City and Countryside in Byzantine Anatolia: Amorium

Yıl 2024, Cilt: 2 Sayı: 4, 177 - 197, 30.09.2024

Chris Lightfoot

https://doi.org/10.56170/propontica.1530180

Öz

Amorium is a key site for the period AD 700-900 owing to its historical importance as the capital of the Anatolic Theme. The well preserved remains provide an exceptional opportunity to study the layout and function of the Byzantine city and its excavation sheds light on the transition, modification, and continuity of the settlement between the Late Roman and Byzantine periods. The evidence from twenty years of excavation points to the existence of a large and prosperous city during Early and Middle Byzantine times, where various trades and crafts were practised and which served as the centre of a vibrant rural community engaged in agriculture as well as animal husbandry. The destruction layers from the capture of Amorium by the Arabs in 838 create a fixed horizon and reference point for the entire archaeology and material culture of early to mid-ninth century Anatolia. Pottery and coin finds in particular provide good indicators of the level and nature of economic activity. In this study some conclusions are drawn from that material, and discussion of it is set in the context of other sites and the interpretation of finds there. The evidence from Amorium presents new insights that appear at odds with accepted views of the Byzantine world in the Early Middle Ages.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Byzantine, Anatolia, Amorium, pottery, coinage

Destekleyen Kurum

Hiç

Teşekkür

Prof. Dr. Zeliha Demirel-Gökturk'e teşekkğrlerimi sunuyorum

Bizans Anadolusu’nda Şehir ve Kırsal Bölge: Amorium

Öz

Amorium, Bizans Anadolu Teması'nın başkenti olarak tarihi önemi nedeniyle MS 700-900 dönemi için seçkin bir arkeolojik alandır. İyi korunmuş kalıntılar, Bizans şehrinin planını ve işlevini incelemek için olağanüstü bir fırsat sağlıyor ve burada yapılan kazılar, yerleşimin Geç Roma ve Bizans dönemleri arasındaki geçişine, değişimine ve sürekliliğine ışık tutuyor. Yirmi yıllık kazılardan elde edilen kanıtlar, çeşitli ticaret ve zanaatların uygulandığı ve hayvancılığın yanı sıra tarımla da uğraşan canlı kırsal topluluğun merkezi olarak hizmet veren Erken ve Orta Bizans dönemlerinde büyük, gelişen ve zengin bir şehrin varlığına işaret ediyor. Amorium’un 838’de Araplar tarafından yağma edilmesinden sonraki yıkım katmanları, dokuzuncu yüzyılın başlarından ortalarına kadar Anadolu’nun tüm arkeolojisi ve maddi kültürü için sabit bir tabaka ve verimli bir referans noktası oluşturuyor. Özellikle çanak çömlek parça ve bakır alaşımı sikke buluntuları ekonomik faaliyetin düzeyi ve doğası hakkında iyi göstergeler sağlar. Bu çalışmada Amorium’da bulumuş olan materyalden bazı sonuçlar çıkarılmış ve diğer sit alanları ve oradaki bulguların yorumlanması bağlamında tartışılmıştır. Amorium’dan elde edilen kanıtlar, Erken Ortaçağ’da Bizans dünyasına ilişkin şimdiye kadar kabul edilen bilimsel görüşlerle çelişen yeni bilgiler sunuyor.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Bizans, Anadolu, Amorium, seramik, sikke

