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This thesis addresses the lacuna in the study of Greek terracotta figures and figurines corresponding to the transitional period between the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages (1200-700BC). It provides a comprehensive synthesis of all available data, with particular reference to material from recently excavated sites in mainland Greece and its islands (Euboea, the Northern Aegean islands, the Dodecanese and the Cyclades). The study is framed according to the relationship between terracotta <b>figures</b> (those made on the potter's wheel) and <b>figurines</b> (those made by hand). The observation that the technological distinction between these two types is reflected in their different and separate functions has been sustained in scholarship for the past three decades, but only for the Mycenaean period. Handmade figurines and wheelmade figures occurred in different and restricted contexts in the Mycenaean world: the former in settlements, cemeteries and religious locations, and the latter exclusively in religious contexts. It is therefore inferred that they had different socially embedded values or 'meanings'. However, the extent to which such a distinction applies to figures and figurines in the Early Iron Age has hitherto not been explored. Initial evidence indicates that by the 8th century, handmade figurines and wheelmade figures were deposited together at selected sites, suggesting that their inherent socially embedded meanings were the same, and that they represented "different levels of [financial] investment in what is essentially the same category of votive". This thesis therefore determines the levels of co-occurrence of wheelmade figures and figurines, thus identifying how distribution relates to usage. Changes are observed over time and space and between different types of functional contexts, and the meanings of these patterns are investigated. The results of this study provide a chronological and geographical overview of the distribution of figures and figurines, and also indicate that figures and figurines had consistently multivariate relevance in multiple types of contexts. The functional dichotomy of figures and figurines observed for the Mycenaean period cannot be sustained beyond 1200 BC. Moreover, study of the contexts from which the material originates indicates that the significance of secondary deposits of religious nature has been consistently overlooked, and that figures and figurines were used in an active and meaningful sense even during the act of their discard. This type of activity is a distinctive one that can be characterised and defined functionally, geographically, temporally and quantitatively. The socially embedded meaning of figures and figurines was fluid and related to an action being performed; their meaning was not linked exclusively to an aspect of the object itself, and was therefore not static.

It is generally considered that cairns and stone constructions of different shapes and sizes make up the grave monuments of the Late Bronze Age (1000–300 BC) in the province of Södermanland in Sweden. However, these “monuments” often contain only small amounts of burnt bone, and often no human remains at all. At the same time, human bones are found in settlement sites and other "non-grave" contexts. The materiality of human remains thus appears to be far more complex than a modern definition of "burial" or "grave" would allow.  This thesis investigates practices beyond the common terminology of burial archaeology, and focuses on the practices of collecting, enclosing and scattering stones, human remains, pottery and metal objects in stone constructions traditionally labeled "graves".  The study is conducted through a detailed micro-level analysis combining constructions, depositions of artefacts and human remains in a perspective of perception, formation processes and temporality. Based on the results from studies of two Late Bronze Age burial grounds in Eastern Sweden, it is argued that there is a need to differentiate the meaning content of cremated bone within in what we refer to as burial grounds. Results indicate that the passage rituals in connection with death and disposal of remains do not end when the cremated bone is deposited in the stone constructions. The constructions and deposits are subject to further attention and actions, altering the meaning of the cremated bones while the individual undergoes transformation to a fully transformed substance. The stone constructions themselves do not appear to have been built for eternity, but rather as functional nodes of transformation, constructed to facilitate the passage rituals.

