Neolithic society in northern Greece : the evidence of ground stone artefacts
Analysis of ground stone technology from the Neolithic of Greece rarely goes beyond incomplete descriptive accounts to focus on the activities performed with these tools and the contexts of their use. Ground stone products are seen as mundane static objects devoid of meaning and lacking significance. The aim of this thesis is to move away from incomplete accounts of ground stone technology and static typologies. Drawing upon the concepts of the chaine operatoire and 'object biographies' this thesis investigates ground stone technology as a social practice focusing on the life-cycle of artefacts from raw material selection to final deposition. The underlying premise is that a contextual approach can contribute to understanding the ways in which the production, consumption and discard of ground stone artefacts were structured within different forms and scales of social practice and the manner in which these differences articulated different meanings and social understandings. The aims of the thesis were materialised through the study of the rich ground stone assemblage from the LN settlement of Makriyalos, Greece. The analysis of the chaine operatoire of the Makriyalos ground stone assemblage revealed diverse
Tsoraki, Christina
Neolithic society in northern Greece : the evidence of ground stone artefacts. Analysis of ground stone technology from the Neolithic of Greece rarely goes beyond incomplete descriptive accounts to focus on the activities performed with these tools and the contexts of their use. Ground stone products are seen as mundane static objects devoid of meaning and lacking significance. The aim of this thesis is to move away from incomplete accounts of ground stone technology and static typologies. Drawing upon the concepts of the chaine operatoire and 'object biographies' this thesis investigates ground stone technology as a social practice focusing on the life-cycle of artefacts from raw material selection to final deposition. The underlying premise is that a contextual approach can contribute to understanding the ways in which the production, consumption and discard of ground stone artefacts were structured within different forms and scales of social practice and the manner in which these differences articulated different meanings and social understandings. The aims of the thesis were materialised through the study of the rich ground stone assemblage from the LN settlement of Makriyalos, Greece. The analysis of the chaine operatoire of the Makriyalos ground stone assemblage revealed diverse
neolithic society northern_greece evidence ground stone artefact analysis ground stone technology neolithic greece rarely beyond incomplete descriptive account focus activity perform tool context use ground stone product see mundane static object devoid mean lack significance aim move_away incomplete account ground stone technology static typology drawing_upon concept operatoire object_biography investigates grind_stone technology social_practice focus life_cycle artefact raw_material selection final deposition underlie premise contextual contribute way production_consumption discard ground stone artefact structure within different_form scale social_practice manner difference articulate different meaning social understanding aim materialise study rich ground stone assemblage settlement makriyalos greece analysis operatoire makriyalos ground stone assemblage reveal diverse