BEYOND THE POLIS RITUALS, RITES AND CULTS IN EARLY AND ARCHAIC GREECE (12th‑6th CENTURIES BC) Editor CReA‑Patrimoine © Centre de Recherches en Archéologie et Patrimoine (CReA‑Patrimoine) Université libre de Bruxelles 50, av. F.D. Roosevelt | CP 133/01 B‑1050 Bruxelles crea@ulb.ac.be http://crea.ulb.ac.be ISBN: 9782960202922 Printed by Snel Layout: Nathalie Bloch (CReA‑Patrimoine) Cover and separator pages Reconstruction of the sanctuary of Despotiko by Woulielmos Orestides (Courtesy Yiannos Kouragios) Études d’archéologie 15 Études d’archéologie 15 BEYOND THE POLIS RITUALS, RITES AND CULTS IN EARLY AND ARCHAIC GREECE (12th‑6th CENTURIES BC) Edited by Irene S. Lemos and Athena Tsingarida Bruxelles CReA-Patrimoine 2019 CONTENTS Acknowledgements 7 Irene Lemos & Athena Tsingarida Introduction Proceedings 9 Irene Lemos & Athena Tsingarida I. Theoritical Considerations on Ritual Practices Rituals in Context. Scales and Horizons of Interpretation of Cult Places in Early Greece 15 17 François de Polignac The Role of Sanctuaries and the Formation of Greek Identities in the Late Bronze Age / Early Iron Age Transition 25 Birgitta Eder Entangled Religion, Ritual and Social Practice: the Case of Karphi 53 Mathew Haysom II. Regional Cases I: Central Greece and the Peloponnese Dedicatory Dialogues in North‑Central Greece: Pherai and Philia in Broader Context 65 67 Maria Mili The “Ritual Zone” on Xeropolis at Lefkandi: Some Preliminary Thoughts 75 Irene S. Lemos Terracotta Figurines from the “Ritual Zone” at Xeropolis‑Lefkandi: Constructing a Methodology 91 Caroline Thurston Invention of Tradition in Cult and Myth at Eleusis 99 Floris van den Eijden Dining with the Ancestors: the Late Archaic‑Classical Westkomplex in Aegina‑Kolonna 115 Gudrun Klebinder‑Gauss Enduring Rituals in the Arcadian Mountains: the Case of the Sanctuary of Zeus at Mt. Lykaion Mary Voyatzis III. Regional Cases II: The Aegean and Western Greece Artemis Beyond the Polis of Thasos: the Cult of the Goddess in the Archaic North‑Eastern Aegean 133 147 149 Ioannis (Yangos) Chalazonitis Ritual Practices in Abandoned Settlements in the Cyclades from the 12th to the 6th Century BC: Human Mobility and its Impact on Ritual Practices 171 Irène Sanchez Geometric Despotiko: on the Borderline between Sacred and Profane 193 Alexandra Alexandridou 5 No more Gap, but New Social Practices: Evidence of Collective Funerary Rituals in Itanos during the 6th and 5th Centuries BC 213 Athena Tsingarida & Didier Viviers Funerary Practices and the Formation of the Polis at Megara Hyblaea 8th‑6th centuries BC Reine‑Marie Bérard IV. Bioarchaeological Approaches to Ritual Practices Ritualizing the sea: aspects of ritual activities related to the sea in the Aegean from the 12th century to the 6th century BC 247 259 261 Tatiana Theodoropoulou A preliminary examination of Lefkandi’s “ritual” area from a zooarchaeological perspective 273 Alex Mulhall An exploration of the social role of plants in rituals in prehistoric Aegean with reference to the site of Xeropolis, Lefkandi, Euboea 289 Alexandra Livarda & Georgia Kotzamani Contributors 6 303 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Irene S . L emo s & Athe n a Tsin ga rid a The volume presents the proceedings of the international symposium, “Beyond the Polis. Ritual Practices in Early and Archaic Greece” held at the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) and at the Royal Academy of Belgium in September 2015. The conference was organized by the editors, Athena Tsingarida (ULB) and Irene Lemos (Oxford), and was made possible thanks to the generous funding by the Foundation Philippe Wiener ‑ Maurice Anspach. Within the framework of the research program “Beyond the polis”, the Foundation extended our funding for another year in order to organize the conference. During the preparation of the publication, we further benefited from the constant support of Merton College in Oxford and the CReA‑Patrimoine in Brussels. We owe special thanks to Drs. Alex Vacek, Vivi Saripanidi and Jean Vanden Broeck‑Parant for their help in organizing the conference. Special thanks are due to Yiannos Kouragios who granted permission to use the reconstruction of the sanctuary of Despotikos (Cyclades) for the cover of the book, produced by his collaborator Woulielmos Orestiades. We are also grateful to a number of scholars who peer reviewed the papers. Our task as editors was facilitated greatly by the skills and expertise of Nathalie Bloch, infographist at the CReA‑Patrimoine, and the help of Antoine Attout (PhD candidate and Assistant in Classical Archaeology at ULB). 