On looking lately through a volume (AD. MSS. 29,822) of the manuscript collections bequeathed by the late Mr. Robert Hay to the British Museum, I came across a partly coloured drawing (f. 33) by him, of the well-known wall-painting of Keftian (Minoan Cretan) ambassadors in the tomb of Senmut at Egyptian Thebes. A direct photograph (by Mr. E. R. Ayrton) of this painting was published by me in the Annual for 1903–4 (x. p. 154) and a year later, Dr. W. M. Müller gave us a fine photograph and also a hand-drawn reproduction of it in colour in the first volume of his Egyptological Researches, published by the Carnegie Institute (1906), Plates 5, 6, and 7. These were the first published illustrations of the whole painting as it is now.

This excavation was undertaken with a view to determining the position of one of the town-gates. Although there are considerable remains of the fortifications, no gate of the ancient town was visible above ground. It was evident that the discovery of the gates, and consequently of the roads, would afford the best clues to internal and external topography.

Description of the Site.—Melos, as the map shows, possesses one of the finest natural harbours in the Ægean. The ancient town, like the cluster of modern villages, lay on high ground east of the straits by which the nearly landlocked bay is entered.

In the ruined monastery of Panagia Kavallaris, four miles south-west of Koutiphari. On a white marble stele supporting the altar in the church. Over 78 c. long by 23 c. broad and 13 c. wide. Letters 1·50 c. to 2·0 c. The stele is partly buried in the earth, so its total length is unknown, as it was impossible to dig in the church.

The monastery stands on the steep slope of Hagios Nikos above a hollow in the mountains, where there are vineyards, just below it is a copious spring. The road to Gytheion crosses the opposite slope. I found no other traces of Hellenic occupation, but the spot would be eminently suitable for a sanctuary site.

Since the earlier parts of this study were written, various interesting discoveries have been made, not only in Crete, but on the mainland of Greece, such as tend partly to clear up, partly to complicate the problem of Aegean Civilization.

Of the discoveries in Crete the most fruitful in new results are those of Mr. Richard B. Seager relating to the Early Minoan Period, firstly at Vasilikí on the mainland of the Gulf of Mirabello, and later on the islands of Psira and Mochlos off the same coast.

Some experimental excavations were carried out at Geraki (the ancient Geronthrae) between May 26 and June 6 of 1905.

Geraki lies in the upland plain which includes practically the whole of east central Laconia extending from the left bank of the Eurotas to the foothills of Parnon: it is on the south and south-western slopes of one of these foothills—the ancient acropolis of Geronthrae, which we shall discuss later in detail—that the modern village is built.

The following inscriptions, along with a number of others which have been already published, were copied by Mr. A. J. B. Wace in the course of a visit paid to Ishekli, the site of the ancient Eumeneia, in the spring of 1903. Mr. Wace kindly handed his manuscript over to me with leave to publish any inscriptions which were still unknown. My delay in doing so is due to the fact that I had hopes of getting a copy of the closing lines of No. 2, either on a visit which I intended myself to pay to Eumeneia or through the kindness of some friend travelling in Asia Minor. This hope has not hitherto been fulfilled, and I should not feel myself justified in waiting any longer.

In March 1905 I went to Skyros for a week, primarily to see and photograph the Carnival masquerade described in B.S.A. vi. p. 125, by Mr. Lawson. I was there for the last of the three Sundays of Carnival, and the following Monday, when, to the scandal of the Hegoumenos of St. George of Skyros, it being the first day of Lent, the festival is at its height. Although the village sounds with the clatter of the bells of these strange figures all through Carnival, on this last Sunday the masqueraders, of whom Mr. Lawson has given an account, appear in the greatest numbers. A full set consists of three young men, disguised, one as an Old Man (γέρος) one as a Maid (κορέλλα) and one as a Frank (Φράγκος). The Frank's attire differs, but his distinctive features are a sheep-bell tied on at the waist behind, and a conch-shell to blow. He either has a cloth tied over his face, or wears a modern pasteboard mask. The κορέλλα is a boy dressed as a girl, generally with a modern mask, in the festal attire of a Skyrian bride.

