16 Settembre 202217 Settembre 2022 Dario Dugo 3 minuto di lettura

“Sacred Landscape Sicily”, a journey through history

The “Sacred Landscape Sicily” project

The In the footsteps of Early Christian Rural Communities (social: Fb – Sacred Landscape; IG – Sacred Landacape Sicily), financed by the Society for Church Archaeology and by the University of Leicester, is about to start. ArcheoMe decided to follow this activity of academic research in detail because of its uniqueness. In fact, it’s not just a pure documentary analysis, but rather a “journey through time”, a physical exploration of the territory in order to trace the mobility through central Siciliy among the first rural Christian communities of the island.

Living the sacred landscape

The explorarion of the sacred landscape in central Siciliy will focus on the areas of Enna, Caltanissetta, and Catania. This is not a random choice: several scientific studies show the existence of a rich and complex archeological landscape. The objective of the research is to identify the possible routes that, centuries ago, were followed by the early Christians. We’re talking about the rural communities that inhabited the region between the 4^th and the 9^th century AD, which have left rural churches, monuments and necropolis. For a better understanding of the travel dynamics of this ancient time, the exploration will be done on foot, but not without a little help: in fact, two donkeys, the main “vehicles” of the past, will be used to transport the equipment, thus giving the right pace to the research activity. The Sacred Landscape Sicily Project rewrites the pure academic research in a new, experimental form, an active study of the territory in which it is immersed.

Aerial view of the rural church of Philosophiana

The path between landscape and archeology

The Sacred Landscape Sicily exploration, which will be documented by ArcheoMe, is led by Dr Margherita Riso of the University of Leicester, Director and founder of the project and by co-directors Matteo Randazzo and Andrea Arena. This journey will allow us to discover an unknown sicilian landscape: an overlooked archeological horizon, yet of great importance and unspeakable beauty. ArcheoMe will follow the research group through the roman villas of Gerace, Rasalgone and Casale; between the sizeable rural village of Philosophiana and other settlements inhabited from the prehistory to the Middle Ages; along the road axis of Imperial Roman age that connected Catania to Agrigento. The research team will attempt, once again, to bring all these puzzle pieces together. Quoting Dr Riso’s words, the times and the challenges of the journey “will be experimented by our team within a cultural landscape that has become a genuine container of collective and individual memory”.

Before the first steps

It should be known that, behind an experimental investigation such as that of Sacred Landscape Sicily, there is an extended period of study and scientific preparation. What might look like a “lighthearted hike” is actually quite different. The possible courses that have been identified by the research group are not influenced by the modern morphology of the territory, but rather by the ones of the Early Middle Ages. In particular, the philological research and the field survey are accompanied by the GIS (Geographic Information System) digital elaborations. Thanks to this software, it is possible to map the main elements of the landscape, both archeological and environmental, in order to grasp the hypothetical paths of the ancient road networks. At this point, “human” feedback is necessary to validate (or invalidate) the range of possibilities offered by the computer analysis.

It is about time: on the 24^th of September 2022, Sacred Landscape Sicily will move its first steps with a presentation conference which will be held in Piazza Armerina, the picturesque ennese town that houses the famous Villa Romana del Casale, ever since at the center of a systematic archeological research. The “Litterio Villari” archeological group, which has always supported the archeologists working in central Sicily, will also be present at the conference.

Logo of the Sacred Landscape Sicily project, which can be followed on Instagram and Facebook

For the italian version click here.

News

15 Marzo 202215 Marzo 2022 Dario Dugo 4 minuto di lettura

ENGLISH VERSION | When crimea was part of the Republic of Genova

The Genoese domain in Crimea. Though usually ignored, this piece of history deserves to remembered, given the recent conflict in Ukraine, as it makes us think about how a country that is perceived to be far from us is actually part of our history.

From Genoa to Crimea

Constantinople fell in 1204 after the 4^th Crusade. The world trembled but then held its breath: the dream of Byzantium survived at Nicaea, held by the house of the Palaiologoi, where the empire survived and was reborn. Then, in 1261, the Treaty of Ninfeo was signed: the Genoese would have helped Michael VIII Palaiologos to retake Constantinople from the Latins; in return, Genoa would have replaced Venice in the maritime trades in the Black Sea, up into Crimea. In reality, this happened because Michael had already tried to retake the capital, but the venetian fleet managed to prevent the capitulation through starvation. Ironically, the decisive Genoese fleet was completely useless: Constantinople fell in the hands of the byzantine army’s vanguard without a fight. Thus, in a motion of perplexity, joy and awe, the Genoese started their own colonial empire without a single loss.