7 INTRODUCTION PROCEEDINGS Irene L em os & Athe n a Tsin ga rid a This peer reviewed volume is the proceedings of an international conference and the sequel to the publication of the research that resulted from a three‑year joint project between the University of Oxford and the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB), initially entitled “Beyond the polis. Ritual practices and the construction of social identities in Early and Archaic Greece (12th‑6th centuries BC)”. Published in 2017 and edited by Athena Tsingarida and Irene Lemos, Constructing Social Identities in Early Iron Age and Archaic Greece presents the results of the research completed by three scholars during their post‑doctoral positions awarded within the frame of the joint project. Vicky Vlachou presented the paper “From Mycenaean Cult Practice to the Hyakinthia Festival of the Spartan Polis. Cult Images, Textiles and Ritual Activity at Amykles: An Archaeological Perspective”; Alexandra Alexandridou published her research on “’Sacred’ or Profane? Interpreting Late Geometric Edifices in proximity to Burials in Attica”; and finally Vivi Saripanidi submitted her research on “Constructing Continuities with a ‘Heroic’ Past: Death, Feasting and Political Ideology in the Archaic Macedonian Kingdom”. This volume presents the proceedings of the international conference that took place in Brussels in 2015. It was organized to offer complementary approaches, both thematic and geographic, to the study of Early Greek ritual practices and to expand into other areas, contexts, and materials the research undertaken in the volume Constructing Social Identities in Early Iron Age and Archaic Greece. The conference included papers on theoretical approaches to the study of rituals, case studies from a number of regions and sites, and finally papers on the contribution of bio‑archaeological research to our understanding of ritual practices in ancient Greece. Section I includes papers related to the theoretical approaches. They address important questions of wider perspectives such as the role of cult and ritual in constructing social identities through multi‑levelled perspectives, often beneath or beyond the polis; the continuity in cult and ritual from the Mycenaean period to the 8th century BC; the challenging methodological issue about the definition of the terms “ritual” and “religion”; and finally the identification/ reconstruction of such practices from archaeological evidence. François de Polignac introduces the subject of the conference, and discusses several cases that illustrate ritual connections, which function in the context of “beyond the polis”. Case studies of sanctuaries are selected that are located outside the “city” and cover different periods and geographical areas. The paper studies the evolution of social and collective identities negotiated through participation in the cults with a special focus on the sanctuary of Amphiaraos at Oropos (Classical period), the sanctuary of Apollo of Abas at Kalapodi in Phokis (from the Mycenaean period onwards) and that of Apollo Ptoios in Boeotia (from the Late Geometric period onwards). In his paper, de Polignac emphasizes the need to define better the different horizons, levels and contexts where the cults have been performed – city, regional, interregional centered – during different stages of their history or sometimes concurrently. The study cases further suggest that the relation between cities and sanctuaries offers a wide spectrum of interactions: from the city in an ancillary position, providing services for a cult that it does not control, to the complete control of a sanctuary by the city. De Polignac extends the discussion to other key sanctuaries and raises the question whether our neat categories of cults can still satisfy the multi‑level functions of the sanctuaries during their long period of use. In her paper, Birgitta Eder offers a comprehensive account of the religious geography of shrines and cult places from the Mycenaean period to the 8th century BC. She organizes the evidence according to the three main chronological stages (Palatial, Postpalatial and Early Iron Age). She further considers the location of ritual performances in palaces, in settlements and in the countryside. She also examines their architectural plans and accessibility. The impressive number and variety of cult locations reveal a clear shift in their character from the Late Bronze to the Early Iron Age that resulted in changes to their setting, architectural 9 Irene Lemos & Athena Tsingarida details and offerings. The paper demonstrates the significance of religious and cult practices in the development of regional and supra‑regional identities in the early Greek communities. It supports the idea, already suggested by C. Sourvinou‑Inwood,1 that early Greek sanctuaries developed through a continuous process and without any break during the Dark Ages. In his paper, Mathew Haysom raises the important and difficult methodological question considering the definition of the terms “rituals” and “religion”, and their identification in the archaeological record for both the Aegean prehistory and the Classical period. Browsing through archaeological and anthropological literature on the subject, Haysom acknowledges the