE LAST OBJECTS FROM THE DESTRUCTION DEBRIS OF THE WORKSHOPS AND THE WASTERS OUTSIDE THE ROOMS DATE THE EVENT AT THE END OF THE FIRST DECADE OF THE 1ST CENTURY B.C.ΣΤΗ ΜΕΛΕΤΗ ΕΞΕΤΑΖΟΝΤΑΙ 330 ΜΗΤΡΕΣ, ΤΜΗΜΑΤΑ ΚΑΙ ΘΡΑΥΣΜΑΤΑ ΜΗΤΡΩΝ ΓΙΑ ΤΗΝ ΚΑΤΑΣΚΕΥΗ ΑΝΑΓΛΥΦΩΝ ΑΓΓΕΙΩΝ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΣΤΙΚΗΣ ΕΠΟΧΗΣ. ΒΡΕΘΗΚΑΝ ΣΕ ΕΡΓΑΣΤΗΡΙΟ ΚΕΡΑΜΙΚΗΣ ΣΤΟ ΕΜΠΟΡΙΚΟ ΚΕΝΤΡΟ ΤΗΣ ΠΕΛΛΑΣ. ΟΛΕΣ ΣΧΕΔΟΝ ΟΙ ΜΗΤΡΕΣ ΠΡΟΕΡΧΟΝΤΑΙ ΑΠΟ ΤΟ ΣΤΡΩΜΑ ΚΑΤΑΣΤΡΟΦΗΣ ΔΥΟ ΣΥΝΕΧΟΜΕΝΩΝ ΔΩΜΑΤΙΩΝ ΤΟΥ ΕΡΓΑΣΤΗΡΙΟΥ. ΚΑΤΑΣΚΕΥΑΖΟΝΤΑΝ ΣΤΟ ΕΡΓΑΣΤΗΡΙΟ, ΠΑΝΩ ΣΤΟΝ ΤΡΟΧΟ, ΜΕ ΝΤΟΠΙΟ ΠΗΛΟ ΚΑΙ ΔΙΑΚΟΣΜΟΥΝΤΑΝ ΜΕ ΙΔΙΑΙΤΕΡΕΣ ΣΦΡΑΓΙΔΕΣ, ΑΛΛΑ ΚΑΙ ΜΕ ΤΟ ΧΕΡΙ. ΟΙ ΠΕΡΙΣΣΟΤΕΡΕΣ ΕΧΟΥΝ ΦΥΤΙΚΟ ΔΙΑΚΟΣΜΟ, ΕΝΩ ΑΡΚΕΤΕΣ ΚΟΣΜΟΥΝΤΑΙ ΜΕ ΔΙΗΓΗΜΑΤΙΚΕΣ ΠΑΡΑΣΤΑΣΕΙΣ. ΕΧΟΥΝ ΑΠΟΜΟΝΩΘΕΙ 108 ΣΦΡΑΓΙΔΕΣ ΜΕ ΦΥΤΙΚΑ ΚΟΣΜΗΜΑΤΑ, 90 ΜΕ ΑΝΘΡΩΠΙΝΕΣ ΜΟΡΦΕΣ, 16 ΜΕ ΖΩΙΚΕΣ ΚΑΙ 8 ΜΕ ΑΝΤΙΚΕΙΜΕΝΑ. ΜΕ ΒΑΣΗ ΤΙΣ ΣΦΡΑΓΙΔΕΣ ΑΥΤΕΣ ΕΧΕΙ ΑΝΑΓΝΩΡΙΣΤΕΙ ΜΙΑ ΣΕΙΡΑ ΑΠΟ ΑΠΟΣΠΑΣΜΑΤΙΚΑ ΣΩΖΟΜΕΝΑ ΑΓΓΕΙΑ ΤΟΥ ΕΡΓΑΣΤΗΡΙΟΥ ΣΤΟΝ ΕΥΡΥΤΕΡΟ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟ ΧΩΡΟ. ΟΙ ΜΗΤΡΕΣ ΜΕ ΦΥΤΙΚΑΚΟΣΜΗΜΑΤΑ ΚΑΛΥΠΤΟΝΤΑΙ ΣΥΝΗΘΩΣ ΜΕ ΦΥΛΛΑ, ΕΛΙΚΕΣ ΚΑΙ ΑΝΘΕΜΙΑ 'Η ΡΟΔΑΚΕΣ, ΕΝΩ ΟΙΜΗΤΡΕΣ ΜΕ ΔΙΗΓΗΜΑΤΙΚΕΣ ΠΑΡΑΣΤΑΣΕΙΣ ΕΧΟΥΝ ΜΙΑ ΖΩΝΗ ΜΕ ΜΙΑ ΣΥΓΚΕΚΡΙΜΕΝΗ ΠΑΡΑΣΤΑΣΗ, ΠΟΥ ΕΜΠΝΕΕΕΤΑΙ ΑΠΟ ΦΙΛΟΛΟΓΙΚΑ ΚΕΙΜΕΝΑ ΤΗΣ ΑΡΧΑΙΟΤΗΤΑΣ. ΣΤΕΝΕΣ ΣΧΕΣΕΙΣ ΑΝΑΓΝΩΡΙΖΟΝΤΑΙ ΜΕ "ΕΠΙΤΟΜΕΣ" ΤΩΝ ΕΡΓΩΝ ΤΟΥ ΕΥΡΙΠΙΔΗ, ΣΟΦΟΚΛΗ Κ.Α. ΤΟ ΙΔΙΟ ΕΡΓΑΣΤΗΡΙ ΗΛΕΓΧΕ ΟΛΟΚΛΗΡΟ ΤΟ ΦΑΣΜΑ ΤΗΣ ΚΑΤΑΣΚΕΥΗΣ ΤΩΝ ΣΦΡΑΓΙΔΩΝ, ΤΗΣ ΚΑΤΑΣΚΕΥΗΣ ΚΑΙ ΔΙΑΚΟΣΜΗΣΗΣ ΤΩΝ ΜΗΤΡΩΝ, ΤΟ ΨΗΣΙΜΟ ΤΟΥ ΑΓΓΕΙΟΥ ΚΑΙ ΤΗ ΔΙΑΘΕΣΗ ΤΩΝ ΠΡΟΙΟΝΤΩΝ. ΟΙ ΜΗΤΡΕΣ ΚΑΤΑΣΚΕΥΑΣΤΗΚΑΝ ΑΠΟ ΤΕΣΣΕΡΙΣ ΤΕΧΝΙΤΕΣ. ΟΙ ΙΔΙΟΙ ΚΑΙ ΤΙΣ ΔΙΑΚΟΣΜΗΣΑΝ. Η ΠΑΡΑΓΩΓΗ ΤΟΥ ΕΡΓΑΣΤΗΡΙΟΥ ΔΕΝ ΠΕΡΙΟΡΙΖΕΤΑΙ ΣΤΗΝ ΚΑΤΑΣΚΕΥΗ ΚΑΙ ΔΙΑΘΕΣΗ ΠΡΟΙΟΝΤΩΝΤΗΣ ΑΝΑΓΛΥΦΗΣ ΚΕΡΑΜΙΚΗΣ. ΤΟ ΙΔΙΟ ΕΡΓΑΣΤΗΡΙ ΠΑΡΗΓΑΓΕ ΚΑΙ ΔΙΕΘΕΤΕ ΜΕΓΑΛΗ ΠΟΙΚΙΛΙΑ ΑΓΓΕΙΩΝ, ΑΛΛΑ ΚΑΙ ΑΛΛΩΝ ΠΡΟΙΟΝΤΩΝ. Η ΜΟΡΦΗ ΤΟΥ ΣΤΡΩΜΑΤΟΣ ΚΑΤΑΣΤΡΟΦΗΣ ΤΩΝ ΔΩΜΑΤΙΩΝ ΤΟΥ ΕΡΓΑΣΤΗΡΙΟΥ, ΚΑΘΩΣ ΚΑΙ ΠΟΛΛΩΝ ΑΛΛΩΝ ΚΑΤΑΣΤΗΜΑΤΩΝ, ΜΑΣ ΥΠΟΧΡΕΩΝΕΙ ΝΑ ΔΕΧΤΟΥΜΕ ΕΝΑ ΒΙΑΙΟ ΦΥΣΙΚΟ ΦΑΙΝΟΜΕΝΟ, ΕΝΑ ΣΕΙΣΜΟ, ΣΑΝ ΑΙΤΙΑ ΚΑΤΑΣΤΡΟΦΗΣ ΤΟΥ ΣΥΓΚΡΟΤΗΜΑΤΟΣ ΤΗΣ ΑΓΟΡΑΣ ΤΗΣ ΠΕΛΛΑΣ. ΑΝΑΛΟΓΕΣ ΣΥΝΘΗΚΕΣ ΕΧΟΥΝ ΠΑΡΑΤΗΡΗΘΕΙ ΚΑΙ ΣΕΑΛΛΑ ΤΜΗΜΑΤΑ ΤΗΣ ΠΟΛΗΣ. Η ΧΡΗΣΙΜΟΠΟΙΗΣΗ ΤΩΝ ΤΕΛΕΥΤΑΙΩΝ ΧΡΟΝΟΛΟΓΙΚΩΝ ΕΥΡΗΜΑΤΩΝΤΟΥ ΣΤΡΩΜΑΤΟΣ ΚΑΤΑΣΤΡΟΦΗΣ ΚΑΙ ΤΩΝ ΧΩΡΩΝ ΑΠΟΡΡΙΨΗΣ ΑΧΡΗΣΤΩΝ ΑΝΤΙΚΕΙΜΕΝΩΝ ΕΞΩ ΑΠΟ ΤΑ ΕΡΓΑΣΤΗΡΙΑ ΤΟΠΟΘΕΤΟΥΝ ΤΗΝ ΚΑΤΑΣΤΡΟΦΗ ΠΕΡΙ ΤΟ ΤΕΛΟΣ ΤΗΣ ΠΡΩΤΗΣ ΔΕΚΑΕΤΙΑΣΤΟΥ 1ΟΥ Π.Χ. ΑΙ

