Map of Aegean Thrace, showing the Molyvoti peninsula and surrounding sites (T. W. Shawa)

 

Since 2013, a Greek-American synergasia project has been investigating a trading post, or emporion, on the Molyvoti peninsula in the North Aegean. The Molyvoti, Thrace, Archaeological Project (MTAP) centers on a site often referred to as “Ancient Stryme,” using evidence from both excavation and field survey to identify the city’s form, chronology, and exchange networks. The final results of the project will be published in four parts. The first volume, The Molyvoti, Thrace, Archaeological Project 1: Landscape, Architecture, and Material Culture (Hesperia Suppl. 54) was released recently. This publication focuses on the 2013–2015 field seasons, bringing together expert studies of the architecture, stratigraphy, material culture, and geomorphology to offer a detailed presentation of the site’s scale, function, and historical development through the Early Byzantine period. The codirectors of MTAP and coeditors of this publication, Nathan T. Arrington, Domna Terzopoulou, Marina Tasaklaki, and Thomas F. Tartaron, recently spoke with us about MTAP and what readers can expect to find in this first volume of the project’s results.

The MTAP codirectors were initially drawn to the site on the Molyvoti peninsula because of the many questions that surrounded it. Was it the ancient city of Maroneia? Or the Thasian emporion Stryme? Why was the city apparently abandoned in the 4th century BCE? To answer these questions, the MTAP codirectors initiated a project to learn more about the site, which had seen only limited earlier excavations, beginning with those conducted by Georgios Bakalakis in the late 1950s. Bakalakis identified the site as ancient Stryme and found evidence for its abrupt destruction around 350 BCE. Codirector Domna Terzopoulou took part in further excavations conducted by the Hellenic Ministry of Culture in the 1990s, which shed some doubt on Bakalakis’s findings. After their own campaigns at the site, MTAP leaders continue to argue for the identification of Stryme, but excavations in one of the site’s houses (the House of the Gorgon) revealed a surprising new chronology. While the site was indeed destroyed around 350 BCE—with the arrowheads and sling bullets found in front of the door to the house providing compelling evidence for this event—the site was reoccupied just a few decades later. Instead of abrupt destruction, the MTAP team discovered that the site was gradually abandoned in the early 3rd century BCE, a revelation that refines our understanding of this region’s history.

 


Left: Jessica Lamont being lowered into a well at MTAP in 2015 (Photo N. T. Arrington);
right: Nathan Arrington with finds from the bottom of a well at MTAP in 2015 (Photo A. Weaverdyck)

 

MTAP’s work has also profoundly redefined our conceptions of emporia, as the contributors in this volume discuss. Previous studies of emporia have focused on the importance of long-distance maritime connections, but the site at Molyvoti challenges this notion. The team was surprised to discover that from the Archaic through the Byzantine period, the inhabitants of this site were consistently engaging with communities to the north and east, not only by sea but also via land routes. Codirector Nathan Arrington cautions that “there is a danger in over-emphasizing long-distance links. Those are present at the site, but it was also deeply embedded in a regional network.” The scale of the site proved remarkable as well. If the identification as Stryme is correct, then this was a very large emporion that operated within a rich northern Aegean network of communities of various sizes and types.

 


Left: Charlotte Williams supervising excavations at MTAP in 2015;
right: the MTAP survey team counting pottery sherds in 2015 (Photos A. Weaverdyck)

 

From the outset, MTAP’s field seasons conducted both excavation and survey simultaneously, an approach not without its challenges but ultimately worth the difficulty. The results of the two methods complemented one another nicely, providing a more rich and comprehensive understanding of the site and its place within the wider region. Arrington explains: “Excavation allowed us to better understand the finds that appeared on survey. We had more complete pieces and contexts for the sherds from the topsoil. Survey allowed us to think in more expansive terms about what we were digging and how it fit in....The survey fills in some of the gaps that are missing from excavation while the excavation gives a hint at the type of activity that took place. For example, the transformation of the excavated house into a small farm in the Roman period reflects a process that seems to have taken place elsewhere in the landscape.” In addition to vastly expanding what MTAP learned about the site, the dual approach had profound benefits for the students on the team, who participated in both parts of the project. Over time, Arrington noticed that “they started to survey as diggers and dig as surveyors.”

