Testo italiano dell'abstract...

The paper is an integral analysis (etymological, linguistic and comparative) of the monumental Tyrsenian iscription found in the area of the Archaic shrine, near the theatre, in Hephaestia, on the island of Lemnos.

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The peculiar archaeological evidence relating to the Late Bronze Age inhabited area of Hephaestia , on the island of Lemnos, authorizes the formulation of new interpretative reflections on the possible dynamics of contact and cultural interaction that took place in this historical phase between the island and the other settlements stationed in the northern Aegean, and beyond. The centrality of the island concerning the geographical area is also decisive in the structuring of maritime routes to and from the Gulf of Pagase on the one hand, and for the Dardanelles area on the other, passing through the Peninsula Chalkidiki, Thrace and the facing islands of Samothrace, Thasos and Imbros. This role could be at the basis of the emergence of specific interests, perhaps promoted by groups of Helladic matrix, which would authorize the reconstruction of a much more oriented and less hybridized historical and cultural framework than the one that was led to consider based on the past research.

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The aim of this paper is to reconstruct the context of interactions and commercial exchanges in the North Aegean at the beginning of the Early Iron Age and to place Lemnos in the Northern Aegean koine. The pottery presented in this paper comes from excavations carried out at Hephaestia, in Lemnos, by the Italian Archaeological School at Athens, directed by E. Greco. The range of Grey Ware shapes is very ample and their exact comparison to other context was not an easy task because they were locally produced. Even if we have no evidence of a pottery kiln, in fact, the analysis demonstrated that it was made in Lemnos. The excavations offered the possibility to prove a continuous occupation of the site after the abandonment of the Prehistoric settlements. The Early Iron Age settlements and burial places, however, are not yet found. Probably Lemnos was considered an intermediate step for sea routes from the mainland Greece to the Anatolian coast, plausibly in search of metals. In our context there are no imported vases except for the fragments of Protogeometric amphorae. They are the clue of a continuity of trade in that period. Probably the Euboean had an important rule in that context.

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I return here to address the two key archaeological contexts, which document the culture of the Archaic period of Hephaestia: the acropolis and the necropolis. The archaeological record between the second half/end of the 8th and the end of the 6th century BC, reflects the great social transformations that throughout the Greek world accompanied the birth of the polis through the transition from structures with pre-political characteristics to forms of shared government, of an aristocratic and associative type: during this process, abruptly interrupted in Hephaestia around 500 BC, the adoption of certain cults and religious practices at the community level was decisive, becoming an identity reference for the entire community.

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Anaktora or sacella? Dinu Adamesteanu asked himself in 1955, proposing a question that is still in vogue. An anthropological approach, not only limited to the standards of Classical archeology, is able to contextualize the archaeological evidence within the coordinates of an Archaic society (not Hellenic, even if ’Hellenized’) in which the residence of the anax integrates the political, legal and religious functions.

Testo italiano dell'abstract...

In recent years the Italian Archaeological School of Athens has directed the exploration of a large Archaic building in the southern area of the city of Hephaestia in Lemnos. In particular, the excavation work revealed the remains of five regular-planed rooms, preserved for a total area of about 300 m2. It is a monumental context of considerable interest for the richness and variety of the finds (fine pottery, table ware and cooking ware; storage container; ritual objects including numerous bronze arrows), used until the beginning of the 5th century BC and almost certainly intended for sharing ritual meals.

