Rillenkarren at Vayia: geomorphology and a new class of Early Bronze Age fortified settlement in Southern Greece.

Rillenkarren at Vayia: geomorphology and a new class of Early Bronze Age fortified settlement in Southern Greece. Introduction The investigation of two newly discovered fortified fortified (fôrt´fīd),adj containing additives more potent than the principal ingredient. sites, Vayiaand Vassa in southern Greece, contributes to a number of importantissues in archaeology in general and Aegean prehistory prehistory,period of human evolution before writing was invented and records kept. The term was coined by Daniel Wilson in 1851. It is followed by protohistory, the period for which we have some records but must still rely largely on archaeological evidence to in particular.Surveys in regions dominated by karstic limestone lithology li��thol��o��gy?n.1. The gross physical character of a rock or rock formation.2. The microscopic study, description, and classification of rock. oftenencounter substantial stone-built structures with limited artefactual adj. 1. of or pertaining to an artefact.2. made by human actions.Adj. 1. artefactual - of or relating to artifactsartifactual evidence for their date. The investigation of Vayia, employing amethodology that closely integrates archaeology and geomorphology geomorphology,study of the origin and evolution of the earth's landforms, both on the continents and within the ocean basins. It is concerned with the internal geologic processes of the earth's crust, such as tectonic activity and volcanism that constructs new ,points to ways that surface remains in karstic landscapes may be morereadily dated, even with limited associated artefactual material. Vayia and Vassa belong to the Early Bronze II (EB II) phase of theEarly Bronze Age Bronze Age,period in the development of technology when metals were first used regularly in the manufacture of tools and weapons. Pure copper and bronze, an alloy of copper and tin, were used indiscriminately at first; this early period is sometimes called the (EBM EBM Evidence-Based MedicineEBM Electronic Body MusicEBM ecosystem-based managementEBM Evidence Based Medical (statistics)EBM Environmentally Benign ManufacturingEBM Expressed Breast MilkEBM Executive Board Meeting of Greece and the Aegean (Figures 1 and 2), a timeof increasing social complexity, seen in the emergence of chiefdoms,intense interregional in��ter��re��gion��al?adj.Of, involving, or connecting two or more regions: interregional migration; interregional banking.interaction characterised by a burgeoning'international spirit' (Renfrew 1972:451-5) and increasedcompetition as demonstrated in the appearance of fortifications at manysites. Exotic items with presumably pre��sum��a��ble?adj.That can be presumed or taken for granted; reasonable as a supposition: presumable causes of the disaster. high social value, including bronzedaggers and tools, metal jewellery, fine drinking and pouring vessels ofmetal and ceramic and marble vessels and figurines, circulated among thecoasts and islands of the Aegean Sea Aegean Sea,Gr. Aigaion Pelagos, Turkish Ege Denizi, arm of the Mediterranean Sea, c.400 mi (640 km) long and 200 mi (320 km) wide, off SE Europe between Greece and Turkey; Crete and Rhodes mark its southern limit. . The relatively undifferentiatedpattern of small farmsteads and hamlets in the preceding EB I period wastransformed by a striking expansion of settlement and the appearance oflarge settlements, particularly at coastal locations well situated formaritime activity (Figure 1; Broodbank 2000: 279-87; Konsola 1986;Pullen 2003). At many of these larger centres, truly monumentalconstructions appeared in the final two to three centuries of EB II.Monumental 'corridor houses' with long passages flanking theinternal rooms are found on the Greek mainland and on the island ofAegina (Figure 3). These houses have been variously interpreted aspalaces, administrative centres, residences of prominent families orlineages or even hotels or meeting halls for traders (Felten 1986;Pullen 1986; Shaw 1987; Wiencke 1989; Weingarten 1997; Nilsson 2004). Inlater EB II, enclosures and fortification fortification,system of defense structures for protection from enemy attacks. Fortification developed along two general lines: permanent sites built in peacetime, and emplacements and obstacles hastily constructed in the field in time of war. walls surrounded some majorsettlements as well as smaller farmsteads or hamlets (Figure 3). Thereis considerable variability in their construction: some were little morethan thin lines of field stones, while others incorporated elaboratesemicircular or horseshoe-shaped bastions, double rings of fortificationwalls and other defensive features (Figure 4). The new threat thatprompted increasing investment in defence has not been adequatelyexplained, nor whether the decrease in number of mainland settlements ofthe subsequent EB III period is to be attributed to this threat, butevidence for warfare at some level can be inferred from the large numberof copper and bronze daggers and spearpoints, sling-stones around thefortification walls at a few sites, and the arrival of the menacinglongboat in the Cycladic Islands (Branigan 1999; Doumas 1990). It is tothis vigorous and apparently turbulent world that Vayia and Vassabelong. [FIGURES 1-4 OMITTED] Vayia The site of Vayia was discovered in the late 1990s by means of aGIS-based probability model that has been described elsewhere (Rothauset al. 2003; Tartaron et al. 2003), and investigated in 2002 by theEastern Korinthia Archaeological Survey (Tartaron et al. in press)through intensive surface survey, mapping and documentation of thearchitectural remains. Artefacts and features are spread overapproximately 3ha on the top of a long ridge that extends north into theSaronic Gulf Saronic Gulf(sərŏ`nĭk), arm of the Aegean Sea, indenting SE Greece and separated from the Gulf of Corinth by the Isthmus of Corinth. The Saronic Gulf is the eastern terminus of the Corinth Canal, which cuts across the isthmus. , overlooking natural harbours to the east and west (Figures5 and 6). The western harbour, Lychnari, was sheltered and well suitedto Bronze Age maritime activity. Vayia's rugged terrain may becharacterised as a karstic limestone landscape, with associatederosional features and thin, stony soil preserved amidst widespreadexposures of bedrock. The settlement area lies between 80 and 86m asl,and the sides of the ridge drop precipitously towards the Gulf,furnishing Vayia with a first line of natural defence from attack bysea. The artefacts--pottery, ground and flaked stone--indicate that thepromontory promontory/prom��on��to��ry/ (prom��on-tor?e) a projecting process or eminence. prom��on��to��ryn.A projecting part.promontorya projecting process or eminence. was most extensively settled in the Early Bronze Age, withsmaller occupations in the Late Bronze (Mycenaean),Classical/Hellenistic and early modern periods. [FIGURES 5-6 OMITTED] The modern surface at Vayia is littered with stone architecturalremains and terrace walls, many moved from their original locations orotherwise disturbed, amidst a patchy growth of abandoned olive grovesand denser thickets of maquis vegetation. As a result, the architecturalplans and phases were not readily apparent until we undertook atopographical survey, from which it emerged that four types ofarchitectural remains are present: relatively well-built squarestructures that we determined to be of early modern date; large heaps orpiles of stone rubble, some recognisable as 'cairns'; linearpiles of stones; and the foundations of small architectural structures(probably rooms and houses) within the area defined by the cairns. Wesoon recognised that the linear piles of stone and many of the cairnstogether formed an enclosure around the approximately 1ha core of thesettlement (Figure 7), the linear stone features serving as wallsconnecting the cairns, which may be interpreted provisionally asbastions or towers (Figure 8). Several cairns are free-standing andlocated outside the fortification wall, however, and it is not possibleto reconstruct them as elements in a defensive system. [FIGURES 7-8 OMITTED] The cairns were created by stacking unworked cobbles cob��ble?1?n.1. A cobblestone.2. Geology A rock fragment between 64 and 256 millimeters in diameter, especially one that has been naturally rounded.3. cobbles See cob coal.tr. and bouldersof the limestone that mantles the site and its environs (Figure 9). Somecairns are well over 5m in diameter and 3-4m high, and few haveidentifiable characteristics, apart from a small central depression.Their original shape may have been rounded, square or rectangular, buttoday they have a more amorphous appearance as a result of collapse.Close examination revealed that the cores of the cairns contain someamount of earth and broken artefacts, along with post-depositionalaccumulation of aeolian Ae��o��li��an?adj.1. Of or relating