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Papers by Simone Mantellini
Geoarchaeology, 2024
The last two decades witnessed increasing scholarly interest in the history of water management i... more The last two decades witnessed increasing scholarly interest in the history of water management in southern Mesopotamia. Thanks to many geoarchaeological research projects conducted throughout the central and southern Iraqi floodplains, a general understanding of the macrophases of anthropogenic manipulation of this vast hydraulic landscape has been achieved. However, current narratives mostly rely on studies at a regional scale and are based on excessively long chronological phases (often spanning a whole millennium). A finer‐tuned analysis at a submillennial scale is needed to better appreciate the dynamics that led to the development of artificial canals and irrigation systems and the creation of harbours in cities and other navigation‐related facilities. The Iraqi‐Italian QADIS project is addressing this issue through a systematic geoarchaeological investigation in the south‐eastern area of the Qadisiyah province. We aim to update the current narrative by analysing case studies involving specific periods of occupation. We performed 17 boreholes to propose a date on the functioning period of the hydraulic works in five selected archaeological sites of this region. This approach allowed us to understand changes in water management strategies in both the short and the medium term (i.e., on a scale of centuries). In this paper, we present the results for the fourth and third millennia B.C.E. This period witnessed a crucial passage from the basic exploitation of natural watercourses for irrigation and occasional navigation to the emergence of the first system of artificial canals and intraurban harbours.
Les Dossiers d'archéologie, 2010
Electa eBooks, 2011
Il complesso archeologico di Kafir Kala (dall\u2019arabo \u201cfortezza degli infedeli\u201d) \ue... more Il complesso archeologico di Kafir Kala (dall\u2019arabo \u201cfortezza degli infedeli\u201d) \ue8 uno dei monumenti storico-archeologici pi\uf9 importanti della regione di Samarcanda. Si tratta di un complesso interamente costruito in argilla cruda che si estende per oltre 20 ha sulla sponda sinistra del Dargom, 11,5 km a sud-est di Afrasiab, in una posizione strategica per raggiungere Samarcanda provenendo da sud e ben difesa naturalmente da diversi corsi d\u2019acqua. L\u2019insediamento di Kafir Kala risulta articolato in diverse parti: al centro si trova la cittadella, circondata da un fossato che la separa dal quartiere residenziale (shahristan); nel fossato vi sono i resti di sei torrette costruite a difesa della cittadella; ad ovest, un secondo fossato separa lo shahristan da quello che viene comunemente considerato il rabat, ovvero la sede delle truppe militari predisposte al controllo dell\u2019insediamento. A sud del complesso, all\u2019esterno delle mura, si trovava una grande necropoli mentre ad est, oltre l\u2019Ilonsai, vi era un importante quartiere artigianale con numerose fornaci per la produzione ceramica. Purtroppo, sia la necropoli che le fornaci sono state ampiamente sbancate nei decenni scorsi durante la conversione agricola di quest\u2019area. Il sito \ue8 stato oggetto di molteplici ricerche dagli inizi del XX secolo ma i primi scavi sistematici risalgono agli inizi degli anni \u201990 per opera dell\u2019Istituto di Archeologia dell\u2019Accademia delle Scienze dell\u2019Uzbekistan. Le indagini, concentrate nel torrione dell\u2019angolo nord-ovest, portarono alla luce strutture architettoniche e reperti di eccezionale valore, come calzari in pelle, stoviglie e posate in legno, frammenti di ceramica e di stucchi decorati. Con l\u2019inizio del Progetto Archeologico Italo-Uzbeko nel 2001, gli scavi furono ampliati allo scopo di aprire in maniera estensiva la sommit\ue0 della cittadella e, attraverso una serie di saggi stratigrafici mirati, comprendere meglio la morfologia del sito ed il rapporto tra questo e il Dargom. I sondaggi hanno permesso di stabilire che l\u2019intero complesso sorge su un rilievo naturale, appositamente livellato per consentire la costruzione in elevato di case ed edifici, oppure scavato per creare i fossati e per reperire la materia prima (argilla) necessaria per la realizzazione di mattoni crudi e di blocchi di argilla, messi poi in opera secondo la consueta tecnica costruttiva del pakhsa, tuttora ampiamente