Kato Phana study season 2007
Assessment and Analysis: Study season
Between 25 June and 13 July a three week study season was conducted in the Chios Archaeological Museum in collaboration with the K’EPKA. Work focussed on completing the preliminary processing of the material excavated at Kato Phana in 2005. Finds were cleaned, recorded and photographed. Metal artefacts requiring conservation were sent to the K'EPKA's conservation laboratories on Mytilene. Material processed ranged in date from LHIIIC to Late Roman. The chronology and nature of the finds (fine ware drinking vessels, figurines, use of costly metals for artefacts, etc) suggests that the site possessed a sacred character from its earliest occupation, and was probably in continuous use from the Late Bronze Age. In addition to the work conducted in the Chios Archaeological Museum, Dr Y. Bassiakos commenced laboratory analysis of the deep soil cores drilled at Kato Phana in 2006. This work is currently underway in the Archaeometry Laboratory of NCSR Demokritos with quantitative chemical and macroscopic-microscopic morphological analyses of the soils being conducted via Polarizing Optical Microscopy, SEM/EDAX, XRD, etc, together with dating of selected soil samples by the luminescence dating techniques (TL and OSL). Preliminary results are eagerly awaited toward the end of the year, and are sure to shed light on the paleoenvironment of the cult centre at Kato Phana.
Active from 25/06/2007 to 13/07/2007.
Philaniotou, Dr Olga