to Aeolis or its people or culture.2. Greek Mythology Of or relating to Aeolus.3. aeolian Variant of eolian.n.1. (wind-transported) sediments in the intersticesbetween stones. Nearly all stones show traces of calcium carbonate calcium carbonate,CaCO3, white chemical compound that is the most common nonsiliceous mineral. It occurs in two crystal forms: calcite, which is hexagonal, and aragonite, which is rhombohedral. (CaC[O.sub.3]) accretion, a significant feature for geomorphological ge��o��mor��phol��o��gy?n.The study of the evolution and configuration of landforms.geo��mor characterisation (see below). Those cairns incorporated into thefortification wall may be understood as the substantial remnants of thelower portions of dry stone masonry towers. The function of thoseoutside the fortification (cairns 2, 5 and 6, and other 'rocksmears') is uncertain, but at least one (cairn cairn,pile of stones, usually conical in shape, raised as a landmark or a memorial. In prehistoric times it was usually erected over a burial. A barrow is sometimes called a cairn. 5) preserves alinear wall face, suggesting an originally polygonal, rather thanamorphous, plan. [FIGURE 9 OMITTED] The linear wall features are sufficiently preserved to estimatewidth varying from 0.70 to 2.0m, while the extant height is generally0.50m or less. It may be that a mudbrick superstructure surmounted thestone foundation, as at other EB II sites, including Lerna and Kolonna,but no such superstructure is preserved. It is possible that two ringsof fortification walls surrounded the settlement, an inner enclosurerunning along the 84m asl contour, represented by cairns 3, 4 and 8, andwalls 2 and 6; and an outer wall on the 82m asl contour including cairn1 and wall 1 (Figure 7), but subsequent disturbances have removedsurface evidence for the articulation of the walls' variouselements. Double-walled fortifications of EB II are known at Kastri onSyros (Broodbank 2000: 313-6), Palamari on Skyros (Theochari &Parlama 1997) and at Lerna (Wiencke 2000), the latter of the casemate case��mate?n.1. A fortified enclosure for artillery on a warship.2. An armored compartment for artillery on a rampart. type (Figure 4). Within the walls of the settlement, numerous small architecturalunits can be discerned, but the confused and highly disturbed remainssuggest multiple phases of destruction and rebuilding over time.Although the remains possibly indicate the lack of a planned layout,only through excavation will it be possible to sort out the chronologyand changing form of the habitation HABITATION, civil law. It was the right of a person to live in the house of another without prejudice to the property. 2. It differed from a usufruct in this, that the usufructuary might have applied the house to any purpose, as, a store or manufactory; whereas area. Artefactual phasing and dating A basic chronology for the settlement, the fortification wall andthe other stone features is provided by artefacts associated with them,and by their geomorphological characteristics. Ceramics of Early BronzeII (known as Early Helladic [EH] II on the Greek mainland) are the mostabundant artefacts associated with the cairns and walls, present ontheir surfaces and in their interiors. Sherds from large, utilitarianpithoi and smaller storage jars are the most common forms, someretaining traces of a black 'urfirnis' coating. Less commonare other characteristic EH II forms, including fineware sauceboats.Several pieces of andesite andesiteAny member of a large family of rocks that occur in most of the world's volcanic areas, mainly as surface deposits and to a lesser extent as dikes and small plugs. grinding stones, almost surely imported fromAegina, were recovered. The artefacts from the interiors of the cairnsare exclusively of EBA EBA Eisenbahn-Bundesamt (German)EBA Euro Banking AssociationEBA Emergency Brake AssistanceEBA Enterprise Bargaining Agreement (Australia)EBA Elite Beat Agents (video game)date, and along with earth materials must havebeen incorporated during the initial construction. The EH II sherds arealso intimately associated with the cairns because, like the stoneitself, they are encrusted with a calcium carbonate (CaC[O.sub.3])accretionary crust (Figure 10). The accretion is found on the surfacesand breaks of the pottery, and matches similar accretions on the cairnstones. CaC[O.sub.3] accretions are not found on pottery of laterperiods. Small fragments of worn EH II pottery, concentrated on thesouth-eastern