Description:
Located on the shore of the Gulf of Argos, Lerna is one of the most important prehistoric sites in Greece, having been occupied with few interruptions over a period of some 5,000 years, from the 6th to the 1st millennium BCE. Following excavations under the direction of John Caskey from 1952 to 1958, the well-preserved, deeply stratified archaeological record resulted in Lerna becoming the undisputed "typesite" and master sequence for the Early and Middle Bronze Ages on the southern Greek mainland. However, the Middle Bronze Age settlement and material have never been comprehensively published. In the first of two volumes devoted to the remains from this period, Spencer presents a catalogue of the Middle Helladic ceramic material--over 2,400 objects in total--along with an analysis of the shapes, decoration, and fabrics, elucidating the changing patterns of ceramic production and consumption at a key mainland site. Contributors to the volume include Carol Zerner, Ian Whitbread, Richard Jones, and Hans Mommsen.

About the Author: Lindsay C. Spencer is an archaeologist specializing in the Middle Bronze Age Aegean.