EPOCH GeoChem is a multidisciplinary (archaeology, osteoarchaeology, isotope geochemistry) project that investigates the Neolithic Transition and the subsequent socio-economic developments on Crete in Greece, which led to the development of one of the earliest European civilizations. For the first time, the focus is on the skeletal remains of the people themselves and the tools are cutting-edge isotope geochemistry and radiocarbon analyses. The main objectives of this research were to: a) investigate residential mobility during the Neolithic to Early Bronze Age on the island (around 5500 to 2000BC); b) refine the chronology of the early human occupation of Crete; c) achieve a nuanced reconstruction of the early Cretan bio-cultural history through in-context interpretation of isotopic data on diet and geographical origins ; d) create the tools necessary for this and further research on mobility in Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean.
There is a general consensus over a purposive Neolithic colonization of Crete by newcomers from Anatolia, who, probably arriving in more than a single episode over several centuries, are considered the first settlers. Additional gene-flow into Crete from western Anatolia, the north-eastern and central Aegean, plus mobility within the island have been postulated for the succeeding periods, largely based on settlement, material culture and mortuary evidence for population increase, inter-regional contacts, changes and innovations during this period, and modern DNA data. Despite the volume of the above data, before EPOCH GeoChem a direct bioarchaeological perspective through analysis of the humans themselves was absent.
EPOCH GeoChem used for the first time isotopic analyses of multiple elements (strontium, oxygen, carbon, nitrogen and sulphur) of the same archaeological human remains from nine archaeological skeletal sites, including the earliest yet excavated collection from Crete, to determine geographical origins and diet for the respective people. These data were then used as proxies to identify different, new populations, and, along with the radiocarbon data, track and interpret in-context any residential mobility and migration. Intra-group variations on diet and geographical origin by sex, age, kinship or other subgroup affiliation were further explored to gain a nuanced insight into the lifeways and social organisation of these people. Radiocarbon dating provided a clear chronological framework to the research.