slope of the site and not directly associated witharchitecture, include a much higher percentage of finer vessel forms,and probably represent material eroded from inside the settlement andtransported downhill. [FIGURE 10 OMITTED] The archaeological survey data provide an initial impression of thespatial and diachronic di��a��chron��icadj.Of or concerned with phenomena as they change through time. patterns of settlement (Figure 11). A sparsebackground scatter of Final Neolithic-EH I material hints at continuityfrom a pre-existing community and thus the possibility of indigenousagency in the erection of the fortifications and cairns in EH II. Bycontrast, several phases following EH II, i.e. EH III and the entireMiddle Helladic period, are unknown at the site, a pattern that fitswith widespread (though emphatically not universal) abandonment of sitesat the end of EH II in the southern Greek mainland (Forsen 1992; Rutter1993). Approximately a millennium later, a Late Bronze Age (Mycenaean)reoccupation is apparent in the southern part of the site, focusedperhaps on the highest point on the ridge, from which Lychnari harbouris best monitored. Classical-Hellenistic activity of the middle to latefirst millennium BC was fairly extensive in this region, as indicated bystone towers and other structures on the lower slopes overlookingLychnari, as well as a fortified farmstead on a high ridge overlookingVayia to the south. At Vayia, Classical-Hellenistic material was alsofocused on the southern end of the ridge. This later activity involvedsome reuse and modification of the architectural features; nevertheless,only for EH II is there a strong association between the artefacts andthe cairns and linear features, and EH II material is more abundant andwidely distributed within the fortified area than that of any otherperiod. [FIGURE 11 OMITTED] Phasing by geomorphology Geomorphological study of the ridge provides key evidence tosupport the chronological framework suggested by the artefacts.Limestone exposed on the surface suffers water erosion and othermodifications in predictable and physically recognisable ways. Water mayfall onto the stone, flow over it, puddle on its top surface and flowdown its exposed sides. After flowing over exposed parts of stones, thecarbonate-enriched water accumulates on down-turned surfaces, depositinglayered accretions and pendants. These conditions create dissolutionfeatures, described collectively as karren The Karren is a mountain in Bregenzerwald, part of the Northern Limestone Alps in Vorarlberg, Austria.Karren is the terms used to describe the micro-solutional feature that form on exposed limestone surfaces. (Ford & Williams 1989:374-96, Table 9.1), which have implications for human use and reuse oflimestone on the site. The stone architecture at Vayia was examined forthese and other features, which to our knowledge have not been exploitedin Aegean archaeology: 1. Rillenkarren, narrow solution channels (rills) formed by theflow of rainfall over the vertical and sloping surfaces of the rock(Figure 12). The development of the rills (length, width and depth)provides a relative measure of the span of time that the rock has beenexposed on the surface. The orientation of the rills on a given stoneshould be vertical if the stone is in situ In place. When something is "in situ," it is in its original location. . Any stone with non-verticalrill orientation is known to have been removed from the orientation itpossessed during the time of rill formation. Well-developed rillenkarrenindicate surface exposure on the order of thousands of years(Mottershead & Lucas 2001). [FIGURE 12 OMITTED] 2. Pits and micropits formed on flattish areas of the tops ofstones where water has pooled over time. This feature also shows theorientation of the stone during the period of pit formation. 3. Preserved soil within a stone feature. Soil formation orsediment accumulation within a stone feature furnishes a broad measureof the antiquity of the feature as an entity trapping sediment overtime. The cairns have collected aeolian sediments since theirconstruction, and the formation of CaC[O.sub.3] concentrations withinthese sediments indicates that they have accumulated for thousands ofyears. 4. Calcium carbonate (CaC[O.sub.3]) accretions on stones andartefacts. Over great expanses of time, rainwater dissolves CaC[O.sub.3]from the carbonate-rich limestone and transports it in solution into thedepths of the features, to be precipitated on the stones and artefactslying within. Such accretions require, at minimum, thousands of years toform (Harden et al. 1991: 5). The association of CaC[O.sub.3]-coated EHII sherds with the similarly coated cairn stones was noted above. 