The transition from the Bronze Age to Iron Age in the eastern Mediterranean continues to engage researchers in articulating the transformations that followed the collapse of many state-level societies in this region around 1200 BC. Anthony Snodgrass noted years ago that, in prior studies, the Early Iron Age formed “an unsatisfactory interlude, interrupting any pattern of continuous development, yet not providing the positive evidence needed to demonstrate a fundamental change of direction. It is hard to reach concrete conclusions about such a period” (The Dark Age of Greece: An Archaeological Survey of the Eleventh to the Eighth Centuries BC, 1971, p. vii). Reasons why this “interlude” was so difficult to study include the scarcity of evidence, but no less problematic were continuing assumptions regarding this period, what came before it, and the evidence used to understand it.

Collapse and Transformation addresses many assumptions for the periods on either side of 1200 BC. It features 24 chapters focused primarily on the Greek mainland, with later ones broadening the conversation to the eastern Mediterranean. Many chapters serve as state-of-the-field reports, although some present more provocative arguments (e.g., Christofilis Maggidis; Oliver Dickinson; Robert Drews). The organization of the volume is regional and thematic: Guy Middleton provides an introduction to theories of collapse, followed by Chapters 2–14 providing regional perspectives from the Greek world. Chapters 15–24 take more thematic approaches (e.g., burial traditions, religion, economy, ceramics) or consider areas beyond the Greek world.

Contemplating Snodgrass's statement, this volume compels us to ask whether we should be trying to draw “concrete conclusions” by revealing how unique the period 1250–1150 BC looked in different areas. Eleni Balomenou's article on Corinthia—enticingly entitled “Chaos Is a Ladder”—argues for continuing societal development across this era rather than precipitous decline; East Lokris and Phokis also reveal steady development (Antonia Livieratou). Laconia saw large-scale migration to inland sites and harbor towns (Chrysanthi Gallou), whereas settlements in Euboea formed new identities based on seafaring and mercantilism (Margaretha Kramer-Hajos). Robin Osborne, investigating Athens and Attica, provocatively states, “‘Collapse’ is too dramatic a term . . . but ‘transformation’ is too anodyne” (p. 143). Others question the assumption that social change followed collapse, with evidence for shifting burial practices and technological traditions in some places predating 1200 (Peta Bulmer, p. 150; Saro Wallace, p. 247).

Many of these papers address assumptions about collapse being wholly negative, suggesting that hegemonic failure freed certain regions to develop in novel directions. Grave goods and pictorial pottery in Achaea, for instance, are interpreted as nonpalatial elites accessing resources previously monopolized by the palaces (Emiliano Arena, p. 38). The exchange of goods outside of palatial control in the Aegean islands continued after 1200, with several islands showing increases in site numbers (Mercourios Georgiadis, p. 67). Susan Lupack's informative chapter on religious continuity decouples religion from the Mycenaean palaces to articulate the preserving of tradition and memory through this era.

Middleton's preface notes that authors do not necessarily agree with one another across chapters. Middleton (Chapter 2) focuses on expansion, fragility, and hegemonic failure as elements of state dissolution, tempering attempts to posit climate disaster as the prime mover of collapse. Relatedly, Eric Cline (Chapter 20) favors a “multiplier effect” to explain collapse (pp. 224–225). Vassiliki Adrymi-Sismani, however, leads by suggesting that seismic activity was “the most likely cause of the destruction of most Mycenaean settlements in the Peloponnese” (p. 23). Other authors also point to natural disaster as a crucial factor (Julie Hruby, p. 72; Sarah Murray, p. 203). Some chapters stress the preservation of distinct cultural traditions (Lupack), whereas others emphasize mobility and instability as dissolving them (Dickinson). Although these disparities drive home the multicausality behind collapse, they also signal the need for either more exchange between articles or a concluding response article. As Murray states, however, “For a period as tumultuous and dynamic as this, micro- and macro-level analysis will always be in some degree of tension” (p. 205).

Persistent problems with evidence are made apparent—for example, the lack of settlement evidence from Cyprus to ascertain the nature of the island's sociopolitical development between 1100 and 750 BC (Bernard Knapp and Nathan Meyer); the need to synchronize disparate dating systems between Crete and the mainland (Charlotte Langohr; Jeremy Rutter); and the continuing uncertainty as to how various regions of mainland Greece were administered politically and economically, even in well-studied regions such as the Argolid (Tobias Mühlenbruch). Other articles employ new types of analyses (e.g., NAA) to articulate social and economic changes in the eastern Mediterranean (Penelope Mountjoy). Some rest on what Oliver Dickinson called “reasoned speculation” to explain social change (The Aegean from Bronze Age to Iron Age, 2006, p. 6): Drews's chapter argues that mercenaries serving as infantry in the armies of Late Bronze Age states made up the large raiding forces captured in Egyptian sources, not migrants, who were instead the result of these destabilizing raids. Wallace draws attention to unseen actors in subsistence economies who influenced shifting socioeconomic structures. These inferences are enticing yet challenging to prove with current evidence. Nevertheless, such speculation is warranted in order to draw attention to previously ignored possibilities and engage debate.

There are some typos and awkward sentences throughout but none that seriously affect the volume's readability. Quality black-and-white images and maps are included, although some figures were difficult to understand, either needing legends (e.g., Figure 18.1) or requiring better explanation in the corresponding text (e.g., Figure 24.5).

Overall, Collapse and Transformation is an informative read with up-to-date evidence. It will aid those attempting to gain deeper understandings of the archaeological parameters of collapse and regeneration. Middleton suggests that all states in the ancient world were “constantly running the risk of failure” (p. 16)—perhaps our theories face a similar challenge. Snodgrass's approach in 1971 was to “examine the whole period in chronological sequence, scrutinizing the evidence as it comes, assembling the facts and endeavouring to face them” (1971, p. vii). This volume is a worthy example of such a methodology.