The human face of radiocarbon TMO 69, Maison de l’Orient et de la Méditerranée, Lyon, 2016
CHAPTER 16 KRYONERI, NEA KERDYLLIA: A SETTLEMENT OF THE LATE NEOLITHIC AND EARLY BRONZE AGE ON THE LOWER STRYMON VALLEY, EASTERN MACEDONIA Dimitria Malamidou 1 The site and its location 2 The prehistoric settlement of Kryoneri occupies the south slope of a low hill (.about 20-25 m above sea level), in the foothills of Mt Kerdyllion, west of the Strymon river (fig. 1: no. 37). The limits of the prehistoric settlement can be estimated by the extent of anthropogenic deposits on the hill, as shown on the topographic map (fig. 2). A substantial amount of the archaeological deposits on the east side of the hill have been removed by the construction of the Thessaloniki-Nigrita secondary road. Given that in the area east of the road there are no archaeological deposits in situ but only thin wash levels, we can assume that the total area of the settlement was not larger than 0.3-0.4 ha. To the southeast of the site there are still fresh water springs from which the toponym “Kryoneri” is derived. These springs also existed in the prehistoric period and probably fed a small shallow marshy lake, as shown by geomorphological studies 3. The Kastrolakkas, a torrent to the southwest of the hill, almost certainly flowed continuously during this period. The low hills stretching out to the west of the site are in a zone of fertile neogene soils, which would have been perfect for cultivation and pasture 4. Mt Kerdyllio, which was then more forested, provided opportunities for hunting and for gathering nuts and berries. The distance from the sea is today no more than 5 km, probably about the same as in the Neolithic period 5. Fish bones and sea shells indicate the use of marine resources by the inhabitants of the settlement. Dominating the region is the river Strymon, which forms a natural communication route between the Aegean sea and the Balkan hinterland. This river route played an important role in the distribution and exchange of commodities, crafts and ideas from the prehistoric period until historical times 6. The lower Strymon valley (or Serres plain) is scattered with prehistoric settlements, identified through nonsystematic surveys. The majority of them lie in the area to the east of the Strymon 7, while there are considerably fewer to the west of the river 8 (see fig. 1). This distribution reflects perhaps the fact that west of the river the 1. Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports, Ephorate of Antiquities of Kavala-Thasos. 2. Text translated from Greek by Nicola Wardle-Hunter. 3. Lespez et al. 2004. 4. Fotiadis 1985.
5. Perissoratis & Mitropoulos 1989. 6. Todorova et al. 2007.
7. Grammenos & Fotiadis 1980; Fotiadis 1985; Grammenos 1991. 8. Poulios 2000; Tolia-Christakou 2008.