Kaynakça

• Armstrong 2006, Armstrong, P., “Rural Settlement in Lycia in the Eighth Century: New Evidence”, The 3rd International Symposium on Lycia Symposium Proceedings, (ed. Dörtlük, K. et al.), Antalya, vol. 1, 19-30.
• Armstrong 2009, Armstrong, P., “Trade in the East Mediterranean in the 8th Century”, Byzantine Trade, 4th-12th Centuries: The Archaeology of Local, Regional and International Exchange: Papers of the Thirty-Eighth Spring Symposium of Byzantine Studies, St John’s College, University of Oxford, March 2004, (ed. M. Mundell Mango), Society for the Promotion of Byzantine Studies Publications 14, Farnham: Ashgate, 157-178.
• Bakirtzis 1989, Bakirtzis, Ch., Bυζαντινά Τσουκαλολάγηνα. Συμβολή στη μελέτη ονομασιών, σχημάτων και χρήσεων πυρίμαχων μαγειρικών σκευών, μεταφορικών και αποθηκευτικών δοχείων, Publications of ΑΔ no. 39, Athens.
• Böhlendorf-Arslan 2004, Böhlendorf-Arslan, B., Glasierte byzantinische Keramik aus der Türkei, 3 vols, Istanbul.
• Böhlendorf-Arslan 2007, Böhlendorf-Arslan, B., “Stratified Byzantine Pottery from the City Wall in the Southwestern Sector of Amorium”, Late Antique and Medieval Pottery and Tiles in Mediterranean Archaeological Contexts. Proceedings of the First International Symposium on Late Antique, Byzantine, Seljuk, and Ottoman Pottery and Tiles in Archaeological Contexts (Çanakkale, 1-3 June 2005), (eds. B. Böhlendorf-Arslan– A.O. Uysal–J. Witte-Orr), Byzas 7, Istanbul, 273-294.
• Böhlendorf-Arslan 2010, Böhlendorf-Arslan, B., “Die mittelbyzantinische Keramik aus Amorium”, Byzanz - das Römerreich im Mittelalter, Teil 2,1 Schauplätze, (eds. F. Daim–J. Drauschke), Monographien des Römisch- Germanischen Zentralmuseums 84/2, 1, Mainz, 345-371.
• Böhlendorf-Arslan 2012, Böhlendorf-Arslan, B., “The Pottery from Destruction Contexts in the Enclosure”, Amorium Reports 3: The Lower City Enclosure. Finds Reports and Technical Studies, (eds. C.S. Lightfoot–E.A. Ivison), Istanbul, 153-79.
• Brubaker–Haldon 2011, Brubaker L.–Haldon, J., Byzantium in the Iconoclast Era c. 680-850: A History, Cambridge.
• Catling 1972, Catling, H.W., “An Early Byzantine Pottery Factory at Dhiorios in Cyprus”, Levant 4, 1-81.
• Catling–Dikigoropoulos 1970, Catling H.W.–Dikigoropoulos, A.I., “The Kornos Cave: An Early Byzantine Site in Cyprus”, Levant 2, 37-62.
• Cottica 2007, Cottica, D., “Micaceous White Painted Ware from insula 104 at Hierapolis/Pamukkale, Turkey”, Late Antique and Medieval Pottery and Tiles in Mediterranean Archaeological Contexts. Proceedings of the First International Symposium on Late Antique, Byzantine, Seljuk, and Ottoman Pottery and Tiles in Archaeological Contexts (Çanakkale, 1-3 June 2005), (eds. B. Böhlendorf-Arslan–A.O. Uysal–J. Witte-Orr), Byzas 7, Istanbul, 255-272.
• Coulton et al. 2012, Coulton, J.J.–Armstrong, P.–Erdentuğ, A.–French, D.H.–Kiel, M.–Milner, N.P.–Roberts, P.–Sekunda, N.–Wagstaff, J.M., The Balboura Survey and Settlement in Highland Southwest Anatolia, British Institute at Ankara Monograph 43, 2 vols., London.
• Crow 2001, Crow, J., “Fortifications and Urbanism in Late Antiquity: Thessaloniki and Other Eastern Cities”, Recent Research in Late-Antique Urbanism, (ed. L. Lavan), Journal of Roman Archaeology Supplementary Series 42, Portsmouth, RI, 89-105.
