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On the Use of Mycenaean ‘Buttons’

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 September 2013

Spyros Iakovidis
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Extract

Perhaps the most characteristic artifacts other than pottery found with any frequency at Mycenaean sites are the small, vertically perforated conoid objects described as spindle whorls or buttons, although neither use has been satisfactorily proved. They occur in several shapes. Persson distinguished the purely conical type with or without a rounded top from the shanked and the disc-shaped; Wace divided them into conical, shanked, shanked with concave base, and biconical; Blegen into bicones, short cones, and shanked; Furumark into conical (Type a 1), biconical (a 2), shanked (b), and disc-shaped (c). They belong, that is to say, to five basic types: bicone, semi-globular (Persson's round-top conical), conical, shanked, and flat or disc-shaped (Fig. 1), with variations in the shape of their bases (flat or concave) and of their tops (plain or ringed).

Type
Research Article
Information
Annual of the British School at Athens , Volume 72 , November 1977 , pp. 113 - 119
Copyright
Copyright © The Council, British School at Athens 1977

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References

1 Bulletin de la Societé des Lettres de Lund, 1924–5, 84.

2 Chamber Tombs at Mycenae, 219.

3 Prosymna, 314.

4 Chronology, 89–91.

5 Bull. Lund 1924–5, 84.

6 Ch. T., 219.

7 Chron. 89–91.

8 Ch. T., 219. Prosymna, 313.

9 Chron. 89–91.

10 Prosymna, 313.

11 Perati B, 388.

12 Prosymna, 285; Perati A, 158, 294, 360; B, 278.

13 One from the citadel of Mycenae, NM, no. 2800 (Staïs, La Collection Mycénienne du Musée National d'Athénes, 76), mounted on a granulated golden disc, clearly the centrepiece of a necklace and another from tomb 1 at Perati (Perati A, 165), found in a small burial pit with several, more or less precious grave gifts and ornaments among the cremated bones of three persons.

14 Mycenae, from the citadel, NM. 2711, from tholos tomb 9 (?) NM. 4545 (both unpublished), and from the tombs of Atreus and of the Genii (Wace, , BSA xxv (1921–1923), 355, 384Google Scholar). Midea (Persson, The Royal Tombs at Dendra near Midea, 105) and Perati (A, 56). The specimens from Menidi (Kuppelgrab, pl. III 23) and Spata (BCH 1878, pls. XIII–XIX) are necklace beads of similar shape.

15 See Perati B, 278.

16 e.g. Perati A, 257 no. 81.

17 Ch. T., 58, 218.

18 NM. no. 2153.

19 Deshayes, , Argos, Les Fouilles de la Deiras, 203 D B 9.Google Scholar

20 Schliemann, Mycenae, 21, fig. 15; Tiryns, 92, 197; AM 1880, 144, 160; Ch. T., 217 f.

21 Tsountas-Manatt, The Mycenaean Age, 174.

22 Staiïs, , AE 1895, 198Google Scholar; Maiuri, , Annuario vi–vii (1923–1924)Google Scholarpassim (Ialysos); Persson, , Bull. Lund. 1924–1925, 84Google Scholar and Asine, RT., NT, passim; Wace, Ch. T., 217f. Blegen, Prosymna, 313; Lorimer, Homer and the Monuments, 368, Furumark, Chron. 89; Morricone, , Annuario xxvii–xxviii (1965–1966)Google Scholar, passim (Cos); Desborough LMTS 50; Säflund, Berbati, passim.

23 Deiras, 66, 68, 209 (DM 41).

24 Archaeologia Homerica, IC (Schmuck) 12.

25 Ibid., IA (Kleidung) 17.

26 Praktika 1971, 217; Thera v, 40, pl. H, G.

27 These measurements were obtained from steatite specimens belonging to the Mycenaean collection of the National Museum thanks to the kind assistance of the curator, Dr. J. Sakellarakis. Compare also the very small specimen from Deiras (diam. 8 mm., Deiras, 68).

28 Karo, Schachtgräber 203 f. Mylonas, Ancient Mycenae, 170.

29 Karo, Schachtgräber 84, fig. 20, pl. XVIII, 308–9 (Mycenae). Maiuri, , Annuario vi–vii (1923–1924) 126Google Scholar, fig. 45 (Ialysos); Persson, N.T. 11, fig. 7 (Midea); Perati B, 349, Ergon 1966, 163, figs. 195–6 (Dymaean Wall).

30 Perati A, 56, 76; B, 351 f.

31 The citadels of Midea, e.g. (N.T. 10–12) and Athens (Schliemann, Tiryns 92), the Granary and the Staircase at Mycenae, (BSA xxv (1921–1923) 24, 27, 29, 36, 54)Google Scholar; the palaces of Mycenae, (BSA xxv (1921–1923) 149, 205, 218)Google Scholar; Tiryns (Schliemann, Mykenae 21, fig. 15, Tiryns 92, 197); and Englianos (Palace of Nestor i, passim, ii, passim).

