Oropos and Euboea in the Early Iron Age

The volume includes 21 papers of senior and younger scholars dealing with the archaeology of Oropos and Euboea in the Early Iron Age (11th-7th centuries B.C.). These were presented at a Round Table held at the University of Thessaly in Volos in June 2004. The idea of organising the Round Table grew the summer of 2003 between the members of the archaeological teams working on the Early Iron Age sites of Oropos, Eretria and Lefkandi. Our aim was to bring together the scientific teams working at three in many ways related and extremely important Early Iron Age sites in order to discuss the numerous aspects of our respective data, and exchange ideas. Indeed, the time was ripe for such a meeting, since both the Eretria and Xeropolis excavations were -and still are- active, bringing to light new data, while several scholars, senior and younger, are working on the Early Iron Age material from these sites. At Oropos, where excavations had come to a momentary pause and work has been concentrating in the study in view of the final publication, we have recognized throughout the past years the strong connections -but also the differences- of the Geometric and Archaic settlement with the opposite Euboean coast, and with Eretria and Lefkandi in particular. Thus, the goal was not to have a Symposium aiming towards a wider public, but a specialised Workshop involving mostly the members of the above mentioned teams.
Three of the contributions deal in general with the Euboeans, nine with Oropos, seven with Eretria and two with Lefkandi. The studies concerning Oropos present an overview of the data which will be included in the final publication, which is in preparation. Since the latter will be in Greek, this volume constitutes a useful summary in English of the work accomplished up to 2006. The papers published here will doubtless contribute towards a better understanding of the material culture of the area and of Early Iron Age Greece in general.