utilizzata nelle zone rurali dell\u2019Asia Centrale. Gli scavi sulla cittadella hanno portato, nell\u2019area antistante l\u2019arco d\u2019ingresso, all\u2019eccezionale rinvenimento di oltre 500 cretule, impronte di sigilli su piccoli ritagli di argilla cruda utilizzate per marcare documenti amministrativi, corrispondenze private. Le cretule erano sparse su un pavimento in battuto, databile dai frammenti ceramici al VII secolo d.C., coperto da uno spesso strato di travi lignee bruciate, cenere e carboni, interpretabile come il risultato di un evento traumatico, forse un incendio avvenuto durante la conquista araba di Samarcanda nel 712 d.C. Sullo stesso pavimento sono state scoperte anche le numerose basi di colonna, di forma quadrangolare e alcune con ancora i frammenti carbonizzati di legno in situ, che indicano la presenza di un porticato che formava una coorte centrale interna. La presenza di un numero cos\uec cospicuo di cretule, diverse tra loro per cronologia e raffigurazioni stilistiche, indicano la presenza di un importante archivio amministrativo, e di conseguenza un ruolo di primo piano di Kafir Kala nel panorama politico-sociale della Samarcanda altomedievale, da mettere in relazione sia con il controllo delle rotte locali della Via della Seta lungo l\u2019asse sud-nord, sia allo sfruttamento agricolo del comparto meridionale dell\u2019oasi di Samarcanda ampiamente irrigato dal Dargom. Le indagini condotte negli anni seguenti hanno permesso di identificare una successiva fase di occupazione, databile all\u2019epoca islamica (VIII-X secolo d.C), caratterizzata dal reimpiego delle strutture murarie principali, come il corridoio occidentale e gli ambienti a nord, e la ripartizione degli ambienti precedenti in spazi di dimensioni minori. Nonostante la presenza di un tesoretto di 133 monete proveniente dall\u2019Ambiente 2, per lo pi\uf9 dirhams in argento coniati alla fine dell\u2019VIII secolo d.C., l\u2019architettura approssimativa delle murature e la presenza di numerose strutture da fuoco impiegate per attivit\ue0 domestiche indicano che, in questo periodo, il sito viene occupato prevalentemente per scopi residenziali e non pi\uf9 amministrativi
BUP (Bononia University Press) eBooks, 2020
The paper concerns the unique discovery of a tresure of 130 silver coins (dirhams) from the early... more The paper concerns the unique discovery of a tresure of 130 silver coins (dirhams) from the early Islamic layer of the citadel of Kafir Kala (Samarkand, Uzbekistan). The treasure was found by the Uzbek-Italian joint expedition during the 2006 season. This dicovery is very useful to understand the Islamic occupation of Samarkand region after the Arab conquest at the beginning of the 8th century AD
Left Coast Press eBooks, 2013
Northwestern Syria can be considered a representative and fundamental area for understanding the ... more Northwestern Syria can be considered a representative and fundamental area for understanding the development of urbanization and the rise of complex societies in the Near East during the third millennium b.c. Since the last century, this region has been investigated in an attempt to obtain new data to analyze the formation of large urban settlements, major regional centres, and capital sites such as Ebl
Journal of physics, Apr 1, 2022
The paper provides an overview on Big-DEA, a multidisciplinary project aimed at developing a comp... more The paper provides an overview on Big-DEA, a multidisciplinary project aimed at developing a comprehensive multi-level explanatory model for the development of an archaic State in the ancient Near East, using the exceptional case of Tell Mardikh, ancient Ebla (Syria), during the second half of the 3rd millennium. The project’s goal is the reconstruction of the archaic state organization through an integrated analysis of archaeological and epigraphic data. The interaction between humanities and hard sciences is adopted in order to build a multi-tier explanatory model regarding the territory under the control of the Ebla kingdom, considering anthropic and environmental data deriving from excavations, survey and textual sources. The way to managing and study such a large Big Data archive, which includes different datasets, is itself the main challenge of the project: the creation of a dedicated relational database management system (RDBMS) functional to the implementation of the available GIS platform and the development of an appropriate simulation framework.
