Strofilas

Coordinates: 37 ° 46 ′ 47.9 ″  N , 24 ° 51 ′ 17.6 ″  E

Strofilas​

Greece

The location Strofilas ( Greek Στρόφιλας ( m. Sg. ), Also transcribed as Strophilas ) on the Cycladic island of Andros is the oldest known example of defensive settlement architecture on an Aegean island . The complex dates back to the late phase of the Neolithic Attica-Kephala culture and the early phase of the Bronze Age Grotta-Pelos culture between 4500 and 3300 BC. Dated. The final abandonment took place with no visible traces of violence. In the late Neolithic Age, Strofilas was a large, densely populated and affluent settlement with political, economic and social structures. As an urban settlement, it is dated earlier than the early Bronze Age examples in the northern and eastern Aegean such as Troy , Liman Tepe (near ancient Klazomenai , west of Izmir ) or Poliochni . The location about 2.5 kilometers to the southwest at Cape Plaka is possibly a subsequent settlement.

location

Cape Strofilas from the west

The Cape Strofilas (Ακρωτήρι Στρόφιλας) is located in the middle of the west coast of Andros. The summit plateau is naturally attached to the sea by steep high cliffs. The settlement lies on the extensive plateau between 120 and 140 m high. There are safe anchorages on both sides of the cape. The landside access via a saddle was secured by a complex defense system. The location of Strofilas enabled its inhabitants to control the important metal and sea trade routes from Attica and Euboea to Sifnos and Paros .

In the immediate vicinity of the site there is a quarry with a concrete plant and the island's disorganized garbage dump; on the southern neighboring cape the settlement of Zagora from the Geometric period .

Strofilas

Archaeological excavations

In his dissertation in 1978 , Robin Barber mentions a possible Early Bronze Age site on the headland immediately north of Zagora, which members of the excavation team there had informed him about. Also with reference to Zagora, Anthi Koutsoukou reported in her dissertation in 1992 about the waterless site of Strophylas, which was exposed to the wind and waterless . Red-polished ceramics, similar to that of Kephala, as well as stalked and leaf-shaped obsidian tips were noticeable during their inspection. She suspected that there was an older wall in place of the modern dry stone wall and estimated the site in the transition area from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age. As part of a surface inspection , the archaeologist Christina Televantou examined the smaller Strófillas plateau ( Στρόφιλλας ) in autumn 1992 . Using surface finds such as stone tools, obsidian blades and ceramic shards, she was able to assign the remarkable remains to a prehistoric settlement from the late Neolithic. The remains of the densely built-up settlement have been preserved on an area of ​​around two hectares. They were covered by extensive piles of reading stones that farmers had laid out in recent years. Christina Televantou has been leading the archaeological excavations since 1998, meanwhile as a member of the 21st Ephorie for Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities (KA 'Eφορεία Προϊστορικών και Κλασικών Αρχαιοτήτων).

investment

Strofilas

The only land-based access to the fortified settlement of Strofilas was secured by a staggered system consisting of a front wall and a fortress wall with bastions. The fortification encloses on the plateau of Cape Strofilas (Ακρωτήρι Στρόφιλας) about 2.5 to 3 hectares with the settlement and an open area. The well-organized settlement consisted of spacious buildings built close together with an apsidal or rectangular floor plan. Several phases of settlement can be proven.

Attachment

On the lower part of the saddle, an approx. 80 centimeter wide front wall ( protichisma προτείχησμα) made of large worked stones with the function of an obstacle to approach connects the two steep rocky slopes of the plateau. This wall from the end of the Late Neolithic or the beginning of the End Neolithic is visible over almost its entire length and built over by a modern dry stone wall . Further south, the higher main wall runs parallel at a distance of about 15 meters. The main wall has been preserved in very good condition up to a height of 2 meters in places. An original height of 3.5 to 4 meters is assumed. The wall width varies between 1.6 and 2.5 meters, it increases in the bastions to more than 5 meters. The double-shell wall consists of large stones with a clay binder and a filling of smaller stones. A particularly strong bastion secured a gate at the western end of the wall. Two other similar bastions secured the central and western areas. In addition to the plateau with the settlement, the entire fortification also protected the expansive headland and enabled herds of animals to graze in the state of siege.