In this paper I propose, not to give the history of Lesbos, for which the curious may consult well-known books; nor to offer new geographical details, for which I am not qualified; but merely to recount my impressions of the island, its scenery, products, and people; to mention such remains of antiquity as can still be seen there; and, finally, a few interesting relics of ancient custom which the people to this day observe.

In shape, the island resembles the claw of a crab; the two ends of which enclose a wide gulf. The space enclosed would be contained by a triangle, whose S., N.E., and N.W. sides are about 45, 30, and 25 miles respectively. A backbone of rocks runs round the curve, broadening at the two points into wide stretches of hill country, and sinking into a low and fertile plain round the Gulf of Kalloni. The southern claw itself contains a smaller gulf, that of Hiera.

At the west end of the mediaeval castle on the Megarian Minoa the front surface of the west wall has fallen away. The foundations of the wall thus laid bare consist of large square blocks of poros and blue limestone from Hellenic buildings. The corner block is of blue limestone and is inscribed in three columns on its upper surface. On the face of the second and third columns are traces of mortar which show that there was originally a course above the stone. The block is 1·12 m. in breadth and ·55 m. in height. Its depth cannot be ascertained, as it is buried almost up to the surface. At the top is a margin 10 cm. in width, extending along the whole length of the stone. The inscription is below the margin, and the three columns are separated by vertical grooves. The first column is ·355 m. in breadth, the second ·32 m., and the third ·265 m.

This paper presents the results of the second and main period of excavation. The limits of the site were defined: a monumental building with four covered slipways or shipsheds, flanking another major public building, quite possibly the agora. Preliminary conclusions based on the 2001 excavation of the northernmost shipshed (BSA 2003) can be supplemented and modified.

The surprising discovery was ramps of sand, resurfaced several times during the second half of the fifth century. Shipsheds 3–4 produced evidence of two architectural phases, with the back- and side-walls moved upslope, and the ramps now ending in an upswinging curve.

The existence of an early phase in the dockyard, already indicated in 2001, was confirmed. The later roof of Corinthian type, without decoration (second half of fifth century), was preceded by a roof of the late sixth–early fifth century BC, attested in particular by a remarkable series of antefixes, both Sileni and Gorgoneia, found in every shed, with some concentration in sheds 2 and 3, and with a number of other architectural terracottas (all described in the catalogue). The excavation context shows that this material comes from the same roof, indicating the very unusual combination of Silenus mask and Gorgon mask antefixes.

Other finds are more briefly discussed. Remains of red and blue pigment show that ships were painted in the shipsheds. Pottery finds provide considerable evidence of drinking; so do some graffiti, while others may be ostraka for a selection procedure (possibly ostracism). A scatter of arrow-heads and a few spear-heads have been found in the working levels of the ramps.

The case is put for shipsheds as monumental architecture, with some specifically Sicilian features. Comparative material for use of wooden posts and post-pits is discussed, and also the use of mudbrick.

A three-dimensional computer reconstruction of the shipshed complex is illustrated, and some particular aspects discussed (lighting and drainage of water from the roof). The reconstruction preferred has a separate stepped ridged roof over shipsheds 1–2 and 3–4.

Η παρούσα ανακοίνωση παρουσιάζει τα αποτελέσματα της δεύτερης και κύριας ανασκαφικής περιόδου. Τα όρια που καθορίστηκαν στον ανασκαφικό χώρο ήταν: ένα κτίριο μνημειακής αρχιτεκτονικής με τέσσερα στεγαζόμενα νεώρια ή νεωσοίκους, το οποίο βρισκεται πλευρικά σε ένα άλλο μεγάλο δημόσιο κτίριο, κατά πάσα πιθανότητα την αγορά. Τα αρχικά συμπεράσματα που βασίζονται στις ανασκαφές του 2001 στο βορειότερο νεώσοικο (BSA 2003) μπορούν να συμπληρωθούν και να τροποποιηθούν.