L'articolo presenta i risultati delle indagini preliminari condotte dalla missione archeologi... more L'articolo presenta i risultati delle indagini preliminari condotte dalla missione archeologica a Samarcanda (Uzbekistan), trattando nello specifico: carta archeologica e censimento dei siti; lo scavo del sito altomedievale di Kafir Kala; lo studio del Dargom e del sistema d'irrigazion
Samarkand has always been considered as one of the most important centers along the ancient Silk ... more Samarkand has always been considered as one of the most important centers along the ancient Silk Road, playing a crucial role in the trade between the major ancient Central Asian cities. However, no city can survive and develop without its hinterland and Samarkand is no exception to this rule. Since 2001 the Uzbek-Italian Archaeological Expedition has been investigating the city and its surrounding in order to reconstruct both the regional and local settlement dynamics and their connection to the exploitation of resources. The research approach combined remote sensing and cartographic analysis, with traditional archaeological activities and geo-archaeological field investigations. The results hitherto available unveiled a more complex relationship between the urban landscape of the city and its regional connections, making it an unprecedented case study for the complementarity between urbanscapes and landscapes. It is commonly accepted that the full urbanization of this area occurred as early as the Achaemenid period (7 th -6 th centuries BC). Fresh data from field surveys, confirmed also by stratigraphic excavations and 14c dating, are here used to suggest that it took place in the Hellenistic-Kangju periods (3 rd -2 nd centuries BC). At that time, a complex network of canals was created to supply the city and to irrigate the fields. A clear master-plan ensured a rational exploitation of the territory, with urban spaces around the city and areas for irrigated agriculture in the plain and breeding in the foothill. According to this scenario, the growth of Maracanda is explained in a perspective that considers it the result of a mutual symbiosis between the settled farmers and the semi-nomadic pastoralist.
Geoarchaeology, 2024
The last two decades witnessed increasing scholarly interest in the history of water management i... more The last two decades witnessed increasing scholarly interest in the history of water management in southern Mesopotamia. Thanks to many geoarchaeological research projects conducted throughout the central and southern Iraqi floodplains, a general understanding of the macrophases of anthropogenic manipulation of this vast hydraulic landscape has been achieved. However, current narratives mostly rely on studies at a regional scale and are based on excessively long chronological phases (often spanning a whole millennium). A finer‐tuned analysis at a submillennial scale is needed to better appreciate the dynamics that led to the development of artificial canals and irrigation systems and the creation of harbours in cities and other navigation‐related facilities. The Iraqi‐Italian QADIS project is addressing this issue through a systematic geoarchaeological investigation in the south‐eastern area of the Qadisiyah province. We aim to update the current narrative by analysing case studies involving specific periods of occupation. We performed 17 boreholes to propose a date on the functioning period of the hydraulic works in five selected archaeological sites of this region. This approach allowed us to understand changes in water management strategies in both the short and the medium term (i.e., on a scale of centuries). In this paper, we present the results for the fourth and third millennia B.C.E. This period witnessed a crucial passage from the basic exploitation of natural watercourses for irrigation and occasional navigation to the emergence of the first system of artificial canals and intraurban harbours.
