Greek Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria

Dr. Stavroula Nikoloudis

Synopsis

This year marks the 60th anniversary of Michael Ventris' announcement on the BBC (1st July 1952) that the language underlying the Bronze Age Aegean 'Linear B' script was an early form of Greek. Ventris' decipherment was a major breakthrough, supplementing the archaeological investigations of the time by giving scholars access to the textual information recorded in the Linear B tablets about the socio-political, economic and religious facets of life in the Mycenaean world. This paper traces Ventris' key role in the decipherment of Linear B, alongside the significant work of Alice Kober, Emmett Bennett Jr. and John Chadwick. It also provides a sample of the invaluable information contained in the Linear B texts.

Biography

Dr. Stavroula Nikoloudis is an archaeologist, specialising in the Aegean Bronze Age (ca. 3000-1000 BCE). Her research focuses on Mycenaean society and Mycenaean Greek textual studies (Linear B script). She received her doctorate from The University of Texas at Austin in 2006. She has excavated in Greece, Cyprus, Turkey and Australia. She is an Honorary Fellow of The University of Melbourne (School of Historical and Philosophical Studies) and a member of the Eastern Boeotia Archaeological Project (EBAP), currently excavating a Late Bronze Age site located between Thebes and Tanagra in central Greece.

Please click here to download a printable version of the invitation (PDF 168KB)