32 Blegen, Zygouries, 208; Valmin, Swedish Messenia Expedition, 335 f. (Malthi); Mylonas, Eleusiniaka, 143–4 (Eleusis); Wace, E., BSA xlix (1954) 284Google Scholar (Mycenae, Cyclopean Terrace Building), and in the house excavated in the summer of 1975 at Mycenae, Plakes, on the west slope of Ag. Elias.

33 Mycenae, the Cyclopean tholos tomb, the Tomb of Aegisthus and the Tomb of the Genii, (BSA xxv (1921–1923) 291, 303, 385)Google Scholar; Pylos, (PN iii 127, 133)Google Scholar; Midea, tholos tomb (R.T. 29, 30, 41).

34 At Mycenae (Ch. T. 217–20); Prosymna (Blegen, Prosymna, 257 and passim); Asine (Persson, Bull. Lund 1924–5, 84, Asine 376); Midea (R.T., N.T. passim); Berbati (Säflund, Berbati 31); Argos (Deiras 212 and passim); Messenia (PN iii, passim); Alyke (Papademetriou, , Praktika 1954, 83Google Scholar, 1955, 80, 91); Perati, (Perati B, 277 ff.)Google Scholar; Attica in general (Staïs, , AE 1895, 198Google Scholar); Eleusis, (Mylonas, , The West Cemetery at Eleusis, B, 252 f.)Google Scholar; Thebes, (Deltion iii (1917) 151, 160, 163, 177, 188)Google Scholar; Ialysos (Maiuri, , Annuario vi–vii (1923–1924) passim)Google Scholar; Cos (Morricone, , Annuario xxvii–xxviii (1965–1966) passimGoogle Scholar) to quote but the major publications of Mycenaean cemeteries.

35 In the other twelve tombs the ratio of burials to conuli is the following: In Tomb 502 2 burials to 4 conuli, in Tomb 516 5 to 4, in Tomb 517 15 to 6, in Tomb 518 10 to 1, in Tomb 520 5 to 29, in Tomb 523 10 to 15, in Tomb 524 12 to 7, in Tomb 525 6 to 2, in Tomb 529 18 to 4, in Tomb 530 5 to 3, in Tomb 532 20 to 3 and in Tomb 533 7 to 7.

36 Tsountas-Manatt, 174.

37 Prosymna, 252.

38 Ibid. 257.

39 Tomb XLV 27 burials and 3 conuli and Tomb XLVI 19 burials and 1 single conulus whereas, on the other hand, Tomb XXIX had 12 burials with as many as 44 conuli, Tomb XXIV 12 burials with 20 conuli and Tomb XLIII 10 burials with 34 conuli.

40 In the tholos tomb were found 6 burials and 7 conuli, in Chamber Tomb no. 15 burials and 11 contai, in Chamber Tomb no. 37 burials and 9 conuli, in Chamber Tomb no. 6 more than 4 burials and 1 clay conulus and in Chamber Tomb no. 75 burials and no conuli.

41 Tomb I: 1 contained 6 or 7 burials and 32 conuli (Asine, 376); Tomb I: 7 more then 10 burials (Asine, 187) and 38 conuli (Asine 402), Tomb I:65 burials with only 3 conuli (Asine 407) and Tomb I:53 burials and no conuli.

42 The preliminary reports in Praktika do not mention conuli specifically. It appears, however, that two burials had one conulus each (ibid. 1954, 83, 1955, 91) and one, interred in the same chamber but in another pit, none.

43 Deiras, pl. IX 1.

44 Ibid. 66, 68, 209.

45 Ibid. 82, 103.

46 Säflund, Berbati, 31.

47 Deiras, 66, 68, 209.

48 Ibid. 82.

49 Ibid. 103.

50 Praktika 1954, 83.

51 Ibid. 1955, 80.

52 Ibid. 1955, 91.

53 Asine, 168–70.

54 Praktika 1955, 91.

55 Perati B, 278.

56 Perati A, 256, plan 74; B, 279.

57 I am very much indebted to Mrs. Deilaki for this information, still unpublished, and for the permission to refer to it.

58 Perati A, 257: 3 are whitish, 3 are violet, 3 are grey, and 2 black. Also, one has a ringed top while the others are plain conical and another is clearly unfinished, being polygonal rather than rounded.

59 Praktika 1971, 217.

60 On the subject see Sakellarakis, J., AE 1972, 245 ff.Google Scholar

61 A preliminary excavation report appeared in Antiquity xliii 91 ff., in which the fresco is mentioned p. 96 and illustrated in fig. 2 and pl. Xa. My thanks are due to the excavator for a photograph of its central figure and for the permission to have another taken in the Nauplia Museum of the relevant part of this figure.

62 Taylour, , Antiquity, xliii (1969) 96.Google Scholar

63 Sakellarakis, J., AE 1972, 253 f.Google Scholar