THE MIDDLE NEOLITHIC AT SERVIA IN WESTERN MACEDONIA
The first occupation of the site dates to between 5500 and 5000 BC. Five major building phases (One - Five) reveal a pattern of substantial buildings - single storied at first, measuring 8 x 4m, and later buildings measuring c 6 x 6m with deep cuttings forming 'basements'. Each stood on its own plot and was surrounded by yards where debris was allowed to accumulate. The period as a whole is characterised by the distinctive red-on-cream pottery of 'Sesklo' style familiar from the site of that name in Thessaly. A wide range of tools and ornaments of stone, shell and clay was recovered, as well as terracotta figurines from these strata to illustrate life at that period. Plant remains found, especially in one of the 'basements' destroyed by fire, reveal a flourishing agricultural economy exploiting a wide diversity of food plants.
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PHASE ONE BUILDINGS FROM S |
PHASE ONE BUILDINGS FROM N |
The earliest buildings on the main site were built with large central posts, whose pits can be seen as light areas in the SW part of the excavated area, and small saplings or stakes set in trenches in the subsoil. The different alignments to be seen in these two views indicate at least two episodes of construction.
Early Neolithic Late Neolithic Early Bronze Age