The Gazaria and the Principality of Theodore

When Genoa joined the political and commercial games of the Black Sea, Crimea boasted centuries of coexistence between populations. Notably, the Khazars questioned the byzantine presence in the peninsula during the 7^th century, conquering the fortress of Sudak, which is now UNESCO heritage. However, the coastal territories were reconquered, and the empire kept them until 4^th Crusade, in 1204, when the Principality of Theodore was born in Crimea. It goes without saying that, with the birth of the Gazaria, which is the Genoese dominion over Crimea, the relationships strained: the Silk Road passed through, and it was a more than valid excuse to fuel feuds and conflicts. From the city of Kaffa, the Genoese attempted, over time, to isolate their neighbors, cutting them out of the sea trades. Therefore, a conflictual situation emerges, where an important piece is missing: the Mongolic interference in the peninsula.

Territories belonging to the Genoese and to the Principality

Struggle over the control of Crimea

The arrival of the mongols changed the balance of power between the Principality and Genoa. In 1308, the city of Kaffa was besieged and conquered but, afterwards, the Genoese managed to retake control, laying the foundations for a heyday period. Even the Principality of Theodore, during 1395, experienced the Mongolian ferocity, but it was able to rise again, standing up to the Genoese. Consequently, two sides were formed: Genoa, supported by the Eastern Roman Empire, and the Principality of Theodore, supported by the Khanate. Anyways, the Genoese power grew so much that the consuls of Kaffa assumed the title of Consuls of the whole Black Sea. Nevertheless, luck did not last: with the fall of Constantinople, in 1453, the Gazaria went into crisis and the Genoese power finally capitulated in 1475, with the fall of Kaffa.

Mohamed II enters in Constantinople, Benjamin Constant (1876)

Sudak: from the Alans to the Genoese

One of the most promiment archeological sites in Crimea is the fortress of Sudak. It is considered to be an Alan foundation of 212 B.C., which, not without reason, was historically kept aside until it became more and more important during the Middle Ages, in relation to the Silk Road. Hence, Sudak became a thriving port, and this attracted the powers that surrounded it. During the 13^th century, Venice and Genoa fought over its control, and the latter, after its victory in 1365, realized the most promiment fortifications, which can still be admired today. A unique site: the best example of a genoese fort that is still standing and is perfectly preserved. The symbol of a past, of a contact between populations, of which the existence is ignored, but it’s still there, majestic, guarding the coast of the Black Sea.

Kaffa: the Genoa of Crimea

The city of Kaffa (current Feodosiya), rose above the ashes of the Greek settlement of Theodosia, a city that followed the dynamics of the Bosporian Kingdom, and then it vanished during the roman empire. During the 13^th century A.D., Kaffa went down in history as a Genoese outpost in the commercial trades of the Black Sea, an originally small settlement which became, over time, a fully-fledged stronghold of the peninsula. It was, indeed, a thorn in its neighbors’ side, which attempted repeatedly to destroy it: the Venetians in 1296, followed by the Mongolians in 1308. In every case, Genoa always manage to reconquer and improve it, so much that in 1472 the Turks will be forced to conquer a city inhabited by 70000 people and defended by two sets of walls. Unfortunately, nowadays, we only have a few remains, a sad evidence of its past splendor.

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21 Febbraio 202221 Febbraio 2022 Dario Dugo 3 minuto di lettura

ENGLISH VERSION | Roman Necropolis unearthed in San Severino Marche

Preventive Excavations for the construction of a supermarket in San Severino Marche (MC), made between October 2021 and January 2022, have unearthed 14 roman graves that can be dated to the first two centuries of the empire.

sepolture san severino — ) Burial with tiled covering (source ©ABAP Superintendency for the provinces of Ancona, Pesaro and Urbino)

The Discovery

The digging was led by the ArcheoLAB of Macerata under the scientific direction of Dr. Tommaso Casci Ceccacci of the Superintendency for the provinces of Ancona, Pesaro and Urbino.

