The first major Lower Palaeolithic/Earlier Stone Age site in Greece

Two members of CAHO Dr John (Mac) McNabb and Dr James Cole (Centre for the Archaeology of Human Origins at Southampton) have been working with Greek colleagues from the University of Crete (Professor Nena Galanidou) and the University of Patras (Dr Giorgos Iliopoulos) in Western Greece, on the beautiful island of Lesvos off the coast of Turkey. Centred around the village of Lisvori, overlooking the spectacular Kalloni Gulf, the team of international collaborators are investigating the first major Lower Palaeolithic/Earlier Stone Age site in Greece. The site was first identified by two medical doctors with an interest in local archaeology who were fieldwalking the area. Professor Galanidou was called in and immediately recognised the potential significance of the site.

Further details on this exciting site have just been published in Antiquity  with additional information at the University of Crete website. Mac and James did a short geophysics (GPR) season in May this year and are returning with the full team in July to continue excavation, field walking, and geological investigation.

The landscape in which the Rodafnidia locality where the handaxes were found as seen from a nearby hill.