Site details

Ambelofito: Lagou

PK	C205
TITLE	Ambelofito: Lagou
WGS84	37.05912° N, 21.694773° E
Accuracy	50 m.

LAT/LON	37.05912, 21.694773
LON/LAT	21.694773, 37.05912

DMS

37° 3' 32.832" N

21° 41' 41.1828" E

W3W	flops, lunatics, garments
UTM	34 S, 561770.69, 4101656.48
EGSA87	294884, 4103628

Elevation m	308
Elevation feet	1010.5
Region	Messenia

GENERAL SITE TYPE Settlement

TYPE

1.    Pottery.   Heath [nd],     'A small group of pottery was collected, ranging in date from MH through LH IIIB. Especially interesting is a tin-coated kylix of LH IIIA1 (921000-1).'
2.    Pottery.   Messenia III, 147    'A review of the pottery in our collection ... '
3.    settlement.   Messenia I, 237    'Probably a small unfortified agricultural center in late Mycenaean times.'
4.    settlement.   Simpson [1981], 116    'A small settlement about 100 m. in diameter ... '
5.    settlement.   Simpson and Dickinson [1979], 134    'A small site c. 100 m. in diameter, on a spur c. 1 km. NNE of Ambelofito, and c. 100 m. E of the road.'
6.    Sherds.   Messenia I, 237    'In the cut on the east side of the highway opposite the site we saw some skull and teeth bones, together with Mycenaean monochrome sherds.'
7.    Sherds.   Davis and Bennet [2017], 42    'The few artifacts were in rubble piles created (recently?) by extensive bulldozing.'
8.    Tomb.   Ålin [1962], 81    Perhaps: ' ... auch einige Scherben zusammen mit Knochen, vermutlich aus einer Bestattung.'

SITE SIZE

- Simpson and Dickinson [1979]  p. 134,  Size: 7853 sq. m.  '...c. 100 m. in diameter...'

- AJA[1961]  p. 237,  Size: 10000 sq. m.  'A flat site with a total area of ca. 100 m. by 100 m.'

- Simpson [1981]  p. 116,  Size: 7853 sq. m.  'A small settlement about 100 m. in diameter ... '

PERIOD (High Chronology)

1. Middle Helladic: (2000 BC - 1600 BC)
    a.    Heath [nd]: , 'Periods Represented (MH), MH III-LH II, LH IIIA-B, ... '
    b.    Simpson [1981]: 116, 'MH? LH IIIB'
    c.    Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: 134, 'MH? LH IIIB'
    d.    Davis and Bennet [2017]: 43, 'A small collection of pottery ranged in date from MH through LHIIIB, ...'
    e.    Messenia III: 147, ' ... was probably inhabited in MH as well as LH.'

2. Middle Helladic III: (1775 BC - 1700 BC)
    a.    Heath [nd]: , 'Periods Represented (MH), MH III-LH II, LH IIIA-B, ... '

3. Late Helladic: (1700 BC - 1050 BC)
    a.    Messenia III: 147, ' ... was probably inhabited in MH as well as LH.'

4. Late Helladic II: (1635 BC - 1410 BC)
    a.    Heath [nd]: , 'Periods Represented (MH), MH III-LH II, LH IIIA-B, ... '

5. LH IIIA: (1410 BC - 1315 BC)
    a.    Heath [nd]: , 'Periods Represented (MH), MH III-LH II, LH IIIA-B, ... '

6. LH IIIA1: (1410 BC - 1375 BC)
    a.    Davis and Bennet [2017]: 43, '..., including a tin-coated kylix of LH IIIA1 date.'

7. LH IIIB: (1320 BC - 1190 BC)
    a.    Heath [nd]: , 'Periods Represented (MH), MH III-LH II, LH IIIA-B, ... '
    b.    Simpson [1981]: 116, 'MH? LH IIIB'
    c.    Simpson and Dickinson [1979]: 134, 'MH? LH IIIB'
    d.    Davis and Bennet [2017]: 43, '...ranged in date from MH through LH IIIB, ...'
    e.    Messenia I: 237, 'In numerous stone heaps there are frgs. of LH III B undecorated kylixes.'
    f.    Ålin [1962]: 81, ' ... Fragmente von undekorierten IIIB-Kylikes ... '

NOTES

1. This is a site almost completely destroyed through terra-forming for olive cultivation.

2. This site consists of the site proper along with some finds discovered in the road scarp.

Simpson [1981] 116, F 10 says 1 km. NNE of Ambelofito and about 100 m. E of the road.
Alin [1962] 81, 'Lagou', says 1/2 km. before Ambelofito and about 100 m. W of the road.
Messenia I [1961] 237 says 1/2 km. from Ambelofito and 1 and 1/2 km. from Pyrgaki and about 100 m. E of the road.
PRAP (I21) says 850 m. N of Ambelofito and about 50 m. to the E of the road.

The place selected to be marked is 1/2 km from northern Ambelofito and almost exactly 1 and 1/2 km from Pyrgos/Pyrgaki. It is 5 degrees (185 degrees) bearing from Ambelofito. It is 309 degrees (129 degrees) bearing from the Monastery of Agios Dimitrios (F5455) which is just to the E of Chora. It is 100 km. off the road to the E. The selected location fits all these criteria (except for PRAP's) simultaneously and is probably accurate to within 30 or 40 m. This place does sit on top of a ridge that is parallel to the road and has a high position from which the terrain around Chora is easily seen. These directions place the site firmly on the E side of the road (contra Ålin who puts it on the W.)

The PRAP report has the site about 285 m. further N at approximately 37.061571°, 21.693902°. They report that little is left of the site and that they had difficulty finding it. The researcher will want to keep PRAP's position in mind but I have chosen to mark a location that accords with the majority of witnesses.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Ålin [1962]: Ålin, Per. Das Ende der mykenischen Fundstätten auf dem griechischen Festland. Carl Bloms Boktryckeri A.-B., Lund, 1962., 'Lagou', pg. 81.

2. Davis and Bennet [2017]: Davis, Jack L. and John Bennet (eds.). The Pylos Regional Archaeological Project; A Retrospective. American School of Classical Studies at Athens, 2017., 'I21 Ambelofyto Lagou', pg. 42.

3. Heath [nd]: Heath, Sebastian. PRAP Site Gazetteer, 'I21 Ambelofyto Lagou', pg. 1. Online here. 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., '40. Lagou (Ambelofito)', pg. 147. Online here.

5. 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., '40. Lagou (Ambelofito)', pg. 237. Online here.

6. Simpson [1981]: Simpson, Richard Hope. Mycenaean Greece. Park Ridge, New Jersey: Noyes Press, 1981., 'F 10 Ambelofito: Lagou', pg. 116. Online here.

7. 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 19 Ambelofito: Lagou', pg. 134. Online here.