5. Weathering colour of the stone. The stone (bedrock andanthropogenically modified) exposed longest on the surface has taken ona dark grey surface colour, whereas more recent structures, such as theearly modern houses, have a white to light grey colour with reddishstains on quarry faces. Some reuse of stones from much older structureswas noted. The darkening is due to the development of an algal algalpertaining to or caused by algae.algal infectionis very rare but systemic and udder infections are recorded. See protothecosis.algal mastitisthe algae Prototheca trispora and P. coating,minute black and solitary lichens, accumulation of varnish (a biologicalprecipitate of Fe and Mn oxides and organic matter) and alteration ofminerals in the limestone (Smith et al. 2000). 6. Lichen lichen(lī`kən), usually slow-growing organism of simple structure, composed of fungi (see Fungi) and photosynthetic green algae or cyanobacteria living together in a symbiotic relationship and resulting in a structure that resembles neither formation. Stones exposed for more than 20-50 years inGreece are colonised by crustose lichens (Noller, unpublished data) thatdevelop a rock-hugging, disk morphology at a rate that is speciesdependent and typically of the order of 0.01-1.0mm growth in diameterper year (Noller & Locke 2000). The percentage of the surface areacovered by lichens and the composition of species (more than five arecommon in the area) also change with time. Lichens can be subjected tonumerical dating, but for our present purposes indicate relative age. On the basis of these features, which we take to be indicators ofage and orientation of surface exposures, we recognised two classes ofgeomorphic ge��o��mor��phic?adj.Of or resembling the earth or its shape or surface configuration. feature that define distinct phases of formation ofarchitectural features in antiquity. Stone exposed more recently, forexample in early modern to modern times, essentially lacks thesefeatures and postdates these two phases. The first phase (Phase 1) comprises stone with long, well-developedrillenkarren, pitting, dark grey weathering colour, commonly substantiallichen cover and diameter and thick CaC[O.sub.3] accretion. Throughoutthe site, exposed bedrock exhibits these features, though bedrockexposed more recently than the first phase may not. The attributes notedon first-phase bedrock are matched on the large cairns for which we havecompelling archaeological evidence for construction in EH II. In fact,every feature from which we extracted CaC[O.sub.3]coated EH II potteryexhibits Phase 1 surfaces. Because the bedrock and EH II features havedeveloped similar morphological features, they must have been exposedfor a comparable length of time. In geomorphological terms, thissuggests a scenario in which the Early Bronze Age inhabitants quarriedor cleared the limestone from the site and its environs, exposingbedrock to these formational processes at roughly the same time thatthey built the large stone structures. Dramatic confirmation comes fromcairn 5 (Figure 12). This cairn has a well-preserved wall face thatexhibits clear Phase 1 rillenkarren that demonstrate that the face is insitu. The deep rills run in perfect orientation from one stone to thestone beneath it, indicating that the wall face has remained in placeover the entire time of formation of the rillenkarren. Cairn 5 yieldedEH II pottery sherds with substantial CaC[O.sub.3] accretions from boththe surface and the interior. An important implication is that whereverwe encounter in situ Phase 1 stone that forms part of an anthropogenic an��thro��po��gen��ic?adj.1. Of or relating to anthropogenesis.2. Caused by humans: anthropogenic degradation of the environment. feature, that stone came to rest in a broad Early Bronze Age time frame,and has not moved since. Because this observation applies to wallcollapse as well as preserved wall faces, we have suggestive evidencethat the cairns and bastions experienced collapse or destruction in theEarly Bronze Age or not much later. The second phase (Phase 2) stone shows fewer Phase 1 attributes,and these are less developed. Notable on limestone of Phase 2 are moreshallow rillenkarren, some pitting and some Lichen development. Therills tend to be fewer in number