You are invited to an IIHSA Lecture (in person) on Thursday November 21, 2024 at 7.00 pm (Greek time)/ 5.00 pm (Irish time) / 12.00 (EST) by Stefano Ruzza (PhD candidate, La Sapienza University of Rome and National and Kapodistrian University of Athens), Which Mycenaeans? Forms of Regionalism in the Copais Basin in LH IIIA-B.

Abstract: The term ‘Mycenaean’ coined more than one hundred years ago, is widely used to label the Late Bronze Age culture that flourished in the Aegean. Despite its usefulness, though, this term is too broad and fails to consider the cultural, social, economic, organisational, and political differences that existed within the Mycenaean World. When regionalism is accounted, the Copais Basin in NW Boeotia is an interesting case study from several points of view. Indeed, it is somehow at the border between the Southern Greek Mainland, the heart of the Mycenaean civilisation, and its northern periphery. Its prehistoric inhabitants, also, partly drained the lake to claim new land to farm showing not only unparalleled skills but also an original economic strategy. Within this framework, I reconsider all the archaeological evidence retrieved within the region to discuss the meaning they may have had for the inhabitants of the basin in LH IIIA–LH IIIB (roughly 1400–1200 BC). Finally, I aim to stress how, despite its incredible potential, NW Boeotia is somewhat neglected by archaeological research when compared to other regions such as SE Boeotia, Argolid and Messenia.

The lecture will be held in person at the IIHSA in Athens: 7.00 pm (Greek time)/5.00 pm (Irish time)/12.00 (EST). If you would like to attend the lecture online, contact us at irishinstitutegr@gmail.com and we will provide you with a Zoom link.