The genomic history of the Aegean palatial civilizations

The Cycladic, the Minoan, and the Helladic (Mycenaean) cultures define the Bronze Age (BA) of Greece. Urbanism, complex social structures, craft and agricultural specialization, and the earliest forms of writing characterize this iconic period. We sequenced six Early to Middle BA whole genomes, along with 11 mitochondrial genomes, sampled from the three BA cultures of the Aegean Sea. The Early BA (EBA) genomes are homogeneous and derive most of their ancestry from Neolithic Aegeans, contrary to earlier hypotheses that the Neolithic-EBA cultural transition was due to massive population turnover. EBA Aegeans were shaped by relatively small-scale migration from East of the Aegean, as evidenced by the Caucasus-related ancestry also detected in Anatolians. In contrast, Middle BA (MBA) individuals of northern Greece differ from EBA populations in showing ∼50% Pontic-Caspian Steppe-related ancestry, dated at ca. 2,600-2,000 BCE. Such gene flow events during the MBA contributed toward shaping present-day Greek genomes.We thank the INCD (https://incd.pt/) for use of their computing infrastructure, which is funded by FCT and FEDER ( 01/SAICT/2016 022153 ).C.P., E.G., A.S., L.W., and J. Burger acknowledge the support of the European Union and the General Secretariat of Research and Innovation-GSRI, Ministry of Development & Investments in Greece, and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research-BMBF in Germany under the Bilateral Cooperation Program Greece – Germany 2017 (project BIOMUSE-0195 ). O.L. and O. Dolgova acknowledge the support of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation to the EMBL partnership, Centro de Excelencia Severo Ochoa, CERCA Programme/Generalitat de Catalunya, Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation through the Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Generalitat de Catalunya through Departament de Salut and Departament d’Empresa i Coneixement, as