The introduction highlights geopolitical questions about Mycenaean society and reviews the limited evidence available from textual sources. It considers sociopolitical developments in Mycenae and the Argolid before probing the intersection of power, state-sponsored labor, and the production of stonework.

Mycenae’s LH IIIA2-IIIB palatial stonework was spectacular, and attention is given here to the innovative construction processes and specialized stonecutting tools that elicited awe. A fresh look at Mycenae’s final three tholoi illustrates the strategy of conveying power through stonework. The chapter also assesses the semiotics of the site’s architectural sculpture.

The implications of tool distributions and exceptional building projects in the Argolid and Boeotia are discussed. Substantial gaps remain in the story of transregional craft and political ties, but the present study offers new clues about the political makeup of at least part of the Mycenaean world.

This chapter explores stoneworking practices characteristic of the LH IIIB Argolid that are evident also in elite Boeotian stonework. Particular attention is given to the Treasury of Minyas at Orchomenos and the Melathron complex at Gla, as these structures exhibit robust craft ties to Mycenae and Tiryns.

The craft and political relationships between Mycenae and Tiryns in the mid 13th century, as reflected in the redesign, masonry, and building materials of Tiryns’ LH IIIB upper citadel, is the primary focus of this chapter. It also briefly considers the stoneworking influence of Mycenae and Tiryns on other Argolid sites.

This chapter considers the role of memory and archaizing traits at Mycenae during the LH IIIA2-IIIB period. Particular attention is paid to poros ashlar masonry, the monumentalization of Grave Circle A, and a visual tie between the Lion Gate relief and the carved shaft grave stelae.

In addition to different dynamics in different bundles of trajectories (competition and prestige or wealth differentiation are strongly developed in some, cooperation in others), a few commonalities crosscut multiple bundles. Complexification almost always occurs in conditions of demographic growth, although the population levels vary enormously. Residential density regularly plays an important role in shaping interaction patterns related to productive differentiation, integration of local economies, and wealth accumulation on the one hand or attenuated interaction, and ritual and prestige differentiation, on the other. Such forces operate in the same way in all parts of the world, overriding supposedly typical cultural patterns.

Challenging typological definitions and unilineal evolution, this chapter advocates for a comparative methodology centered on understanding variation in trajectories of complexification. It underscores the limitations of “dichotomania” and the need for richer conceptual and linguistic tools to characterize societal variation.