Skarkos 2001 Overview

THE SITE OF SKARKOS ON THE ISLAND OF IOS:
THROWING LIGHT ON THE DARK ASPECTS
OF BRONZE AGE CYCLADIC ARCHAEOLOGY
Marisa E. Marthari

The excavation on the hill of Skarkos on the island of Ios (excavation periods 1986 to 1995) recovered (a) part of an Early Bronze Age settlement in an extraordinary good state of preservation (two storeyed buildings, walls 4m high) and (b) a late Middle%arly Late Bronze Age cemetery on top of it.

The Early Bronze Age settlement is a privileged one, situated on a hill in the middle of the west side of the island of Ios, beside one of the safest and most spacious sheltered harbors in the Cyclades and the most extensive arable lands on Ios. It has a concentrically organised town plan, wide streets and squares and stone-built rectangular, two-storied, buildings. The buildings bear witness to an agglomerative manner of construction. The settlement was enlarged by the construction of new buildings which were added to preexisting ones. In this manner were created large architectural complexes or insulae whose individual houses were independent from each other, separated by double walls between them. The buildings are quite sophisticated for the 3rd millennium Aegean. Most of them have upper storeys the access to which was provided by means of stone-built exterior stairs.
The abundant movable finds are very interesting and in combination with the architectural remains give a picture of the function of the rooms of the buildings. Each house includes spaces for special activities such as cooking areas on the ground floor and/or the adjacent court, and rooms for agricultural and pottery storage on the upper floor. Many of the artefacts were not attested in the Cyclades until the excavation on Skarkos.

The majority of the pottery belongs to local fabric groups. The more characteristic forms of fine wares are the sauceboat and the saucer. Very interesting is the great variety of household coarse wares. As yet, very little is known about these wares of the Early Cycladic period. Potters' marks and matt impressions on the bottoms are common features of Skarkos vases. There is, also, a considerable number of imported wares. They are imports from Thera, Melos and, in some instances, from Mainland Greece, namely from East Attica or Argolid-Corinthia. Terracotta artefacts such as spindle whorls and pierced disc-shaped objects made of sherds were found at the site. A series of oblong objects pierced by two holes are of particular interest. Some of them have a circular seal-impression in the center of their upper flat side. Their designs resemble the sealings from Lerna and contemporary seals from Crete.

A great variety of stone artefacts (circular lids or stands for vessels, palettes, mortars, querns, various implements), mostly made of schist, gneiss and marble have been uncovered at Skarkos. Obsidian technology was also well-developed. A considerable number of small schematic marble figurines have come to light. Pointed bone tools as well as bone tubes, either undecorated or with incised patterns were found in the settlement. Examples of lead and bronze objects are few.

Another area to which Skarkos excavation offers valuable evidence is the subsistence economy. Agriculture (cultivation of cerials and pulses) and pastoralism (raising of sheep and goats) played an important role in the economy according to the plant and animal remains. It appears that Skarkos was selfsufficient in terms of food. However, there is evidence that the site participated in EBA exchange networks and had developed connections with sites on other Cycladic islands, Mainland Greece and other parts of the Aegean. The evidence suggest the existence of internal organization and social ranking within the Skarkos community. Some of the houses are larger and more complex than others. Craft specialization existed in the settlement. In some instances a statement of ownership or personal identity was necessary, as we see in the vessels bearing potters' marks and the seal-impressed oblong terracotta objects.