Un workshop per la produzione del bronzo ad Haghia Triada? Il caso del Complesso della Mazza di Breccia

The classification of the bronze finds from Phaistos and Haghia Triada, from the pre-protopalatial to the postpalatial period, permits an analysis of the contexts, between them is possible to distinguish the so-called «Complesso della Mazza di Breccia». In this area can be identified some aspects of bronze production, filling the strange absence of clear evidence of metallurgical activities at Haghia Triada. On the basis of the fundamental criteria for the identification of craft areas, are evident in the building the following characteristics: the presence of a group of rooms, architecturally distinct, for craft activities; the finding of raw materials (a fragment of ingot), tools for production (two one-piece stone moulds) and the high concentration of bronze artefacts; the topographical distance from the Villa and the village. Therefore, thanks to the many common points found in the Artisans' Quarter of Mochlos, it is possible to define the «Complesso della Mazza di Breccia» as a workshop, in which the metal production was associated with craft activities involving different spheres.