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Ελληνικά
Trent University, Canada; University College London, UK; Greek Archaeological Service (26th EPKA)
under the aegis of the Canadian Institute in Greece and the Hellenic Ministry of Culture
Stone Artefacts

Nearly two thousand worked stone artefacts have been recovered during our tractwalking and grid square collections. Interestingly, groundstone tools such as quernstones were fairly rare finds despite careful efforts to recover them. The entirely limestone geology of Antikythera precludes any good local source for such tools and it may that such items were careful curated as a result.

Chert and obisidan artefacts
Local chert and imported Melian obsidian artefacts. Photography by J. Conolly and A. Bevan.

In contrast, the knapped stone assemblage is far more impressive. The earliest material seems to be of Late Neolithic date, including barb-and-tang projectile points and percussion flaked micro-cores. Final Neolithic and Early Bronze Age evidence is also abundant with a range of prismatic blades, blade cores and serated obisidian projectile points. Some of this material is associated with Final Neolithic to Early Bronze Age pottery and suggests more prolonged or repeated episodes of occupation, but many of these are in areas that would have been less favourable for agriculture, raising important questions about the seasonality, permanence and purpose of early human activity on the island. In line with this perhaps, is the striking number of projectile points that probably indicate the popularity of the island as a destination for hunters. Local white chert was being used in a relatively systematic manner for a range of tools inlcuding projectiles, but there is also a surprising amount of Melian obsidian for such a small island including a large Early Bronze Age blade core and many projectiles. Evidence for later Middle and Late Bronze Age use of knapped stone tools is far more limited.