WELCOME TO SAVA - SOUTH AEGEAN VOLCANIC ARC DATABASE

History of the SAVA Database Project

Recent geological fieldwork has resulted in the establishment of an igneous source material database for the Saronic Gulf portion of the South Aegean Volcanic Arc, plus the island of Santorini. Specifically, this has amounted to collecting representative samples of all volcanic materials on the islands of Aegina, Poros, Milos, the peninsula of Methana, and Santorini. The minerals in these reference materials were then analyzed by electron microprobe techniques to develop a mineral composition database against which mineral compositions in individual artifacts could be compared.

ISLAND MAP

Purpose of the SAVA Database Project

The purpose of the SAVA database is the acquisition of high-quality, quantitative rock and clay-rich sediment data that can be used for the provenancing of artifactual material, e.g. ceramics and millstones, presumed to have originated in this igneous environment. Our approach is unique in that it creates geologic reference standards from the physical environment for the provenancing of artifactual material

The SAVA comparative database was originally conceived only as a geoarchaeological provenancing tool. However, it quickly became apparent that our innovative approach was capable of not only explaining observed artifactual distribution phenomena but building new models for cultural change which use these distributions for evidence. By creating new geochemical definitions for specific artifactual material, it is possible to develop demonstratable and testable models for cultural change. In order to develop more powerful provenancing and predictive modeling tools for this aspect of the database we have integrated our research with the skills of Information Technology.