Russian Federation: Taman Peninsula

Greek colonization in the North Pontic region: the North-Western Taman Peninsula

New investigations on the Greek colonization in the Northern Pontus - Genesis and development of political spaces

Location

Abb. 1 Die Taman-Halbinsel (gelber Punkt)

Fig. 2. Northern shore of the Taman peninsula

In the late 7th and early 6th centuries BC Greek settlers founded on the islands of the Cimmerian Bosporus their colonies. These islands after sea-level variations and sediments nowadays constitute the Taman peninsula. The Taman peninsula is situated on the Asiatic part of the Cimmerian Bosporus, on Russian territory, and together withe the Ukrainian Crimea on the European part it constitutes the bolt between the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.

History

	Fig. 3. Small marble head of a Kouros from Kepoi
	Fig. 4. Hellenistic terracotta figurine from Kepoi
	Fig. 5. Golden wreath of laurel from Kepoi

The natural environment was always of decisive importance to the Greeks in their settlement of territory. The earliest settlements on the coast of the Black Sea in the late 7th and early 6th century BC were invariably established in strategically favourable locations on peninsulas or islands. Close proximity to trade routes, the major rivers, was another key factor. The rivers connected the Greek coastal settlements with the interior, the forested areas and the steppes and their inhabitants.

The north-western tip of the Taman Peninsula evidently constituted a favourable geographical location. Here the Milesians founded the city of Kepoi in the first half of the 6th century BC. Kepoi, together with the Milesian settlement of Panticapaion on the east coast of Crimea, controlled the straits of the Cimmerian Bosporus, through which shipping had to pass to reach the Sea of Azov and the river Don. What the Taman Peninsula looked like in antiquity, however, whether it was an island or perhaps even a group of islands off the mainland coast, has long been a matter of debate and speculation.  

Objectives

	Abb. 6 Geomagnetikplan des Fundplatzes Achtanisovskaja 1.
	Abb. 7 Geomagnetik in Golubickaja 2 im Jahre 2006

Geo-archaeological investigations undertaken as part of this project may provide an answer to the question. The programme also comprises a survey and other targeted geo-physical prospections. It is hoped that the information so gained will clarify the hierarchy between the hinterland and the polis and among the colonisers themselves. With the rise and rapid expansion of the first widely extended state entity, the Bosporan Kingdom, in the 5th century BC, the situation changed in a lasting way. Research on the Taman Peninsula is closely connected with the project being conducted by the Head Office of the DAI in Taganrog where the Don flows into the Sea of Azov.  

Current Work

	Abb. 8 Schlammvulkan bei Achtanisovskaja
	Abb. 9 Geoarchäologische Rammbohrkernuntersuchung
	Abb. 10 Kartierung der Bohrprofile 2007 (Kelterbaum 2008)
	Abb. 11 Nachweis der schiffbaren Durchfahrt zwischen der Golubickaja-Insel und der Taman-Hauptinsel. (Kelterbaum 2008).
	Abb. 12 Der Schlammvulkan Boris und Gleb. Topographische Aufnahme Frühjahr 2008.
	Abb. 13 Topographische Vermessung 2008
	Abb. 14 Golubickaja 2. Geophysikalische Prospektion über Luftbild und topographischer Plan mit Bohrlöchern und Anlage der Suchschnitte 2006 und der Grabung 2007.
	Abb. 15 Golubickaja 2. Transekt der Sondierungsbohrungen 2007.
	Fig. 6. So-called Aphrodite from Taman
	Fig. 7. Archaic marble basin with with consecration on Aphrodite

In the interpretation of the results from the prospections, we will re-evaluate the material from earlier excavations at Kepoi which are stored in the Moscow Historical Museum. This material originates from the necropolis (Fig. 4; 5), the grave barrows (kurgans) and the city itself. The Temple of Aphrodite, whose location has been verified by inscriptions (Fig. 7), is a prime source of interesting finds, among them what is known as the Aphrodite of Taman (Fig. 6). Altogether the project seeks to explore spaces - demarcating, structuring and organising them - and the strategies of utilising them, whether they be temples, public spaces, living areas or the cemeteries. 

Results

	Abb. 20 Golubickaja 2. Byzantinische Keramik aus dem Oberflächensurvey 2007.
	Abb. 18 Golubickaja 2. Nordionisch/Aeolischer Hakenrand-Teller
	Abb. 19 Knochenschnitzerei aus Golubickaja 2
	Abb. 21 Golubickaja 2. Megarischer Becher

The first field season took place in July 2006. One of the most interesting results was the discovery of the hitherto unknown settlement of Golubitskaia 2 (fig. 8). Geophysical investigation by a team of geoscientists from the University of Kiel showed up almost the entire course of a city wall. Pottery finds from a survey and from two areas of trial excavations (fig. 9) revealed human activity at the site between the first half of the 6th century BC (fig. 10) and the Hellenistic period (2nd/1st century BC). In addition, three other find spots probably dating back to the Archaic period were investigated through geophysical prospection (fig. 11), and initial topographic plans for six further sites were drawn up. 

Cooperation

	Abb. 22 Teamfoto Mitte der Sommerkampagne 2007

Dr. Denis Zhuravlev, State Historical Museum, Moscow

Dr. Harald Stümpel, Institute for Geological Science, Geophysics, Christian Albrechts University Kiel

Prof. Dr. Helmut Brückner, Department of Geography, Philipps-University Marburg  

Contact

Dr. phil. Udo Schlotzhauer

Klassische Archäologie
Telefon: 03018-7711-329
Telefax: 03018-7711-313
Email: us@dainst.de