Festòs e Haghia Triada. Rinvenimenti Minori I: Materiale per la tessitura.

The volume presents the study of the material associated with textile manufacture, deriving from the Neolithic and Minoan levels of Phaistos and Ayia Triada. In the first chapter, the archaeological sequence of both sites is described with particular attention to the areas and periods with more important evidence of textile production. In chapter II, the nature and consistence of this evidence is discussed. Chapter III includes the catalogue of tools divided according to sites, classes (SW, LW, spinning vases, needles, other materials, textiles) and typologies.In chapter IV, the different typologies of SWs and LWs are analysed according to morphology, fabric, use, wear and metrical data. The fabric varies from coarse (Neolithic SWs) to semi coarse (spherical LWs) and fine ware (kylix stems, cylindrical and discoid LWs); very often belonging to the same fabric of contemporary pottery. LWs are normally well fired, with the exception of cylindrical LWs and the spools, which can be of unfired clay. Finally, a group of cylindrical LWs look fired at a low temperature, but we do not know if this was due to intentional firing or the consequence of unintentional exposition to high temperature.In chapter V, find contexts are analysed according to sites, chronological horizons, areas, rooms, spaces and loci. Contexts have been reconstructed “bottom up”, starting from all the items with the same provenance (forming a “group”), therefore when possible linking the groups in “deposit” i.e., sets of tools originally belonging to the same systemic context. After the careful review of the contexts, chapter VI atempts a wider reconstruction of the technical and social transformations of textile manufacture in Phaistos and Ayia Triada from the Neolithic to the final Bronze Age. The volume is completed by 5 appendexes including Metrcal Analysis by CTR- Copenhagen (Appendixes 1-2), fiber analysis by C. Margariti (conservator Ministry of culture, Greece, appendixes 3-4), experimental archaeology in Caltagirone (App. 5).