• Dally–Ratté 2011, Dally, O.–Ratté, C., Archaeology and the Cities of Asia Minor in Late Antiquity, Kelsey Museum Publication 6, Ann Arbor.
• Dark 2001, Dark, K., Byzantine Pottery, Stroud.
• Davidson 1952, Davidson, G.R., Corinth XII. The Minor Objects, Princeton, N.J.
• Decker 2008, Decker, M., “Frontier Settlement and Economy in the Byzantine East”, Dumbarton Oaks Papers 61, 217-267.
• Demirel-Gökalp–Tsivikis 2022, Demirel-Gökalp, Z.–Tsivikis, N., “Understanding Urban Transformation in Amorium from Late Antiquity to the Middle Ages”, Proceedings of the Plenary Session the 24th International Congress of Byzantine Studies, Venice and Padua, 22-27 August, 2022, (eds. E. Fiori–M. Trizio), Venice: Fondazione Università Ca’ Foscari, 324-344.
• Demirel-Gökalp–Kurt 2023, Demirel-Gökalp, Z.–Kurt, M., “Amorium Kazılarında bulunan Orta Bizans Dönemi Sırlı Isıtma Kapları”, Türkiye Bilimler Akademisi-Kültür Envanteri Dergisi 32, 237-252.
• Devreker et al. 2003, Devreker, J.–Thoen, H.–Vermeulen F., Excavations in Pessinus: The So-Called Acropolis. From Hellenistic and Roman Cemetery to Byzantine Castle, Archaeological Reports Ghent University 1, Ghent.
• Evans–Ratliff 2012, Evans, H.C.–Ratliff, B., Byzantium and Islam. Age of Transition, 7th-9th Century, New York.
• Frantz 1965, Frantz, A., “From Paganism to Christianity in the Temples of Athens”, Dumbarton Oaks Papers 19, 185, 187-205.
• Gill 2003, Gill, M.A.V., “Middle Byzantine Terracotta Lamps”, Amorium Reports 2: Research Papers and Technical Studies, (ed. C.S. Lightfoot), BAR International Series 1170, Oxford, 65-71.
• Giorgi 2012, Giorgi, J., “The Plant Remains”, Amorium Reports 3: The Lower City Enclosure. Finds Reports and Technical Studies, (eds. C.S. Lightfoot–E.A. Ivison), Istanbul, 395-418.
• Goitein 1999, Goitein, S.D., A Mediterranean Society: the Jewish Communities of the Arab World as portrayed in the Documents of the Cairo Geniza, 1. Economic Foundations, Berkeley - Los Angeles.
• Hamilton 1935, Hamilton, R.W., “Note on a Chapel and Winepress at ‘Ain el Jedīde”, Quarterly of the Department of Antiquities in Palestine 4, 111-117.
• Harrison 1989, Harrison, R.M., “Amorium 1988: The First Preliminary Excavation”, Anatolian Studies 39, 167-74.
• Harrison et al. 1991, Harrison, R.M.–Jecock, M.–Ainsworth, S.–Claridge, A.–Sjöström, I.–Christie, N.–Welsby, D.–Dodge, H.– Bown, L.–Gill, M.A.V., “Amorium Excavations 1990: The Third Preliminary Report”, Anatolian Studies 41, 215-229.
• Harrison et al. 1992, Harrison, R.M.–Welsby, D.A.–Sjöström, I.Y.–Balance, M.–Mango, C.–Bown, L.–Tomber, R.S.–Gill, M.A.V., “Amorium Excavations 1991: The Fourth Preliminary Report”, Anatolian Studies 42, 207-22.
• Hayes 1992, Hayes, J., Excavations at Saraçhane in Istanbul, 2. The Pottery, Princeton, N.J.
• Hendy 2007, Hendy, M.F., “Roman, Byzantine, and Latin Coins”, Kalenderhane in Istanbul: the Excavations: Final Reports on the Archaeological Exploration and Restoration at Kalenderhane Camii 1966-1978, (eds. C.L. Striker–Y. Doğan Kuban), Mainz am Rhein, 175-276.
