Site details

Vasiliko: (Malthi-Dorion)

PK	C149
TITLE	Vasiliko: (Malthi–Dorion)
WGS84	37.267028° N, 21.88245° E
Accuracy	Exact

LAT/LON	37.267028, 21.88245
LON/LAT	21.88245, 37.267028

DMS

37° 16' 1.3008" N

21° 52' 56.82" E

W3W	giants, violinist, peelers
UTM	34 S, 578242, 4124860
EGSA87	312089, 4126309

Elevation m	268
Elevation feet	879.3
Region	Messenia

GENERAL SITE TYPE Settlement

TYPE

1.    Cem.   Zavadil [2012], 572    In section: 'Gräber innerhalb der Siedlung'
2.    Settlement.   Zavadil [2012], 577    'Am Nordende des Ramovouni-Hügels, welches ein breites Plateau bildet, liegen in der Flur Malthi die Reste der einzigen, bislang komplett ausgegrabenen bronzezeitlichen Siedlung Messeniens.'
3.    Settlement.   Simpson and Dickinson [1979], 174    '...the acropolis on the N end of the Ramovouni ridge, ...'
4.    Settlement.   Boyd [2001], 176    ' ... in a large, possibly unfortified, hilltop settlement; ... '
5.    Settlement.   Ålin [1962], 76    'Die schon in mittelhelladischer Zeit mauerumgebene Siedlung auf dem Akropolishügel ... '
6.    Settlement.   Worsham et al. [2018], 7    'The settlement appears to have been ﬁrst inhabited in the second half of the Middle Helladic period.'
7.    Settlement.   Simpson [1981], 138    '"Malthi" or "Malthi-Dorion" is the name given by the excavator to the acropolis on the north end of the high limestone ridge of Ramovouni, which lies ...'
8.    settlement.   Messenia III, 141    'The floruit of the prehistoric village was quite clearly in MH ... '
9.    Settlement.   Messenia I, 233    'A large fortified acropolis with lower town and two tholos tombs ... '
10.    Wall.   Worsham et al. [2018], 9    ' ... the primary aim has been to assess the problems that surround the chronology of the settlement and the construction of the fortification wall.'

SITE SIZE

- Simpson [1981]  p. 138,  Size: 11200 sq. m.  'The area enclosed within its fortifications is about 140 m. north to south by 80 m.'

- Boyd [1999]  p. 642,  Size: 11200 sq. m.  '...encloses an area about 140m x 80m ...'

- ed rhc  p. ,  Size: 9467.5 sq. m.  Area measurement is my (RHC) own using Google Earth.

- Simpson and Dickinson [1979]  p. 174,  Size: 11200 sq. m.  '...the area enclosed within its fortification is c. 140 m. N-S by 80 m.'

PERIOD (High Chronology)

1. EH: (3100 BC - 2000 BC)
    a.    Messenia I: 234, 'Weinberg (AJA 51 [1947] 172) says there is no "EH I" and that N lasts through to "EH II" ... '
    b.    Ålin [1962]: 76, 'Besiedlung in N, FH, MH und SH Zeit wurde sicher festgestellt.'

2. EH II: (2700 BC - 2200 BC)
    a.    Zavadil [2012]: 577, 'C. Zerner datierte die älteste in Valmins Publikation abgebildete Keramik in FH II.'

3. Middle Helladic: (2000 BC - 1600 BC)
    a.    Messenia I: 234, 'The MH phase was apparently much more important than EH.', 'Weinberg (AJA 51 [1947] 172) says there is no "EH I" and that N lasts through to "EH II" ... '
    b.    Simpson [1981]: 138, 'MH LH I-IIIB LH IIIC? "PG" C'
    c.    Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: 174, '...a fortified village of integrated plan was founded, probably late in MH or even early in LH, ...'
    d.    Messenia III: 141, 'The floruit of the prehistoric village was quite clearly in MH ... '
    e.    Messenia III: 141, ' ... and it is apparently to MH that the "fortification wall" belongs.'
    f.    Ålin [1962]: 76, 'Besiedlung in N, FH, MH und SH Zeit wurde sicher festgestellt.'
    g.    Worsham et al. [2018]: 7, ' ... ﬁrst inhabited in the second half of the Middle Helladic period.'
    h.    Zavadil [2012]: 577, ' ..., aber die mittel- und späthelladische Keramiksequenz sei zur Gänze vertreten.'