Les Dossiers d'archéologie, 2010
Electa eBooks, 2011
Il complesso archeologico di Kafir Kala (dall\u2019arabo \u201cfortezza degli infedeli\u201d) \ue... more Il complesso archeologico di Kafir Kala (dall\u2019arabo \u201cfortezza degli infedeli\u201d) \ue8 uno dei monumenti storico-archeologici pi\uf9 importanti della regione di Samarcanda. Si tratta di un complesso interamente costruito in argilla cruda che si estende per oltre 20 ha sulla sponda sinistra del Dargom, 11,5 km a sud-est di Afrasiab, in una posizione strategica per raggiungere Samarcanda provenendo da sud e ben difesa naturalmente da diversi corsi d\u2019acqua. L\u2019insediamento di Kafir Kala risulta articolato in diverse parti: al centro si trova la cittadella, circondata da un fossato che la separa dal quartiere residenziale (shahristan); nel fossato vi sono i resti di sei torrette costruite a difesa della cittadella; ad ovest, un secondo fossato separa lo shahristan da quello che viene comunemente considerato il rabat, ovvero la sede delle truppe militari predisposte al controllo dell\u2019insediamento. A sud del complesso, all\u2019esterno delle mura, si trovava una grande necropoli mentre ad est, oltre l\u2019Ilonsai, vi era un importante quartiere artigianale con numerose fornaci per la produzione ceramica. Purtroppo, sia la necropoli che le fornaci sono state ampiamente sbancate nei decenni scorsi durante la conversione agricola di quest\u2019area. Il sito \ue8 stato oggetto di molteplici ricerche dagli inizi del XX secolo ma i primi scavi sistematici risalgono agli inizi degli anni \u201990 per opera dell\u2019Istituto di Archeologia dell\u2019Accademia delle Scienze dell\u2019Uzbekistan. Le indagini, concentrate nel torrione dell\u2019angolo nord-ovest, portarono alla luce strutture architettoniche e reperti di eccezionale valore, come calzari in pelle, stoviglie e posate in legno, frammenti di ceramica e di stucchi decorati. Con l\u2019inizio del Progetto Archeologico Italo-Uzbeko nel 2001, gli scavi furono ampliati allo scopo di aprire in maniera estensiva la sommit\ue0 della cittadella e, attraverso una serie di saggi stratigrafici mirati, comprendere meglio la morfologia del sito ed il rapporto tra questo e il Dargom. I sondaggi hanno permesso di stabilire che l\u2019intero complesso sorge su un rilievo naturale, appositamente livellato per consentire la costruzione in elevato di case ed edifici, oppure scavato per creare i fossati e per reperire la materia prima (argilla) necessaria per la realizzazione di mattoni crudi e di blocchi di argilla, messi poi in opera secondo la consueta tecnica costruttiva del pakhsa, tuttora ampiamente utilizzata nelle zone rurali dell\u2019Asia Centrale. Gli scavi sulla cittadella hanno portato, nell\u2019area antistante l\u2019arco d\u2019ingresso, all\u2019eccezionale rinvenimento di oltre 500 cretule, impronte di sigilli su piccoli ritagli di argilla cruda utilizzate per marcare documenti amministrativi, corrispondenze private. Le cretule erano sparse su un pavimento in battuto, databile dai frammenti ceramici al VII secolo d.C., coperto da uno spesso strato di travi lignee bruciate, cenere e carboni, interpretabile come il risultato di un evento traumatico, forse un incendio avvenuto durante la conquista araba di Samarcanda nel 712 d.C. Sullo stesso pavimento sono state scoperte anche le numerose basi di colonna, di forma quadrangolare e alcune con ancora i frammenti carbonizzati di legno in situ, che indicano la presenza di un porticato che formava una coorte centrale interna. La presenza di un numero cos\uec cospicuo di cretule, diverse tra loro per cronologia e raffigurazioni stilistiche, indicano la presenza di un importante archivio amministrativo, e di conseguenza un ruolo di primo piano di Kafir Kala nel panorama politico-sociale della Samarcanda altomedievale, da mettere in relazione sia con il controllo delle rotte locali della Via della Seta lungo l\u2019asse sud-nord, sia allo sfruttamento agricolo del comparto meridionale dell\u2019oasi di Samarcanda ampiamente irrigato dal Dargom. Le indagini condotte negli anni seguenti hanno permesso di identificare una successiva fase di occupazione, databile all\u2019epoca islamica (VIII-X secolo d.C), caratterizzata dal reimpiego delle strutture murarie principali, come il corridoio occidentale e gli ambienti a nord, e la ripartizione degli ambienti precedenti in spazi di dimensioni minori. Nonostante la presenza di un tesoretto di 133 monete proveniente dall\u2019Ambiente 2, per lo pi\uf9 dirhams in argento coniati alla fine dell\u2019VIII secolo d.C., l\u2019architettura approssimativa delle murature e la presenza di numerose strutture da fuoco impiegate per attivit\ue0 domestiche indicano che, in questo periodo, il sito viene occupato prevalentemente per scopi residenziali e non pi\uf9 amministrativi