• Ioannidou 2012, Ioannidou, E., “Animal Husbandry”, Amorium Reports 3: The Lower City Enclosure. Finds Reports and Technical Studies, (ed. C.S. Lightfoot–E.A. Ivison), Istanbul: 419-442.
• İstanbul 1949, “Eski Şark Eserleri Müzesi”, İstanbul Arkeoloji Müzeleri Yıllığı 3, 31-33.
• Ivison 2000, Ivison, E.A., “Urban Renewal and Imperial Revival in Byzantium (730-1025)”, Byzantinische Forschungen 26, 1-46.
• Ivison 2010, Ivison, E.A., “Kirche und religiöses Leben im byzantinischen Amorium”, Byzanz - das Römerreich im Mittelalter, Teil 2,1 Schauplätze, (eds. F. Daim–J. Drauschke), Monographien des Römisch-Germanischen Zentralmuseums 84/2, 1, Mainz, 309-343.
• Ivison 2012, Ivison, E.A., “Excavations at the Lower City Enclosure, 1996-2008”, Amorium Reports 3: The Lower City Enclosure. Finds Reports and Technical Studies, (eds. C.S. Lightfoot–E.A. Ivison), Istanbul, 4-151.
• Jackson et al. 2012, Jackson, M.–Zelle, M.–Vandeput, L.–Köse, V., “Primary Evidence for Late Roman D Ware Production in Southern Asia Minor: A Challenge to ‘Cypriot Red Slip Ware’”, Anatolian Studies 62, 89-114.
• Joyner 2007, Joyner, L., “Cooking Pots as Indicators of Cultural Change: A Petrographic Study of Byzantine and Frankish Cooking Wares from Corinth”, Hesperia 76, 183-227.
• Katsari et al. 2012, Katsari, C.–Lightfoot, C.S.–Özme, A., Amorium Reports 4: The Amorium Mint and the Coin Finds, Berlin.
• Kenkel 2007, Kenkel, F., “The Cypriot Red Slip Ware and its Derivatives from Pednelissos in Pisidia”, Late Antique and Medieval Pottery and Tiles in Mediterranean Archaeological Contexts. Proceedings of the First International Symposium on Late Antique, Byzantine, Seljuk, and Ottoman Pottery and Tiles in Archaeological Contexts (Çanakkale, 1-3 June 2005), (eds. B. Böhlendorf-Arslan–A.O. Uysal–J. Witte-Orr), Byzas 7, Istanbul, 131-145.
• Koçyiğit 2012, Koçyiğit, O., “Small Finds from the Early 9th-Century Destruction at Amorium”, Byzantine Small Finds in Archaeological Contexts, (eds. B. Böhlendorf-Arslan–A. Ricci), Byzas 15, Istanbul, 319-329.
• Lightfoot 2003, Lightfoot, C.S., “Stone Screw Press Weights”, Amorium Reports 2: Research Papers and Technical Studies, (ed. C.S. Lightfoot), BAR International Series 1170. Oxford, 73-79.
• Lightfoot 2007, Lightfoot, C.S., “Trade and Industry in Byzantine Anatolia: The Evidence from Amorium”, Dumbarton Oaks Papers 61, 269-286.
• Lightfoot 2009, Lightfoot, C.S., “Excavations at Amorium: Results from the Last Ten Years (1998-2008)”, Archaeology of the Countryside in Medieval Anatolia, (eds. T. Vorderstrasse–J. Roodenberg), PIHANS 113, Leiden, 139-153.
• Lightfoot 2010, Lightfoot, C.S., “Ortaçağ’da Aydınlatma Teknikleri ve Amorium’da Ele Geçen Buluntular”, XII. Ortaçağ Türk Dönemi Kazıları ve Sanat Tarihi Sempozyumu, 15-17 Ekim 2008, Çanakkale, (eds. A.O. Uysal–A. Yavaş–M. Dündar–O. Koçyiğit), Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart Üniversitesi Yayınları No: 98, İzmir, 41-49.
• Lightfoot 2012a, Lightfoot, C., “Business as Usual? Archaeological Evidence for Byzantine Commercial Enterprise at Amorium in the Seventh to Eleventh Centuries”, Trade and Markets in Byzantium, (ed. C. Morrisson), Dumbarton Oaks Byzantine Symposia and Colloquia Series 4, Washington, 177-191.
