OFF IN THE HILLS: EARLY NEOLITHIC TRADE NETWORKS IN CYPRUS AND THE CURIOUS CASE OF AIS GIORKIS
Channel: European Association of Archaeologists
Date: 04/11/2020

Until recently, most researchers believed that the earliest substantial human occupation of any of the Mediterranean islands occurred relatively late, during the later Neolithic. Even on islands such as Cyprus, where an aceramic Neolithic period was well-established (the Khirokitia Culture), this was more recent than contemporary mainland developments. This scenario has been rewritten with compelling evidence for pre-Neolithic occupations on islands such as Cyprus, Crete, and Naxos. Furthermore, the Neolithic on Cyprus is now as old as that of the adjacent mainlands, with both Pre-Pottery Neolithic A and B occupations that pre-date the Khirokitia Culture being well documented. The bulk of this “Neolithic Package” had to be imported from the mainland, but this generally is viewed as being economic, with limited evidence of exotic trade goods. Most of these sites are coastal, but the Cypro-PPNB site of Ais Giorkis stands out for many reasons. First, it is some 20 km from the coast, in the foothills of the Troodos Mountains. It also contains huge chipped stone and faunal assemblages, although it likely was only a seasonal settlement. Despite this, numerous exotic artifacts occur at Ais Giorkis, including imported obsidian and carnelian. Thus, even this remote upland site was involved in some sort of trade network involving mainland materials beyond food. This paper addresses the circum-Mediterranean exchange network that the Cypriot Neolithic, including Ais Giorkis, was likely associated with, examining not only the materials traded but their social implications. It also questions the concept of the sea as a barrier, since there is increasing evidence for far more regular island-mainland interaction than originally believed. Finally, there is very limited evidence that these early island groups exported materials to the mainlands; rather they appear to have only been recipients of trade goods, and reasons for this are explored.


Author(s): Simmons, Alan (Universities of Nevada, Las Vegas and Reno)