Kouloura

A kouloura, or kouloures (Greek plural koulourai) is a circular subsurface pit with stone walls found in certain settlements within Ancient Crete, including Phaistos, Knossos, and Mallia.[1] According to the stratigraphy, the kouloura were all constructed around MM II (1850–1750 BC).[2]

Armon Knossos P1050995

Etymology

The name kouloura was coined by Arthur Evans during his expedition to Knossos in 1903. He named the pits after kouloura, the round Greek bread, because of the similar shape of the two objects.[1]

Discovery and locations

The first four kouloura were discovered in 1903 at Knossos by Arthur Evans. Subsequently, Fernand Chapouthier discovered eight additional kouloura at Mallia, and the duo of Luigi Pernier and Doro Levi unearthed four at Phaistos. These pits have always been found within the confines of major sites, including the West Court of Knossos and the Upper Court of Phaistos.

Function

Multiple theories have been put forward regarding the function of these kouloura in Ancient Minoan Society. However, there are only three majorly supported theories.

  • Arthur Evans, the original discoverer of the pits, theorized that they were garbage pits due to the lack of cement walling to prevent water seepage.
  • Chapouthier and Pernier believed that they were actually ancient cisterns, based on the presence of a long water trough in one of the kouloura at Knossos. However, the flaw in this theory remains that most of the pits contained no form of waterproofing, a concept which was familiar to other civilizations around this time period.[2]
  • The most commonly accepted theory is that the kouloura were a type of granary to store excess harvest. This belief grew out of the fact that kingdoms during the Minoan period grew largely out of ability to store, maintain, and distribute food goods.[3]
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gollark: Create a new section "Bees" %bees.Create a rule "Bee utilization part 1" (%bees-1) in %bees:> The deployment status of bees is considered part of the Game State. No bee action (except for bee deployment) may be taken unless bees are currently deployed. Bee actions include deployment of bees, which makes bees become deployed, cessation of bees, which makes bees not be deployed, and use of bees against a player. The player bees are to be used against must be indicated in the Bee Poll authorizing this action. Use of bees against players causes their Points quantity to be reduced by 1, unless it is already 0, in which case there is no effect.Create a rule "Bee Poll" (%bee-poll) in %polls:> A Bee Poll is required to authorize bees to perform actions, as described in %bees. The default allowed reactions for a Bee Poll are 👍 (representing a vote for) and 👎 (representing a vote against). Bee Polls may be closed if they have existed for 12 hours or more, rather than the usual 24. If a Bee Poll is passed, the action it describes is taken. Players are permitted to use multiple reactions on a Bee Poll.Due to the passage of proposal #207, bees are to be considered "deployed" initially.
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See also

References

  1. Indelicato, Silvia Damiani; Chighine, Mario (1984). "A New Kouloura at Phaistos". American Journal of Archaeology. 88 (2): 229–230. doi:10.2307/504998. JSTOR 504998.
  2. Strasser, T. (1997). "Storage and States on Prehistoric Crete: The Function of the Koulouras in the First Minoan Palaces". Journal of Mediterranean Archaeology. 10 (1): 73. doi:10.1558/jmea.v10i1.73.
  3. Halstead, P. (1997). "Storage Strategies and States on Prehistoric Crete: A Reply to Strasser". Journal of Mediterranean Archaeology. 10 (1): 103. doi:10.1558/jmea.v10i1.103.


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