The Early Helladic I (EH I) (3200-3100-2650 BC) succeeds the Final Neolithic (4500-3200 BC) and presents a close cultural relation with it. This is apparent in the settlement of Neolithic sites during this period as well (e.g. Eutresis), in agriculture and in the still limited use of metals.

The EH I archaeological remains are very few and are found in few archaeological sites of eastern Central Greece (Eutresis, Lithares, Perachora, Palaia Kokkinia, Zagani) and the Peloponnese (Korakou, Tsoungiza, Talioti, Lerna, Tiryns). The EH I signs were first indicated in 1915-1916 in the Korakou settlement in Corinthia. The correct stratigraphic integration of Eutresis of Boeotia was defined after the Final Neolithic period and before the EH II. This is the reason for which this period is known as the "Eutresis culture". During this period regional variations in pottery, took place. These were first observed in the ceramic production of the Argolid, which is defined as "Talioti phase".

The settlement architecture of this period is slightly known since intense building activity took place during the subsequent phases of the EH period in the same sites. The hill Zagani constituted the most significant monument of the EH I period. But it was completely levelled for the construction of the new airport of Spata in Attica. In the brief research which preceded its construction, remains of houses, EH I pottery and a stone wall which enclosed the settlement were recovered. This wall is the earliest to have been unearthed to date in any EH settlement and it precedes those of Raphina and Lerna.

Until today, there is no evidence on the burial customs of this period. The handmade pottery with the intense red burnished surface is a diagnostic element of the period. Finally, it is worth mentioning the limited practice of metalworking, in comparison with the remarkable development it experiences from the beginning of the 3rd millenium in settlements of the northeastern Aegean (Troy, Poliochni, Thermi).