well as co-financing with funds from the European Regional Development Fund by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation corresponding to the Programa Operativo FEDER Plurirregional de España (POPE) 2014-2020, and by the Secretaria d’Universitats i Recerca, Departament d’Empresa i Coneixement of the Generalitat de Catalunya corresponding to the Programa Operatiu FEDER de Catalunya 2014-2020. F.C., C.E.G.A., S.N., D.I.C.D., L.A., B.S.d.M., Y.O.A.C., F.M., J.V.M.-M., and A.-S.M. were supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SFNS) and a European Research Council (ERC) grant to A.-S.M. M.U., S.T., D.U.-K., and C.P. were co-financed by the EU Social Fund and the Greek national funds research funding program ARISTEIA II ( project-3461 ). C.P., E.G., A.S., L.W., and J. Burger were co-financed by the Greek-German bilateral cooperation program 2017 (General Secreteriat for Research and Innovation, Ministry of Development and Investments, Greece, and Federal Ministry of Education and Research - BMBF, Germany) project BIOMUSE-0195 funded by the Operational Programme “Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship and Innovation” (NSRF 2014-2020 ) and co-financed by Greece and the European Union (EU Social Fund and European Regional Development Fund). E.K. was funded by the Greek State Scholarships Foundation (IKY). O. Delaneau is funded by a SNSF (project grant PP00P3_176977 ). V.C.S. was supported by Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT-Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia) through funds granted to cE3c ( UIDB/00329/2020 ) and individual grant CEECIND/02391/2017 . O.L. was supported by a Ramón y Cajal grant from the Spanish Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (MEIC) (RYC-2013-14797), a PGC2018-098574-B-I00 (MEIC/FEDER) grant, and the support of Secretaria d’Universitats i Recerca del Departament d’Economia i Coneixement de la Generalitat de Catalunya ( GRC 2017 SGR 937 ). O. Dolgova was supported by a PGC2018-098574-B-I00 (MEIC/FEDER) grant. J.D.J. was funded by National Institutes of Health grants R01GM135899 and R35GM13938