The American School of Classical Studies at Athens is pleased to announce the publication of Hesperia 89.3. Topics in this issue include the reexamination of a Late Helladic tomb group at Prosymna, the multidisciplinary investigation of the landscape around Mycenaean Gla, a comprehensive study of the history of the fortress at Eleutherai, a study on the monumental lekythos of Myrrhine, and a discussion focusing on the now-lost statue of the Trojan Horse from the Athenian Acropolis.

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The Chamber Tombs at Prosymna: A New Social and Political Interpretation for a Group of Tombs, by Bernhard F. Steinmann, illustrates how the cemetery at the Argive Heraion provides an opportunity to study the social structure of a small Mycenaean center. This article examines closely the tomb group found around the large and richly furnished chamber tomb 2. Both the style of the architectural decoration and the objects found within suggest that the tomb served as the burial place of either the ruling family of the area or one that was close to it. Against the background of the tholos tomb and the other affluent tombs from this necropolis, a picture emerges that speaks of the struggle for power at Prosymna before the Mycenaean palatial system was fully established.

The AROURA Project: Discoveries in Central Greece, 2010–2014, by  Michael F. Lane, Vassilis L. Aravantinos, Timothy J. Horsley, and Alexandra Charami, details the work of the Archaeological Reconnaissance of Uninvestigated Remains of Agriculture (AROURA) project, which brought together field and laboratory research to examine the landscape around the Mycenaean fortress and storehouses of Gla in the Kopaic Basin. Central to the fieldwork was the applica­tion of a topographical model of palace estates, based on the interpretation of Mycenaean landholding records. From this, it was then possible to use geophysical technologies to detect the realities represented by the constituents of this model. The present article describes the archaeological and linguistic context of palace agriculture in which this model was developed. It then details the methodologies used, presents results, and draws conclusions about the trajectory of local social complexity compared with other parts of the Aegean.

The Fortress Of Eleutherai: New Insights from Survey, Architecture, and Epigraphy, by Sylvian Fachard, Sarah C. Murray, Alex R. Knodell, and Kalliopi Papangeli, discusses the fortress at Eleutherai, which serves as an iconic example of ancient Greek military architecture. Knowledge of the site, however, is limited by several problems related to its date, construction, function, and identity. To rectify this, the Mazi Archaeological Project undertook a detailed, multicomponent study of the fortress and its surroundings using a combination of intensive field survey, architectural mapping, and photogrammetry. A new architectural plan clarifies construction phases and building techniques, while surface finds and epigraphy inform the history of the occupation of Eleutherai, which is especially tied to Boiotia. In addition, new insights concerning the economics of constructing major fortifications and their role in regional politics are provided.

The Lekythos of Myrrhine: Funerary and Honorific Commemoration of Priestesses in Ancient Athens, by Eugenia Michailidou, considers whether the grave stele of Myrrhine, the first priestess of the cult of Athena Nike on the Athenian Acropolis, belongs to the same Myrrhine pictured on a monumental marble lekythos in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. After examining the dates of the monuments, the iconography of the lekythos, and its suitability for the representation of a priestess, this article argues that the lekythos and the stele both date to ca. 420 B.C. and commemorate the same historical personage. Finally, it analyzes the importance of the commemoration of Myrrhine within its historical context of the Peloponnesian War, particularly the period of the Peace of Nikias.

The “Wooden” Horse on the Athenian Acropolis, by Mary R. Lefkowitz, illustrates how literary and historical sources can help us to understand better why a colossal bronze statue of the Trojan Horse was set up in the Sanctuary of Artemis on the Athenian Acropolis. They suggest that this statue (known as the “wooden” horse) could have been set up several years before 415 B.C., when we first hear of it in surviving ancient sources. Upon consideration, it appears to have served as a representation of Athenian hegemony in the eastern Mediterranean by celebrating (and even exaggerating) the role that Athens played in the conquest of Troy.

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