The aim of this study is to establish the provenance of the elephant and hippopotamus ivory recovered from the 14th century B.C. Uluburun shipwreck in order to reconstruct the trade mechanisms and associated social relationships (e.g. diplomacy) operating in the eastern Mediterranean during the Late Bronze Age (LBA). Elephant ivory came either from Northeastern Libya, Southeastern Sudan via Egypt or northwestern Syria during this period. Hippopotamus ivory likewise was obtained from Syria, Palestine, or Egypt. The Uluburun's cargo is reconstructed by the excavator, George Bass, as "royal," and primarily originates from Cyprus and Syro-Palestine. Indeed, LBA trade is largely understood as gift-exchange between ruling elites, thereby reflecting a trade system organized by and for a centralized authority. With the transition to the Iron Age, an identifiable merchant class developed and decentralized trade (relative to the preceding era) under a system of cabotage shipping. If the ivory is shown to derive from several regions instead of a single location, a revision of LBA trade must be fashioned to include ruling elites acting as "merchants" to a larger degree than previously assumed, or the web of social relationships involved in "international" diplomacy as much more intricate. Indeed, the mechanisms of the LBA trade must be established to provide a complete picture of trade, especially since the import and historical data is biased towards a simplistic, centralized trade system. The δ13C, δ15N, and δ18O reflect the climate and vegetation of the area in which a population dwells, so that areas with similar climate/vegetation will produce similar isotopic signatures, though these areas may be geographically seperated. Nevertheless, examining 87Sr/86Sr ratios will distinguish between populations because 87Sr/86Sr mirrors the isotopic signature of the underlying rock, and is sufficiently unique to each region to warrant differentiation. Isotopic ratio analysis (carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and/or strontium) was conducted on the collagen and apatite components of the ivory using mass spectrometry to differentiate between regions and therefore provide the provenance. Ultimately a source determination utilizing HR-ICP-MS for 87Sr/86Sr was not successful. Future provenance research on ivory should employ TIMS, and consider triangulating 87Sr/86Sr against lead and neodymium isotopes.

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 Uluburun shipwreck was discovered in 1982 when a Turkish sponge diver informed the Institute of Nautical Archaeology (INA) of his discovery of metal biscuits with ears. INA archaeologists recognized this as a description of oxhide ingots, a clear indication of a Late Bronze Age site. This find was of considerable interest as very little is known about seafaring, long distance trade, and ship construction during the Late Bronze Age, except for a glimpse provided by the Cape Gelidonya shipwreck excavated in 1960 by George Bass. The site at Uluburun revealed only a handful of disarticulated ship fragments; nevertheless, a meticulous study of these timbers and the distribution of the cargo and shipboard items on the seabed resulted in a hypothetical, but carefully guided, reconstruction of the ship and the lading of its cargo. The artifacts recovered from the Uluburun shipwreck are unlike those discovered on land in quality of preservation as well as the quantity found. Items pertinent to this study include 354 copper oxhide ingots (approximately 10 tons), 152 copper bun ingots (nearly 1 ton), 110 tin ingot fragments (approximately 1 ton), 175 glass ingots (approximately 0.3 tons), 150 Canaanite jars (approximately 2 tons if filled with water), 10 large storage jars (pithoi) (approximately 3.5 tons if filled with water), approximately 51 Canaanite pilgrim flasks, 24 stone anchors (3.3 tons), nearly 1 ton of ballast stones, and the hull remains itself. Two computer programs, Rhinoceros and PHASER, were used to visually model the artifacts and ship in three-dimensions and to systematically test various hull shapes and lading arrangements in a range of hydrostatic conditions. Tests showed that a hull measuring 15 x 5 x 2 m would be capable of carrying the estimated 20 tons of cargo and shipboard items recovered from the wreck at a draft of 1 m, with sufficient freeboard to allow six passengers to stand on one side of the vessel without compromising the stability of the ship. / Institute of Nautical Archaeology

The Late Bronze Age on the island of Crete saw a period of strong administrative and religious control by the palace at Knossos, which also controlled a vast trade network with the rest of the eastern Mediterranean. After the collapse of the palace of Knossos, the Final Palatial period (1490 - 1320 BCE), was a time of sociopolitical transition and change, witnessing an explosion in number and variety of mortuary practices used, even within the same cemetery. In this thesis I analyze Final Palatial burial practices in a more systematic method than has been previously attempted, in order to gain a better understanding of how the Minoans chose to use the mortuary sphere as a platform for constructing and negotiating their social and political identities in the dynamic socio-political climate of the Final Palatial period.

