At Chaironeia we met two familiar faces: Drs. Lee Brice and Georgia Tsouvala. We sat in the theater as Lee described the two Battles of Chaironeia. The first was in 338 BCE, when Phillip II of Macedonia crushed the Athenian and Boeotian alliance to secure hegemony over Greece. The battle is sparsely described in ancient sources, but a debate still rages about the tactics and maneuvers that won the day for the Macedonians. We even got to act out what we do know! Lee had us line up as Greeks and Macedonians and demonstrate the flow of the battle. I got to be a Macedonian phalangite. We marched in, then turned our backs and fled, then wheeled back to face the foe as the Greeks charged our backs. At the same time, the cavalry went through the gap created by the Greeks’ hasty advance and cut them to ribbons. As a participant, I was unable to take pictures, but Georgia did, so if I get them I will post them here.
Lee lecturing in the ancient theater. Unfortunately, the pictures of the reenactment were
really washed out by the sun. Picture credit to Georgia Tsouvala.
After a short talk at the lion that marks the graves of at least some of the casualties of the battle, we went to the museum. We didn't have very long though, so we took a fast look around and then got on the bus to Orchomenos.
Jason presented in the shade near the theater about the site. Orchomenos and its surroundings have a long history of habitation. The Mycenaean inhabitants of the site drained a massive amount of the nearby lake in order to farm fertile ground. There were sinkholes to store water and dikes and levees that were a part of the massive waterworks. The basin was redrained in modern times by engineers. The Mycenaeans here didn't build the same type of palace structure as the ones in Southern Greece. It is similar to Dimini’s in that respect, but there aren't a lot of similarities between Dimini and Orchomenos.
The Tholos. Note the massive lintel stone.
We also visited a tholos tomb on site. Schliemann himself investigated the tomb, but was ultimately disappointed. The secondary room off the main chamber has some amazing reliefs on the ceiling. Unfortunately, the tomb was robbed in antiquity so he didn't find a whole lot there.
Our next stop was a nearby church, which Kevin Daly had recommended to us while we were in Thebes. The icons in the church commemorate a supposed appearance of the Virgin Mary during the Second World War when she blasted German tanks and troops from the road, slowing their advance. It's interesting to see the old school icons next to one with Nazi soldiers and panzers being blasted off the road by a giant Virgin Mary.
Depictions of the Virgin Mary literally smiting Nazi tanks and troops. Simultaneously anachronistic and impressive
We stopped briefly in the town of Orchomenos for lunch and then kept trucking to Eleon. We were greeted at the apothiki by Dr. Brendan Burke, the director of the Eastern Boeotia Archaeological Project, and Trevor Van Damme, a graduate student working on pottery in Bronze Age domestic quarters. The first half of the presentation was primarily focused on the pottery, which has come out in wonderful strata. There was a cup that was entirely in one piece, as well as some gorgeous Mycenaean lustrous pottery. The glaze literally shines, which is fantastic to look at. Then we headed out to the site.
Brendan showing us some diagrams in the apothiki. Trevor's face is sadly obliterated by the sun.
After a short walk through a field and up a hill, we came upon the excavation. The main place of interest to which Brendan drew our attention was the Blue Stone Structure which contained many burials. It's also marked by a 6 foot tall unmarked stele, which is rare if not unparalleled. Furthermore the structure was never built over and there even seems to have been a wall built as a boundary to prevent construction from hitting the structure. Again, this is an extremely rare behavior to observe archaeologically.
The other thing we looked at was a huge polygonal wall from around 500 BCE. It doesn't really appear to have been a fortification wall either, which is odd. There's still a lot to be discovered about the wall and Brendan said it'd be a multi year project of its own.
The wall at Eleon.
Our final stop for the whole trip (gasp) was the museum at Schimatari. We were asked to pick a favorite object to explain to the group. I chose a stele from Tanagra that had decrees on both sides, separated by 50 years. Both decrees concern the Demeter and Kore sanctuary. The first provides for its establishment and the second moves the sanctuary to a place within the city walls and lists the funding agents, including 98 Tanagran women. Just like the woman doctor two days ago, the inscription provides a brief glimpse into the role of women in Ancient Greek society. These women obviously had substantial property and power.
And then we left. Back on the bus one last time and headed for home. There are a scant few days left but I remember getting to Loring Hall like it was yesterday. Definitely excited for the last few days, but leaving the people here will be difficult.
As always, thanks for reading.
No comments:
Post a Comment