The sepulchral area discovered in San Severino Marche (Macerata), is part of the wide necropolis of the roman town of Septempeda. It was identified close to the S.P. 361 and it has an east-west development, parallel to the roadway. The presence of a rectangular basement made of a casting against concrete and river rocks enhances the peri-urban nature of the necropolis. Unfortunately, the poor condition doesn’t allow to accurately understand the type of structure but it had to be a monumental funerary complex.

Direct and Indirect Cremation Burials

The tombs that were brought to light are 14, 3 of them characterized by the ground inhumation ritual, the others by the incineration ritual. The latter can be officiated both directly and indirectly. In the first case, the corpse was placed inside the designed grave for the combustion, which was also used for the burial of the ashes. In the case of the indirect cremation, the deceased’s remains were taken from the pyre and subsequently placed inside the final grave.

What was revealed from the San Severino tombs

The busta sepulcra, also known as direct cremation tombs, have returned large wooden pyres. Here, the deceased were placed and cremated, accompanied by grave goods, some of them burned alongside the body, others placed afterwards. Part of these graves have a sepulcrum, a funerary structure made of tiles, which is still intact. The indirect cremation burials have a simpler structure, made of a small box shaped like a triangle or a rectangle and formed by split tiles, within which the ashes and the funerary equipment were conserved. Also noteworthy is the condition of the burnt remains of the pyre, as well as the gurney and the wooden coffins, of which the original position of the nails has been preserved, allowing the reconstruction of the context.

The funerary equipment

The artifacts that have been recovered from the graves have allowed a first (and partial) documentation of the wide procedure followed during the funeral rites. Most of the interments feature items that were placed and burned during the incineration, while others were added later after the rearrangement of the remains. Among the recovered objects, we can find a considerable quantity of glass ointment vases that have been deformed from the heat, coins, oil lamps and bronze artifacts, which include a splendid round mirror with a shaped grip. Moreover, there were items that were closely related to everyday life, such as sewing needles and spindles for the female burials or common work tools such as knives, razors and scrapers for the male ones.

Translation from NEWS | Scoperta una necropoli romana a San Severino Marche

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7 Febbraio 202228 Febbraio 2022 Dario Dugo 2 minuto di lettura

ENGLISH VERSION | Etruscan graves found in Tarquinia

In the heart of the Etruscan necropolis of Monterozzi, ten graves have emerged. They can be dated between the Villanovan and the archaic age, that is the period that saw the full affirmation of Tarquinia, to which the myths about the foundation of the Etruscan civilization are related. The discovery of this new burial group goes back to last fall. However, researchers have shown the artifacts to the public on the 14^th of January.

Necropoli di Monterozzi, Tarquinia — Monterozzi Necropolis, Tarquinia

The excavations of Tarquinia

The necropolis of Monterozzi, the most important of Tarquinia and the most ancient one of Etruria, is located on the eponymous hill, about one kilometer from the city. The decision to start a digging campaign was made by the Archeological Superintendence, Fine Arts and Landscape for the province of Viterbo and southern Etruria and goes back to last fall, after ploughing works on a private land led to the opening of a series of cavities of archeological interest. During the excavations, a group of ten Etruscan tombs was brought to light. They can be dated between the Villanovian age and the archaic one and they’re located a few meters away from the Tomba Dei Tori and from the Auguri one. Unfortunately, in ancient times, the tombs were sacked by thieves who stole the precious metals, leaving ceramics and other grave goods in situ because they were considered of low value.

The Gemina grave

Early restoration works on the artifacts allow to fully comprehend the richness of the funerary equipment of the Gemina grave. This tomb aroused great interest from an architectural point of view. The monument consists of two flanked chambers facing south-west towards two open-air vestibules accessed through a staircase. The covering of both chambers is of the slit type. Nenfro plates were used to seal the doors. Alongside the left wall of both chambers, there is the carved bed on which the deceased was placed. The closing slabs, which were previously perforated by the first visitors, were accurately sealed again after the looting, as a sign of respect towards the deceased. However, over time, the maneuver led to the collapse of the northern chamber.