The significant difference in height between the front wall in connection with the higher main wall and the bastions represents a complex defense system. This difference in height gave the defenders a better overview and a greater range of the weapons. Due to the limited space between the walls, the attackers' freedom of movement was restricted.

The Neolithic site of Strofilas is the oldest known example of a fortification on the Aegean Islands. Due to structural similarities with later escape sites and fortified villages of the Bronze Age early Cycladic Kastri phase , it is regarded as their forerunner. Preferred locations were hill surfaces, the course of fortress walls was based on the local, topographical conditions, large boulders and rocks were included, they are viewed as an independent local South Aegean development for the defense of larger settlements.

building

The settlement was densely built with spacious buildings with apsidal or rectangular floor plans. The masonry was carefully and stably built from slabs of local stone with a high proportion of clay. The outer walls are partially preserved up to a height of one meter. Their thickness of 60 to 80 cm suggests a second floor. The floors were made of tamped earth. Presumably the buildings had flat roofs covered with stone slabs and mortar.

The oldest structure is the apsidal building 1, to which another apsidal building was connected to the northwest. The 6 m × 10 m building was divided into two rooms. Plenty of late Neolithic ceramics and other artifacts have been found in the eastern area. The fragments of a cylindrical pyxis and a marble figurine with a triangular head of the early Cycladic (FK I) Pelos-Lakkoudes culture are remarkable . In the south-western area, the apsidal building 1 was covered by a rectangular building. The 12.5 m × 13.5 m large Beta building consists of approximately 100 m² room 3 (Χώρος 3), with two smaller rooms adjoining it on the east side. In room 3 , five stone slabs are arranged regularly, they were used to hold wooden posts for the roof structure. In the southeastern area, compacted and smoothed red clay has been preserved.

The largest building is a closed hall structure, which is surrounded by the Beta building in the south and the apsidal buildings 1 and 2 in the east. This building with a floor area of ​​about 100 m² is divided into two levels. The southern part, which takes up about a third of the entire building, has a raised clay floor with a central large circular stone construction about 2 m in diameter and a stone bench along the south side. The second hall area in front of this raised floor has an area of ​​70 m². On the flat and smooth surface of the subsoil is the largest known and most complex rock art in the Aegean.

The apsidal ground plan is one of the earliest known evidence of this form in Greece. Simultaneous uses are documented from Rachmani in Thessaly and from Ftelia on Mykonos. Curvaceous or D-shaped floor plans have been demonstrated for Neolithic buildings from Chios and Rhodes. For the early Helladic epochs FH II and III, pure apsidal houses have been documented in the central regions of mainland Greece, while settlements with a circular floor plan have been documented for the simultaneous Cycladic Keros-Syros culture .

Rock art

During the excavations in Strofilas, the most extensive and earliest rock art compositions in the Aegean were uncovered. The schematic or naturalistic motifs date from the late Neolithic phase of the settlement. In total, more than 100 representations cover a total area of ​​around 200 m². The most important ones to date were discovered on the surface of the underground a little outside and on some blocks directly on the fortress wall, as well as on the rocky floor of the sanctuary inside the settlement. The majority of these pecked or carved rock art is only visible in favorable light conditions after sunrise or just before sunset. Maybe they were once colored white.

On the rock outside the main wall and in the eastern area of ​​the excavation, a very large composition takes up an area of ​​about 70 m². The motifs show the two most important activities that ensured the survival of the inhabitants of the settlements: agricultural practices, in particular animal husbandry, but also the hunting of wild animals such as deer, wolf and jackals and, in addition, their maritime activities such as fishing, trade and navigation. At least 12 ships of various types and sizes are shown, as well as numerous animals, a large fish and possibly an octopus. The depiction of an animal transport shows the importance of the formerly vegetation-rich island of Andros in the development of shipbuilding and maritime trade. These naturalistic motifs are combined with various schematic ones, such as a kind of human footprint in the shape of a figure eight, a motif that is also known from Naxos, Neolithic ring idols and small, spiral-shaped, pecked, round depressions, other symbols cannot be explained.