BUP (Bononia University Press) eBooks, 2020
The paper concerns the unique discovery of a tresure of 130 silver coins (dirhams) from the early... more The paper concerns the unique discovery of a tresure of 130 silver coins (dirhams) from the early Islamic layer of the citadel of Kafir Kala (Samarkand, Uzbekistan). The treasure was found by the Uzbek-Italian joint expedition during the 2006 season. This dicovery is very useful to understand the Islamic occupation of Samarkand region after the Arab conquest at the beginning of the 8th century AD
Left Coast Press eBooks, 2013
Northwestern Syria can be considered a representative and fundamental area for understanding the ... more Northwestern Syria can be considered a representative and fundamental area for understanding the development of urbanization and the rise of complex societies in the Near East during the third millennium b.c. Since the last century, this region has been investigated in an attempt to obtain new data to analyze the formation of large urban settlements, major regional centres, and capital sites such as Ebl
Journal of physics, Apr 1, 2022
The paper provides an overview on Big-DEA, a multidisciplinary project aimed at developing a comp... more The paper provides an overview on Big-DEA, a multidisciplinary project aimed at developing a comprehensive multi-level explanatory model for the development of an archaic State in the ancient Near East, using the exceptional case of Tell Mardikh, ancient Ebla (Syria), during the second half of the 3rd millennium. The project’s goal is the reconstruction of the archaic state organization through an integrated analysis of archaeological and epigraphic data. The interaction between humanities and hard sciences is adopted in order to build a multi-tier explanatory model regarding the territory under the control of the Ebla kingdom, considering anthropic and environmental data deriving from excavations, survey and textual sources. The way to managing and study such a large Big Data archive, which includes different datasets, is itself the main challenge of the project: the creation of a dedicated relational database management system (RDBMS) functional to the implementation of the available GIS platform and the development of an appropriate simulation framework.
L'articolo presenta i risultati delle indagini preliminari condotte dalla missione archeologi... more L'articolo presenta i risultati delle indagini preliminari condotte dalla missione archeologica a Samarcanda (Uzbekistan), trattando nello specifico: carta archeologica e censimento dei siti; lo scavo del sito altomedievale di Kafir Kala; lo studio del Dargom e del sistema d'irrigazion
Samarkand has always been considered as one of the most important centers along the ancient Silk ... more Samarkand has always been considered as one of the most important centers along the ancient Silk Road, playing a crucial role in the trade between the major ancient Central Asian cities. However, no city can survive and develop without its hinterland and Samarkand is no exception to this rule. Since 2001 the Uzbek-Italian Archaeological Expedition has been investigating the city and its surrounding in order to reconstruct both the regional and local settlement dynamics and their connection to the exploitation of resources. The research approach combined remote sensing and cartographic analysis, with traditional archaeological activities and geo-archaeological field investigations. The results hitherto available unveiled a more complex relationship between the urban landscape of the city and its regional connections, making it an unprecedented case study for the complementarity between urbanscapes and landscapes. It is commonly accepted that the full urbanization of this area occurred as early as the Achaemenid period (7 th -6 th centuries BC). Fresh data from field surveys, confirmed also by stratigraphic excavations and 14c dating, are here used to suggest that it took place in the Hellenistic-Kangju periods (3 rd -2 nd centuries BC). At that time, a complex network of canals was created to supply the city and to irrigate the fields. A clear master-plan ensured a rational exploitation of the territory, with urban spaces around the city and areas for irrigated agriculture in the plain and breeding in the foothill. According to this scenario, the growth of Maracanda is explained in a perspective that considers it the result of a mutual symbiosis between the settled farmers and the semi-nomadic pastoralist.
