The goals and objectives of the ground survey, and of the survey project in general, are described in Pseira VIII. That volume also includes information on other aspects of the multi-stage research plan. This second volume is concerned with the intensive ground survey and its data, the excavations at selected sites, and the interpretation of the data.

The island of Pseira was the study area for this project. The definition of the area chosen for investigation was based on legal and practical as well as theoretical considerations. The coast of Crete opposite the island was not included in the official...

1. Visited: 22 Jul 87. 2. Map ref.: 8665E 5980N. 3. Ht A.S.L.: 40 m. 4. Site type: Modern cairn. 5. Rock type: LIM. 6. Soil type: RML. 7. Vegetation: VLIGHT. 8. Surface visibility: Good. 9. Dimensions: ca. 2 m at base. 10. Structures: Pyramid of loose, piled stones. 11. Pottery summary: None. 12. Date(s): Modern. 13. Other movable artifacts: None. 14. Other comments: The cairn at this location is an artificial landmark for navigation placed on almost bare limestone.

1. Visited: 21 Jul 87. 2. Map ref.: -9100E -6420N. 3. Ht A.S.L.: 70 m. 4. Site type: Walled enclosure. 5. Rock...

Several of the sites located in the archaeological survey were investigated in more detail after their initial ground survey was completed. Selected locations were chosen for small-scale excavations, and analyses of sediments and other research were conducted in connection with some of the other features. The following sites received additional work:

The Two Agricultural Terraces Chosen for Exca vation

1. Site G 2

2. Site Q 21

The Two Dams

1. Site M 9

2. Site M 29

The Cove of Megali Ammos

1. Site H 2 (Building EA)

2. Site H 4 (Building EB)

3. Site H 15 (Building EC)

4. Site H 3 (The well, Structure...

The terrace at Site G 2 is one of the best-preserved terraces on Pseira (Ills. 7–9; Figs., 13, 14; Pls. 6, 7). At its highest point, it is 1.78 m from bedrock to the topmost surviving block. It has a preserved length of 12.0 m. Like all of the other high terrace walls on Pseira, it is built of limestone with soil bonding. Other well-preserved terraces are at nearby Site G 1 (at least 1.40 m high), at Sites M 90, M 91, and M 92 (higher up on the island, and 1.0 to 1.50 m high), at Site...

A stone dam at Site M 9 spans the streambed north of the southern peninsula of the island, near the FN–MM cemetery (Ills. 27–33; Figs. 31–33; Pls. 25B, 26–34). The dam is relatively well preserved, and sufficient evidence exists to reconstruct its original width, height, thickness, and catchment area. In addition, a considerable portion of the silt trapped behind the dam in Minoan times remained in place.

The dam at Site M 9, like its “sister” dam at Site M 29, ran almost straight across the streambed (Pl. 25B). Its span was 15.5 m, not counting...

The northern farm (D 8 with D 14) occupies the northern hilltop (Ills. 3, 4; Figs., 10, 11; Pls. 3, 4A). The perimeter walls enclose an irregular area (maximum dimensions 90 m northwest to southeast by 74 m) of about 5600 m², including a triangular enclosure on the north side with a separate perimeter wall. The area encloses most of the best agricultural land in the north, incorporating several former Minoan terraces, which were apparently re-used.

The walls, ca. 0.9 m thick, are of stones with soil bonding, and incorporate several upright pointed stones. Their preserved height is 0.7 m...

Megali Ammos is a small cove northeast of the main settlement on Pseira Island (Pl. 14A). The cove is approximately 70 m wide, with limestone bedrock exposed at each end. A sandy beach extends up to ca. 15–20 meters inland where the typical barren, rocky Pseiran terrain begins. The beach is at the base of a hill slope, and is one of the few large, roughly level expanses on the island. The area is important for several reasons. It contains a well, the only known source for fresh water on the island aside from cisterns and dams, it has...

The survey of Pseira Island discovered 315 sites on an island with 1.75 square kilometers. Among the most distinctive locations that were recorded are the following:

1. A large settlement (the Minoan town, resettled in Byzantine times)

2. A Minoan cemetery (Betancourt and Davaras, eds., 2002 a; 2002 b)

3. A small Minoan and later settlement at Me gali Ammos

4. One stone quarry (Betancourt 2001)

5. Two dams from the Minoan period (one of them reused in Byzantine times)

6. Two Byzantine farmsteads

7. Four cisterns

8. A reservoir

9. A cave

10. Nine threshing floors

11. Two field houses associated with threshing floors

12. Four cairns used for navigation

13....