4. Middle Helladic II: (1900 BC - 1700 BC)
    a.    Boyd [2001]: 177, 'The overall chronology of Malthi seems to encompass the MHII & MHIII periods, ... '
    b.    Worsham et al. [2018]: 23, ' ...: settlement in the area appears to begin as early as MH II.'

5. Middle Helladic III: (1775 BC - 1700 BC)
    a.    Boyd [2001]: 177, 'The overall chronology of Malthi seems to encompass the MHII & MHIII periods, ... '
    b.    Worsham et al. [2018]: 23, 'Very basically, then, in the MH III/LH I period, there is a breakdown of a largely kinship-negotiated social order - as represented by organic, house-centered settlements - ... '
    c.    Zavadil [2012]: 577, 'Erst in MH III - Dorion IV - wurde seiner Meinung nach die Umfassungsmauer errichtet.'

6. Late Helladic: (1700 BC - 1050 BC)
    a.    Simpson [1981]: 138, 'MH LH I-IIIB LH IIIC? "PG" C'
    b.    Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: 174, '...a fortified village of integrated plan was founded, probably late in MH or even early in LH, ...'
    c.    Ålin [1962]: 76, 'Besiedlung in N, FH, MH und SH Zeit wurde sicher festgestellt.'
    d.    Worsham et al. [2018]: 7, 'At the beginning of the Late Helladic period a fortiﬁcation was erected, ... '
    e.    Zavadil [2012]: 577, ' ..., aber die mittel- und späthelladische Keramiksequenz sei zur Gänze vertreten.'

7. Late Helladic I: (1700 BC - 1635 BC)
    a.    Boyd [2001]: 177, 'These seem to represent fairly well closed LHI (or LHI/IIA) contexts.'
    b.    Simpson [1981]: 138, 'MH LH I-IIIB LH IIIC? "PG" C'
    c.    Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: 174, 'MH LH I-IIIB LH IIIC? "PG" C'
    d.    Ålin [1962]: 77, 'SH I ist mit importierter Keramik am besten repräsentiert, ... '
    e.    Worsham et al. [2018]: 23, 'At a point in LH I, the inhabitants dug away a large amount of soil in order to found a large-scale, labor-intensive fortification wall on bedrock.', 'Very basically, then, in the MH III/LH I period, there is a breakdown of a largely kinship-negotiated social order - as represented by organic, house-centered settlements - ... '
    f.    Zavadil [2012]: 577, ' ... äußerte sich P. Mountjoy: ihrer Meinung nach wurde Malthi erst in MH III/SH I gegründet.'

8. Late Helladic II: (1635 BC - 1410 BC)
    a.    Simpson [1981]: 138, 'MH LH I-IIIB LH IIIC? "PG" C'
    b.    Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: 174, 'MH LH I-IIIB LH IIIC? "PG" C'
    c.    Ålin [1962]: 77, ' ..., SH II weniger gut, ... '

9. LH IIA: (1635 BC - 1470 BC)
    a.    Boyd [2001]: 177, 'These seem to represent fairly well closed LHI (or LHI/IIA) contexts.'

10. LH III: (1410 BC - 1060 BC)
    a.    Simpson [1981]: 138, 'which survived with few modifications into LH (III?)'
    b.    Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: 174, '...which survived with few modifications into LH (III?).'
    c.    Ålin [1962]: 76, ' ..., aus SH III stammt nur wenig Importware, dagegen viele Nachahmungen.'
    d.    Zavadil [2012]: 577, 'Anders interpretierte P. Darcque die Befunde: er nahm eine Datierung von Dorion IV in SH III an.'