contribution of G. Geertz which links ritual and religion.2 In order to validate it, Haysom applies this particular methodological framework to the 12th‑century settlement at Karphi in Crete. In doing so, the paper demonstrates that building on Geerz’s framework allows us to recognize the complex patterns of interaction between religion and ritual embedded in everyday life and functioning both in the religious and social spheres. Sections II and III present regional cases from a variety of sites that date from the Mycenaean to the Archaic periods. In these sections, a number of papers present new and unpublished material (Xeropolis at Lefkandi, Despotiko), while others offer new approaches to the study of old material (Thessaly, Eleusis, the Cyclades) or new results from on‑going excavations (Lykaion, Itanos, Kolonna Aigina). Maria Mili examines the two Thessalian sanctuaries of Athena Itonia at Philia and Ennodia at Pherai that played a significant role in constructing Thessalian identity in the Early Iron Age. Mili offers comparisons between them and other sanctuaries of Geometric and Archaic Greece. She notes that scholars often employ votive records to answer questions related to social identities, and also argues that comparing votive assemblages is an important methodological step to understanding state formation processes. Mili’s analysis shows, as noted also by de Polignac in his introductory paper, that sanctuaries could serve many different levels of local, regional and super regional “cultic” networks, and she suggests that materialization of the different levels could have 1 2 10 Sourvinou‑Inwood 1993, 1‑17. Geertz 1973, 87 ‑125. varied through time. Finally she concludes that 8th ‑century sanctuaries in Thessaly such as at Pherai and Philia, as well as elsewhere in the Greek world, were operating in close dialogue with each other and that developments perceived at one were closely followed by others. Irene Lemos offers a preliminary report of the discoveries made at the “Ritual Zone” on Xeropolis at Lefkandi, Euboea. Three structures discovered on the site were equipped with clay drums and platforms, and might have served for gatherings where display and consumption of food were the main ritual activities. Two of the structures are dated to the 12th century while the third dates from the 12th to the 10th centuries BC. Moreover, detailed comparisons are offered with similar platforms and associated assemblages of ceramics, figurines and animal bones found in funerary, domestic and cult contexts from the Postpalatial to the Archaic periods. It is also argued that the gatherings at the “Ritual Zone” served to shape and enhance the communal identities of the PostPalatial population at Lefkandi. Furthermore, it is tempting to suggest that such occasions could be compared to the later trapezomata where portions of food were presented and offered also to the gods. In any case, the new finds on Xeropolis provide fresh evidence for ritual activities that took place during the PostPalatial and early Greek periods. Further research at the site will provide more needed information on the nature of such activities and their significance. Complementary to this chapter is that of Caroline Thurston who presents the figurines discovered in the “Ritual Zone”. In the last section of the proceedings, additional information about this area is offered by the analyses of bio‑archaeological evidence (by Livarda and Kotzamani; Mulhall; Theodoropoulou). Thurston tests whether the discovery of terracotta figurines in this particular archaeological context could assist with its association and identification as an area dedicated to ritual practices. Moreover, she examines the significant characteristics of the particular assemblage of figurines found in the “Ritual Zone” in order to understand their role in ritual activities. Her analysis highlights two specific factors: the presence of types not common in other contexts and their repeated usage. Especially interesting is the number of boat models and the monochrome bovid figurines discovered in this particular part of the settlement. Another important factor is the high density of their deposition. She concludes that the Introduction Proceedings assemblage at the “Ritual Zone” suggests that the figurines found there served a specific “votive habit”. In his paper, Floris Van den Eijnde re‑examines the archaeological evidence of the successive activities that took place on the site of the Telesterion in Eleusis from the final stages of the Late Bronze Age to the middle of the 5th century BC. He focuses especially on the Late Helladic building ‑ “Building B” ‑ which was found underneath the Classical Telesterion. The author explores Cosmopoulos’ idea of this building as a lieu de mémoire3 and takes into account both the archaeological remains and the literary evidence to point to a ritual continuity, and to suggest a reconstruction of the site