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JOURNAL OF EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN ARCHAEOLOGY AND HERITAGE STUDIES, 2023
The promontory of Ras il-Wardija, on the northwestern cusp of the Island of Gozo, holds one of th... more The promontory of Ras il-Wardija, on the northwestern cusp of the Island of Gozo, holds one of the most spec- tacular temples of the ancient Mediterranean dedicated to the Phoenician goddess Astarte. It dates to the fourth century BCE and hosted an important cult of Astarte/ Hera/Juno throughout the Roman period (third–second centuries CE). The general plan has been clarified by the excavations of the Italian Mission between 1963 and 1967. In 2021 Sapienza University, thanks to an agreement with Heritage Malta and the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage, resumed research activities at Ras il-Wardija, studying the sanctuary’s cult and rituals through the pottery and small finds unearthed in the 1960s, but fol- lowing new avenues of research. The discovery of several Punic dedication formulas similar to those found at Tas- Silġ suggests a link between the two cult places, prob- ably stemming from festivities such as the Anagógia and Katagógia mentioned in classical sources.
12 ICAANE Proceedings of the 12th International Congress on the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East Volume 1 . Edited by Nicolò Marchetti, Michael Campeggi, Francesca Cavaliere, Claudia D’Orazio, Gabriele Giacosa, Eleonora Mariani. Harrassowitz Verlag - Wiesbaden, 2023
Excavations in the island of Motya, at the western tip of Sicily, by Sapienza University of Rome ... more Excavations in the island of Motya, at the western tip of Sicily, by Sapienza University of Rome since 2002 have radically changed our knowledge of this Phoenician colony and its history. Cult places and temples found in the Sacred Area of the Kothon, over a time span of four centuries, have shown how deeply enrooted is the religious architectural tradition of “Western Phoenicians” into that of the homeland. This article provides examples of these relationships and suggests a twofold direction of cultural exchanges during the first millennium BC, the one between Phoenicia and Motya, the other relating to the Hellenic world, increasingly influential in Motya from the 6th century BC onwards.
Tyre, Sidon and Byblos. Three global harbours of the Ancient World, 2020
Collective consumption of food is one of the most distinctive features of community cults in the ... more Collective consumption of food is one of the most distinctive features of community cults in the Ancient Near East. Rituals of commensality had both a political and social meaning and entailed the membership in an elitist group or in a wider community. Recent discoveries in Middle/Late Bronze Levant (Sidon) as well as in the Iron Age in Phoenician contexts (Motya) may illustrate the deep roots of rites which became typical custom of the Mediterranean civilisation.
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2021
Vicino Oriente XXVI, 2022
The promontory of Ras il-Wardija, on the northwestern cusp of the island of Gozo, holds one of th... more The promontory of Ras il-Wardija, on the northwestern cusp of the island of Gozo, holds one of the most spectacular temples of ancient Mediterranean dedicated to the Phoenician goddess Astarte, the Great Goddess of sailors. The Phoenician-Punic sanctuary of Ras il-Wardija dates to the 4 th century BC and hosts an important cult of Hera/Juno throughout the Roman period (3 rd century BC-2 nd century AD). Since its Phoenician construction, it was one of the main Mediterranean sanctuaries along the ancient sea-route called "Route of the Great Islands" connecting the East and the West of the Mediterranean. The general plan of the sanctuary has been clarified by the excavations of the Italian Expedition that operated in the site between 1963-1967. However, a further investigation of the structures with respect to the territory behind it, a deep analysis of rites and cults worshipped in the sanctuary, and the overall chronology are still missing. Sapienza University, thanks to a new agreement with Heritage Malta and the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage of Malta, and with the collaboration of the University of Malta, resumed the research activities at Ras il-Wardija, pursuing the study of the sanctuary and following new research paths, including the environment and the ancient landscape.