• Lightfoot 2012b, Lightfoot, C.S., “Byzantine Weights and Related Material, 1998-2008”. Amorium Reports 3: The Lower City Enclosure. Finds Reports and Technical Studies, (eds. C.S. Lightfoot–E.A. Ivison), Istanbul, 379-386.
• Lightfoot 2012c, Lightfoot, C.S., “Amorium: Facts, Myths, and Misconceptions”, Amorium Reports 3: The Lower City Enclosure. Finds Reports and Technical Studies, (eds. C.S. Lightfoot–E.A. Ivison), Istanbul, 469-491.
• Lightfoot 2012d, Lightfoot, C.S., “Middle Byzantine Terracotta Lamps, 1993-2005”, Amorium Reports 3: The Lower City Enclosure. Finds Reports and Technical Studies, (eds. C.S. Lightfoot–E.A. Ivison), Istanbul, 217-232.
• Lightfoot 2013, Lightfoot, C.S., “The Results of Surveying around Aphrodisias”, Journal of Roman Archaeology 26, 839-47.
• Lightfoot–Ivison 1996, Lightfoot, C.S.–Ivison, E.A., “Amorium Excavations 1995, the Eighth Preliminary Report”, Anatolian Studies 46, 91-110.
• Lightfoot–Lightfoot 2007, Lightfoot, C.–Lightfoot, M., Amorium: An Archaeological Guide, İstanbul.
• Lightfoot et al. 2010, Lightfoot, C.–Ivison, E.–Koçyiğit, O.–Şen, M., “Amorium Kazıları, 2008”, 31. Kazı Sonuçları Toplantısı, 1, 133-157.
• Lightfoot et al. 2011, Lightfoot, C.–Tsivikis, N.–Foley, J., “Amorium Kazıları, 2009”, 32. Kazı Sonuçları Toplantısı, 1, 47-68.
• Maier 2004, Maier, F.G., Guide to Palaipaphos (Kouklia), Nicosia. Megaw 1959, Megaw, A.H.S., “Archaeology in Cyprus, 1958”, Archaeological Reports 5, 25-34.
• Niewöhner 2011, Niewöhner, P. “The Riddle of the Market Gate: Miletus and the Character and Date of Earlier Byzantine Fortifications in Anatolia”, Archaeology and the Cities of Asia Minor in Late Antiquity, (eds. O. Dally–C. Ratté), Kelsey Museum Publication 6, Ann Arbor, 103-122.
• Olcay Uçkan [nd], Olcay Uçkan, B.Y. (ed.), Rock Architecture in Phrygia Region in the Byzantine Period, Eskişehir: Tepebaşı Municipality.
• Ostrogorsky 1959, Ostrogorsky, G., “Byzantine Cities in the Early Middle Ages”, Dumbarton Oaks Papers 13, 45-66.
• Papanikola-Bakirtzi 2002, Papanikola-Bakirtzi, P., Everyday Life in Byzantium, Athens.
• Ratté 2001, Ratté, C., “New Research on the Urban Development of Aphrodisias in Late Antiquity”, Urbanism in Western Asia Minor. New Studies on Aphrodisias, Ephesos, Hierapolis, Pergamon, Perge, and Xanthos, (ed. D. Parrish), Journal of Roman Archaeology Supplementary Series 45, Portsmouth, RI, 116-147.
• Ratté–De Staebler 2012, Ratté C.–De Staebler, P.D., Aphrodisias V. The Aphrodisias Regional Survey, Darmstadt/ Mainz.
• Roodenberg 2009, Roodenberg, J., “The Byzantine Graveyards from Ilıpınar and Barcın in Northwest Anatolia”, Archaeology of the Countryside in Medieval Anatolia, (eds. T. Vorderstrasse–J. Roodenberg), PIHANS 113, Leiden, 154-167.
• Sodini 1993, Sodini, J.-P., “La contribution de l’archéologie à la connaissance du monde byzantin (IVe-VIIe siècles)”, Dumbarton Oaks Papers 47, 139-84.
• Striker–Doğan Kuban 2007, Striker, C.L.–Doğan Kuban, Y., Kalenderhane in Istanbul: the Excavations: Final Reports on the Archaeological Exploration and Restoration at Kalenderhane Camii 1966-1978, Mainz am Rhein.