Η απροσδόκητη ανακάλυψη ήταν τα κεκλιμμένα επίπεδα (ράμπες) από άμμο, τα οποία επιστρώθηκαν ξανά αρκετές φορές κατά τη διάρκεια του δεύτερου μισού του 5ου αιώνα. Οι νεώσοικοι 3–4 παρείσχαν ενδείξεις δύο αρχιτεκτονικών φάσεων, με τους οπίσθιους και πλαϊνούς τοίχους μετακινημένους προς την πλαγιά του λόφου και τα κεκλιμμένα επίπεδα να καταλήγουν τώρα σε μία ανωφερική καμπύλη.

Η ύπαρξη μίας πρωιμότερης φάσης στο νεώριο, που είχε ήδη επισημανθεί το 2001, επιβεβαιώθηκε. Της ύστερης στέγης κορινθιακού τύπου χωρίς διακόσμηση (δεύτερο μισό του 5ου αιώνα) προηγήθηκε μία στέγη του ύστερου 6ου-πρώιμου 5ου αιώνα π.Χ., η οποία πιστοποιήθηκε ειδικότερα από μία εντυπωσιακή σειρά από ακροκέραμα, με μορφές Σειληνών και Гοργόνεια, τα οποία βρέθηκαν σε κάθε νεώσοικο, με μια ιδιαίτερη συγκέντρωση στους νεωσοίκους 2 και 3, όπως επίσης και από έναν αριθμό άλλων πήλινων αρχιτεκτονικών μελών (περιγράφονται στον κατάλογο). Το ανασκαφικό περιβάλλον (context) δείχνει ότι αυτό το υλικό προέρχεται από την ίδια στέγη, υποδεικνύοντας τον πολύ ασυνήθιστο συνδυασμό ακροκεράμων με προσωπίδες Σειληνών και Гοργόνεια.

Τα υπόλοιπα ευρήματα συζητώνται με μεγαλύτερη συντομία. Υπολείμματα ερυθράς και κυανής χρωστικής δείχνουν ότι η βαφή των πλοίων γινόταν στους νεωσοίκους. Ευρήματα κεραμεικής παρέχουν αξιόλογες ενδείξεις κατανάλωσης ποτού- το ίδιο υποδηλώνουν και ορισμένα ακκιδογραφήματα (graffiti), ενώ άλλα, είναι ίσως όσιρακα προς χρήσιν σε κάποια εκλογική διαδικασία (ενδεχομένως οστρακισμό). Ένας αριθμός διεσπαρμένων αιχμών βελών και λίγες αιχμές ακοντίων έχουν βρεθεί στους χώρους εργασίας των κεκλιμμένων επιπέδων.

Η θεωρία που διατυπώνεται αφορά στους νεωσοίκους ως μνημειακή αρχιτεκτονική με ορισμένα ιδιαίτερα σικελικά χαρακτηριστικά. Εξετάζεται και συγκριτικό υλικό για την χρήση ξύλινων πασσάλων και πασσαλο-οπών, όπως επίσης και η χρήση ωμοπλίνθων.

Απεικονίζεται, ακόμη, μία τρισδιάστατη ηλεκτρονική αναπαράσταση του συγκροτήματος των νεωσοίκων και εξετάζονται ορισμένα ιδιαίτερα χαρακτηριστικά (ο φωτισμός και η απορροή του νερού από τη στέγη). Η αναπαράσταση που προτιμήθηκε παρουσιάζει μία ξεχωριστή, βαθμιδωτή, δίρριχτη στέγη πάνω από τους νεωσοίκους 1–2 και 3–4.

Through the kindness of Dr. Charles Seltman I am enabled to publish an inscribed sherd in his possession, the singular character of which has not hitherto been noticed. Its history is obscure; it was bought, so Dr. Seltman informs me, from a dealer who said that it had been found on the North Slope of the Athenian Acropolis. This provenance may well be correct; the sherd is certainly Attic, and the dealer made no financial gain from his statement; nor, apparently, did he regard the inscriptions as more than a curiosity. The sherd measures 11·6 cm. at its greatest length, and is 4·8 cm. wide at 1. 22 of the inscription on the upper surface. It apparently forms part of the rim and body of a plate of the type known as a fish-plate, of which a considerable number exist, both Attic and South Italian, in a complete or fragmentary state, though they have not received much attention from scholars.

