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Abstract
Excavations at the small Chalcolithic site of Politiko-Kokkinorotsos in central Cyprus show that it was occupied around 2880–2670 cal bc. Fallow deer (Dama mesopotamica) form the major component of the substantial faunal assemblage. The structure of the animal population suggests a seasonal hunting site, an interpretation consistent with the lack of formal architecture and the range of stone tools. In this study, independent odontochronological analyses of deer and caprine are used to test and confirm the model of seasonal culling in spring and summer based on more general indicators. The results suggest a pattern of varied, specialized site-types and activities in different parts of the island and in different ecological zones, and add considerably to our understanding of cultural systems on the island in the early third millennium bc.
Les fouilles du petit site chalcolithique de Politiko-Kokkinorotsos en Chypre centrale ont montré qu'il était occupé autour de 2880–2670 cal bc. Le daim (Dama Mesopotamica) constitue la majeure partie de l'important inventaire faunistique. La structure de la population animale indique qu'il s'agit d'un site de chasse saisonnier, interprétation en accord avec l'absence d'architecture formelle et avec la gamme d'outils lithiques. Dans cet article, on utilise des analyses odontochronologiques objectives de cervidés et de capridés afin d’évaluer et de confirmer le modèle d'abattage saisonnier de cervidés au printemps et en été, modèle basé sur des indicateurs plus généraux. Les résultats suggèrent un schéma d'activités et de types de sites variés et spécialisés dans différentes parties de l’île et dans différentes zones écologiques, et contribuent considérablement à notre compréhension des systèmes culturels de l’île au début du 3e millénaire bc. Translation by Isabelle Gerges.
Ausgrabungen des kleinen chalkolithischen Fundplatzes Politiko-Kokkinorotsos in Zentralzypern zeigen, dass er etwa zwischen 2880 und 2670 cal bc besiedelt war. Der Damhirsch (Dama mesopotamica) bildet dabei die Hauptkomponente des umfangreichen Fauneninventars. Die Struktur der Tierpopulation legt nahe, dass es sich um einen saisonalen Jagdplatz gehandelt hat – eine Interpretation, die mit einem Fehlen regulärer Architektur und der Typenspanne des lithischen Inventars übereinstimmt. In diesem Beitrag werden unabhängige Analysen des jährlichen Zuwachses von Zahnzement und Dentin (Odontochronologie) von Hirschen und Ziegen genutzt, um das Modell einer jahreszeitlichen Schlachtung im Frühjahr und Sommer, das auf verschiedenen allgemeineren Indikatoren beruht, zu überprüfen und zu bestätigen. Die Ergebnisse deuten auf eine Struktur von verschiedenartigen, spezialisierten Fundplatztypen und Aktivitäten in bestimmten Teilen der Insel und verschiedenen ökologischen Zonen hin und tragen so wesentlich zu unserem Verständnis der kulturellen Systeme der Insel im frühen 3. Jt. v. Chr. bei. Translation by Heiner Schwarzberg.
Acknowledgements
We are grateful to Paul Croft for his invaluable analyses of the faunal assemblage from Kokkinorotsos and for his help in selecting and arranging the export of the teeth from Cyprus. Dr Maria Hadjicosti, then Director of the Cyprus Museum, made this possible. We are grateful to Robin Skeates and two anonymous referees for their perceptive comments on this study. Funding for this research was provided by the Australian Research Council and by the Archaeology Program, La Trobe University.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
David Frankel
David Frankel studied archaeology at the University of Sydney and at Gothenburg University in Sweden. He has been teaching archaeology at La Trobe University in Melbourne since 1978. Prior to this, he worked as a Researcher at the Department of Western Asiatic Antiquities in the British Museum. His research interests include Australian Indigenous archaeology with particular reference to south-eastern Australia and the archaeology of Bronze Age Cyprus, where he has carried out major excavation projects at Marki-Alonia, Deneia, and Politiko-Kokkinorotsos. He is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities and of the Society of Antiquaries of London and joint Editor-in-Chief of the monograph series, Studies in Mediterranean Archaeology.
Address: Archaeology Department, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria 3086, Australia. [email: [email protected]]
Jennifer M. Webb
Jennifer Webb studied Classics and Ancient History at the University of Melbourne, completing a PhD on the archaeology of ritual in Late Bronze Age Cyprus in 1988. She has worked on numerous excavations in Cyprus and co-directed those at Marki-Alonia, Deneia, and Politiko-Kokkinorotsos. Her research interests centre on the Early and Middle Bronze Age. She is currently a Charles La Trobe Research Fellow in the Archaeology Program at La Trobe University and is the author or co-author of 13 books and numerous papers. She is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities and of the Society of Antiquaries of London and joint Editor-in-Chief of the monograph series, Studies in Mediterranean Archaeology.
Address: Archaeology Department, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria 3086, Australia. [email: [email protected]]
Anne Pike-Tay
Anne Pike-Tay is Professor of Anthropology at Vassar College in New York, where she has taught since 1990. She holds a PhD, MPhil, and MA in Anthropology (Archaeology) from New York University and has worked as a zooarchaeologist specializing in seasonality studies on Middle and Upper Palaeolithic sites in Europe, Late Pleistocene sites in Australia, and Neolithic sites in Europe and China. She is the author, co-author, and/or editor of four books and numerous scholarly articles.
Address: Anthropology Department, Vassar College, 124 Raymond Avenue, Box 701, Poughkeepsie, NY 12604–0701, USA. [email: [email protected]]