The equipment

The funerary equipment consists of vascular shapes made of splint-polished mixture with carved and configured decorations; several bucchero vases; pots painted in Etruscan-geometric style, including some attributed to the Palm Painter; euboian cups a chevrons: various wood fragments made of iron and gold, which suggest the presence of precious objects, and a female statuette.

The Dating

Daniele Federico Maras, an official working for the Superintendence of Tarquinia, suggested the first half of the 7^th century B.C. as chronological frame, placing the tomb context in the decades preceding Tarquinius Priscus, who is traditionally known as the fifth king of Rome (between 616 and 579 B.C.).

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7 Febbraio 202228 Febbraio 2022 Dario Dugo 2 minuto di lettura

ENGLISH VERSION | Experimental Archeology and Enology, the salted wine of Kos

Plinius the Elder, in his Naturalis Historiae, talks about 185 varieties of wine which all differ in sensory perceptions: white, red, rose, still, sparkling, dry, sweet, aromatized. Even Hippocrates, the most famous medic of the ancient times, makes a list based on their qualities and on the effects they produce on the body. But… have you ever heard of salted wine?

Salted wine: what does it mean?

There are four main flavors which can determine the taste of a wine and they can be perceived by the taste buds on the tongue: sweet, sour, bitter and salted. By definition, a salted wine should give a feeling of sapidity that is higher than other taste qualities. Usually, alcohol, sourness and volatile substances tend to cover this flavor, which becomes noticeable only in the case of unusual sapidity values. Some wines, especially if farmed on soil exposed to salty winds, can have a natural, salted taste. However, during the winemaking process, in order to correct the taste, increase the wine conservation, or to make it more “noble”, ancient sources suggest adding the most disparate ingredients: from honey to flower petals, from seawater to minced oysters, from wood splinters to resin, even chalk, clay and tar.

The salted wine of Kos

Cato The Elder, in his Liber de agri cultura, which was written during the second quarter of the 2^nd century B.C., is one of the first to describe the production process of one of the most famous salted wines of the antiquity. In fact, the island of Kos boasted an important wine production in the ancient times, so much that a part of the wine purchases for the roman legions came from the Dodecanese islands. This wine, like the one of Rhodes and Chian, was preserved in particular amphorae, and it was so precious that some forged copies, which were passed off as Kos wine, have been discovered.

In order to prepare the famous Greek wine of Kos, according to the recipe of Cato, it is necessary to draw offshore seawater in a day of calm sea, about two months before the harvest. After having decanted it a couple of times in clean jars and excluding the bottom deposits, only the ripest berries will be added. Three days later, the grapes are taken, pressed and fermented.

The second terrace of the Asclepius sanctuary on the island of Kos

Experimental Archeology and enology

In these years, there have been several attempts to produce the wines by following the descriptions of the sources. Starting from the stories of Plinius the Elder and using a winemaking technique that is not too different from the Kos one, the wine of Chian has been replicated at the Elba Island. In this case, though, the berries of a particular white grape variety, the Ansonica, are placed inside handmade pots and immersed at sea for a few days. The seawater works on the berries, eliminating the bloom, a waxy substance that covers them, accelerating the dehydration of the grapes which leads to a perfect ripening. This process has also been documented in a short movie, “Vinum Insulae”, produced by Cosmomedia.

The handmade pots which contain the grape berries

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7 Febbraio 202228 Febbraio 2022 Dario Dugo 1 minuto di lettura

ENGLISH VERSION | Roman-age bridge resurfaces on the Tiburtine

The Special Superintendence of Rome has discovered a roman bridge on the Tiburtine during road extension works.

The discovery

Documentation of historical maps of Renaissance age showed the existence of a bridge on the Ditch of Pratolungo. However, traces of the roman-age structure had not yet been brought to light; preventive archeology investigations related to road widening works made by the Municipality have revealed the presence of the structure, which has been found at the 12^th kilometre of the Tiburtine.

The excavations, which are still in progress, are carried out with the scientific direction of Fabrizio Santi, archeologist of the Special Superintendence of Rome and by archeologists Mara Carcieri and Stefania Bavastro of Land S.r.l.

Chronology and final works

The history of the structure makes the discovery extremely exceptional: the bridge, which allowed to cross the ditch of Pratolungo, dates to the 2^nd century B.C., during the mid-republican age; the dating seems to be confirmed by some ceramic findings, which are yet to be systemically analyzed, and by the type of masonry, made of big tuff blocks.

