The 2019 Bays of East Attica Regional Survey (BEARS) Project: New Archaeological Evidence for the History of Coastal Settlement, Economy, and Connectivity from Porto Rafti (Greece)

Abstract

This paper presents the findings of the inaugural season of the Bays of East Attica Regional Survey project (BEARS). The project aims to clarify the history of human activity around the bay of Porto Rafti in eastern Attica. Surface finds from Raftis Island demonstrate that it was the location of a major Late Helladic IIIC site probably linked to the cemetery at Perati, as well as of limited Late Roman occupation. The Pounta peninsula yielded a large quantity of obsidian lithics, indicating significant activity during the Final Neolithic/Early Bronze Age, with lesser quantities of material dated to the Late Helladic IIIC and Roman/Byzantine periods. At Koroni, surface finds of Late Helladic IIIC and Archaic/Classical date indicate that activity at the site predates the third-century Ptolemaic military camp excavated by American archaeologists in 1960. Overall, these survey data provide a range of new evidence and insight into the history of the Porto Rafti area and its connections to other regions of the Aegean. Methodologically, the project’s work also demonstrates the value of conducting archaeological surface survey even in areas with extensive modern development.

Documenting a maritime mercantile community through surface survey: Porto Rafti Bay in the post-collapse Aegean

“…The range of cooking vessels, including griddles, trays and tripods in many fabrics and types (Figure 3), is extraordinary, since contemporaneous twelfth century sites are usually characterised by simple cooking wares. The Raftis material more closely resembles complex cooking sets associated with elite contexts of the previous, palatial period (Murray et al 2020: 373).

Figure 3.Cooking vessels from Raftis (photographs by S. Murray).

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“…Operating under the authority of the Canadian Institute in Greece, with the permission of the Ephorate of Antiquities of East Attica, the project has conducted three seasons of intensive surface survey since 2019. The methods and a description of finds from the 2019 season were published in a preliminary report (Murray et al 2020). Here, we present a summary and first interpretation of evidence from the post-palatial period on Raftis and Praso Islands, documentation of which was completed in 2021 and 2022 (Figure 2).…”

Attic Deme Harbours, the Rural Economy, and State Oversight of Maritime Trade

“…Note that what follows is intended only to serve the immediate argument, and makes no pretence at being a comprehensive study of deme harbours or the integration of Attic farming and maritime trade, a subject that requires a lengthy dedicated study by a suitably qualified archaeologist. 43 An outlet for the rich Mesogaia district that avoided crossing or skirting the Hymettos range by road; Murray et al, 2020. [92] Literary sources provide key evidence too. Pseudo-Scylax (Periplous §57) mentions no fewer than seven Attic harbours: one at Salamis, three at Piraeus, one at Anaphlystos, and two at Thorikos; and he also mentions that 'there are many other harbours in Attica'.…”

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“…3.25 ), making evident the diachronic nature of habitation in the Porto Rafti area; finds ranged from the Final Neolithic to the Byzantine periods. According to Murray and Pratt (2021), the diachronic diversity of archaeological finds from Praso stands out within the archaeology of Porto Rafti, since most known sites around the bay show intensive use only in one or two periods. The survey on Praso represents a significant contribution for understanding the islet’s true archaeological significance.…”

“…3.26 ), fragmentary terracotta anthropomorphic and zoomorphic Bronze Age figurines ( Fig. 3.27 ), pyramidal loom weights and spindle whorls, glass vessel fragments, and large quantities of material associated with both ceramic (pottery and tile) and metallurgical production’ were found (Murray and Pratt 2021). These moveable finds from Praso highlight the human occupation of the islet across different periods.…”