and the performances that took place there. While previous studies demonstrated that the building was in use until the Sub‑Mycenaean period, this paper suggests that it was still visible during the Geometric period, and was most probably partly in use until the early years of the 6th century. Indeed, in this later period the existing terrace was enlarged and elevated, while the remains of the earlier building were covered with backfill to allow for the construction of the “Solonian” Telesterion. Floris Van den Eijnde finally suggests that the visible remains of “Building B” fulfilled a commemorative function, which was also employed to shape a common identity for the local population which, according to the archaeological record, established its presence at the site in the Protogeometric period. Van den Eijnde also draws parallels between the foundation myths of the Eleusian and Athenian cults, the former described in the Hymn of Demeter, the latter in the Iliad (2.546‑549) and the Odyssey (7.80‑81), to show that the cults developed at the same time to manifest two independent polities – Athens and Eleusis – which were in fierce competition with each other during the 8th and 7th centuries BC. In her contribution, Gudrun Klebinder‑Gauss discusses the function of a building complex, the so‑called “Westkomplex” located at the western end of the rocky promontory of Kolonna, on Aegina. The paper focuses on the assumed interpretation of the “Westkomplex”, erected in the Late Archaic – Early Classical period, as a location dedicated to dining and worshiping ancestors and/or heroes. She argues that the “Westkomplex” served as a setting where collective activities took place forming shared identities related to kinship‑based groups. The paper further addresses the issue of a possible continuity in the practice of rituals at the site from the Geometric 3 period onwards when the area was a burial ground, and later when, in the first half of the 6th century, ritual and sympotic activities took place next to two earlier grave markers that remained visible until the turn of the century when eventually the area was dedicated to the “Westkomplex”. Mary Voyatzis reports on the recent discoveries made at the sanctuary of Zeus on Mt. Lykaion, in the Arcadian mountains, founded well “beyond” any polis of early Greece. Particularly impressive are the discoveries made on the altar of Zeus where ritual practices involving the offering of burnt animal sacrifices and libations, that started in the Mycenaean period, continued into the Early Iron Age and beyond. The finds include a lot of pottery, mostly from drinking vessels, terracotta and metal figurines and other offerings found together with the burnt animal bones. What is important is that the deposition of animal bones dates from the 16th to the 14th centuries BC. This is without doubt a clear case of animal sacrifice starting in the Mycenaean period and continuing into later periods. Petrographic and chemical analyses of the pottery revealed that the coarser, handmade pottery, from the Final Neolithic and the Middle Helladic periods, was mostly produced from local clays, while Late Helladic and especially Early Iron Age ceramics belong to fabric groups of clay sources derived from further away. Voyatzis suggests that “local” people visited the sanctuary in prehistoric times, but later in the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages there were connections with other regions, and especially with Messenia and Laconia. In the final part of the paper, Voyatzis compares the cult of Zeus at Lykaion with that at Olympia noticing that the former was of much earlier date, and thus suggesting that the important shrine at Mt. Lykaion might have inspired aspects of the formation of the sanctuary of Zeus at Olympia. One important aspect might have been the assimilation of significant components of the cult such as the creation of an ash altar in the shape of a mountain. In any case, evidence on Mt. Lykaion reveals enduring practices, which served to reinforce membership of social and cultural identities from the Bronze to the Iron Age. It is suggested that collective memory might have played a role in the various aspects of the continuity of such cult activities on this important mountaintop shrine even when different and new social identities were emerging in the Early Iron Age, which eventually set the foundations for the articulation of political, religious and social institutions of Archaic and Classical Greece. Cosmopoulos 2015, 160 ‑166. 