and more widely spaced than on Phase 1surfaces. The second phase appears to typify the known Classical period(broadly defined) architecture in the region surrounding Vayia,furnishing a rough approximation of the time scale for the developmentof Phase 2 geomorphological features. Some linear stone features on thesite contain a mixture of Phase 1 and Phase 2 stone, perhaps indicatinglater repairs to the EH II walls. Vassa In the summer of 2003, while visiting a known Mycenaean site atVassa, a few kilometres inland from the small Saronic harbour at NeaEpidavros, we stumbled upon the extensive remains of an EBA sitepossessing the same characteristics as the fortified settlement atVayia. The EBA site at Vassa is situated on a prominent ridge(approximately 175-185m asl) overlooking the Dimaina pass, one of themain overland routes from the Saronic coast through the rugged interiorof the Argolid to the major Bronze Age centres in and around the ArgivePlain, including Tiryns and Lerna. As at Vayia, the basic architecturallayout is formed by numerous stone cairns arranged in a rough oval andconnected by linear stone piles, but here there is also a larger,central cairn within the stone enclosure (Figure 13). The centralclearing, presumably the habitation area, is similar in scale to that ofVayia at around 1ha. There appears to be more than one concentric ringof cairns and walls, as we suspect at Vayia, and the overall scale ofthe remains, with 15-20 cairns that we could discern in heavy maquisvegetation over 2-3ha, may be greater. Anthropogenic disturbance of thestone features seems less severe than at Vayia, with the result that theclearance of stone away from the relatively boulder-free interior ismore obvious to the eye. On the whole, Vassa looks to be betterpreserved of the two sites and should reward careful study. [FIGURE 13 OMITTED] A brief examination of the cairns revealed Early, Middle and LateBronze Age pottery on their surfaces. The EH II pottery is abundant andsimilar to that of Vayia in the range of forms and in the presence ofCaC[O.sub.3] accretions; of particular interest is an EH II roof thefragment from the central cairn. A small number of sherds from EH Iimply that, as at Vayia, the fortified settlement may have succeeded anearlier hamlet. Some connection with Aegina is suggested by numerousfragments of andesitic grinding stones. A preliminary viewshed analysisindicates that Vassa, located 3km inland with limited glimpses of thesea, was situated primarily to control east--west movement through theDimaina pass, and perhaps also to monitor movement to and from theuplands of the Corinthia to the north. Preliminary interpretation Vayia and Vassa seem to represent a previously unrecognised classof EBA fortified settlement, which for reasons of poor archaeologicalvisibility and chronological uncertainty has been neglected and may bewidespread. The respective locations of Vayia and Vassa show that theywere part of at least a regional, and not simply a local, phenomenon.Although the cairns and walls give a good impression of their generalsize and shape, we are almost entirely ignorant of the layout and use ofdomestic space within the walls. The architectural traces at Vayiasuggest the type of agglomerative ag��glom��er��ate?tr. & intr.v. ag��glom��er��at��ed, ag��glom��er��at��ing, ag��glom��er��atesTo form or collect into a rounded mass.adj.Gathered into a rounded mass.n.1. , tightly packed residential zone thatone finds at Kolonna (Phase III) and the Cycladic fortified sites, butthis question will only be resolved through excavation. If the cairnsincorporated into walls served as bastions or towers, the function ofthe free-standing cairns is far less certain. Perhaps they were simplythe practical result of land clearance, but other interpretations suchas burial cairns are plausible, though currently unverifiable. Thegeological evidence was pivotal in identifying the morphologicalcharacteristics of the cairns, and demonstrating their prehistoric age. The EH II settlement at Vayia shows clear affinities withcontemporary fortified and unfortified sites on the Aegean coast andislands. The setting, a flattish coastal promontory with a relativelysteep seawards approach adjacent to a superb harbour, betrays a commonconcern for defensibility and a broad viewshed, but also easy access tothe sea. Like Vayia, many coastal sites were founded on rugged terrainat some remove from extensive tracts of arable agricultural land--anindication of the