Page 25 - TINA Dergi Sayi 7

TINA TINA

Denizcilik Arkeolojisi Dergisi Maritime Archaeology Periodical

What kind of watercrafts did these groups use to on-land fishing strategies, it is presumed that the tuna
reach Cyprus? Unfortunately, we do not have any were caught in the bay or off the coast by fishhook .
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evidence to answer this question. Based on the exper- The most important evidence supporting the hypot-
imental studies with watercraft remains, ethnographic hesis that seafaring became a part of the daily life in
and historical examples uncovered in different parts of the Aegean with the Mesolithic Period is the presence
the world, it has been suggested that the boats used of seasonal campsites dating to the 9th-8th millennia
during that period were simple watercrafts propelled BC. The finds from the Cave of the Cylops on Youra
by paddles, without sails (Fig. 4 and 5). Even though (Gioura) in northern Sporades, the Maroulas camp site
it was propelled by human power, it is believed that on the Kythnos Island in Cyclades, Ikaria Kerame 1
they also took advantage of currents and winds. It has and Halki camp sites in the Dodecanose are the best
been suggested that they used single or double boats indicators of an advanced and highly mobile life even
carved in wood with several fixing mechanisms rather in the islands of the Aegean with a relatively small sur-
than bundled rafts, which were difficult to control in face area (Fig. 7) . Sites at Damnoni and Livari, lo-
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the open sea . cated on the southern coast of Crete, the largest island
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Seafaring in the Aegean, certainly known from as of the Aegean Sea, have yielded chipped stone finds
early as 11 000 BC, continues uninterruptedly from from the Mesolithic Period (Fig. 8). The Melian obsid-
the 10th Millennium BC until 7000 BC when the first ian, which was uncovered among Damnoni and Livari
farmer-herder communities settled in the Aegean Re- chipped stone tools indicate that an overseas exchange
gion. During these periods, it is known that the forag- network covered almost the entire Aegean during the
ers set out to sea in order to have seasonal camp sites, Mesolithic Period . The foragers of the period can be
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make use of seafood in fertile bays or straits, hunt, and considered as a group of people who made benefit of
obtain various raw materials. For example, 3% of the natural sheltered habitats provided by islands, want-
Franchthi chipped stone tool assemblage from the 8th ed access to raw materials such as flint or obsidian,
Millennium BC consisted of obsidian from Melos (Fig. preferred game animals living on islands such as deer,
6). Other evidence of seafaring comes from fish bones. wild boar and birds, and sought fertile bays and narrow
The Upper Mesolithic layers at Franchthi Cave yield- straits for fishing and mollusk collection. In particular,
ed remains of pelagic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) finds from Maroulas and Kerame 1 provide us with
weighing up to 200 kilograms. Additionally, remains very valuable information about temporary (or per-
of other marine fish such as seabass and barracuda manent) houses, graves and material culture of these
were found. Although these species can be captured by foragers .
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30 BAR-YOSEF MAYER et al. 2015.
31 ROSE 1995.
32 SAMPSON 1998; SAMPSON et al. 2012; SAMPSON et al. 2016.
33 STRASSER et al. 2014; CARTER 2016.
34 TRANTALOUDI 2011.
35 SAMPSON et al. 2012.

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