11. LH IIIA: (1410 BC - 1315 BC)
    a.    Messenia I: 234, 'The tholoi are dated "just before 1300," i.e. near the beginning of LH III B.'
    b.    Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: 174, 'MH LH I-IIIB LH IIIC? "PG" C'
    c.    Boyd [2001]: 177, 'Hence I would provisionally date this grave LHIIIA.'
    d.    Ålin [1962]: 76, ' ... umfasst eine hohe Pyxis, vermutlich aus IIIA, ... '
    e.    Zavadil [2012]: 577, 'Keine Zweifel bestehen über die zeitliche Einordnung der jüngsten, von Valmin abgebildeten Keramik in SH IIIA.'

12. LH IIIA1: (1410 BC - 1375 BC)
    a.    Worsham et al. [2018]: 23, ' ..., the settlement was largely abandoned no later than LH IIIA1, ... '

13. LH IIIB: (1320 BC - 1190 BC)
    a.    Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: 174, 'MH LH I-IIIB LH IIIC? "PG" C'
    b.    Ålin [1962]: 76, 'Dieser wird dem Granary Stil zugeschreiben, er dürfte aber auch in IIIB werden können.'

14. LH IIIC: (1190 BC - 1060 BC)
    a.    Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: 174, ? 'MH LH I-IIIB LH IIIC? "PG" C'
    b.    Simpson [1981]: 138, ? 'MH LH I-IIIB LH IIIC? "PG" C'
    c.    Zavadil [2012]: 578, 'W. Coulson und B. Eder wiesen auf die mutmaßliche Existenz von in SH IIIC datierter und ... '

NOTES

1. Measuring the area inside the walls using Google Earth yields a value of 9467.5 square m.

2. Best current discussion is in Worsham et al. [2018] with very fine photos and ground plans.

rhc

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Ålin [1962]: Ålin, Per. Das Ende der mykenischen Fundstätten auf dem griechischen Festland. Carl Bloms Boktryckeri A.-B., Lund, 1962., 'Malthi', pg. 76.

2. Boyd [2001]: Boyd, Michael John. Middle Helladic And Early Mycenaean Mortuary Practices In The Southern And Western Peloponnese. 2001, '37: Málthi', pg. 176. Online here.

3. Messenia I: McDonald, William A. and Richard Hope Simpson. ‘Prehistoric Habitation in Southwestern Peloponnese’, American Journal of Archaeology. Vol. 65, No. 3 (Jul., 1961), pp. 221-260., '27. Malthi (Dorion)', pg. 233. Online here.

4. Messenia III: McDonald, William A. and Richard Hope Simpson. ‘Further Explorations in Southwestern Peloponnese: 1964-1968’, American Journal of Archaeology. Vol. 73, No. 2 (Apr., 1969), pp. 123-177., '27. Malthi (Vasiliko)', pg. 141. Online here.

5. Simpson [1981]: Simpson, Richard Hope. Mycenaean Greece. Park Ridge, New Jersey: Noyes Press, 1981., 'F 217 Vasiliko: "Malthi-Dorion"', pg. 138. Online here.

6. Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: Simpson, Richard Hope and O.T.P.K. Dickinson. A Gazetteer of Aegean Civilization in the Bronze Age, Vol. I: The Mainland and the Islands. Paul Åströms Förlag, Goteborg. 1979., 'D 222 Vasiliko: Malthi', pg. 174. Online here.

7. Worsham et al. [2018]: Worsham, Rebecca and Michael Lindblom, Claire Zidiki. ‘Preliminary report of the Malthi Archaeological Project, 2015-2016’, Opuscula; Annual of the Swedish Institutes at Athens and Rome [11], pp. 7 - 27. 2018., 'Preliminary report of the Malthi Archaeological Project,2015-2016', pg. 7. Online here.

8. Zavadil [2012]: Zavadil, Michaela. Monumenta: Studien zu mittel- und späthelladischen Gräbern in Messenien. Wien:Osterreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften Philosophisch-Historische Klasse Denkschriften. 2012., 'Siedlung', pg. 577. Online here.