11 Irene Lemos & Athena Tsingarida Section III, “Regional Cases II: The Aegean and Western Greece” presents articles which discuss cases from the Aegean and Crete, Northern Greece and from the Western colonial world. It offers different archaeological contexts and assemblages, from sanctuaries, settlements and burials in order to understand how material culture can be activated to build new identities in culturally mixed areas (Northern Aegean and Megara Hyblaea) or to refer to a common constructed past. It opens with a paper by Yangos Chalazonitis which focuses on the sanctuary of Artemis in Thasos in the late 7th and 6th centuries. The article examines the material from the site, the emergence of the cult, the ritual practices and the importance of the Artemis cult in the island. In a further step, Chalazonitis places the sanctuary in a wider regional context, and compares it with material evidence from other contemporary Artemisia or Artemis‑like sanctuaries located near Thasos, along the coast of the modern‑day Gulf of Kavala. A special emphasis is laid on the sanctuary of Artemis Parthenos in Neapolis and the Acropolis’ sanctuary in Oisyne. The paper demonstrates that the cults in Neapolis and Oisyme to a certain extent evolved in tandem with the Thasian cult of Artemis. But it also suggests that they exhibited distinctive elements in votive and cult practices, which served to form new social and civic identities. In her contribution, Irene Sanchez examines ritual practices performed in abandoned settlements in the Cyclades. She discusses mobility patterns and shifting social identities from individuals and groups on the move from the Late Bronze Age to the Archaic period. The author points to the large extent of abandonment processes which took part in the Cyclades, and reviews archaeological evidence in order to provide an overview of the practices adopted by various groups throughout different sites and periods. The paper suggests that small groups of people continued to worship at abandoned sites after the Late Helladic IIIC period. It also suggests there is a marked difference between rituals performed in the PostPalatial and Early Iron Age periods and those which took place from the end of the Geometric period onwards. The former may be difficult to trace and were most probably carried out in abandoned settlements by individuals or small groups of devotees, whereas the latter were also performed in abandonment settlements but which underwent substantial reorganisation that was most probably coordinated by the whole community. 12 In the light of recent excavations and on‑going research, Alexandra Alexandridou proposes a reconstruction of the early stages of occupation at the site on the islet of Despotiko (in the Cyclades), which became an important sanctuary dedicated to Apollo in the second half of the 6th century BC. In order to understand the nature of the Early Iron Age occupation, the author examines the function of two partly preserved buildings, Buildings O and Ξ, the former erected in the late 9th ‑ early 8th century and the latter in the late 8th century BC. The paper points to an extensive occupation of the area from the late 9th century and, in particular, the 8th century BC. It further proposes that Building O was a residential structure, housing feasting activities, while the later Building Ξ was a place destined for commensality in a cultic context. Alexandridou proposes that the early occupation of the site was an intermediary stage between the profane and the sacred, combining domestic dwellings and structures dedicated to cultic activities. In their paper, Athena Tsingarida and Didier Viviers discuss the nature of the successive occupations from the late 8th to the middle of the 4th centuries BC in the area of the so‑called Archaic building complex, located in the North Necropolis of Itanos (East Crete). In the light of recent excavations, the authors explore the evidence of collective practices that took place in this prominent funerary zone during the 6th and 5th centuries BC, a period during which there is a lack of significant funerary evidence from Crete. It is important also to note that the site was located on the top of earlier burial grounds. Excavations showed that earlier funerary enclosure walls were used as foundations to build the late 7th ‑ early 6th century building complex, where collective feasting, sacrificial pyrai together with other ritual ceremonies were performed both inside the hearth room and in the open‑air yards. These activities were closely related to two earlier pit tombs, enclosed within the building. Two clay benches were built in front of them to receive offerings and a pavement made of large slabs surrounded the pits. This indicates that significant importance was given to the two pit tombs when the complex was erected in the 6th century. The study points to a long‑term ritual use of the area, linked with the pit tombs until the middle of the 4th century BC, even after the destruction and abandonment of a large part of the complex in the early 5th. The importance of the area in the local funerary ideology and landscape is further attested by the preservation of the abandoned zone next to the numerous Late Classical and Hellenistic burials Introduction Proceedings located in its proximity. The building complex and