Long-Term Settlement Dynamics in Ancient Macedonia: A New Multi-Disciplinary Survey from Grevena (NW Greece)

Bibliographic Details
Title: Long-Term Settlement Dynamics in Ancient Macedonia: A New Multi-Disciplinary Survey from Grevena (NW Greece)
Authors: Giannis Apostolou, Konstantina Venieri, Alfredo Mayoral, Sofia Dimaki, Arnau Garcia-Molsosa, Mercourios Georgiadis, Hector A. Orengo
Source: Land, Vol 13, Iss 11, p 1769 (2024)
Publisher Information: MDPI AG, 2024.
Publication Year: 2024
Collection: LCC:Agriculture
Subject Terms: landscape archaeology, archaeological survey, legacy data, site revisiting, GIS, remote sensing, Agriculture
More Details: This paper discusses the evolution of human settlement in ancient Macedonia from the Neolithic to the Late Roman periods, based on the results of a new multi-disciplinary and multi-scale archaeological survey in northern Grevena (NW Greece). Building upon an unpublished (legacy) survey, we developed a GIS-structured workflow that integrates site-revisiting and surveying strategies (material collection and test pits) with multi-temporal remote-sensing analyses, offering analytical information about site distribution, characterisation, dating, and taphonomy. Notably, the new study led to a 64% increase in the number of known sites. The combined results indicate that prehistory is less represented in the surface record than historical periods, likely due to the impact of soil erosion episodes. The Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age saw increased site numbers and the emergence of a settlement structure that characterised the area until the Hellenistic period. During the Roman period, the pattern shifted from a seemingly limited use of the landscape towards a model of more extensive habitation. This was driven by the appearance of new rural sites that introduced a land-use regime designed to support agricultural intensification by implementing anti-erosion measures, such as field terraces.
Document Type: article
File Description: electronic resource
Language: English
ISSN: 2073-445X
Relation: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/13/11/1769; https://doaj.org/toc/2073-445X
DOI: 10.3390/land13111769
Access URL: https://doaj.org/article/1e9780a4db374eb9b120d482f4543378
Accession Number: edsdoj.1e9780a4db374eb9b120d482f4543378
Database: Directory of Open Access Journals
More Details
ISSN:2073445X
DOI:10.3390/land13111769
Published in:Land
Language:English