This dissertation analyses the spatial and contextual organisation of thermal structures (hearths and ovens) on thirty excavated Neolithic sites from Macedonia and Western Thrace throughout the Neolithic period in Greece in diverse habitation environments (tells, flat-extended sites and lake-side sites). Unpublished material from two settlements, Avgi and Dispilio in Kastoria, will also complement this study. This dissertation raises the question of how communities were organised and how different forms of habitus or different kinds of entanglements tell us something of daily life and the formation of social identities. My principal field of research lies in the social interfaces developed around consumption practices in diverse spatial contexts in the course of everyday life. Key questions of this study involve the overall emergence and dispersal of social and cultural traditions in time and in space through the examination of different spatial and material entanglements. My analysis clarifies that intra-site spatial organisation in the area studied does not directly correspond with settlement types. The examination of archaeological data showed that similar configurations of social space can be found in dissimilar settlement types. My study demonstrates that cultural ‘assemblages’ in prehistory do not correspond to geographically broad united community groups but instead they show local diversity and social complexity. Instead of being modelled as unified, monolithic ‘cultures’, people seem to have come together around a sequence of chronologically and geographically focused forms of local identities. A local-scale examination of intra-site spatial patterns from Neolithic Macedonia and Western Thrace demonstrated that, although different settlement types are recorded within particular geographical regions, comparable organisation of space among contemporary sites indicates the development of similar social structures.

The aim of this thesis is to examine ritual action and identity formation in the funerary record of the South-Eastern Aegean during the Hellenistic period (late 4th – 1st centuries BC). Chapter 1 presents the aim, scope, originality, research context and methodology of the thesis. Chapter 2 provides the geographical background of the thesis along with the topographical features of the tombs and the cemeteries followed by a discussion on the deathscapes of the South-Eastern Aegean in Hellenistic times. Chapter 3 is a concise typological analysis of the tomb types in the islands and the mainland cities of the Rhodian peraea and Chapter 4 offers a contextual look into funerary and post-funerary ritual drawing from various types of evidence such as modes of disposal of the human body, monumental tomb architecture (tombs with funerary beds) and funerary monuments (cylindrical altars with decorations in relief) among others. In Chapter 5, I discuss several manifestations of individual and collective identity as inferred by the archaeological record, as far as this is possible, followed by a brief assessment of insularity and identity in the Hellenistic communities of the South-Eastern Aegean. Finally, chapter 6 offers a synopsised outline of the main themes explored in the thesis along with general and specific conclusions.

This thesis addresses building technology and the social implications of house construction contributing to the understanding of past societies. The spatiotemporal context of the study is the Neolithic period (ca. 6600/6500–3300/3200 cal BC) in northern Greece (Macedonia and Thrace). All available evidence from various excavations in the region is assembled and synthesised. The principal house types (semi-subterranean structures and above-ground dwellings) and their technological characteristics in terms of materials and techniques are discussed. In addition, the building remains from the late Middle/Late Neolithic settlement of Avgi (Kastoria, Greece) are thoroughly examined. Their study highlights the potentials of a detailed, micro-scale investigation and puts forth a methodology for the technological analysis of house rubble in the form of fire-hardened daub. The data deriving from both the survey of dwelling remains in northern Greece and the case study are examined within their wider sociocultural context. The technological repertoire of the region, although indicating the sharing of a common ‘architectural vocabulary’, reveals alternative chaînes opératoires and variability in different stages of the building process. Variability and patterning are more pronounced during the later stages of the Neolithic. The distribution of architectural choices does not suggest the existence of established and region-wide shared architectural traditions. However, the circulation of specific techniques and conceptions points to the operation of overlapping networks of technological and social interaction. At the site-specific scale, sameness and standardisation in building technology are the prominent themes. Nevertheless, different trends towards standardisation or variability are observed and are approached in terms of social interaction and intra-community dynamics. What is more, domestic architecture is not necessarily static in the long term. Change occurs and is often associated with the transformation of these dynamics. Occasional evidence of intra-site variability in building techniques and the more pronounced anchoring into space during the later stages of the Neolithic period are considered as a result of the changing relationship between social units and the community. The appearance of stone and mud(brick) architecture in Late Neolithic central Macedonia is approached in these terms.

This thesis provides a first attempt to bring together archaeological and literary sources from two main Artemis sanctuaries in the hope of contributing to building a clearer picture of her cult. First Artemis’ character is described as that of a mother of the gods, a goddess of wilderness, animals and hunt; a goddess of birth, infants and children (and young animals); as well as a goddess of youths and marriage:rites of passage. These descriptions are followed by a section that provides an up-to-date account of the archaeological record of the sanctuaries of Artemis Orthia at Sparta and Artemis Ephesia at Ephesus. For comparison with those the site of Athena Alea at Tegea is brought in. These three accounts are a full study of the architectural development and the range of artefacts in different materials. In the analysis, the different characters of Artemis are further explored by looking at the aspects of her cult through the archaeology relating to the cult and the rites of passage taking place at the sites. These rites of passage are reconstructed by using the literary accounts. The conclusion is a description of Artemis and her cult based on the character of this distinctive goddess through archaeological and literary evidence.