Folia Phoenicia 4, 2020
On the walls of Motya. Stratigraphy and Chronology in light of renewed Sapienza excavations (2014... more On the walls of Motya. Stratigraphy and Chronology in light of renewed Sapienza excavations (2014-2019) • During the last six seasons (2014-2019) of archaeological excavations at Motya, the Expedition by Sapienza University of Rome resumed the exploration and study of the fortifications system of the ancient Phoenician city in Western Sicily. This reappraisal allowed to distinguish the different city-walls, their spatial organization and constructional sequence. Moreover, a series of probes provided new data for a more precise dating of each phase of fortifications. Architecture, statigraphy, chronology and finds from the city-walls of one of the most flourishing harbor-cities of central Mediterranean are thoroughly illustrated, with two additional notes by Federica Spagnoli, on the noticeable ceramic finds, and Alessandro Campus of the inscribed stela found underneath Tower 6.
La Révue Phénicienne 100, 2020
La Revue Phénicienne 100, 2020
Quaderni di Vicino Oriente 17, 2021
The statue of Baal at the center of the Kothon of Motya represents both the main deity of the Sac... more The statue of Baal at the center of the Kothon of Motya represents both the main deity of the Sacred Area, and the symbol of the religious and political subject that ruled Motya at the mid-6 th century BC. The colossal statue was erected on a podium in the center of the sacred basin when the Sacred Area was rebuilt in monumental features and was enclosed by the Temenos. This sculpture is a typical work of the Cypro-Phoenician style of the second half of the 6 th century BC., and it was imported from the Levant. This masterpiece in that preeminent position played both a symbolic and a political role, as it represents the physical, as well as ideological, acquisition of the Sacred Area of the Kothon by the deity, and suggests the hegemony of a ruler of a priest-king, who shows his power in such evident forms. The erection of a colossal statue of the tutelary deity of the Sacred Area of Motya is a part of a wider urbanistic project that marks a clear change between the ancient colony of the 8 th century BC and the Phoenician polis of the 5 th century BC, enrooted in the political, social, and cultural context of Hellenized Sicily.
Environmental Archaeology
Archaeobotanical remains from the Phoenician – Punic site of Motya, set in the Marsala Lagoon in ... more Archaeobotanical remains from the Phoenician – Punic site of Motya, set in the Marsala Lagoon in Western Sicily (Italy), were collected through flotation and sieving during the excavation campaigns of 2017–2019. Analyses focused on a sacrificial favissa, on the SW side of the Temple of Cappiddazzu, dedicated to Melqart/Herakles, where the buried remains of seven bovines were also found. Plant remains, preserved mostly by mineralisation, provide information about ritual practices. The retrieval of toxic plants to livestock (some Boraginaceae and Euphorbiaceae, and Anagallis arvensis) suggests their use to stun animals before sacrificing them. Additionally, remains referable to fruit (Vitis vinifera) and flower offerings (Verbena officinalis), as well as ornamental (Cupressus cf. sempervirens) and officinal plants (Borago officinalis) were also found.
Plants
Plant records reveal remarkable evidence about past environments and human cultures. Exploiting d... more Plant records reveal remarkable evidence about past environments and human cultures. Exploiting dental calculus analysis and using a combined approach of microscopy and gas chromatography mass spectrometry, our research outlines dietary ecology and phytomedicinal practices of the ancient community of Motya (Sicily, eight to sixth century BC), one of the most important Phoenician settlements in the Mediterranean basin. Micro-remains suggest use or consumption of Triticeae cereals, and animal-derived sources (e.g., milk and aquatic birds). Markers of grape (or wine), herbs, and rhizomes, endemic of Mediterranean latitudes and the East, provide insight into the subsistence of this colony, in terms of foodstuffs and phytotherapeutic products. The application of resins and wood of Gymnosperms for social and cultural purposes is hypothesized through the identification of Pinaceae secondary metabolites and pollen grains. The information hidden in dental calculus discloses the strong human-...