Underwater excavations of a Late Bronze Age shipwreck at Uluburun, Turkey recovered a combined 475 oxhide and plano-convex discoid copper ingots. While the hoard of ingots excavated at Uluburun brings the total number of copper ingots from the Late Bronze Age to over 1000, interestingly, only one ingot mold from the that period has been identified. Scholars have speculated over the means behind the creation of these ingots for decades, but with a relative absence of archaeological molds the most promising method of reaching any conclusions as to the types of molds used in antiquity seems to be experimentation. Experimental archaeology, has, in recent years been responsible for many breakthroughs in how the past is viewed. In the face of an overwhelming disparity of copper ingot molds from the Late Bronze Age, trials designed around testing different mold materials and casting techniques have the potential to determine, with relative certainty, how copper ingots were cast over 3000 years ago. This thesis examines the possible materials used to create copper ingot molds through a study of their prevalence in antiquity and also details experiments in which these materials were used, in concert with different casting techniques, to create copper ingots. The results of these experiments are combined with analyses of the Uluburun ingots in an effort to bring some closure to the debate surrounding copper ingot molds in the Late Bronze Age.

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.

Every father is the son of a mother. While this would appear to be a commonplace, studies of patrimonialism as a political system in the ancient Near East have rarely considered its implications. Royal women, as objects of exchange and as agents of political action, played a central role in negotiations between Late Bronze Age states and in dynastic struggles within these states. The relative positions of royal men were shaped by their relationships to royal women. / Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations

The late Bronze Age settlement in Březnice near Bechyně (South Bohemia) was investigated during 2005-2009. As well as commonly found features, many ditches were also found (about 1/3). These ditches are linear pits oriented in a north-south direction and the length (usually 4-7m) is four times the width. The results of macro-remains analysis of the late Bronze Age settlement in Březnice represent extraordinarily rich collections of archaeobotanical finds. Extracted macro-remains bear attributes of waste origin where Chenopodium album, Polygonum aviculare, Fallopia convolvulus are the most frequent. In the analyzed samples the main cereals were millet (Panicum miliaceum) and barley (Hordeum vulgare). Less frequent were species of wheat: bread wheat (Triticum aestivum), spelt (T. spelta), emmer (T. dicoccum) and einkorn (T. monococcum). Other macroremains found were legumes: lentil (Lens esculenta), pea (Pisum sativum) and broad bean (Vicia faba). Poppy seeds (Papaver sp.) were rare.

This dissertation explores social, cultural and political changes in the region later known as ‘Phoenicia’ during the period of approximately 1300-900 BC. By applying modern approaches to theoretical questions such as the nature of social change, identity, migration and how such phenomena are represented in the archaeological record, this dissertation aims to provide a discussion of Late Bronze/Early Iron Age Phoenicia based on a more solid methodological foundation than has often been the case previously. As well as better illuminating social change occurring within Phoenicia itself, it is hoped that the methodological observations and comparative value of the case-study presented here will prove useful for discussions of the wider social changes occurring in the East Mediterranean at this time. A key observation of this research is that past narratives have placed too much emphasis on the role of external powers such as the Egyptian ‘empire’ or ‘Sea People’ invaders in driving Levantine social change in this period. This dissertation stresses the critical importance of local responses to foreign influence and charts the balance between active choice and constraint by circumstances in shaping the development of the Phoenician polities. It is argued that the most important forms of change which can be identified in the archaeological and written records relate to the construction of identities, especially those of the Phoenician élites. These take the form of a move away from legitimation and identity-negotiation based on foreign contacts, towards greater emphasis on more local, Levantine features. The consequences of this change, it is argued, are felt within social, political, economic, religious and other spheres of life.

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