The long-established popularity of the Venetian gold ducat or sequin as a medium for international trade in the Levant, is easily accounted for by its unvarying fineness and constant types from its first appearance in the thirteenth century to the end of the Republic in 1797. Throughout this long period it held its own as the standard gold coin of the Levant trade. Imitations of varying date, standard, and work-manship are an inevitable consequence of this popularity: they are found so far afield as India, and are even at the present day manufactured for jewellers' purposes in Alexandria.

A conspicuous mediaeval example of these trade imitations is to be found in a series of more or less barbarous imitations of the sequin of Andrea Dandolo (1343–54), which, though attributed to no definite mint, have long been recognised as a Levant currency. The designs are imitated closely from the Venetian original, the name of the doge and the motto of the reverse—Sit tibi, Christe, datus quern tu—regis iste ducatus—being blundered or distorted in various ways.

The defence of Late Byzantine (fourteenth–fifteenth centuries) frontier zones frequently became the responsibility of military elites, borderlords, who enjoyed absolute power in these areas and immunity from any fiscal or other obligation towards the Byzantine state. In this article I present the case studies of two borderlord families: the brothers and military officials Alexios and John, and the Genoese family of the Gattilusi, who ruled large areas around the Northern Aegean in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries and participated actively in their defence at a time when they were surrounded by enemies and plagued by piracy. The aim of the article is twofold. First, I consider the borderlords’ building activities, modes of self-representation and the creation of new geographies as strategies for establishing control and legitimising their power. Second, I explore how the rise of these borderlords fits with Byzantine imperial policies and corresponds to changes in the character of Late Byzantine imperial authority and the role of the Byzantine emperor within and beyond the empire. Over the course of this article I hope to highlight the complexity of the political and economic situation in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries and contribute to an understanding of modes of Late Byzantine government and power that move beyond simplistic frameworks of decline and fall.

Excavations at Akrotiri on Thera, where some house roofs remain intact, have shown that U-shaped terracotta drains, set projecting out beyond the outside walls, drained roof terraces. These terraces were often surrounded by built parapets.

What then of contemporary Neopalatial buildings on Crete, where construction and style are similar but much less is preserved? Evidence for the appearance and use of roofs and parapets there consists of drains that seem to have fallen, as now reported at various recently excavated sites (Kommos, Mochlos, Palaikastro); also staircases that probably led to the roof; and architectural depictions (a model, plaques).

In this paper, we re-examine inscribed items of Minoan jewellery in the light of the increasing number of studies on ancient eastern Mediterranean jewellery and its meanings. We reach a fourfold conclusion. First: as these objects, with one exception, are clearly associated with adult females, while the exception (a ring) cannot be affiliated with a particular gender or age, inscribed Minoan jewellery seems so far to lie mostly outside the purview of men. Second: these objects were almost certainly used to construct and broadcast the elite identity (and perhaps authority) of the people who wore them. Third: the objects may also have served as apotropaic amulets and/or symbols of rites of passage for their wearers, thus expressing certain rituals associated with the lives of the people who wore them. Fourth: inscribed items of Minoan jewellery may have played an active role in linking elite Minoan (and particularly elite Minoan female) identity and authority to the divine.

The metamorphic geology of Greece and the Aegean produced a wide range of coloured stones which were used in antiquity. In the second half of the nineteenth century several of the ancient quarries were rediscovered and reopened by Greek and British companies within the developing economy of the young Greek state. One such stone is the fine maroon marble rosso antico, emplaced at several locations in the Mani. It had first been exploited in the Late Bronze Age and exploitation continued extensively during the Roman Empire. The new quarryings of the nineteenth century resulted in much export to Britain, where the marble was used in churches, notably St Paul's Cathedral and Westminster Cathedral in London, in commercial and university buildings, in private houses and, as a gift of the Greek government, for the plinth of Byron's statue in Park Lane, London.

An account is given of the adult life and career of Peter Megaw, from his first admission to the British School at Athens as Walston Student in 1931, to his Vice-Presidency of the School at the time of his death in 2006. His years (1935–60) as Director of the Department of Antiquities, Cyprus are described, and the great importance stressed of his work in preserving the island's architectural heritage of the Christian period. His Directorship of the British School at Athens is described. His publications are noted, including his (posthumous) Kourion: Excavations in the Episcopal Precinct.