Electroanalysis
Solid state electrochemistry based on the voltammetry of immobilized microparticles (VIMP) method... more Solid state electrochemistry based on the voltammetry of immobilized microparticles (VIMP) methodology is applied to a series of 80 Phoenician Red Slip samples from the archaeological sites of Motya (Sicily, Italy), Mogador (Morocco), Ramat-Rahel (Israel), Sulky (Sardinia, Italy), Tas Silg (Malta), Pantelleria (Italy), and Cádiz (Spain), dated from the 8 th to the 6 th century BC. Upon attachment of sub-microsamples to graphite electrodes in contact with aqueous H 2 SO 4 electrolyte, voltam-metric features due to the reduction of Fe(III) minerals and the oxidation of Fe(II) ones, complemented with electrocatalytic effects on oxygen reduction and oxygen evolution reactions, provide characteristic electrochemical fingerprints for pottery samples. A consistent sample grouping discriminating between different potteries from different archaelogical sites, is obtained, all results being consistent with morphological, compositional and minera-logical data. Petrographic analysis supports the grouping, defining the manufacture and firing procedure for the different archaeological context.
Applied Geomatics
3D modelling of archaeological small finds by the Structure Sensor range camera: comparison of di... more 3D modelling of archaeological small finds by the Structure Sensor range camera: comparison of different scanning applications”: Applied Geomatics 11 (2018), pp. 1-15
Sicilia Archeologica, 2003
JOURNAL OF EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN ARCHAEOLOGY AND HERITAGE STUDIES, 2023
The promontory of Ras il-Wardija, on the northwestern cusp of the Island of Gozo, holds one of th... more The promontory of Ras il-Wardija, on the northwestern cusp of the Island of Gozo, holds one of the most spec- tacular temples of the ancient Mediterranean dedicated to the Phoenician goddess Astarte. It dates to the fourth century BCE and hosted an important cult of Astarte/ Hera/Juno throughout the Roman period (third–second centuries CE). The general plan has been clarified by the excavations of the Italian Mission between 1963 and 1967. In 2021 Sapienza University, thanks to an agreement with Heritage Malta and the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage, resumed research activities at Ras il-Wardija, studying the sanctuary’s cult and rituals through the pottery and small finds unearthed in the 1960s, but fol- lowing new avenues of research. The discovery of several Punic dedication formulas similar to those found at Tas- Silġ suggests a link between the two cult places, prob- ably stemming from festivities such as the Anagógia and Katagógia mentioned in classical sources.
12 ICAANE Proceedings of the 12th International Congress on the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East Volume 1 . Edited by Nicolò Marchetti, Michael Campeggi, Francesca Cavaliere, Claudia D’Orazio, Gabriele Giacosa, Eleonora Mariani. Harrassowitz Verlag - Wiesbaden, 2023
Excavations in the island of Motya, at the western tip of Sicily, by Sapienza University of Rome ... more Excavations in the island of Motya, at the western tip of Sicily, by Sapienza University of Rome since 2002 have radically changed our knowledge of this Phoenician colony and its history. Cult places and temples found in the Sacred Area of the Kothon, over a time span of four centuries, have shown how deeply enrooted is the religious architectural tradition of “Western Phoenicians” into that of the homeland. This article provides examples of these relationships and suggests a twofold direction of cultural exchanges during the first millennium BC, the one between Phoenicia and Motya, the other relating to the Hellenic world, increasingly influential in Motya from the 6th century BC onwards.
Tyre, Sidon and Byblos. Three global harbours of the Ancient World, 2020
Collective consumption of food is one of the most distinctive features of community cults in the ... more Collective consumption of food is one of the most distinctive features of community cults in the Ancient Near East. Rituals of commensality had both a political and social meaning and entailed the membership in an elitist group or in a wider community. Recent discoveries in Middle/Late Bronze Levant (Sidon) as well as in the Iron Age in Phoenician contexts (Motya) may illustrate the deep roots of rites which became typical custom of the Mediterranean civilisation.
