Greek Islands: Myth, Archaeology, and Networks

Catalog description

From the birth of Apollo on Delos to the Byzantine monasteries of Patmos; from the from the copper mines of Cyprus to the marble quarries of Naxos; from the palaces of Minoan Crete to the Crusader castles of Rhodes, Greek islands comprise a dynamic arena of ecological, cultural, religious, political, economic, and strategic interaction. This course examines the phenomenon of *Insularity*across the Greek world from Prehistory through Byzantine times with special emphasis on archaeology and material culture. We shall look at the functions and exploitation of islands as places of isolation and connectivity; of refuge and exile; as geo-political/strategic hubs and uninhabited wastelands; as resource-rich and utterly barren. Special emphasis on: ecology and environment; art and architecture; myth and history; religious, political and economic networks; colonization; related coastcapes and maritime 'small worlds.