The development of Early Bronze Age Settlement on the island of Lesbos and on the Madra Cay delta between Ayvalik and Dikili.

The present paper investigates the relationship between the Early Bronze Age (henceforth EBA) cultures on the Northeast Aegean island of Lesbos and that of north-western Anatolia opposite the island (on the Madra �ay delta). Analysis of Lesbos in the EBA period has hitherto been limited nearly entirely to the site of Thermi on the east shore of the island, excavated by Winifred Lamb over 60 years ago. A major problem within this region as a whole, therefore, has been that since the time of Lamb, no wider focus has been adopted in order to analyse either the development of the island's EBA culture (which is now know to be widespread, with over 40 sites existing throughout the island), or its possible origins (which Lamb suggested had lain in western Anatolia).

After reviewing the evidence and possible patterns of settlement in Lesbos, the paper will also address the question of the origins of the EBA culture and its strong affinities with the mainland, drawing upon the results from the current multi-disciplinary field project of the two authors on the Madra �ay delta opposite Lesbos. The project is considering in detail the whole issue of island-mainland relations from prehistoric times to the present day. Our investigations focus upon the Madra �ay near Altinova, which forms a coastal plain stretching between Ayvalik and Dikili where the authors have located at least two tells with EBA material and strong affinities with Thermi and many of the other EBA sites in Lesbos. The Altinova sites seem to have strong affinities with EBA sites in the Bakir �ay valley all the way up to Pergamum and Yortan, suggesting a possible route for cultural contacts during the EBA between the Aegean coast and the interior of western Anatolia: i.e. between Lesbos and Altinova, Altinova and Balikesir, altinova and the Gediz River valley.

Geomorphological evidence obtained from the project's deep cores in the Madra �ay delta in the 1995-97 seasons will also be presented.