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2021
Vicino Oriente XXVI, 2022
The promontory of Ras il-Wardija, on the northwestern cusp of the island of Gozo, holds one of th... more The promontory of Ras il-Wardija, on the northwestern cusp of the island of Gozo, holds one of the most spectacular temples of ancient Mediterranean dedicated to the Phoenician goddess Astarte, the Great Goddess of sailors. The Phoenician-Punic sanctuary of Ras il-Wardija dates to the 4 th century BC and hosts an important cult of Hera/Juno throughout the Roman period (3 rd century BC-2 nd century AD). Since its Phoenician construction, it was one of the main Mediterranean sanctuaries along the ancient sea-route called "Route of the Great Islands" connecting the East and the West of the Mediterranean. The general plan of the sanctuary has been clarified by the excavations of the Italian Expedition that operated in the site between 1963-1967. However, a further investigation of the structures with respect to the territory behind it, a deep analysis of rites and cults worshipped in the sanctuary, and the overall chronology are still missing. Sapienza University, thanks to a new agreement with Heritage Malta and the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage of Malta, and with the collaboration of the University of Malta, resumed the research activities at Ras il-Wardija, pursuing the study of the sanctuary and following new research paths, including the environment and the ancient landscape.
Folia Phoenicia 4, 2020
On the walls of Motya. Stratigraphy and Chronology in light of renewed Sapienza excavations (2014... more On the walls of Motya. Stratigraphy and Chronology in light of renewed Sapienza excavations (2014-2019) • During the last six seasons (2014-2019) of archaeological excavations at Motya, the Expedition by Sapienza University of Rome resumed the exploration and study of the fortifications system of the ancient Phoenician city in Western Sicily. This reappraisal allowed to distinguish the different city-walls, their spatial organization and constructional sequence. Moreover, a series of probes provided new data for a more precise dating of each phase of fortifications. Architecture, statigraphy, chronology and finds from the city-walls of one of the most flourishing harbor-cities of central Mediterranean are thoroughly illustrated, with two additional notes by Federica Spagnoli, on the noticeable ceramic finds, and Alessandro Campus of the inscribed stela found underneath Tower 6.
La Révue Phénicienne 100, 2020
La Revue Phénicienne 100, 2020
Quaderni di Vicino Oriente 17, 2021
The statue of Baal at the center of the Kothon of Motya represents both the main deity of the Sac... more The statue of Baal at the center of the Kothon of Motya represents both the main deity of the Sacred Area, and the symbol of the religious and political subject that ruled Motya at the mid-6 th century BC. The colossal statue was erected on a podium in the center of the sacred basin when the Sacred Area was rebuilt in monumental features and was enclosed by the Temenos. This sculpture is a typical work of the Cypro-Phoenician style of the second half of the 6 th century BC., and it was imported from the Levant. This masterpiece in that preeminent position played both a symbolic and a political role, as it represents the physical, as well as ideological, acquisition of the Sacred Area of the Kothon by the deity, and suggests the hegemony of a ruler of a priest-king, who shows his power in such evident forms. The erection of a colossal statue of the tutelary deity of the Sacred Area of Motya is a part of a wider urbanistic project that marks a clear change between the ancient colony of the 8 th century BC and the Phoenician polis of the 5 th century BC, enrooted in the political, social, and cultural context of Hellenized Sicily.
Environmental Archaeology
Archaeobotanical remains from the Phoenician – Punic site of Motya, set in the Marsala Lagoon in ... more Archaeobotanical remains from the Phoenician – Punic site of Motya, set in the Marsala Lagoon in Western Sicily (Italy), were collected through flotation and sieving during the excavation campaigns of 2017–2019. Analyses focused on a sacrificial favissa, on the SW side of the Temple of Cappiddazzu, dedicated to Melqart/Herakles, where the buried remains of seven bovines were also found. Plant remains, preserved mostly by mineralisation, provide information about ritual practices. The retrieval of toxic plants to livestock (some Boraginaceae and Euphorbiaceae, and Anagallis arvensis) suggests their use to stun animals before sacrificing them. Additionally, remains referable to fruit (Vitis vinifera) and flower offerings (Verbena officinalis), as well as ornamental (Cupressus cf. sempervirens) and officinal plants (Borago officinalis) were also found.
