Two Middle Bronze Age Pottery Kilns at Plasi, Marathon

Abstract

This paper publishes two pottery kilns excavated at Plasi in Marathon (Attica) in 2016-17 as part of the excavations of the Department of History and Archaeology, of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. The morphological and technological traits of these structures are discussed in detail and their relative dating is considered. A comparative examination of kiln construction technology is included with the aim of placing the kilns within the broader context of the late Middle Bronze Age. Special emphasis is given on the study of ‘technological choices’. Integrated in their archaeological context, these choices are then discussed within the framework of broader societal changes, particularly in relation to the introduction and spread of new know-how at Plasi. It is argued that certain technological choices associated with one of the two kilns may relate to the interest of certain individuals in the Middle Bronze Age to produce and make use of distinctive pottery, at a time when material culture appears to become an increasingly important element of social discourse.