부산대학교 도서관

This paper traces the development of structured intersite relations in the Argolid during the Iron Age. Archaeological and historical evidence for the development of the principal communities around the Argive plain is summarized. It is argued that the sack of Asine ca. 710 B.C., and the establishment of the Argive Heraion on the fringes of Argive territory indicate the eighth-century origins of the Argive hegemony, historically attested during the Archaic and Classical periods. Developments in the organization of cult mirror this situation. To trace its origins, ceramic style is examined as an index of site interaction. Argive fineware has long been regarded as a coherent style, yet variation in fabric and design suggest a pattern of local production with stylistic variation reflecting group identity. Investigation of the relationship between pottery and other categories of artifacts, and the nature of competitive interaction between sites and the structure of intra-community relations, reveals the social function of ceramic style. Changes in the strenght of intersite relations over time are assessed by analysis of the structure and content of fineware design. The relationship between stylistic similarity and distance is assessed, both to aid in understanding the role of ceramic style in the Iron Age Argolid, and also to identify distinctive patterns of interaction between sites and through time. Interaction zones are identified, and it is argued the new information about the prolonged independence of Mycenae and the close connections of Asine with the communities of the plain makes Argive aggression in the late eighth century more comprehensible. The value of considering Early Iron Age evidence is emphasized as a counter to the eighth-century focus of most studies of state formation. Rather than using stylistic analysis to test expectations formulated on the basis of existing knowledge of regional development, we examine the interaction of archaeological and historical data and stress the role of material culture as an independence source of information.