The Stélida Naxos Archaeological Project: new data on the Middle Palaeolithic and Mesolithic Cyclades

Despite� the� fact� that� hitherto� the� earliest� direct� evidence� for� activity� in� the Cyclades� was� the� fifth� millennium� BC� (Late� Neolithic),� an� earlier� prehistoric date� was� tentatively� suggested� when� the� site� at� Stelida� was� discovered� in 1981� (Seferiades� 1983).� The� site� remained� a� chronological� enigma� until recent� rescue� excavations� led� to� claims� of� Middle–Upper� Palaeolithic� and Mesolithic� activity� (Legaki� 2012).� In� 2013� we� initiated� the� Stelida� Naxos Archaeological� Project� (SNAP),� a� two�year� survey� dedicated� to characterising� geoarchaeologically� the� chert� source� and� associated knapping� areas.� In� the� first� season� a� contiguous� area� of� c.� 24ha� was systematically� surveyed� with� transects� and� grids,� centring� on� the� chert outcrops� at� the� top� of� the� 118m�high� hill� (Figure� 2).� The� chert� occurs� in thick� tabular� beds,� has� a� semi�vitreous� or� waxy� lustre,� and� is� light� grey� to white� in� colour� (Figure� 3).� The� best�quality� chert� is� found� at� Stelida’s southern� peak� and� it� is� here� that� we� find� the� greatest� concentrations� of� knapped� artefacts� (Figure� 1).� Petrographic,� chemical� and techno�typological� analyses� are� underway� to� characterise� the� Stelida� products,� in� order� to� document� their� presence� elsewhere� in� the Aegean� and� thus� reconstruct� the� socio�economic� networks� that� intersected� here. HOMECURRENT ISSUEANTIQUITY+ARCHIVECONTRIBUTESUBSCRIBECONTACT