Ancient Irrigation Systems in the Aral Sea Area is the English translation of Boris Vasilevich An... more Ancient Irrigation Systems in the Aral Sea Area is the English translation of Boris Vasilevich Andrianov's work, Drevnie orositelnye sistemy priaralya, concerning the study of ancient irrigation systems and the settlement pattern in the historical region of Khorezm, south of the Aral Sea (Uzbekistan). This work holds a special place within the Soviet archaeological school because of the results obtained through a multidisciplinary approach combining aerial survey and fieldwork, surveys, and excavations. This translation has been enriched by the addition of introductions written by several eminent scholars from the region regarding the importance of the Khorezm Archaeological-Ethnographic Expedition and the figure of Boris V. Andrianov and his landmark study almost 50 years after the original publication.
EASAA, 2019
Paper presented at the European Association for South Asian Archaeology and Art 24th Biennial Con... more Paper presented at the European Association for South Asian Archaeology and Art 24th Biennial Conference ,Naples 2-7 July 2018; Authors: Cinzia Bearzot; Agnese Fusaro; Simone Mantellini; Mario Piacentini; Valeria Piacentini Fiorani; Qasim Ali
Qasim; Alessandro Tilia; Naheed Zehra
EAA Barcelona, 5-8 September 2018. Theme: Human-Water interconnections in the dry environments of... more EAA Barcelona, 5-8 September 2018. Theme: Human-Water interconnections in the dry environments of the Near East and Central Asia. Session format: Session, made up of a combination of papers, max. 15 minutes each. Session 758.
Water has always been a critical agent in the rise, development, and collapse of ancient civiliza... more Water has always been a critical agent in the rise, development, and collapse of ancient civilizations. This was particularly true in the arid environments of the Near East and Central Asia. In the last decades, human-water interconnection has been analyzed in various ways. The analysis and reconstruction of ancient irrigation systems were essential steps in researching settlement development in regions where rain-fed agriculture was insufficient for basic subsistence. Although Wittfogel's theory on the political centralization of water management has been largely dismissed today, he fostered substantial research into the relationship between irrigation systems and social complexity. Since the 1990s advances in field data recording techniques, remote sensing, aerial photography and drones have all contributed to a significant development in studying the archaeological landscapes of the Near East and Central Asia. This multidisciplinary approach signed a new perspective in this field of study and made it possible to grasp the
landscape in a digital form.
This session aims to better explore and expand our current knowledge about the different aspects related to water in dry-lands of Near East and Central Asia. We welcome papers that relate to water management and different methodological and theoretical approaches for both regions. The session may include (but not limited to) hydrogeoarchaeology; agent-based model for irrigation system; irrigation as a proxy in evaluating the multi-temporal environmental evolution; remote sensing; marshland environments; water as path-deterministic agent; social complexity; human niches construction; ethnoarchaeology and heritage study that takes into account all the
aspects of the human-water relation.
ISMEO - The International Association for Mediterranean and Oriental Studies Missioni Archeologi... more ISMEO - The International Association for Mediterranean and Oriental Studies
Missioni Archeologiche e Progetti di Ricerca
Ciclo di Conferenze
LUNEDÌ 31 MAGGIO, ORE 16.30
L’evento è gratuito, via Zoom
ID: 876 9365 4985 / Passcode: 236256
Per informazioni contattare: ismeo@ismeo.eu