Dendroarchaeology in Greece – from humble beginnings to promising future

Abstract

It was back in the early 1960 s when Bryant Bannister recognized the potential of dendrochronological research on wooden cultural heritage in Greece. More than two decades later, in the late 1980 s, P.I. Kuniholm and C.L. Striker started collecting and analyzing tree-ring series from several historical buildings, forests, and archeological sites in Greece and the surrounding Aegean region. Despite highly promising results, especially from the northern and western parts of the country, dendroarchaeology did not attract much attention in subsequent decades. It was only near the end of the 2000 s that dendroarchaeology was reintroduced: first in Crete through the Cretan Dendrochronology Project, and then by another independent project concerning the restoration of a historical building on the island of Euboea. These isolated case studies inspired a five-year systematic research program called the “Balkan-Aegean Dendrochronology Project: Tree-Ring Research for the Study of Southeast-European and East Mediterranean Civilizations” (BAD project). Dendroarchaeological surveys of historical buildings and archaeological sites were conducted throughout Greece with an emphasis on regions that had been previously ignored, such as the southern part of the country and the Aegean islands. Priority was given to buildings under restoration since in such cases original timbers were usually accessible and the architects, structural engineers, and archaeologists in charge were willing to collaborate. Our goals were not only to date timbers or provide information about the species used or the possible origin of the wood, but also to document the date, evolution, interventions and even the construction phases of historical buildings, as well as to help all those interested parties (academics, non-academics, researchers, professionals, local communities, etc.,) see the value of such information and how dendroarchaeology can contribute to the reconstruction of local history and the protection of cultural heritage. Tree-ring analysis led to the development of 18 chronologies from historical timbers and forests for six different species and different areas of the country from remote mountainous areas to small islands across the Aegean. The current dataset covers more than a thousand (1000) years and demonstrates the further potential of dendroarchaeology in the region.