Dissertation: The Role of Surplus Production and Storage in the Emergence of Social Inequality in Northern Greece During the Bronze and Iron Age

Regents Of The University Of Michigan - Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor MI

Investigators

Abstract

Under the direction of Dr. Carla Sinopoli, MS Despina Margomenou will collect data for her doctoral dissertation. Archaeologists wish to understand how civilization arose and have noted a similar progression in many parts of the world. Small scale farmers living in village communities aggregate into larger social groupings and develop centralized political and economic structures. Associated with this, in most instances, are associated with monumental architecture and craft specialization. While this pattern is well documented, researchers still do not understand the changes in social organization which set the groundwork for this development. Attention has focused on the emergence of social differentiation and the appearance of an "elite" class since this is a widespread feature which occurs early in the process. Several theories have been proposed to explain how small groups rise to power but the data are insufficient to select among them. One group of models emphasizes the importance of force and coercion. Another focuses on the potential administrative role which elites may have played and hypothesize that this group served essentially managers who redistributed essential food resources to even out shortages and surpluses over space. It has also been proposed that with the development of agricultural surpluses, storage mechanisms were developed to buffer fluctuations over time and that elite groups played a central managerial role in this process. MS Margomenou will collect data from ongoing excavations in Northern Greece to examine this question. Although Northern Greece is less well known than its Southern counterpart, small Bronze Age villages increased in size and complexity during the succeeding Iron Age and egalitarianism gave way to a more hierarchical form of social organization. MS Margomenou will use both excavated material as well as data collected from ongoing investigations and will focus on the question of storage. Through analysis of in-ground storage units as well as large pottery containers she will learn how food storage strategies changed over time. She will reconstruct not only the extent to which storage was practiced but also the degree to which it was removed from individual families and is placed under centralized control. This, she believes, is a crucial variable which will shed light on the role and emergence of elites. This project is important for several reasons. It will provide data of interest to many archaeologists and increase understanding of the processes which lead to social complexity. It will also assist in training a promising young scientist.