The main wall is decorated with main motifs around the boat at regular intervals, individually or in groups. At the central bastion, a procession of four boats seems to represent a community effort such as fishing or trading. To the east of the gate a larger boat was shown combined with a fish. The boats are oriented in the direction of the main gate and could have acted as signposts for the entrance to the settlement. Overall, the depictions of boats give indications of types of ships in the Neolithic Age. In connection with the schematic representation of the rowers, they correspond to later representations on the ship fresco at Akrotiri . The similarity of the flotilla of four ships on the central walled bastion as well as rows of ships lying one above the other, which give the impression of spatial depth, are further iconographic parallels to Akrotiri. The ship as the most common motif of the rock carvings in connection with the defensive wall underlines the close relationship of the residents of Strofilas to their maritime activities, to which they owe their growth and development and their importance as a junction on the sea routes of that time.

The curved ship type of Strofilas is unknown from early Cycladic depictions, especially on the so-called "Cycladic pans" angular ship shapes are represented. The combination of the curved ship type with Neolithic ring idols on the rock carvings of the nearby Plaka site from the early to middle Cycladic period is seen as a continuation of the Neolithic art. Similarities in the naturalistic representation of wild, domestic and marine animals go back to the late Cycladic period. From the locality Vathy on the Dodecanese -Insel Astypalea similar rock art with three rowboats and spirals are known at two access gates. The representation and selection of the scenes as well as their artistic execution show great agreement with the motifs on marble slabs from Korfi t 'Aroniou near the southeast coast of Naxos .

The largest known and most complex rock art depiction of the Aegean shows the close relationship with the sea. It is located within the settlement in the larger area of ​​the sanctuary. Irregularly distributed depressions in the rock are grouped around a large, elongated cutout on the smoothed rock surface. A large fish is shown pecked on one side of the cutout. The cutout was filled with a black substance that is believed to be the organic residue of offerings. A repeatedly repeated spiral motif made up of small, densely picked depressions seems to connect the remaining motifs. Other groups of ships, including an animal transport on the right and a water bird in the middle.

Finds

Ceramic fragments from the lower settlement layers are present in large quantities and are often very well preserved, whereas ceramics from the last settlement phase are relatively rare. From this it is concluded that the residents took their household effects with them when they gave up the settlement. The diverse vessel shapes show significant similarities to the pottery from the sites Kephala on Kea, Attica, the Argolis, the Alepotrypa cave in the Mani, Emborios on Chios, the Zas cave on Naxos and can be assigned to the Attica-Kephala culture. Large storage vessels are pithoi as well as kandila-like vessels with horizontal cord loops or handles and modeled imitations of cords, these occasionally with a zigzag course. The open shapes predominate in the bowls of different sizes, a cup-like vessel has a handle attached to the edge. The pottery is diverse. One type is monochrome, dark and often polished, the other has incised decoration filled with a white substance with various net ornaments. A small, narrow vase with a Neolithic shape already shows the differentiation between neck and body and anticipates the typical shape of early Cycladic jugs. A small number of pyxis sherds from an apse building can be attributed to the early phase of the Grotta Pelos culture.

The large number of stone implements includes grinding stones and whetstones, axes, large leaf-shaped spearheads or stalked arrowheads mainly made of obsidian, but also of flint. Fragments of stone vases testify to a high standard of stone processing. The various small objects such as bone tools, ladles made of mussels and jewelry made of various materials and seals provide information about the manual activities. Spinning whorls made of clay and bone show weaving and impressions on the underside of clay vases show basket weaving.

The hammered copper dagger with a central rib from the Beta building is one of the earliest known dagger finds in the Aegean. Three other also stratified specimens are known from the Alepotrypa Cave and the Zas Cave. Such finds show the late Neolithic-Early Bronze Age settlement character and, in combination with the secondary finds, provide new evidence of early metallurgy in the Aegean Sea. However, their precise chronological classification is problematic. A gold pearl, together with the gold foil from the Zas cave, forms the previously known gold discoveries from the Neolithic Cyclades. They are indicative of contacts with mainland regions in the Balkans, such as Varna on the Black Sea coast. Their shape resembles a silver specimen from the Alepotrypa cave.

Numerous different types of figurines are made of stone or clay. With the quality of their artistic forms, some of them are at the beginning of the Cycladic culture.

meaning

Together with Strofilas, the sites of Mikrogiali and Plaka prove the continuous development of an important culture from at least the 4th millennium BC. On Andros.

