Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology (459 page)

Latin term for a Gallic wall or rampart. It is distinguished by its stone-faced construction with timber and rubble core, in which the timbers were placed in horizontal layers, criss-crossing laterally and longitudinally, with the lateral beams inserted flush into the stone revetment front and rear.

 
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Following the creation of the first public museum, the Ashmolean in Oxford, which opened its doors on 6 June 1683, many thousands of similar institutions have been opened worldwide. Over the centuries their functions and role have changed, although at their heart is the preservation and display of collections. So far as archaeology goes there are three main roles or responsibilities that are fulfilled by museums today: the long-term management and curation of archaeological materials and associated archives; the presentation of a selection of this material to a range of audiences through displays and other interpretative means; and the researching and investigation of both the archaeological dimensions of the material and also its cultural nature as one of the agents that help to create a contemporary picture of the past.
The means by which museums have acquired some of their collections have come under intense scrutiny and debate in recent years, especially in relation to archaeological objects and heritage materials. Most of the world's great museums built their collections through campaigns that literally mined the cultural resources of countries around the world. In 1970 UNESCO agreed an international ‘Convention of the means of prohibiting and preventing the illicit import, export and transfer of ownership of cultural property’ that has been endorsed by many countries. More recently a new body of legislation known as the UNIDROIT Convention has been drafted by the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law, and in November 1986 the International Council of Museums (ICOM) adopted a code of professional ethics that includes the need to consider the connection between illicitly acquired material and the destructive means by which such material is usually acquired. In the USA, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act adopted in 1986 mandates the return of all human remains and associated funerary objects to lineal descendants of the tribe from which the material was collected.

 
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One of the three largest archaeological contractors working in Britain, based in London but working throughout the southeast of England and occasionally beyond. The Museum of London first became involved in major archaeological fieldwork in 1974, following the formation of the Department of Urban Archaeology (DUA). The name was changed to the Museum of London Archaeology Service in December 1991.

 
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Egyptian goddess, consort of Amun in the Theban triad. Originally a vulture goddess but later depicted as a woman wearing a vulture crown. Later associated with Sekhet and also represented as a lioness. Her temple was situated at Asheru, a suburb of Thebes, now in the precinct of the main temple at Karnak.

 
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A process of random genetic change introducing an alteration in the physical characteristics of an animal or plant. In a tiny proportion of cases mutation produces characteristics which allow new species to flourish, but the vast majority of mutant organisms fail to survive.

 
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Bronze Age acropolis, ancient capital of Greece, and type-site of the Mycenaean civilization, situated in the Argolid overlooking the Plain of Argos in the eastern Peloponnese of southern Greece. First excavated by Heinrich Schliemann in 1874, and more recently by, amongst others, Christos Tsountas , Alan Wace , George Mylonas , William Taylour , and Spiridon Iavokides , the site is extensive and long-lived. The hilltop was first occupied in the early Neolithic period at about 6500 bc, with small-scale settlement continuing through into the Middle Bronze Age. It was at the very end of the Middle Helladic period and during the early part of the Late Helladic, around 1650 bc, that the site really rose to prominence. From the 14th century the city was surrounded by massive walls of
CYCLOPEAN
construction, and was entered by the monumental Lion Gate built in the mid 13th century
bc
on the northwest side. On the top of the hill in the centre was a palace and a megaron, with houses all around on the lower slopes. Outside the defences there were further areas of housing.
Just inside the Lion Gate in the western quarter of the citadel were the royal
SHAFT GRAVES
in what has become known as Circle A. Excavated by Schliemann in 1874, this consisted of six tombs dating to the Middle Helladic period, all richly furnished with weapons, drinking vessels, jewellery, face-masks, and pottery.
STELAE
carved with images of chariots, hunting scenes, and spirals marked the position of each tomb. Grave IV was the richest in the circle and contained the burials of two women and three men. These and other rich burials were considered by Schliemann to be members of the legendary House of Atreus recorded by Homer ; indeed he believed one of the gold masks he found was that of Agamemnon, ‘king of men’ who led the Achaean expedition to war against Troy. It is now known that Circle A pre-dates the Late Helladic prominence of Mycenae and the burials in it are thus too early for Schliemann's interpretation.
A second royal grave circle, Circle B, was discovered and excavated by J. Papadimitriou and George Mylonas in 1952, outside the citadel walls to the west. It was found to be slightly earlier than Circle A, dating to the 16th century
bc
, and with sixteen graves, slightly less richly appointed than those of Circle A. Later members of the royal family of Mycenae, those associated with the use of the citadel, were buried in the
THOLOS
tombs to the west of the settlement.
The city seems to have suffered a severe earthquake around 1250 bc with further evidence of disruption around 1200 bc. At this point the palace-organized economy seems to have ceased, though parts of the citadel continued to be occupied until about 1050 bc.
[Sum.: S. Iavokides , 1977, The present state of research at the Citadel of Mycenae.
Bulletin of the Institute of Archaeology
, 14, 99–141]