community's maritime orientation. The oval shapeand modest size, approximately 1ha, of the fortified habitation, placeVayia in a widespread group of EB II Aegean settlements at a scalebeneath the large to truly enormous settlements that are known from theGreek mainland and Euboia, including unfortified sites at Lithares(3.5ha), Eutresis (8ha) and Tiryns (5.9ha), and fortified sites at Lerna(2.5ha), Thebes (20ha) and Manika (45ha). All the known Aegean fortifiedsites are coastal except Thebes, and those of a size similar to Vayiaare found in Attica, including Askitario and Rafina, in Euboia, such asKarystos and in the islands, including Kastri on Syros, Panormos andSpedos on Naxos, Palamari on Skyros, and Kolonna on Aegina.Free-standing fortification walls with projecting bastions or towers arecharacteristic of defensive architecture in the Aegean islands, as atKastri, Panormos and Palamari. Vayia's double fortification wall,if indeed we have reconstructed it correctly, finds good parallels atKastri and Palamari. The rather slender walls joining the bastions atVayia would not appear to have offered an effective defence againstconcerted attack, but here too they fit well with the Cycladicfortification walls, most of which are less than 1.5m wide. Thisprobably reflects the sporadic nature of EBA raiding in the southernAegean (Branigan 1999; Doumas 1990). Nevertheless, there are no exact parallels in the Aegean for thecairns and other constructions at Vayia and Vassa. The closestcomparanda in south-eastern Europe are the stone cairns and cairnfieldsof coastal and near-coastal Dalmatia (Chapman et al. 1987, 1996; Maran1998). These monuments take the form of isolated cairns, linear stonefeatures, and cairnfields of up to several hundred concentrated cairnsand linear features. The earliest of the Dalmatian cairns belong to theEarlier Bronze Age (2400-1800 BC), thus possibly overlappingchronologically with the latter years of EH II, but most date to theLater Bronze Age or Iron Age. The emergence of the Bronze Age cairns isassociated there with an agricultural expansion involving a new strategyof cultivating marginal land on 'stony' ridges; specifically,the clearance of stone for agriculture and the desire to lay claim tothe newly cultivated land through highly visible landscape markers(Chapman et al. 1996: 2701). Such 'clearance cairns', piles ofstones removed from the surface or plough zone, were created initiallyto facilitate cultivation, but some were used in the Bronze Age asburial cairns (Chapman et al. 1987: 125). In time, the cairns may havebecome focal points for ritual surrounding the fertility of the earth,and symbolic representations of social power over domestic, agriculturaland mortuary (or ancestral) space (Chapman et al. 1996: 284-5). Linearstone features were transformed into settlement enclosures andultimately to hillforts (Chapman et al. 1987: 129). In spite of certainmorphological similarities, the enduring tradition of Dalmatian cairnarchitecture is reflected neither in scale nor in longevity in thesouthern Aegean, and there is little evidence for cultural contact inthe EBA by which such ideas would have been transmitted. Conclusions An obvious strategy to resolve the questions posed by thearchitectural features at Vayia would be to excavate in and around them,but this is not an easy matter. Severe restrictions on the number offoreign archaeological permits in Greece mean that no return to the sitemay be contemplated before 2008. Nevertheless, we were able to move along way forward by combining careful survey methods withgeoarchaeological observation of the formational characteristics of thelimestone. Over millennia, limestone architecture in karstic regionstends to form confusing palimpsests reflecting numerous episodes ofhuman construction and destruction, as well as pervasive naturalerosion. The case of Vayia shows, however, that it may be possible toestablish both relative and absolute chronological frameworks for sitesoccupied over long expanses of time. The variable development of karrenfeatures provides data for relative chronological sequences ofarchitectural remains. Broad chronometric chro��nom��e��ter?n.An exceptionally precise timepiece.chrono��met frameworks are possible bydating lichen and CaC[O.sub.3] concentrations associated witharchitectural features. If artefacts of known date can be convincinglyassociated with architectural features, greatly refined absolute datesor termini post quem are within reach. At