Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jasrep Eretrian ceramic production through time: Geometric to Hellenistic periods X. Charalambidou a,b, ⁎ , E. Kiriatzi a , N.S. Müller a , S. Müller Celka b,c , S. Verdan b , S. Huber b,d , K. Gex b , G. Ackermann b , M. Palaczyk b , P. Maillard b a Fitch Laboratory, British School at Athens, 52 Souedias Street, 10676 Athens, Greece b Swiss School of Archaeology in Greece, Skaramanga 4B, 10433 Athens, Greece c CNRS, UMR 5133-Archéorient/Lyon 2 University, France d Université de Lorraine, EA 1132 Hiscant-MA, Campus Lettres et Sciences humaines, Nancy, France ARTICLE INFO Keywords: Eretria Euboea Central Aegean Geometric to Hellenistic periods Local production Thin section petrography Elemental analysis ABSTRACT Eretria, in the centre of the Aegean (Greece), has been the focus of an interdisciplinary programme that combines macroscopic, petrographic and elemental analysis in a diachronic investigation of pottery production and supply on the site from the early third millennium (Early Bronze Age) to the end of the first millennium BCE (Hellenistic period). This paper reviews the preliminary results of the analyses of the pottery of historical times, mainly from the Geometric to the Hellenistic periods (phase II of the Eretria pottery project). It presents the compositional and technological characteristics of the local fabrics and offers examples of how continuity and innovation characterise different aspects of Eretria's pottery production. In addition, different categories of imported vessels that arrived in Eretria are investigated in order to recognize the origin of these specific products. 1. Archaeological context 1 Eretria, a coastal site on Euboea in the centre of the Aegean (Greece) (Fig. 1), has been the focus of an interdisciplinary programme that combines macroscopic with petrographic and elemental (chemical) analysis towards a diachronic investigation of pottery production and supply at the site from the early third millennium (Early Bronze Age) to the end of the first millennium BCE (Hellenistic period). The main objective is to characterise, both compositionally and technologically, local production, tracing variations and changes in local craftsmanship over time. Moreover, in order to define better the characteristics of local tradition(s) in relation to those of neighbouring areas (in Euboea, Boeotia and Attica), pottery samples of possible re- gional style were included. The current research has begun to shed light on many phases of Eretria's past. During the third millennium BCE, and mainly in Early Bronze II, Eretria represents a key area for understanding cultural transmission between the Aegean and Anatolia but also between the islands and the mainland (see Charalambidou et al., 2016; Müller Celka et al., in press). During the Mycenaean period archaeological evidence is scarce. The first centuries of the Early Iron Age are hardly known at Eretria with some exceptions, such as the 9th-century BCE (Sub- protogeometric II) warrior burial in the vicinity of the later sanctuary of Apollo Daphnephoros (Blandin, 2007, vol. II, 91–92, pls. 163–166; Verdan, 2013, vol. II, 8, pl. 58). On the other hand, there is rich evi- dence for occupation in the 8th century BCE from domestic buildings (Mazarakis Ainian, 1987), burial grounds (Blandin, 2007) and cult sites, most importantly the Apollo Daphnephoros sanctuary (Verdan, 2013) and the Northern Sacrificial area (Huber, 2003) (more recently a sy- nopsis of Early Iron Age-Early Archaic evidence: Charalambidou, 2017; in press). In the 8th century BCE, Eretria becomes one of the major actors in Greek colonisation in northern Greece and southern Italy (Descoeudres, 2006–2007; Charalambidou, in press; Malkin, in press). During the 7th century BCE, at some Euboean sites, there is no- ticeable shrinkage (such as in Eretria: evidence from the settlement and burials is less than in the 8th century BCE) or even abandonment (in Lefkandi, which is reported to have been abandoned ca. 700 BCE, see e.g. Lemos, 2012, 159). The phenomenon is often attributed to re- percussions from the so-called Lelantine war (Hall, 2006,1–8). In the 6th century BCE Eretria expands all over the intra muros area and the city flourishes until its partial destruction by the Persian army in 490 BCE. The 5th century BCE was marked by a fluctuating relationship https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2017.11.022 Received 30 June 2016; Received in revised form 2 November 2017; Accepted 15 November 2017 ⁎ Corresponding author at: Fitch Laboratory, British School at Athens, 52 Souedias Street, 10676 Athens, Greece. E-mail addresses: xenia.charalambidou@gmail.com (X. Charalambidou), e.kiriatzi@bsa.ac.uk (E. Kiriatzi), noemi.mueller@bsa.ac.uk (N.S. Müller), sylvie.muller-celka@mom.fr (S. Müller Celka), Samuel.Verdan@unil.ch (S. Verdan), sandrine.huber@univ-lorraine.fr (S. Huber), Kristine.Gex@unil.ch (K. Gex), guy.ackermann@unil.ch (G. Ackermann), palaczyk@archinst.uzh.ch (M. Palaczyk), Pauline.Maillard@unil.ch (P. Maillard). 1 Abbreviations used in this article. Chronological abbreviations: G: Geometric; MG: Middle Geometric; LG: Late Geometric; A: Archaic; EA: Early Archaic; LA: Late Archaic; Cl: Classical; H: Hellenistic; R: Roman. Other: HaM: handmade; WhM: wheel-made; FG: Fabric Group; ESAG: École suisse d'archéologie en Grèce/Swiss School of Archaeology in Greece; CNRS: Centre national de la recherche scientifique/French National Centre for Scientific Research. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx 2352-409X/ © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Please cite this article as: Charalambidou, X., Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports (2017), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2017.11.022