MINOANISATION AND MYCENAEANISATION THROUGH THE MORTUARY LENS
Channel: European Association of Archaeologists
Date: 2020-12-18

The second millennium BC in the Aegean is marked by episodes of intensifying connectivity and the development of a differentially shared vocabulary of material culture and practices – often referred via the modern terms Minoanisation and Mycenaeanisation. This paper seeks to highlight the many advantages that funerary evidence has to offer in unpacking some of these complex processes of cultural affiliation. The funerary sphere presents a complex, contextually-rich dataset of cross- cutting variables – cemetery organisation, tomb form and architecture, burial assemblages, and wider burial practices – that permits us to trace past social interactions and in sufficient sample sizes to capture a sense of inter-regional, inter- settlement and even intra-settlement variability. As tombs were opened and accessible only for a restricted time, during the burial and funerary rituals, cultural transmission, particularly in terms of the internal configuration of the tomb, would only have occurred under specific social circumstances that suggest close social interaction. Equally important is the role of funerals in bringing together a large number of individuals from more dispersed social groupings, in fostering a sense of common belonging, and in redefining and restructuring the identities and social relationships between individuals and groups. A detailed analysis of tombs and burial assemblages across sites of the southern Aegean – focusing on Crete, Kythera and the Peloponnese from c. 1850-1350 BC – is shown to be effective in informing about social groups, human mobility, interaction, and the selective acceptance and rejection of cultural influences, that marked the processes of Minoanisation and Mycenaeanisation.


Author(s): Ichim, Cristina (University College London)