Vayia, we were able to assignan EBA date to Phase I architecture with, but also without, associatedartefacts. These efforts were integrated with intensive surface surveyand site mapping to provide a very good initial sense, withoutexcavation, of the scale, function and occupational history of thesettlement. The success of this approach holds significant implications forarchaeology in karstic landscapes of the Mediterranean region andbeyond. First, archaeologists should be attentive to seemingly amorphousstone concentrations that have often been left unexamined or interpretedas modern terraces or field clearance. We recognised the plan of thefortified settlement at Vayia only during the process of creating a siteplan, but this experience permitted us to recognise Vassa immediately asa similar phenomenon. Second, the geochronological approach describedhere holds great promise where substantial stone-built structures yieldlimited artefactual or stratigraphic stra��tig��ra��phy?n.The study of rock strata, especially the distribution, deposition, and age of sedimentary rocks.strat evidence for their date. In caseswhere recourse to excavation may be problematic or impractical in theshort term, these simple geomorphological observations may furnish ageneral chronological framework that can be tested in future studies.Systematic characterisation of formational features on limestonearchitecture at a regional scale, correlated with chronologicalinformation from excavation or artefact See artifact. association (as at Vayia), wouldproduce an excellent comparative dataset. These strategies would beespecially useful in the context of regional survey archaeology. Acknowledgements Research at Vayia was supported mainly through a grant from theInstitute for Aegean Prehistory, with additional funding supplied toDaniel Pullen from the Florida State University Florida State University,at Tallahassee; coeducational; chartered 1851, opened 1857. Present name was adopted in 1947. Special research facilities include those in nuclear science and oceanography. Research FoundationAHPEG programme, the Florida State University Council on Research andCreativity COFRS grant, and the Florida State University Department ofClassics; to Thomas Tartaron through a Stavros S. Niarchos FacultyResearch Grant at Yale University; and to Jay Noller through the GeneralResearch Fund at Oregon State University Oregon State University,at Corvallis; land-grant and state supported; coeducational; chartered 1858 as Corvallis College, opened 1865. In 1868 it was designated Oregon's land-grant agricultural college and was taken over completely by the state in 1885. . This work was undertaken aspart of the Eastern Korinthia Archaeological Survey (EKAS EKAS Environmental Knowledge Advocates Society ), co-directedby Timothy Gregory and Daniel Pullen, which was awarded a permit fromthe Greek Ministry of Culture through the American School of ClassicalStudies at Athens. We are grateful to the following individuals fortheir assistance: Alexander Mantis and Yiota Kasimi, representing The4th Ephoreia of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities; Daniel McClarnon,Brian Trail and Dimitri Nakassis, who assisted Thomas Tartaron inmapping the architectural remains; Amy Dill and Sarah James, who helpedDaniel Pullen measure, draw, photograph and otherwise characterise thearchitecture; and Eleni Drakaki, Dimitri Nakassis and David Pettegrew,who led archaeological survey teams. Finally, we thank the editorialstaff of Antiquity and two anonymous reviewers for their helpfulsuggestions. Received: 2 September 2004; Revised: 18 March 2005; Accepted: 9 May2005 References BRANIGAN, K. 1999. The nature of warfare in the southern Aegeanduring the third millennium B.C., in R. Laffineur (ed.) Polemos: lecontexte guerrier en Egee a l'age du bronze, Aegaeum 19: 87-94.Liege liegeIn European feudal society, an unconditional bond between a man and his overlord. 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Princeton: American School of Classical Studies at Athens. Thomas F. Tartaron (1), Daniel J. Pullen (2) & Jay S. Noller(3) (1) Department of Anthropology, Yale University, New Haven, CT06520, USA (Emai]: thomas.tartaron@yale.edu) (2) Department of Classics, The Florida State University,Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA (Email: dpullen@mailer.flu.edu) (3) Department of Crop and Soil Science, Oregon State University,Corvallis, OR 97331, USA (Email: jay.noller@oregonstate.edu)