Familiar Millennia
Peace and its Correlates in the Ancient World
Jordan Adamson & Patrick Fitzsimmons
George Mason University Working Paper, November 2024
Abstract:
In this paper, we construct and analyze a database of warfare around the Mediterranean from 600 to 30 BCE. We first summarize the variation across space, time, and belligerents; documenting that battles are not a rare event statistically. Then we examine two main explanations for international peace: democracy and hegemony, using both statistical analyses and case study comparisons. We find no democratic peace among Ancient Greek city-states. We also find mixed results, both inside and outside of Greece, about how war relates to state power. Broadly, our results challenge political theories of peace and suggest more exploration of alternatives.
Shipwreck Assemblages and Network Analysis: Reconstructing the Furniture Trade in the Mediterranean Using First-Century BCE Shipwrecks
Carrie Atkins
American Journal of Archaeology, January 2025, Pages 89-118
Abstract:
Elite Romans residing in opulent villas in central Italy during the first century BCE are generally viewed as the main consumers driving the trade in luxury goods. However, evidence from shipwrecks shows this is not the full picture. This article utilizes assemblage theory and network analysis to examine relationships between luxury furniture and shipwreck assemblages in the Mediterranean in the first century BCE. It starts first with discussion of couches (klinai) and tables from five shipwrecks during this period and one from the first century CE to draw comparisons in furniture types and distribution networks. Then it examines the shared presence of objects and assemblages from other first-century BCE shipwrecks using network analysis. Viewing shipwrecks as nested sets of assemblages combines close analysis of singular wrecks with aggregate data from multiple shipwrecks in an interconnected interpretive framework. The resulting network serves as a starting point for understanding the circulation of objects and facilitating interpretation of shipwrecks, ultimately refining our view of the acquisition of luxury objects in the western Mediterranean during the first century BCE. Finding that luxury objects, such as klinai, were being shipped not only to Italy but also around the same time to the western Mediterranean shifts the focus of study from Italic consumers to wider integrated transportation networks.
The Colossal Archaic Naxian Statues in the Sanctuary of Apollo on Delos
Kenneth Alan Sheedy & Scott Pike
American Journal of Archaeology, January 2025, Pages 25-57
Abstract:
This article presents data from the stable isotope analysis of marble from five fragments of sculpture and a massive base that together are said to comprise the remains of the statue on Delos known as the Naxian Colossus. This key work in the early history of monumental Greek marble sculpture has attracted the attention of travelers since the 15th century (Buondelmonti, Cyriacus of Ancona). Plutarch's testimony that the great andrias of the Naxians was knocked down by the bronze palm tree of Nicias in a storm promoted the belief that all or some of the pieces identified with the colossus belonged to a later replacement for the original Archaic-period statue (dated ca. 600 BCE). The data from stable isotope analyses, in combination with the evidence from a recent analysis of style and proportions, now points to the conclusion that the fragments and base likely belong to at least three different archaic colossal statues. We explore the present limits in our interpretation of marble isotope analyses. We argue that this evidence is currently the best available means of understanding the highly debated inscription on the east side of the base: "I am of the same stone, statue and base."
Early human collective practices and symbolism in the Early Upper Paleolithic of Southwest Asia
Omry Barzilai et al.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 17 December 2024
Abstract:
Identifying communal rituals in the Paleolithic is of scientific importance, as it reflects the expression of collective identity and the maintenance of group cohesion. This study provides evidence indicating the practice of deep cave collective rituals in the Levant during the Early Upper Paleolithic (EUP) period. It is demonstrated that these gatherings occurred within a distinct ritual compound and were centered around an engraved object in the deepest part of Manot Cave, a pivotal EUP site in southwest Asia. The ritual compound, segregated from the living areas, encompasses a large gallery partitioned by a cluster of remarkable speleothems. Within this gallery, an engraved boulder stands out, displaying geometric signs suggesting a unique representation of a tortoise. Isotopic analysis of calcite crusts on the boulder's grooves revealed alignment with values found in speleothems from the cave dated to ~37 to 35 ka BP. Additionally, meticulous shape analysis of the grooves' cross-section and the discernible presence of microlinear scratches on the grooves' walls confirmed their anthropogenic origin. Examination of stalagmite laminae (36 ka BP) near the engraved boulder revealed a significant presence of wood ash particles within. This finding provides evidence for using fire to illuminate the dark, deep part of the cave during rituals. Acoustic tests conducted in various cave areas indicate that the ritual compound was well suited for communal gatherings, facilitating conversations, speeches, and hearing. Our results underscore the critical role of collective practices centered around a symbolic object in fostering a functional social network within the regional EUP communities.
Identification of 10,000-year-old rice beer at Shangshan in the Lower Yangzi River valley of China
Li Liu et al.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 17 December 2024
Abstract:
The origins of rice domestication and the beginnings of alcoholic fermentation in China are intriguing research topics, with the Shangshan culture in the Lower Yangzi River region being a focal point of archaeological investigations. This study employs a multiproxy approach (phytolith, starch, and fungi) to analyze microfossil remains associated with pottery vessels from the earliest phase of the Shangshan site (ca. 10,000 to 9,000 cal. BP). The results indicate that rice was consumed as a dietary staple and used for brewing fermented beverages with a qu starter containing Monascus mold and yeast as fermentation agents. The fermentation ingredients included rice, supplemented with other cereals (Job's tears, Panicoideae, and Triticeae), acorn, and lily. This rice-fungi-based multiplant brewing method marked the earliest-known alcoholic fermentation technique in East Asia. The emergence of this fermentation technology is attributable to the early development of rice domestication and the arrival of the wet-warm Holocene climate, which was favorable for fungal growth. These alcoholic beverages likely played a pivotal role in ceremonial feasting, highlighting their ritual function as a driving factor that may have stimulated the intensive utilization and widespread cultivation of rice in Neolithic China.