Introduction
This paper reviews our current understanding of ceramic production and distribution in Cyprus during the second half of the 3rd millennium and the early 2nd millennium BCE.
It follows the recent publication (Webb & Frankel 2013a; Frankel & Webb 2014) of a Middle Bronze Age pottery workshop at Ambelikou Aletri, which has given new impetus to debates on the scale and context of pottery manufacture in Cyprus and attendant arguments about craft specialization and trade.
Given David Frankel’s many contributions to this area of research, it is also, necessarily, a review of his own ideas on these issues. These have changed considerably in recent years, serving as an example of the evolving nature of archaeological explanation.
David’s work in this area illustrates, in particular, his interest in classification and measurement and in the manipulation of complex quantitative data to determine degrees of social relationship.
He has also long been concerned with the extent to which the ways in which material is described and analyzed structure the archaeological record and predetermine explanation.
Prehistoric Bronze Age Cypriot Flasks. A Study of Regionalism and Individual Variation
Author: Cathy Carigiet
Volume: PB195
Abstract
Ceramic flasks were a small but regular component of domestic and, in particular, of cemetery assemblages during the Early and Middle Bronze Age in Cyprus. They were made in a variety of fine fabrics and decorated with incised geometric designs. Given their small size, narrow apertures and recovery in burial contexts, it is likely that they were used to store, transport and dispense small quantities of precious liquids — oils, perfumes, drugs or/and other valuable compounds — used in funerary and perhaps other ceremonies. In this volume a fully illustrated catalogue of 560 known flasks provides the basis for a thorough analysis of form, fabric and decoration, and an assessment of change through time and variability at different scales of analysis, from broad regional traditions to specific sites and workshops. Special attention is given to questions of style and recognition of the products of individual potters within a varied and complex decorative tradition, and models of production and distribution are set within changing relationships between communities and regions and across the island.
Place of publication: Nicosia
Year of publication: 2025
Number of Pages: 524
Language: English
ISBN: 978-9925-8236-0-4