The Ayia Sotira Cemetery Excavation (ASCE) ran from 2006 to 2010 and was co-directed by R. Angus K. Smith (Brock University), James C. Wright (Bryn Mawr College), and Mary K. Dabney (Bryn Mawr College/American School of Classical Studies at Athens), and formerly by Evangelia Pappi (4th Ephorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities, Argolid) and Sevasti Triantaphyllou (Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki).
The ASCE research program focused on a Mycenaean cemetery associated with the Bronze Age settlement of Tsoungiza in the Nemea Valley. The primary achievement of the project was the excavation and analysis of six chamber tombs containing material from the Late Helladic IIIA1-IIIB2 periods. These tombs also exhibited evidence of later activity in the Archaic period (late 8th to early 7th century BCE) and in the Byzantine era. Before the ASCE program began, Tomb 1 was excavated in 2002 by the 37th Ephorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities (Corinthia), while Tombs 2 through 6 were excavated by the ASCE team between 2006 and 2008. Recognizing that these tombs had been re-opened several times throughout their use-lives, the project prioritized macro- and microstratigraphic analysis, alongside GIS documentation and geophysical studies. The findings indicate that the burials at Ayia Sotira involved not only the initial interment but also ongoing, complex interactions with the tombs over time, as evidenced by repeated modifications, maintenance, and ritual activity.
Select Bibliography
Karkanas, P., M.K. Dabney, R.A.K. Smith & J.C. Wright. 2012. “The Geoarchaeology of Mycenaean Chamber Tombs.” Journal of Archaeological Science 39: 2722-2732.
Smith, R.A.K., E. Pappi, M.K. Dabney, S. Triantaphyllou & J.C. Wright. 2009. “2006-2007 Excavations of the Mycenaean Cemetery at Ayia Sotira, Ancient Nemea.” Aegean Archaeology 8: 95-109.
Smith, R.A.K. & M.K. Dabney. 2014. “The Life of a Tomb: Investigating the Use, Reuse, and Reconstruction of Mycenaean Chamber Tombs at Ayia Sotira, Nemea.” 145-160. In Meditations on the Diversity of the Built Environment in the Aegean Basin and Beyond. Proceedings of a Colloquium In Memorium of Dr. Frederick E. Winter, Canadian Institute in Greece, June 22-23, 2012. D.W. Rupp & J.E. Tomlinson eds. Publications of the Canadian Institute in Greece 8. Athens: Canadian Institute in Greece.
Smith, R.A.K., M.K. Dabney, E.Pappi, S.Triantaphyllou, & J.C. Wright. 2017. Ayia Sotira. A Mycenaean Chamber Tomb Cemetery in the Nemea Valley, Greece. Philadelphia: INSTAP Academic Press.
For more information, see http://www.portal.cig-icg.gr/node/251