The archaeological finds of Kephala , Paoura and Agia Irini I on Kea, Agios Sostis on Sifnos, the Zas Cave on Naxos, Ftelia on Mykonos and of Vryokastro, Mikrogyali and Strofilas on Andros show a significant change in the economy from the Neolithic to the Early Bronze Age the Cyclades. This period between 4300 and 3200 BC Chr. Was shaped by technological and cultural exchange. Improvements in shipping in connection with the intensification of extensive contacts and the exchange of goods as well as specializations in handicrafts and the processing of gold, silver and copper are evidenced by the excavation results of Agios Sostis, Ftelia, the Zas cave and Strofilas.

The first suburban settlement centers with fortifications during the Early Bronze Age are documented by the excavations of Poliochni on Limnos, Thermi on Lesbos and the Heraion of Samos in the northeast and eastern Aegean. Signs of such joint efforts were previously unknown for mainland Greece and the Cyclades. A watchtower is only known from Markiani on Amorgos, which is dated to the Grotta-Pelos phase. The finds from Strofilas show that fortifications on the Cyclades were known earlier and that shipping and sea trade played an important role.

Protection and exposure

The site and the surrounding area were designated as an archaeological site in 1994. The area includes the foothills to the north and south adjoining valleys and extends about 1.5 km into the hinterland almost to the road from Korthi to the Stavropeda junction.

A limestone opencast mine has been in operation within this area since 1977 and a concrete plant since 1983. Since the closure of the plant would have had a significant impact on the island's economy, the environmental impact was investigated and conditions were sought for the continued operation of the industrial plant without damaging the site. For the investigation of vibrations, noise and air pollution control, the relevant international standards were used. During the monitoring period, winds from the north and north-east prevailed, which is why it was suggested that the camps be covered or relocated to closed facilities in order to further reduce fine dust pollution to protect the petroglyphs. The appearance of the industrial plant compared to the archaeological site was rated negatively and improvements to the visual appearance were suggested. These include backfilling the quarry, creating terraces typical of the landscape with dry stone walls, recultivation with local plant species, as well as the creation of a resting place for visitors to the archaeological site. A visual barrier consisting of trees up to 10 m high was proposed.

The island's municipalities have been operating a disordered landfill since the 1970s, and in 1980 the Cycladic Prefecture issued a permit to operate. This landfill is located within the area designated as an archaeological site, in the immediate vicinity of the quarry. According to a judgment of the State Council in 2010, the dumping of rubbish in these areas is illegal, the reason being referred to Articles 24.1 and 24.6 of the Greek Constitution .

After prolonged rainfall in February 2011, the landfill slipped and the garbage was washed into the sea. In addition to environmental pollution, it was feared that the site would be endangered. Two months later, the landfill was back in operation.