 


A muddy day for the MTAP survey team in 2014 (Photos K. Tanaka)

 

A stint on the survey team could become quite the adventure. Anyone who has participated in field survey knows how luxurious the ride back to the dighouse feels after a long day combating inquisitive wildlife, treacherous landscapes, and adverse weather conditions. On more than one occasion, however, the MTAP survey team parked their cars near the cotton fields they were surveying only to return later and find them mired in mud. The local farmers had turned on their irrigation systems, flooding the roads! With no other way out of the muddy mess, tow trucks in the form of farm tractors came to the rescue—a few bumpers were lost to the cause, but everyone eventually made it home safe and sound.

 


Drone photograph of the House of the Gorgon (Photo A. Samourkasidis and N. T. Arrington)
                   
Antefixes (841, 842) from the House of the Gorgon, early 4th century BCE (Photos O. Kourakis)

 

On the excavation side, the first structure to be completely excavated at the site was the 4th-century BCE House of the Gorgon, named after two Gorgon antefixes discovered within the building. The Molyvoti, Thrace, Archaeological Project 1 focuses on the excavation of this house, revealing the structure’s plan and its location within an eight-house insula, critical pieces of evidence that offer glimpses into the larger city plan. One surprising, if frustrating, discovery was how much of the excavated material was mixed fill, making it difficult to assign specific uses to the various domestic spaces. Arrington cautions that “those reading the book in search of an ancient living room will be disappointed.” Nonetheless, exemplary work by the finds experts paints a compelling picture of daily life within the House of the Gorgon. Codirector Marina Tasaklaki notes that “each type of material—whether coins, pottery, or other small finds—complements the others. Together, they create a fuller picture of the house, its inhabitants, and the dramatic circumstances of its destruction. What stands out is precisely this holistic view: the chance to reconstruct not just a building, but a living space that reflects the rhythms and realities of ancient life at Molyvoti.”

 


Tom Tartaron delivering a lecture to MTAP participants in 2015 (Photo N. T. Arrington)

 

As a field school, MTAP aims not only to expand our understanding of the site at Molyvoti and its broader region but also to train and inspire the next generation of archaeologists. Students participate in all aspects of the project, from planning to digging and surveying to interpreting the final results. Students enjoy lectures by subject experts and participate in Friday seminars, where the entire team reviews and discusses the week’s work. Some MTAP students have gone on to professions in the field, including several of the contributors to this volume. Jessica Lamont (Chapter 17), Georgios Makris (Chapter 9), Simon Oswald (Chapter 19), and Hannah Smagh (Chapter 13) began working on this material as graduate students and now hold academic appointments at institutions across North America. The robust archaeological training program was critical to MTAP. As Arrington observes, “I don’t think anything compares to the type of academic experience that working on an excavation can provide. And the book would not have been possible without the students who did the walking and sieving and digging and pottery sorting, and the graduate students who supervised, entered data, read pottery, and more. Some of the undergraduates have continued in the field, and for others I hope it was a transformative experience that makes them keenly aware of the history that lies below their feet and the importance of protecting it.”

 


Left: Hannah Smagh taking an elevation reading at MTAP in 2015; right: Georgios Makris surveying at MTAP in 2015 (Photos A. Weaverdyck)

 

The students were a highlight of the project for all the codirectors. As Terzopoulou fondly recalls, “the good humor and endurance of the students and of all the participants in the program never ceased to impress me.” Tasaklaki, a renowned numismatist, was also struck by the students’ enthusiasm: “I especially remember their excitement whenever they discovered a coin—they would immediately try to identify the image, often guessing eagerly until they recognized it. By now, I am certain that all of them can easily identify the coins of Maroneia with their characteristic grapes!” Tasaklaki further acknowledges that “the project not only advanced our understanding of Molyvoti, but also brought together people from different places and backgrounds, leaving us with lasting personal connections.” The collegial bonds formed among the participants were a wonderful bonus to the team’s exemplary work in uncovering the secrets of the site on the Molyvoti peninsula.

 


Silver coin of Maroneia (922) with prancing horse on obverse and grape cluster on reverse, 377–365 BCE (Photos O. Kourakis)

 

If reading The Molyvoti, Thrace, Archaeological Project 1 whets your appetite for more Molyvoti material, don’t fret! The team is hard at work on the three subsequent volumes. The next volume will focus on the Molyvoti landscape, showcasing the results of the survey project. The third volume will feature the House of Hermes, a domestic structure adjacent to the House of the Gorgon but with notable differences from its neighbor. The final volume will present the extramural sanctuary discovered by MTAP, the first extramural sanctuary found in Aegean Thrace. Stay tuned!

 


Simon Oswald soaking in the MTAP activity in 2015 (Photo A. Weaverdyck)

 

The Molyvoti, Thrace, Archaeological Project 1 (Hesperia Suppl. 54) can be ordered from our distribution partner, .