Exploring mobility in Bronze Age Greece: A Sr isotope perspective

The Mediterranean region saw significant socio-economic and cultural transformations during the Bronze Age, varying across regions and through time. Expanding exchange networks played an important role in these developments by connecting distant communities. To what extent these exchanges were accompanied by the migration and settlement of foreign individuals within local communities is still poorly understood. Here we present Sr isotope data from 199 skeletal samples belonging to individuals excavated at six archaeological sites from central and southern Greece to explore how mobility changed throughout the Bronze Age and whether it was driven by specific factors. In order to identify foreign individuals to the investigated sites we further established site specific Sr isotope baselines for their surrounding area based on published data as well as for the sites themselves based on the ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr signatures of the buried individuals themselves. The comparison of the individuals' ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr signatures to respective baselines revealed 17 non-locals, all of which could have come from other parts of Greece. Migration or mobility towards communities in central and southern Greece likely appeared at a fairly consistent rate throughout the Bronze Age as no more than 5% - 10% non-locals could be identified throughout different stages of the Bronze Age. The non-locals included individuals of both genders, revealing no clear gender biases on mobility, while the approximate age of the identified non-locals indicates that individuals had most likely moved as young adults. It is therefore likely that mobility involved individuals rather than the resettlement of entire families. By linking individual Sr isotope data from multiple archaeological sites, this study reveals complex mobility patterns characterized by multidirectional movement driven by diverse cultural and economic factors.