literature

• Christina Televantou: Προϊστορική Άνδρος . In: Nikolaos Stampolidis (ed.): Γενέθλιον. [Genethlion] Αναμνηστικός Τόμος για τη συμπλήρωση είκοσι χρόνων λειτουργίας του Μουσείου Κυκλαδικής Τέχνης. NP Goulandris Foundation-Museum of Cycladic Art, Athens 2006, ISBN 960-7064-64-X , pp. 1-16.
• Christina A. Televantou: Strofilas: a Neolithic Settlement on Andros . In: NJ Brodie, J. Doole, G. Gavalas, C. Renfrew (Eds.): Horizon - a colloquium on the prehistory of the Cyclades . McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, 2008, ISBN 978-1-902937-36-6 , pp. 43-53 .
• Christina Televantou: The Roots of Pictorial Art in the Cyclades: from Strophilas to Akrotiri. In: Andreas Vlachopoulos (ed.): PAINTBRUSHES. Wall-painting and vase-painting of the 2nd millennium BC in dialogue. Athens, 2013, ISBN 978-960-98269-5-2 , pp. 22-25.
• Mariya Ivanova: Fortified settlements in the Balkans, in the Aegean Sea and in Western Anatolia, approx. 5000-2000 BC Chr. Waxmann Verlag, 2008, ISBN 978-3-8309-1937-7 , pp. 315 f .
• Ourania Kouka: Diaspora, Presence or Interaction? The Cyclades and the Greek Mainland from the Final Neolithic to Early Bronze II . In: NJ Brodie, J. Doole, G. Gavalas, C. Renfrew (Eds.): Horizon - a colloquium on the prehistory of the Cyclades . McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, 2008, ISBN 978-1-902937-36-6 , pp. 311-319 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Greek Law Gazette (ΦΕΚ 434 / Β / 9.6.1994) of June 9, 1994, p. 3835
2. ↑ Kouka 2008, p. 313
3. ^ RLN Barber: The Cyclades in the middle and late Bronze Age. 1978, p. 36
4. ↑ Anthi Koutsoukou: An archaeological survey in north-western Andros, Cyclades. 1992, p. 460
5. ↑ Christina Televantou [Χριστίνα Τελεβάντου]: Archeologikon Deltion [Αρχαιολογικόν Δελτίον], Volume 49, Issue B2 (1994), Athens 1999, p. 687.
6. ↑ ^{a b} Televantou 2008, p. 45
7. ↑ Ivanova 2008, p. 120
8. ↑ Ivanova 2008, p. 193 f
9. ↑ Andros. - Strophilas, 2000 Chronique des fouilles en ligne, École française d'Athènes and British School at Athens, PDF (French)
10. ↑ Andros - Strophilas, 2011 Chronique of fouilles en ligne, French School at Athens and British School at Athens, PDF (French)
11. ↑ Televantou: Strofilas: a Neolithic Settlement on Andros. 2008, p. 46.
12. ↑ ^{a b c} Televantou: The Roots of Pictorial Art in the Cyclades: from Strophilas to Akrotiri. 2013, p. 23.
13. ↑ ^{a b c d} Televantou: Strofilas: a Neolithic Settlement on Andros. 2008, p. 47.
14. ↑ Televantou: The Roots of Pictorial Art in the Cyclades: from Strophilas to Akrotiri. 2013, pp. 23-25.
15. ↑ Andreas Vlachopoulos (Ἀνδρέας Βλαχόπουλος): Ἀνασκαφὴ στὸ Βαθὺ Ἀστυπάλαιας. In: Archaeological Society of Athens (ed.): Praktika tis en Athenais Archaiologikis Etaireias, Athens 2015. p. 121.
    Andreas Vlachopoulos (Ἀνδρέας Βλαχόπουλος): 12. Βαθὺ Ἀστυπάλαιας. In: Archaeological Society of Athens (ed.): Tο Έργον της εν Aθήναις Aρχαιολογικής Eταιρείας, 2012 Athens, pp. 73-76.
16. ↑ Televantou: Προϊστορική Άνδρος. 2006, p. 6.
17. ↑ Televantou: Strofilas: a Neolithic Settlement on Andros. 2008, p. 48f.
18. ↑ Televantou 2008, p. 51
19. ↑ Figure EFA-BSA ( Memento from December 1, 2017 in the Internet Archive )
20. ↑ Ivanova 2008, pp. 73, 89
21. ↑ Christina Televantou [Χριστίνα Τελεβάντου]: Archeologikon Deltion [Αρχαιολογικόν Δελτίον], Volume 49, Issue B2 (1994), Athens 1999, p. 687.
22. ↑ Kouka 2008, p. 313
23. ↑ Eva Alram-Stern (ed.): The Aegean Early Period. 2nd series. Research report 1975–2002 . The Early Bronze Age in Greece with the exception of Crete. Publishing house of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna 2004, ISBN 978-3-7001-3268-4 , p. 508 .
24. ↑ Dimitris Kaliampakos, Athanasios Mavrikos, Maria Menegaki: Construction industry and archeology: a land-use conflict on the island of Andros, Greece . In: International Journal of Mining, Reclamation and Environment . Vol. 25, No. 2 , June 2011, p. 152-160 .
25. ^ ^{A b} Environmental Crime in Andros: 200,000 m³ of rubbish entered the Aegean, Archipelagos Online
26. ↑ ΔΑΦΝΗ - Δίκτυο Αειφόρων Νήσων του Αιγαίου - Άνδρος PDF Online , p. 39 f (Greek)
27. ↑ ΣτΕ 293/2010 παράταση λειτουργίας ΧΑΔΑ εντός κηρυγμένου Παράνομη αρχαιολογικού χώρου .eta απόφαση του για τη ΣτΕ χωματερή ( Memento of 19 August 2014 Internet Archive ) (Greek)
28. ↑ Question for written answer to the Commission, Rule 117 of the Rules of Procedure Theodoros Skylakakis (PPE), Subject: Continued operation of the landfill on Andros