Middle and Late Bronze Age Metal Tools from the Aegean, Eastern ...

differences in the consumption of these tools. For instance, the tool frequencies from
Crete and the Greek mainland declined from the MBA to the LBA, while the proportion
of small craft tools on Cyprus and Anatolia increased (Fig 3.21a, b). It may also be
significant that the small crafting tools are concentrated at large urban or palatial sites;
this distribution suggests that certain craft industries were stationed at and controlled by
authoritative centers. This conclusion can be tested after a more thorough investigation of
the awl-like and pointed implements, many of which are difficult to differentiate and to
assign a specific function.
The broad regional and chronological patterns illustrated in this chapter show the
prevalence of metal tools during the MBA and LBA in the Aegean, eastern
Mediterranean, and Anatolia. It is clear that each tool category played a significant role in
how tasks and crafts were carried out. The greatest contribution of metal implements
during the second millennium BC was their impact on the carpentry and masonry
industries, and so these tools constitute the focus of the following chapters.
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