Cette recherche doctorale repose sur l’analyse des collections archéologiques de la nécropole de Koban, découvertes par Ernest Chantre, actuellement conservées au musée d'archéologie nationale de Saint-Germain en Laye et au musée des Confluences à Lyon. La nécropole de Koban située dans le Nord Caucase fût découverte par Ernest Chantre en 1881. Le site de Koban a donné son nom à l’une des cultures du Bronze récent et du premier âge du Fer du Nord Caucase. Cette thèse porte sur l’ensemble des objets mis au jour à Koban, publiés et non publiés. Par une analyse systématique innovante, cette recherche a permis d’élaborer une classification typologique. Ces données ont été comparées avec du matériel provenant d’autres régions du Caucase. Cetteanalyse des objets a notamment permis de comprendre l’environnement culturel de la nécropole de Koban soulignant ainsi des influences d’autres régions du Caucase – Colchis and Shida Kartli. L’une des composantes majeures de cette recherche est la reconstruction des assemblages funéraires de Koban, qui montrent des aspects inconnus à ce jour. De nouvelles datations radiocarbones réalisées sur la tombe 9 nous ont également permis de réexaminer de façon extensive la chronologie de la nécropole de Koban / This work examines Ernest Chantre’s archaeological collections from the Koban necropolis, stored at the National Archaeological Museum of France, at Saint-Germain-en-Laye and the Confluences Museum in Lyon. The Koban necropolis, which was excavated by Chantre in 1881, is located in the North Caucasus. It has given its name to one of the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age cultures of the Caucasus.This dissertation brings to light Koban objects, both published and unpublished, and organizes themin a systematic fashion. Typological classification of each group of objects is examined andpresented. These data are then compared with materials from other parts of the Caucasus. The focus of the research determines the cultural environment of the Koban necropolis in the Caucasus region, as objects from this site reflect certain characteristic features of different regions of the Caucasus such as Colchis and Shida Kartli.One of the main components of this dissertation is the reconstruction of Koban funeral assemblages.These are presented differently here than has previously been done. Along with presenting the assemblages, radiocarbon data is also presented from grave no. 9, which enables us to re-examine, to an extent, the chronology of Koban necropolis.

This thesis aims to construct a historical narrative for the region of the north-eastern Aegean (NEA) during the Early Iron Age (1050-700 BCE) and the early Archaic period (7^th century BCE) based primarily on archaeological evidence. Its goals are to investigate the most distinctive material culture elements for the studied period; to explore themes of continuity and connectivity between regions; to trace large- and smaller-scale population movements; to discuss how early communities perceived themselves and each other; and to investigate the social structure and organisation of these communities. Evidence from settlement sites, funerary contexts, and sanctuaries are presented in the first three chapters in that order. Following that, the final chapter presents the primary, overarching conclusions of the thesis, in four sub-chapters. Firstly, it is argued that the NEA was characterised by relative cultural continuity from the Late Bronze Age to well within the Archaic period: when new elements were introduced, they were, generally, integrated into earlier paradigms. Secondly, evidence is provided for an increase in connectivity and maritime traffic peaks during the late 8^th century BCE; shortly afterwards, new population groups from the central and southern Aegean arrived in the NEA, and seem to have cohabited relatively peacefully with earlier populations. Thirdly, it is posited that there is little evidence for overarching NEA regional identities before the 6^th century BCE: communities appear to have developed local identities, through association with specific sites and through references to the communal past in cult practice and funerary contexts. Finally, it is argued that social elites were markedly active in NEA communities of studied period: there is considerable evidence for socially exclusive groups, primarily in funerary and ritual contexts. The thesis concludes with a short chapter containing the author's closing remarks.

<p>The views on and the knowledge of the introduction of iron to Scandinavia have change by the history of archaeology. The results and discussions are put in the context of time and how that time is reflected in their work and texts. This limits that scholars put up to orientate themselves conceal the complex reality. The limits are changing all the time and is dependent of time and person.</p>

