The Land of Ionia

Incorporating over a century of archaeological research, Greaves offers a reassessment of Archaic Ionia that attempts to understand the region within its larger Mediterranean context and provides a thematic overview of its cities and people.

• Seeks to balance the Greek and Anatolian cultural influences at work in Ionia in this important period of its history (700BC to the Battle of Lade in 494BC)
• Organised thematically, covering landscape, economy, cities, colonisation, warfare, cult, and art
• Accesses German and Turkish scholarship, presenting a useful point of entry to the published literature for academics and students

List of illustrations viii

List of tables x

Preface xi

Acknowledgments xiv

Prologue xvi

1 FINDING IONIA 1

Introduction 1

The Source Materials 2

Excavation and Publication 22

Conclusions 26

2 CONSTRUCTING CLASSICAL ARCHAEOLOGIES OF IONIA 27

Introduction 27

Traditional Approaches to Classical Archaeology in Ionia 28

The German and Turkish "Schools" of Archaeology 32

Annaliste Perspectives on Archaeology 36

A New Approach to the Land of Ionia 39

Conclusions 43

3 A DYNAMIC LANDSCAPE 45

Introduction 45

Ionia's Geographical Zones 46

Landscape Dynamism 57

The Ionian Landscape and Ionian Identity 65

Conclusions 67

4 THE WEALTH OF IONIA 69

Introduction 69

Modes of Primary Production 71

Modes of Processing 79

Modes of Exchange 84

Ionia and World Systems 89

Conclusions 91

5 THE CITIES OF IONIA 95

Introduction 95

A Brief Survey of the Ionian Cities 96

Other Settlements in Ionia 107

The Size and Distribution of Poleis within Ionia 110

François de Polignac in Ionia 112

The City and Ionian Identity 115

Conclusions 118

6 THE IONIANS OVERSEAS 120

Introduction 120

Source Materials 121

Interpreting the Evidence 129

Colonial Interactions 131

Models of Ionian Colonization 137

Conclusions 143

7 THE IONIANS AT WAR 145

Introduction 145

Geographical Settings 147

Archaeological Contexts and Materials 148

Literary Sources 154

Discussion: Issues in Source Materials 156

The Fortification of Ionia 156

Naval Warfare 164

Mercenaries 166

Conclusions 168

8 CULTS OF IONIA 171

Introduction 171

Geographical Evidence 172

Archaeological Evidence 174

Contents vii

Literary and Epigraphic Evidence 179

Discussion of Source Materials 180

The Sacred Ways of Ionia 180

"Foreign" Influences on Ionian Cult 193

Burial Practices in Ionia 197

Conclusions 199

9 THE ORNAMENTS OF IONIA 201

Introduction 201

"Art" and Landscape 203

Ionia's Lost "Art" Treasures 203

"Art" and Literature 207

"Connoisseurship" of Ionian Pottery 207

"Reading" Ionian "Art" 214

Conclusions 218

10 WHO WERE THE IONIANS? 219

Introduction 219

Herodotos' Ionia 219

The Myth of the Ionian Migration 222

Ionian Identity and Archaeology 225

Conclusions 227

Epilogue 231

Glossary of ancient Greek [and modern Turkish] terms used in the text 233

Bibliography 235

Index 255

“Students of biblical history and archaeology will find this volume of particular interest.” (Near East Archaeological Society Bulletin, 11 December 2013)

“The book is well produced, with an excellent binding and a minimum of typographical errors. A glossary of terms used in the text, an impressive bibliography, and a sufficient index add to the usefulness and user-friendliness of the book.” (The American Journal of Archaeology, 1 January 2013)

"The book is well structured and is divided thematically into 10 chap¬ters . . . The book can be therefore recommended as a useful introduction to the study of Archaic Ionia for students and scholars alike." (Archaeological Review, 1 April 2011)

"This was a missed opportunity, but not significant enough to diminish the book's success and usefulness." (Bryn Mawr Classical Review, 17 April 2011)

"The study, and especially the maps, could prove a most useful preparation or ready reference when reading Herodotus." (Book News Inc, November 2010)

"Its accessibility and organization provides a much needed bridge between Classical and ‘mainstream' archaeology, and brings both the ideas and this intriguing region to a wider readership." (Minerva, November/December 2010)

Alan Greaves is Lecturer in Archaeology at The University of Liverpool. He is the author of Miletos: A History (2002) and the editor of the volume Transanatolia (2007). He has also written numerous articles on Bronze Age-Iron Age archaeology in Turkey, Ionia, and Greek Colonization. During the formative years of the archaic period, Ionia was one of the most important regions of the ancient world; however, Ionia’s local identity has often been overlooked in scholarly works. This long overdue study of Archaic Ionia seeks to redress this omission. Drawing from over a century of archaeological research, the book identifies and examines the key socio-economic factors that distinguish the land of Ionia and its people from the broader Greek mainland.

Access to German and Turkish scholarship provides a useful point of entry to the published literature for academics and students. Accessibly written and thoroughly researched, The Land of Ionia offers new perspectives on issues of identity and historical tradition in one of the least understood regions of ancient world.

“Greaves has succeeded admirably in producing an important new reading of the history, development and significance of Ionia. This is a book I will be recommending to my students for years to come.”
Lesley Beaumont, University of Sydney

“An approachable and much-needed introduction to Archaic Ionia; Greaves successfully situates Ionia within its larger Mediterranean context. Land of Ionia is a model for regional studies in Classical Archaeology.”
Rebecca K. Schindler, DePauw University