Kommos, Crete. Photo: TMK, April 2007.
Gerald Cagodan reviews Joseph Shaw’s excellent little book on Kommos: A Minoan Harbor Town and Greek Sanctuary in Southern Crete (Princeton 2006) over at BMCR:
If the ASCSA deserves many congratulations for bringing the book out (and supporting a Canadian excavation), S and his wife and asssistant director, Maria Shaw to whom it is dedicated, deserve far, far more for their exemplary excavation that has enriched our knowledge and understanding of ancient (and modern) Crete, and led to such spin-offs as the western Mesara survey, in a way that they could never have foreseen when work began on July 1 1976. Thanks to them, Kommos has become a ktêma es aiei.
Indeed, this is one of those wonderful books that weave the history of a site’s exploration (the ups and downs of archaeological fieldwork as well as personal triumphs and tragedies) into that of the site itself. Highly recommended – and perfect for a site visit.