Assistant Professor Grace Erny in the Department of Ancient Greek and Roman Studies has recently published groundbreaking research offering fresh perspectives on ancient Mediterranean civilizations. Her studies draw on extensive archaeological surveys in Greece and Crete, revealing unexpected patterns of settlement and industrial activity in antiquity.
One study, focusing on the Bays of East Attica Regional Survey (BEARS), highlights the remarkable discovery of ancient industrial activity on the islet of Praso near Athens. Erny and her team uncovered evidence of pottery and tile production spanning from the Late Bronze Age through the Late Roman period, shedding light on previously unknown facets of regional craftsmanship and trade.
In another project, Erny examined rural artifacts from the Western Argolid Regional Project (WARP), uncovering significant pathways that served as crucial corridors for movement in the northeast Peloponnese. Her findings illuminate how these routes influenced the region’s social and economic structures over centuries.
Her broader work also reevaluates long-standing narratives about Knossos, Crete's most iconic archaeological site. Challenging the so-called "Archaic gap" in material evidence from the sixth century BCE, Dr. Erny demonstrates that Knossian conservatism in ceramics and a dispersed urban settlement pattern may have masked the period’s cultural richness.
Her reinterpretations have profound implications for understanding the cultural evolution of Crete in the broader Mediterranean context. Dr. Erny’s innovative approaches to legacy survey data and ceramic analysis are setting new standards in the field of Mediterranean archaeology, inviting scholars to rethink established historical frameworks.
