Dimini
Encyclopedia
Dimini is a village near the city of Volos
, in Thessaly
(central Greece
), in Magnesia. It was the seat of the municipality of Aisonia
. The name Aisonia dates back to ancient times and it is the westernmost place in the Volos area. The Dimini area contains both a Mycenean
settlement and a Neolithic
settlement. The Neolithic settlement in Dimini was discovered near the end of 19th century and was first excavated by Greek archaeologists Christos Tsountas
and Valerios Stais
.
The palace of ancient Iolcos is believed to be located in modern-day Dimini, where a Mycenaean
palace was excavated recently
http://www.arcl.ed.ac.uk/a1/stoppress/stop769.htm.
tholos tomb known as Lamiospito. In 1901, Valerios Stais discovered the tholos tomb on the hill of the Neolithic settlement. He worked at the Dimini settlement with Christos Tsountas from 1901 up until 1903. In 1977, George Chourmouziadis continued excavations at the Neolithic settlement. Excavations of the Mycenean settlement in Dimini began in 1980 by V. Adrimi-Sismani. In 2001 the excavations uncovered a Mycenaean city and palace complex they believe
could be part of ancient Iolkos. A stone weight and a sherd
inscribed with Linear B
writing were also uncovered. The publication of the results can be found here.
The "invasion theory" states that the people of the Neolithic Dimini culture were responsible for the violent conquest of the Sesklo
culture at around 5000 BC. Moreover, the theory considers the "Diminians" and the "Sesklo
ans" as two separate cultural entities. However, I. Lyritzis provides a different story pertaining to the relations between the Dimini and the Sesklo cultures. He, along with R. Galloway, compared ceramic materials from both Sesklo and Dimini utilizing thermoluminescence dating methods. He discovered that the inhabitants of the settlement in Dimini appeared around 4800 BC, four centuries before the fall of the Sesklo civilization (ca. 4400 BC). Lyritzis concluded that the "Seskloans" and "Diminians" coexisted for a period of time.
Volos
Volos is a coastal port city in Thessaly situated midway on the Greek mainland, about 326 km north of Athens and 215 km south of Thessaloniki...
, in Thessaly
Thessaly
Thessaly is a traditional geographical region and an administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, and appears thus in Homer's Odyssey....
(central Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
), in Magnesia. It was the seat of the municipality of Aisonia
Aisonia
Aisonia is a former municipality in Magnesia, Thessaly, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Volos, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 3,031...
. The name Aisonia dates back to ancient times and it is the westernmost place in the Volos area. The Dimini area contains both a Mycenean
Mycenaean Greece
Mycenaean Greece was a cultural period of Bronze Age Greece taking its name from the archaeological site of Mycenae in northeastern Argolis, in the Peloponnese of southern Greece. Athens, Pylos, Thebes, and Tiryns are also important Mycenaean sites...
settlement and a Neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
settlement. The Neolithic settlement in Dimini was discovered near the end of 19th century and was first excavated by Greek archaeologists Christos Tsountas
Christos Tsountas
Christos Tsountas was a Greek classical archaeologist. He was born in Thracian Stenimachos, and attended Zariphios high school in Plovdiv. In 1886, he discovered and identified the Mycenean palace at Tiryns...
and Valerios Stais
Valerios Stais
Valerios Stais was a Greek archaeologist. He was born in Kythera. He studied medicine and later archaeology. He became the director of the National Archaeological Museum of Athens in 1887 and held that post until his death. During that period he organized or participated in excavations in...
.
The palace of ancient Iolcos is believed to be located in modern-day Dimini, where a Mycenaean
Mycenaean Greece
Mycenaean Greece was a cultural period of Bronze Age Greece taking its name from the archaeological site of Mycenae in northeastern Argolis, in the Peloponnese of southern Greece. Athens, Pylos, Thebes, and Tiryns are also important Mycenaean sites...
palace was excavated recently
http://www.arcl.ed.ac.uk/a1/stoppress/stop769.htm.
Information
In 1886, Lolling and Wolters excavated the MyceneanMycenaean Greece
Mycenaean Greece was a cultural period of Bronze Age Greece taking its name from the archaeological site of Mycenae in northeastern Argolis, in the Peloponnese of southern Greece. Athens, Pylos, Thebes, and Tiryns are also important Mycenaean sites...
tholos tomb known as Lamiospito. In 1901, Valerios Stais discovered the tholos tomb on the hill of the Neolithic settlement. He worked at the Dimini settlement with Christos Tsountas from 1901 up until 1903. In 1977, George Chourmouziadis continued excavations at the Neolithic settlement. Excavations of the Mycenean settlement in Dimini began in 1980 by V. Adrimi-Sismani. In 2001 the excavations uncovered a Mycenaean city and palace complex they believe
could be part of ancient Iolkos. A stone weight and a sherd
Sherd
In archaeology, a sherd is commonly a historic or prehistoric fragment of pottery, although the term is occasionally used to refer to fragments of stone and glass vessels as well....
inscribed with Linear B
Linear B
Linear B is a syllabic script that was used for writing Mycenaean Greek, an early form of Greek. It pre-dated the Greek alphabet by several centuries and seems to have died out with the fall of Mycenaean civilization...
writing were also uncovered. The publication of the results can be found here.
The "invasion theory" states that the people of the Neolithic Dimini culture were responsible for the violent conquest of the Sesklo
Sesklo
Sesklo is a village nearby the city of Volos, in Thessaly , in the prefecture of Magnesia. It is part of the municipality Aisonia...
culture at around 5000 BC. Moreover, the theory considers the "Diminians" and the "Sesklo
Sesklo
Sesklo is a village nearby the city of Volos, in Thessaly , in the prefecture of Magnesia. It is part of the municipality Aisonia...
ans" as two separate cultural entities. However, I. Lyritzis provides a different story pertaining to the relations between the Dimini and the Sesklo cultures. He, along with R. Galloway, compared ceramic materials from both Sesklo and Dimini utilizing thermoluminescence dating methods. He discovered that the inhabitants of the settlement in Dimini appeared around 4800 BC, four centuries before the fall of the Sesklo civilization (ca. 4400 BC). Lyritzis concluded that the "Seskloans" and "Diminians" coexisted for a period of time.
Source
External links
- Hellenic Ministry of Culture: Dimini
- Metis: Dimini
- Photos of the Dimini settlement, Magnesia (in Greek)
| North: Nea Ionia Nea Ionia, Magnesia Nea Ionia is a city and a former municipality in Magnesia, Thessaly, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Volos, of which it is a municipal unit. It borders the city of Volos. The population at the 2001 census was 31,929 inhabitants. Its land area is... /Iolkos | ||
| West: Feres | Aisonia | East: Pagasetic Gulf Pagasetic Gulf The Pagasetic Gulf is a rounded gulf in the prefecture of Magnesia that is formed by the Mount Pelion peninsula. It is connected with the Euboic Sea... |
| South: Nea Agchialos |