Ancient Corinth – Page 2 – Corinthian Matters

Sanctuary of Demeter and Kore: The Greek Lamps and Offering Trays (Bookidis and Pemberton)

by David PettegrewMarch 8, 2016March 4, 2016Leave a comment

It’s a monumental achievement to publish in the Corinth Monograph series. These archaeological reports are designed as authoritative statements about the archaeology of individual buildings and sites investigated by the American Excavations at Corinth, and they represent years, if not decades, of scholarly study of architecture and artifacts of individual buildings. The production of the volumes themselves stretches over many years of editing and proofreading. So any new volume in the Corinth or Isthmia series is something to welcome and celebrate.

Sanctuary of Demeter and Kore on the lower slopes of Acrocorinth. Photo by David Pettegrew, July 6, 2007

This new publication by Nancy Bookidis and Elizabeth Pemberton discusses the Greek lamps and offering trays from the sanctuary from the archaic to Hellenistic periods (and a few Roman finds are thrown in for good measure).

Corinth XVIII.7. The Sanctuary of Demeter and Kore: The Greek Lamps and Offering Trays, by Nancy Bookidis and Elizabeth G. Pemberton. 256 pp, 50 pls, 2 tables
9″ x 12″. Cloth, ISBN: 978-0-87661-187-6
Publication Date: Nov 2015.

As last month’s press release on the ASCSA website notes:

This volume continues the publication of excavations conducted by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens in the Sanctuary of Demeter and Kore on Acrocorinth. It incorporates two bodies of material: Greek lamps and offering trays. The lamps include those made from the 7th through 2nd centuries B.C., together with a few Roman examples not included in Corinth XVIII.2. They served to provide light and to accompany the rites of sacrifice. The offering trays presented in this volume differ from the liknon-type offering trays published by A. Brumfield; they support a variety of vessels rather than types of food and had a symbolic function in the Sanctuary rituals. They are extremely common in the Sanctuary and only rarely attested elsewhere.

Here’s the webpage for the book, with information about ordering. And the table of contents:

Part I: The Greek Lamps, by Nancy Bookidis

Chapter 1: Introduction

Chapter 2: Catalogue: Corinthian Lamps

Chapter 3: Catalogue: Imported Lamps, Multiple Lamps, Stands, and Lanterns

Part II: The Offering Trays, by Elizabeth G. Pemberton

Chapter 4: Introduction

Chapter 5: Catalogue: Offering Trays

Appendix: Contexts of the Lamps and Offering Trays

Concordance to Catalogue

New Management Plan for the Archaeological Site at Corinth

by David PettegrewMarch 7, 2016March 4, 2016Leave a comment

The Mediterranean Institute for Nature and Anthropos (Med-INA), a non-profit scientific organization based in Athens, Greece, has just issued this press release concerning its role in creating a new management plan for the archaeological site of ancient Corinth.

Located in North-East Peloponnese, Ancient Corinth is an unparalleled world heritage site. Overseeing two regions and two seas, and endowed with a wealth of natural resources, it was one of the largest and most important cities of Archaic and Roman times and experienced continuous habitation over the centuries. The sequence of peoples and cultures that ruled the land – Greeks, Romans, Franks, Ottomans, and Venetians – left their mark in the history but also on the natural and built environment of the area.

The impressive acropolis, the Acrocorinth, stands as an impressive fortress landmark not far from Ancient Corinth, where the extended Roman forum is located at the centre of the modern-day settlement. Further to the north, the Roman harbour is now an abandoned wetland, located in a dynamic rural seashore that faces enormous urban sprawl pressures. These three sites, along with an extensive network of monuments that are scattered in the fertile plain, constitute the unique archaeological area of Ancient Corinth.

In 2014 the Greek Ministry of Culture set up a Working Group with members from the Corinth Archaeological Ephorate, the American School of Classical Studies in Athens (ASCSA) and the Ministry to work on a plan for the sustainable management of the natural and cultural heritage of the area. Med-INA and specifically Mr. Yorgos Mellisourgos, a member of the scientific secretariat specialised in architecture and planning, is jointly working with TPA, which was commissioned by ASCSA for leading the plan development and for providing expert consultation to the Working Group.

The development of the management plan evolves in two phases (analysis and synthesis). The first step of Phase 1 is a multi-themed inventory and assessment of current conditions which was completed in 2015. The second step, currently in progress, is the development of a strategic vision for the area of Ancient Corinth. This will be followed by a round of consultations with key stakeholders in order to move on to Phase 2, which is the design of the management plan.

Few details here about what the plan will involve but it sounds like a promising start for developing the management of the archaeological site.

Hadji Mustafa

by David PettegrewFebruary 19, 2016February 19, 2016Leave a comment

HadjiMustafa2 — The guardian of the Ottoman fountain of Joseph the Tailor, aka, “Hadji Mustafa,” a source of fresh water for the village of Ancient Corinth. Photo by David Pettegrew, May 31, 2014.

HadjiMustafa — Hadji Mustafa, the fountain on the lower slopes of Acrocorinth. The monument dates to 1515. For more information on the monument, see this page at the ASCSA website and the *Hesperia* journal article for free download by Pierre McKay. Photo by David Pettegrew, May 31, 2014.