Page 43 - TINA Dergi Sayi 09

TINA

Maritime Archaeology Periodical

Turning, next, to the archaeological evidence that sur- past as the so-called ‘Agios Petros culture’ (Fig. 11).
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vived the sea level rise from the periphery of the settle- This is a unique ceramic repertory in terms of both
ment of Agios Petros, the available picture is more than Greek and Anatolian Neolithic, a blend of finely execut-
adequate. The on shore excavation revealed stone built ed decoration patterns reminiscent of weaving or fish
architectural remains (a small number of floor plans nets (Fig. 12) that undoubtedly relates to a distinct, but
of spacious rectangular and round structures) (Fig. 9), still elusive, Aegean island maritime cultural tradition
and a rich ceramic material record consisting of typical and pottery production. In addition, the figurine re-
Early Neolithic monochrome and painted ceramics (Fig. pertory of the site shows trans-regional cultural stylistic
10) similar to those found in mainland Thessaly (some influences from the Greek mainland, the Balkans, and
of them imported), as well as carinated vase shapes re- Anatolia (Fig. 13). This seems to confirm the openness
sembling examples from Central Anatolia (Hacılar VI). of the Aegean islands (‘connectivity’ if you prefer) to
The latter discovery came as a surprise, since Agios the new Neolithic world that had begun to take shape.
Petros is a small island in the middle of the Aegean. Could this be considered evidence of another indirect,
What was particularly unexpected was the presence of but strong, sign that the Aegean islands were forming
an idiosyncratic red-on-white locally produced painted a distinct geographical entity with their own Neolithic
ware that is typical of what used to be defined in the sociopolitical and economic attributes at this early date?
30 EFSTrATIOU 1985

Fig. 8: Yerleşmenin sualtında kalan bölümü; fotomozaik arkeolojik malzemelerin yoğunluğunu gösteriyor (açık renk)
Fig. 8: The area of the submerged section of the site; the photo mosaic shows concentration of archaeological materials
(in light colour)

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