This research explores the region of Arkadia in the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age using an interpretative and phenomenologically inspired approach. It is region associated with many myths pointing to a continuing population throughout the period, yet beset with a problematic archaeological record. This has been the result of a number of factors ranging from the nature of the landscape to the history of research. However, the ability to locate sites of the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age within the landscape, allows insight into a region we had little hope of enlightening using more conventional approaches to the archaeological record. This theoretical and methodological stance is illustrated through an exploration of different aspects of the human experience such as religion, death and burial and the everyday. The ways in which these aspects can and usually are interpreted are considered, followed by a number of case studies, which are employed to explore how human actions were embedded within and informed by the very physicality of the landscape, and the differences apparent throughout time.

This study presents a re-evaluation of the ceramic material from the sanctuary of the Kabeiroi at Thebes in Boeotia. The lack of relevant literary evidence necessitates a reliance on the archaeology as the primary means of interpretation. In particular the archaeological context and iconography of the ceramics offer an interesting and highly unusual perspective into the secretive and often peculiar nature of the Kabeiric cult. Previous studies conducted on the ceramic material have only considered it in iconographic terms, yet by reappraising the data using an analytical approach and socio-archaeological theory it is possible to acquire a deeper understanding of the operation of this cult. By examining the form and function of the ceramics we can elicit inferences relating to the role of wine and intoxication within the rituals of the sanctuary. Comparative studies between form and iconography can further develop our interpretations of the scenes as representations of cult practices. The evidence is further scrutinised for indications as to whether the Theban site is characteristic of the Kabeiric cult as a whole, or if its unique iconography demonstrates its individuality within the ancient world. The data from other Kabeiric and non-Kabeiric sanctuaries clearly indicates that cults within the Greek world were experiencing parallel development in relation to their ceramic usage. Furthermore, the ceramic material from purely Kabeiric sites also shows the same biases in the archaeological record with an emphasis on the preparation and consumption of wine. Extending this research to other archaeological material also implies a common iconographic heritage stretching beyond the boundaries of the Theban site. By considering the ceramics in a more analytical manner than that of previous research – combining archaeological, anthropological and art historical models – we can move away from the premise that the decorated Greek vase is merely a work of art. Instead it is possible to detail the sanctuary’s evolution through the development of the ceramics and to offer insights into the society that produced and utilised them.

This thesis discussed the morphological patterns of Ottomanization performed in the southern Balkans through the comparative study of four mainland cities, Dimetoka, Gümülcine, Siroz, Yenice-i Vardar spread along the multicultural Via Egnatia. Through the cross-disciplinary application of morphological and defterological concepts, we were able to trace existing and reconstructed forms back to their formative processes (as evident in a series of reconstructive maps) and to interpret them within the theoretical framework of structural rationalism. The advanced argument disproves the orientalistic reading of the Ottoman (Islamic) city as an irrational and chaotic morpheme and reconfirms Veinstein’s theory on the existence of a normative type for the Ottoman town that lays in the morphology of the Balkan cities. This thesis’ main contribution lies in defining that the identifier of ‘originality’ or ‘purity’ for this type derives from its particular geographical divisions. Accordingly, the coining of the type that we extended was reflective of these particular geographical divisions, as an obvious functional and formal analogy amongst the towns of this group. We thus concluded that the typological identification of the ‘original’ Ottoman town can be encapsulated in the Balkan-Anatolian type with a Byzantine kernel and an Ottoman fringe belt. This consists of a highly rationalized system of axes, with pivotal being that of the çarşıya, which functioned as the vehicle of infrastructural development.

This thesis wishes to draw attention to the economic, social and political implications of the rise and establishment of the institutional Church in Early Christian Greece, particularly by exploring the pilgrimage, philanthropic and industrial function of the churches’ annexes. The diverse functions of churches annexes, besides reflecting a social dimension, they also reflect economic and political realities that require the development of an interdisciplinary approach, based on civil and ecclesiastical legislation, archaeology, epigraphy, history and theology, in order to explore the extent and the effects of the institutional Church’s activity in Greece. Interpreting Christian archaeology in key excavated sites of Greece by interweaving literary and material evidence both of ecclesiastical and secular origin, will help not only to ascertain how churches stood in relation to adjoining buildings combining religious and economic purposes, but also to restore to the most possible extent the Early Christian Greek urban and rural topographies.