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Viticulture and wine making have been at the heart of discussions concerning the Mycenaean society with elite groups which emerged in the Mediterranean during the Bronze Age. In the south of Greece, in Crete and the Peloponnese, viticulture and wine consumption are mentioned in 2nd millennium bc Linear B texts. Despite the key role of the grapevine, however, little direct archaeobotanical evidence has been available from the Peloponnese until now. This paper reviews all the archaeobotanical Vitis finds from the Peloponnese (pollen, charcoal, grape pips) and adds new data from the site P.O.T.A. Romanou that have been analysed in an integrated study with morphometric analyses of grape pips, charcoal identification and spatial distribution. We are able to show that during the 3rd millennium bc there was an incipient form of grapevine cultivation in the Peloponnese which provided an adequate yield for wine making at P.O.T.A. Romanou. Despite the lack of morphologically domesticated grape pips, there is convincing evidence for the identification of the early steps of viticulture in the region, a process that later led to systematic cultivation under control of the vineyards by elite parts of society during the 2nd millennium bc, as described in the Linear B archives. Our study supports the view that the early stages of viticulture might not be recognisable in the archaeobotanical record. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulses have constituted an important food source for prehistoric communities in the Old World, yet little is known as regards their processing for consumption through the archaeobotanical record. This paper provides an overview of archaeobotanical evidence for the use of pulses in prehistoric Greece based on two case studies from the north, and explores (a) their preparation for consumption, in particular their detoxification and (b) the consumption of pulses as a component of ordinary daily meals in prehistoric times, as well as those for special occasions, within a context of feasting and ritual. The paper examines charred remains of Vicia ervilia (bitter vetch) and Lathyrus sativus (grass pea) from early Bronze Age Agios Athanasios and late Neolithic Kremasti Koiladas, respectively, as the former provides a basis for a pilot exploration of pulse detoxification and the latter, due to its origin, offers a rare opportunity to discuss the context of consumption. In the pilot exploration of pulse seed preparation for consumption, the inner cotyledon morphology of modern V. ervilia seeds which were experimentally processed with water and pounding was examined macroscopically and through SEM micrographs. Preliminary observations suggest that intentional splitting of pulse seeds as part of processing for consumption as food may be recognisable in the archaeobotanical record. Processing with water may also be detected. The particular context of the Kremasti finds suggests that pulses, in this particular case L. sativus, may have constituted special foods for particular occasions, loaded with symbolic meaning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an overview of archaeobotanical finds of Linum usitatissimum from Neolithic and Bronze Age Greece, bringing together published records of this plant as well as some recently retrieved, unpublished finds. In addition, charred flax seed concentrations from five prehistoric sites from the region of Macedonia in northern Greece, are examined in detail. The Neolithic sites are Makriyalos, Mandalo, Arkadikos, Dikili Tash, dated to the Late and Final Neolithic and Archondiko, dated to the end of the Early Bronze Age. Archaeobotanical composition and contextual information are used in order to explore the cultivation and potential uses of flax at each site. By the 5th millennium b. c. a flax weed flora had probably developed in the region. The use of flax seed for oil extraction and flax stems for flax fibre preparation can only be speculated upon and these uses are discussed within the context of other archaeological finds related to plant oil production and weaving. It is also possible that flax may have been used for medicinal purposes. Despite a striking paucity in archaeobotanical remains from southern Greece, textual evidence available from the Mycenean palace archives in Linear B clearly documents the cultivation of flax and flax fibre production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]