Traditions and innovations during the 12th-to-11th century BC

Abstract

The transition from the 12th to the 11th c. BC in Cyprus constitutes a watershed, that marks the close of the Late Bronze Age and the inception of the Early Iron Age in conventional Cypriot terminology. This transformative phase remains poorly known and ill defined, not least because of the remarkable dearth of stratified settlement strata exposed to this day on the island. Recent investigations by the French Archaeological Mission at Kition, within the locality of Bamboula, have brought to light a continuous stratigraphic succession of floor layers spanning from the 13th to the 11th c. BC, thus marking an exceptional instance on an island-wide basis. The aim of this contribution is to provide a comprehensive presentation of the stratigraphic, architectural and artefactual remains exposed at Kition-Bamboula that provide crucial new data for the transitional 12th-to-11th c. BC horizon. In particular, through the contextual analysis of well-stratified pottery remains, the study aims to discuss the transformations observed on the island's ceramic repertoire and especially as regards the impact of the largescale adoption of wheel-made technology for the production of ceramic finewares. The study will also elucidate the extra-insular connections maintained by the cosmopolitan harbour town at Kition, based on the analysis of the plethora of imported commercial jars contained within the settlement's pertinent levels. Finally, this contribution will discuss a series of idiosyncratic phenomena, such as infant jar-burials and purple-dye production, dating to the settlement's transitional phases of the 12th and 11th c. BC. Ultimately, our contribution aspires to shed light on the continuities and innovations characterising the Cypriot material culture and the transformative capacities of the island's communities at the dawn of the Early Iron Age. Résumé. La transition du xiie au xi e siècle av. J.-C. marque le passage du Bronze Récent au début de l'âge du Fer à Chypre. C'est une phase de transformations à l'échelle de l'île mais qui reste mal connue et mal définie, notamment en l'absence de découverte de niveaux d'habitat. Les fouilles récentes de la mission archéologique française de Kition sur le site de Bamboula ont mis au jour une séquence stratigraphique continue du xiii e au xi e siècle, ce qui constitue un cas exceptionnel sur l'île. Cette contribution vise à présenter les vestiges stratigraphiques et architecturaux ainsi que le mobilier associé de Kition-Bamboula qui fournissent de nouvelles données concernant la phase de transition des xii e -xi e siècles av. J.-C. En particulier, l'analyse contextuelle du mobilier céramique stratifié permet de dresser le tableau des modifications qui affectent le répertoire 14