Bioarchaeology in Greece: Breathing Life into the Early Helladic and Archaic Skeletal Assemblages from Klenia

Abstract

Rescue excavations between 2014 and 2015 in Klenia, Corinthia, Greece uncovered an assemblage of human skeletal remains from one Archaic (750-479 BCE) and four Early Helladic (2650-2200 BCE) tombs. Until recently, bioarchaeology and the comprehensive analysis of human skeletal remains in Greece has been uncommon. However, theoretical and technological developments in bioarchaeology have highlighted the importance of studying these remains, as they provide insights into the biocultural lifeways of individuals of the past. The present research provides basic osteobiographical data for the human skeletal remains recovered from the Klenia tombs and explores their geographical and temporal context in order to provide situated interpretations and insights into the lives of these individuals. The results of this work reveal information pertaining to the life and possible weaving and cooking activities of an older adult female from the Archaic period, and to the lives of those interred in the Early Helladic graves, which likely represent a familial or social kinship. The Early Helladic skeletal remains within their context suggest an agricultural lifestyle. Further, the discovery of infant skeletal remains within these tombs highlights improvements in bioarchaeological recovery methods, and suggests the inclusion of infants in commingled tombs within extramural cemeteries. This alters previous understandings of intramural infant burial during the Early Helladic period in Greece.