its successive occupations suggest a continuity of rituals linked with earlier tombs during a period when there is no evidence of burials in the Northern Necropolis of Itanos (6th ‑ mid 4th century). The authors propose to relate these practices with corporate groups, probably linked by kinship ties, who founded a tomb cult where several rituals took place (feasting, drinking, sacrifices etc.) in order to construct a collective memory which strengthened their social cohesion at a time when Cretan society was confronted with important institutional and cultural challenges. The contribution of Reine‑Marie Bérard discusses the material assemblage found in a significant number of graves from the Southern and Western necropoleis of Megara Hyblaea. The author employs the information that funerary rites reveal about individual and collective ceremonies in order to form the social identities of the community. Following the highly symbolic self‑representation of the community in burial customs, the article raises issues directly relevant to Greek colonial contexts such as the possible influence of an ethnic mix context in the formation of the colonial identity in the archaic polis of Megara Hyblaea. Moreover, evidence of the funeral display of children and indigenous women are also discussed. The study further points to the absence of ostentatious representation of social status or hierarchy, while it suggests that the funerary “space” was collectively managed. Such processes at Megara can be compared with other “colonial” sites and might, therefore, reflect a collective aspiration in the organisation of the funerary, domestic and public spaces. Recent literature has highlighted the importance of archaeobotanical and archaeozoological remains as complementary sources for ritual practices.4 Section IV takes into account the two main categories of paleoenvironmental evidence: botanical and zoological remains. The first paper discusses the range of possible roles of marine animals in ritual activities, while the two other articles present case studies from concrete examples with a special focus on the site of Lefkandi. Tatiana Theodoropoulou explores the presence of the marine world in cult activities. She underlines that it is indeed recent research that has enriched our understanding of the role of marine animals 4 For instance, Ekroth and Wallensten 2013. in Greek religion. Her contribution offers a study of marine animals and raw materials of marine origin associated with cult activities by employing a selection of faunal assemblages covering contexts from settlements, sanctuaries and cemeteries in the Aegean during the Early Iron Age. The study offers important insights into the ritual embodiment of the sea during this period. Theodoropoulou argues that as communities consumed marine foodstuffs in their diet, the significance that they assigned to the sea and its creatures remains unclear, and it is only zooarchaeological research that can be employed to explore the significance of the sea and its animals in ritual contexts. Theodoropoulou presents a number of case studies of important sanctuaries where marine animals have been found, such as the sanctuary in Kommos in Crete, the sanctuary of Artemis Kithone at Miletus, the sanctuary of Apollo and Artemis on Kynthos, and elsewhere. It is also noted that to be certain of the ritual consumption of marine foodstuffs, we must combine secure cult contexts with zooarchaeological criteria such as the abundance of the marine foodstuff and the selection of particular species. One additional constraint, however, for this particular period is the non‑ institutionalised character of practices that often were not part of discrete spheres of ritual activities but were embedded in everyday life. Finally, there is an account of the marine remains found in the “Ritual Zone” on Xeropolis at Lefkandi that confirms the above statements. A large amount of marine animal remains have been found in the area inside and outside the structures, confirming that this was an area where consumption of food took place. Interestingly, however, the species found there are identical to other “non‑special” contexts, which is also the case with the other bioarchaeological remains found in the area. Other evidence of marine remains from funerary contexts is also included in the discussion with specific references to the burial ground at Toumba in Lefkandi. The paper concludes that marine resources were used for both everyday and ritual consumption, and that variability of species and function is a feature of the marine assemblages discovered in domestic, ritual and funerary contexts of Early Iron Age Greece. Alex Mulhall presents a preliminary report of the faunal remains found in the “Ritual Zone” on Xeropolis at Lefkandi. Mulhall has examined some 168 archaeological units from the area in order to identify not only any broad patterns, but also specific features at a