• Tsivikis et al. 2023, Tsivikis, N.–Sotiriou, Th.–Karagiorgou, O.–Anagnostakis, I., “Reconstructing the Wine Industry of Byzantine Amorium: Production and Consumption of Wine in Central Asia Minor, Seventh to Ninth Centuries”, Dumbarton Oaks Papers 77, 131-76.
• Vandeput–Köse 2008, Vandeput L.–Köse V., “Pisidia Survey Project 2008: Research in the Territory of Pednelissos”, Anatolian Archaeology 14, 32-33.
• Vandeput et al. 2012, Vandeput, L.–Köse V.–Jackson, M., “Results of the 2010 Pisidia Survey Project. Fieldwork in the territory of Pednelissos”, 29. Araştırma Sonuçları Toplantısı, 3, 269-92.
• Vionis et al. 2009a, Vionis, A.K.–Poblome, J.–Waelkens, M., “Ceramic Continuity and Daily Life in Medieval Sagalassos, sw Anatolia (ca. 650-1250 AD)”, Archaeology of the Countryside in Medieval Anatolia, (eds. T. Vorderstrasse–J. Roodenberg), PIHANS 113, Leiden, 191-213.
• Vionis et al. 2009b, Vionis, A.K.–Poblome, J.–Waelkens, M., “The Hidden Material Culture of the Dark Ages. Early Medieval Ceramics at Sagalassos (Turkey): New Evidence (ca AD 650-800)”, Anatolian Studies 59, 147-165.
• Vionis et al. 2010, Vionis, A.K.–Poblome, J.–De Cupere, B.–Waelkens, M., “A Middle-Late Byzantine Pottery Assemblage from Sagalassos: Typo-Chronology and Sociocultural Interpretation”, Hesperia 79, 423-464.
• Vroom 2005, Vroom, J., Byzantine to Modern Pottery in the Aegean: 7th to 20th Century: An Introduction and Field Guide, Utrecht.
• Vroom 2007, Vroom, J., “Limyra in Lycia: Byzantine/Umayyad Pottery Finds from Excavations in the Eastern Part of the City”, Céramiques antiques en Lycia (VIIe S. a.C. - VIIe S. p.C.). Actes de la table-ronde de Poitiers (21-22 mars 2003), (ed. S. Lemaître), Éditions Ausonius Études 16, Pessac, 261-292.
• Wittke et al. 2010, Wittke, A.M.–Olshausen, E.–Szydlak, R.–Salazar, C.F., Brill’s New Pauly Historical Atlas of the Ancient World, Leiden. Wright 2000, Wright, G.H.R., “Some Byzantine Bronze Objects from Beycesultan”, Anatolian Studies 50, 159-70.
• Wright 2007, Wright, G.H.R., “Beyce Sultan-A Fortified Settlement in Byzantine Phrygia”, Anatolica 33, 143-68.
• Yaman 2008, Yaman, H., “Doors to the Other World: Phrygian Doorstones at Amorium”, Funeral Rites, Rituals, and Ceremonies from Prehistory to Antiquity, Proceedings of the International Workshop “Troas and its Neighbours”, Çanakkale and Ören, 2-6 October 2006, (ed. O. Özbeck), Istanbul, 59-67.
• Yaman 2010, Yaman, H., “2007-2008 Amorium Kazılarında Bulunan Bir Grup Sikke”, XII. Ortaçağ-Türk Dönemi Kazıları ve Sanat Tarihi Sempozyumu, 15-17 Ekim 2008, Çanakkale, (eds. A.O. Uysal–A. Yavaş–M. Dündar–O. Koçyiğit), Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart Üniversitesi Yayınları No: 98, Izmir, 50-58.
• Yaman 2012, Yaman, H., “Small Finds for the Dating of a Tomb at Amorium”, Byzantine Small Finds in Archaeological Contexts, (ed. B. Böhlendorf-Arslan–A. Ricci), Byzas 15, Istanbul, 331-342.
• Yılmazyaşar–Demirel-Gökalp 2021, Yılmazyaşar, H.–Demirel-Gökalp, Z., “Amorium’da Yukarı Şehir İç Sur Kazıları (2014-2018)”, Anadolu Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, 21, 4, 1017-1050.