The bridge will be covered at the end of the investigation, not before an accurate survey and mapping. This will allow, along with the analysis of the specimen, a detailed study and understanding of this important discovery.

The Special Superintendent’s words

“It’s a discovery of great archeological interest”, explains Daniela Porro, Special Superintendent of Rome, “as well as historical and topographical. The research will continue in the next days in order to obtain a complete knowledge of the structure and its stages of use. Once again, Rome gives us important evidence of its past, which will allow to better understand its ancient history”.

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5 Febbraio 20225 Febbraio 2022 Dario Dugo 3 minuto di lettura

ENGLISH VERSION | Trophies from battle of Alalia found on the Acropolis of Velia

Some trophies, including two helmets, a Chalcidian one and one of the Negau type, both in great state of conservation, have been found at the Acropolis of Elea-Velia.

The archaeological investigation

On top of the ancient city, the excavations have brought to light the remains of a rectangular structure of remarkable size (18 x 7 meters of length). This building, which is made of mud bricks, is located under the temple dedicated to the Goddess Athena and it is what remains of the most ancient archaic religious place devoted to the deity. The results of the archaeological investigation, as the archaeologist Francesco Ullano Scalza states, have allowed to clarify the topography, the architecture, the intended use and the chronology of the various stages of the Acropolis.

“The structure of the most ancient temple dates back to 540-530 B.C., which is right after the years of the Battle of Alalia – notes Massimo Osanna, General Manager of the Museums and Avocant Director of the Archaeological Park of Paestum and Velia – while the most recent temple, which was thought to be of Hellenistic age, dates back at first glance to 480-450 B.C., and then it underwent a restructuring during the 4th century B.C. Therefore, it’s possible that the Phocaens on the run from Alalia might have erected it shortly after their arrival, as they were used to, after having acquired the necessary land from the locals in order to settle and resume the prosperous trades for which they were known. And to the relics that they offered to their goddess to propitiate her benevolence, they added the weapons they had taken from their enemies during that epic battle which had, in fact, changed the balance of power in the Mediterranean Sea.”

The Trophies

Several trophies, such as painted ceramics marked by the IRE engraving, which means “holy”, and various weapon fragments, have been found inside the temple: among these, we have the pieces of a big, decorated shield and two beautiful helmets, an Etruscan one of the “cap” type, also known as Negau (from the Slovenian area where it was found for the first time), and a Chalcidian one. These two helmets are now being studied in a laboratory, and inscriptions are sought within them that may help reconstruct their history.

“The archaeological findings at the acropolis of Elea-Velia suggest a religious use of the structure. Likely, in this place there were kept the relics that were offered to the goddess Athena after the battle of Alalia, the naval battle that was fought between the Greek refugees of Phocaea and an alliance of Carthaginians and Etruscans, around 541 and 535 B.C. just off the Tyrrhenian Sea, between Corse and Sardinia. Cleared from the earth just a few days ago, the two helmets have yet to be cleaned and studied in a laboratory. Inside them, there might be some inscriptions, which are quite frequent in ancient armors, and these could help us to accurately reconstruct their history, perhaps even the identity of the warriors that wore them. Of course, these are just initial considerations, but they clarify many unknown details of that Eleatic history which happened more than 2500 years ago” – declares Osanna.

Velia

Greek name of the ancient Velia, Elea was one of the richest Poleis of the Magna Graecia. It was an ally of Rome during the Punic Wars, and it became a Roman municipality in 88 B.C. Its decline started from this moment: Rome cut it out of the trade routes, forcing the city (known as Velia) to reduce itself until it became a small fishermen village. During the 9th century, Velia was definitively abandoned in order to avoid malaria and the raids of Saracen pirates, except for the acropolis where the population took refuge and built a strong fortification. This small, fortified town took the name of Castellammare della Bruca and survived until the end of 1600. The first to realize the cultural and historical importance of the place was the archaeologist François Lenormant: the existence of an archaic structure which was antecedent to the main temple of the Acropolis was speculated since the 1920s. Unfortunately, due to the excavations that started during the last century, the surviving settlement of medieval age has almost been destroyed.