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The study focuses on the relationship between the historical traditions concerning the Tyrrhenians of Lemnos and the ’Tyrrhenian’ inscriptions found on the island. The main points of the discussion can be summarised as follows: 1) the ethnonym tyrrhenos originates in the Northwestern Aegean and its reference to the Etruscans is due to the Greeks at the time of the first colonial contacts; 2) since the label tyrrhenos is a heteronym for the Etruscans, the historical tradition on the Tyrrhenians of Lemnos cannot be used to validate the ’Etruscan’ origin of the non-Hellenic Archaic inscriptions found on the island. As C. De Simone and L. Agostiniani, epigraphs such as the stele of Kaminia and the inscription found in the theatre of Ephestia testify to a dialect closely convergent with the Etruscan language, reflecting a variety much older than it. At the same time, the historical significance of this relationship remains open, also due to the lack of Etruscan materials in Lemnos. The study concludes by pointing out that in ancient sources Lemnos shares the same name with the island of Elba as Aithalia (the “smoky island”): a fact that, according to L. Breglia, depends on a very early Etruscan reception of the myth of the Argonauts, part of whose journey is set in the Tyrrhenian Sea. This relationship could be at the basis of the affinity between the inhabitants of Lemnos and the Etruscans documented in the sources through the common designation with the heteronym Tyrrhenoi.

Testo italiano dell'abstract...

The study area is located on the northeastern coast of Lemnos Island (North Aegean Sea). It covers the archaeological settlement of Hephaestia located in the Purnia Gulf and the coastal area of Alyki Lagoon. Reconstruction of the palaeogeography used palaeoenvironment data delivered from foraminifera and sea-level changes, providing archeological data about the presence of a potential harbour in the area. Geomorphological mapping as well as sedimentological and micropalaeontological studies of the Holocene coastal deposits were conducted.

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The analysis of the necropolis at Hephaistia on Lemnos, investigated by the Italian Archaeological School at Athens between 1926 and 1929, contributes to the definition of the colonial history of the island and to the understanding of its population in the Late Archaic and Classical periods. According to literary sources, the island was conquered by the Athenian general Miltiades and the local ’Tyrrhenian’ population was expelled and scattered to the Chersonese. The chronology of the conquest, the characteristics and the composition of the Athenian contingent, and the dynamics of interaction between Indigenous people and Athenian settlers have been much discussed. In this contribution, these issues will be examined in light of funerary rituals as revealed in the necropolis of Hephaistia.

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The conquest of Miltiades causes a strong discontinuity of Lemnos: in the passage from the 6th to the 5th century. BC, signs of a sudden caesura can be seen in Hephaestia. The Athenian takeover of the island is highlighted by an Athenian casualty list from Hephaestia from the beginning of the 5th century BC, by the violent destruction of the sanctuaries of Efestia and Chloi, which took place in the early years of the 5th century BC, by the necropolis and by a new urban layout per strigas. The main sanctuaries of the Athenian colony, on the other hand, were located in the same spaces in which they were in the Archaic age, and even the ritual practices and cults, albeit with rearrangements and transformations, show forms of continuity with the Archaic age. However, the topography and characteristics of the sanctuaries also show a close relationship with the Athenian cultic policy which took shape in the 5th century BC in the agora of Kerameikos.

Testo italiano dell'abstract...

The baths at Hephaistia on the island of Lemnos were discovered in 1927. Since then they have never been investigated in a systematic fashion, except for some excavations in 1937 and again in 2002/2003-2010 and 2016. The Hellenistic building is situated in a level area up against a retaining wall in opus quadratum which considerably restricted the planning of the complex. The baths were probably linked to the road running uphill into the city via a ramp, but there was probably also direct access from the port area. Two construction phases can be identified within the building. The most important remains from the bath complex are the terracotta bathtubs which were moved in the later phase into the courtyard and an opus segmentatum floor which was part of the original space dedicated to activities relating to bathing.

Testo italiano dell'abstract...

The coin finds from Hephaestia are discussed, taking into account the specific context of provenance within the topographical grid of the ancient city. The analysis of coins found in the course of the excavations performed by the Italian Archaeological School at Athens and the Department of Archaeology and History of Arts of Siena’s University is completed by an overview of the testimonies of coin finds coming from older excavations in the ancient site of Hephaestia. The coins testify the predominance of local issues, accompanied by those struck in Myrina and those coming from neighboring regions. Circulation of Athenian coins is also attested, witnessing the close relations between the “mother city” and its possessions abroad.