A Mycenaean building reconsidered: The case of the west house at Mycenae

New archival information and fresh archaeological data concerning the architecture of the West House, one of the four "Ivory" houses south of Grave Circle B at Mycenae, the most controversial and perhaps the most archaeologically handicapped member of the group, which has been described as an ideal example of a developed, freestanding Mycenaean domestic unit, a spin off from the palatial model, has prompted a detailed re-interpretation/re-assessment of the evidence and has lead to a comprehensive reconstruction of the building, more than ten years after its final publication

Ivories

The deep, purely aesthetic attraction of ivory, that seems to transcend the commercial value of the raw material, has been part of human heritage since Paleolithic times. The allure of ivory lies in its collective appreciation as a diachronic symbol of excellence, embodying and displaying values, which ultimately define and sustain human hierarchies of esteem. Although the elite status of ivory and ivory carving in general is manifest in both the Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age, the sociopolitical infrastructure for the procurement of the raw material and the organization of workshop production was entirely different. In the 2nd millennium, the acquisition and exploitation of ivory was a primarily palatial prerogative, funded and organized by the palatial elites, in accordance with long‐established practices in Egypt and the Near East. The demise of the Mycenaean palaces resulted in the effective elimination of ivory carving in the Aegean. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved

Deiras [La deiras]

[No abstract available