Although it is accepted that Phoenician colonization occurred on Sardinia by the 9th century B.C., it is possible that contact between Sardinia‟s indigenous population and the Levantine region occurred in the Late Bronze Age (LBA). Eastern LBA goods found on the island are copper oxhide ingots and Aegean pottery. Previously, it has been suggested that Mycenaeans were responsible for bringing the eastern goods to Sardinia, but the presence of Aegean pottery shards does not confirm the presence of Mycenaean tradesmen. Also, scholars of LBA trade have explained the paucity of evidence for a Mycenaean merchant fleet. Interpretations of two LBA shipwrecks, Cape Gelidonya and Uluburun, indicate that eastern Mediterranean merchants of Cypriot or Syro-Canaanite origin, transported large quantities of oxhide ingots from the Levant towards the west. It remains possible that similar itinerant merchants conducted ventures bringing eastern goods to Sardinia while exploring the western Mediterranean. Trade in eastern goods may have stimulated the advancement that occurred in Nuragic culture in the LBA, resulting in the emergence of an elite social stratum in the Nuragic society. Archaeological evidence, such as elitist burials and increasingly complex architecture, supports the idea of cultural change due to internal competition. This „peer-polity‟ effect may have been incited because of limited accessibility to the exotic eastern goods and the „ownership‟ to the rights of this exchange.

The views on and the knowledge of the introduction of iron to Scandinavia have change by the history of archaeology. The results and discussions are put in the context of time and how that time is reflected in their work and texts. This limits that scholars put up to orientate themselves conceal the complex reality. The limits are changing all the time and is dependent of time and person.

Although it is accepted that Phoenician colonization occurred on Sardinia by the 9th century B.C., it is possible that contact between Sardinia‟s indigenous population and the Levantine region occurred in the Late Bronze Age (LBA). Eastern LBA goods found on the island are copper oxhide ingots and Aegean pottery. Previously, it has been suggested that Mycenaeans were responsible for bringing the eastern goods to Sardinia, but the presence of Aegean pottery shards does not confirm the presence of Mycenaean tradesmen. Also, scholars of LBA trade have explained the paucity of evidence for a Mycenaean merchant fleet. Interpretations of two LBA shipwrecks, Cape Gelidonya and Uluburun, indicate that eastern Mediterranean merchants of Cypriot or Syro-Canaanite origin, transported large quantities of oxhide ingots from the Levant towards the west. It remains possible that similar itinerant merchants conducted ventures bringing eastern goods to Sardinia while exploring the western Mediterranean. Trade in eastern goods may have stimulated the advancement that occurred in Nuragic culture in the LBA, resulting in the emergence of an elite social stratum in the Nuragic society. Archaeological evidence, such as elitist burials and increasingly complex architecture, supports the idea of cultural change due to internal competition. This „peer-polity‟ effect may have been incited because of limited accessibility to the exotic eastern goods and the „ownership‟ to the rights of this exchange.

This thesis proposes that we can better understand Greek society in the Archaic Period by evaluating the purposes of their interactions with Egyptian material culture and through a greater appreciation of Egyptian political and cultural history in the Third Intermediate and Late Period. The thesis combines an examination of the Egyptian and Egyptianising objects from Greek graves and sanctuaries with a study of Egyptianising motifs in Greek painted pottery and sculpture. With this evidence, the thesis primarily addresses questions of agency and of consumption. It aims to demonstrate that Greek interactions with Egypt are not defined by Phoenician intermediaries or by the foundation of Naucratis late in the seventh century. Instead, it is argues that the development of personal connections between the elite of certain Greek states and the rulers of Egyptian kingdoms in the eighth century could explain the escalation of Greek interactions with Egyptian material culture during the Archaic Period and the regional variability of these interactions. The thesis also highlights the stark differences between Greek interactions with Egyptian and Egyptianising material in different media and in different consumption areas. In their sanctuaries, the Greeks used Egyptian faience, stone, and bronze objects alongside Greek-produced imitations of these objects in order to define aspire to the status of being a member of the elite while accessing a magical potency associated with Egyptian material culture. In other media, however, the Greeks reject imitation of Egyptian subjects and iconography, and instead we find processes of interaction which use Egyptian material culture but do not refer to it explicitly. Therefore it is concluded that Greek interactions with Egyptian material culture not only draws attention to Greek connectivity with surrounding cultures, and the Greek association of Egypt and magical potency, but can also help us to reflect upon different forms of elite-elite and elite-non-elite interaction and self-identification in the Archaic Period.