specimen level that might be 13 Irene Lemos & Athena Tsingarida correlated with ritual practices. Another aim was to compare and contrast the area’s faunal material with that deposited in apparently domestic contexts elsewhere on Xeropolis. The study has shown that there are strong similarities between the animal bones discovered in the “Ritual Zone” and the large volume deposited in the rest of the excavated areas on Xeropolis. This indicates that any ritual activities that took place in the “Ritual Zone” were restrained by the dominant systems of socio‑economic practices at Lefkandi’s agropastoral community. Exceptional is the discovery of one lion bone that raises interesting questions with regards to whether the animal was a local inhabitant. Important also is the significance of the specimen, which is a “meat bearing” right distal humerus that also has several butchery marks. Equally important is the discussion considering evidence for a diachronic change in human behaviour and the differential preservation of the zooarchaeological remains discovered in the “Ritual Zone”. Mulhall’s cautious approach based on the assumption that the pilot sub‑sample could be considered representative, allows further important observations. In conclusion, Mulhall argues that the faunal remains from the “Ritual Zone” reveal aspects of behaviour which could be associated with ritual activities. This preliminary study complements those of the papers by Lemos, Thurston, Theodoropoulou, and Livarda and Kotzamani. Alexandra Livarda and Georgia Kotzamani explore the social role of plants in rituals and provide a very useful summary of the evidence available so far. A number of available studies are presented deriving from sites where organic remains have been systematically sampled. They also discuss remains from excavations conducted without controlled archaeobotanical procedures, such as flotation and targeted soil sampling. Their survey starts with the Early Neolithic period with plant material associated with burials and also covers later periods, where available evidence reveals the presence of plants and especially olives in the retrieved bio‑archaeological evidence. Livarda and Kotzamani, however, noted that the absence of controlled sampling methods from earlier excavations challenges the sound association of olives with the funerary context as more recently conducted analyses suggest the presence of a variety of food and other plants in the burial grounds examined. In the last part of their contribution, the authors present some preliminary results of analyses undertaken at the “Ritual Zone” on Xeropolis. Some 92 samples were selected for analysis of the plant remains from contexts associated with the 14 three Structures discovered on the site. Livarda and Kotzamani present their analysis of the plant remains from each structure followed by comparisons with the domestic contexts of the site. They note that the main food plants encountered across Xeropolis were also identified in the “Ritual Zone” but some differences did exist. For example there is a broader range of cereals, legumes and fruit found across the domestic contexts of the settlement. There are also some interesting observations that though the majority of the plants found in the “Ritual Zone” were also found in the domestic quarters, free threshing wheat and coriander have not been identified in the rest of the site. Interestingly, threshing wheat has been found at the sanctuary of Zeus on Mt. Lykaion and at the sanctuary of Kalapodi in Phokis. Equally significant is the potential presence of coriander which has only been found in the “Ritual Zone”. The presence of aromatic plants may reflect their use in burning rites to achieve some sensory effect. The present volume offers a variety of papers presenting the results of recent research into ritual practices attested from the Late Bronze Age to the end of the Archaic period. The objective was to bring together specialists working in different regions of the Greek world and in different fields such as history, archaeology and bio‑archaeology. We hope that the result will benefit colleagues and students studying not only the religious but also the social and cultural institutions of Early Greece. Bibliography Cosmopoulos 2015 = M.B. Cosmopoulos, Bronze Age Eleusis and the Origins of the Eleusinian Mysteries, Cambridge, 2015. Ekroth and Wallensten 2013 = G. Ekroth, J. Wallensten (eds.), Bones, Behaviour and Belief. The zooarchaeological evidence as a source for ritual practice in ancient Greece and beyond, Stockholm, 2013. Geertz 1973 = C. Geertz, “Religion as a cultural system”, in: C. Geertz, The Interpretation of Cultures, New York 1973, 87‑135. Sourvinou‑Inwood 1993 = Chr. Sourvinou‑ Inwood, “Early sanctuaries, the Eighth Century and Ritual Space. Fragments of a discourse”, in: N. Marinatos and R. Hägg (eds), Greek Sanctuaries: New Approaches, London and New York, 1993, 1‑17.