Plants
Plant records reveal remarkable evidence about past environments and human cultures. Exploiting d... more Plant records reveal remarkable evidence about past environments and human cultures. Exploiting dental calculus analysis and using a combined approach of microscopy and gas chromatography mass spectrometry, our research outlines dietary ecology and phytomedicinal practices of the ancient community of Motya (Sicily, eight to sixth century BC), one of the most important Phoenician settlements in the Mediterranean basin. Micro-remains suggest use or consumption of Triticeae cereals, and animal-derived sources (e.g., milk and aquatic birds). Markers of grape (or wine), herbs, and rhizomes, endemic of Mediterranean latitudes and the East, provide insight into the subsistence of this colony, in terms of foodstuffs and phytotherapeutic products. The application of resins and wood of Gymnosperms for social and cultural purposes is hypothesized through the identification of Pinaceae secondary metabolites and pollen grains. The information hidden in dental calculus discloses the strong human-...
Electroanalysis
Solid state electrochemistry based on the voltammetry of immobilized microparticles (VIMP) method... more Solid state electrochemistry based on the voltammetry of immobilized microparticles (VIMP) methodology is applied to a series of 80 Phoenician Red Slip samples from the archaeological sites of Motya (Sicily, Italy), Mogador (Morocco), Ramat-Rahel (Israel), Sulky (Sardinia, Italy), Tas Silg (Malta), Pantelleria (Italy), and Cádiz (Spain), dated from the 8 th to the 6 th century BC. Upon attachment of sub-microsamples to graphite electrodes in contact with aqueous H 2 SO 4 electrolyte, voltam-metric features due to the reduction of Fe(III) minerals and the oxidation of Fe(II) ones, complemented with electrocatalytic effects on oxygen reduction and oxygen evolution reactions, provide characteristic electrochemical fingerprints for pottery samples. A consistent sample grouping discriminating between different potteries from different archaelogical sites, is obtained, all results being consistent with morphological, compositional and minera-logical data. Petrographic analysis supports the grouping, defining the manufacture and firing procedure for the different archaeological context.
Applied Geomatics
3D modelling of archaeological small finds by the Structure Sensor range camera: comparison of di... more 3D modelling of archaeological small finds by the Structure Sensor range camera: comparison of different scanning applications”: Applied Geomatics 11 (2018), pp. 1-15
Sicilia Archeologica, 2003
Quaderni di Archeologia Fenicio-Punica VIII, 2019
L’isola di Mozia nello Stagnone di Marsala costituisce un osservatorio privilegiato per lo studio... more L’isola di Mozia nello Stagnone di Marsala costituisce un osservatorio privilegiato per lo studio della cultura fenicia d’Occidente e un bacino di informazioni di grande valore per l’importanza che questa città fenicia rivestì fin dai primi decenni dalla sua fondazione nello scacchiere mediterraneo.
Occupata da un insediamento indigeno nel secondo millennio a.C. , l’isola ospitò dall’inizio dell’VIII secolo a.C. una città fenicia. L’originario fondaco, localizzato dalla Missione archeologica a Mozia della Sapienza nel quadrante meridionale dell’isola nei pressi della Porta Sud, diventò in poco più di un secolo una vera e propria città commerciale . Grazie alla sua posizione centrale lungo la rotta che dal Levante, percorrendo la via delle piccole isole (Malta, isole Pelagie, isole Egadi), portava in Sardegna, alle Baleari e infine in Spagna, Mozia divenne uno degli snodi strategici e fondamentali per i commerci mediterranei .
Questa condizione privilegiata, tuttavia, la rese oggetto delle ambizioni imperialistiche di Cartagine che, alla metà del VI secolo a.C., mirò al controllo territoriale e politico di alcune zone chiave del Mediterraneo occidentale e centrale, tra cui le Baleari, la Sardegna e la Sicilia occidentale. Mozia fu, dunque, coinvolta nello scontro tra Cartagine e Siracusa, che difendeva gli interessi delle città greche della Sicilia occidentale. Come conseguenza della politica aggressiva di Cartagine nei confronti di queste ultime, Mozia subì la reazione dei siracusani che, guidati da Dionigi I, la conquistarono e distrussero nel 397/6 a.C.
Identificata dal viaggiatore e studioso olandese Cluverius con l’Isola di San Pantaleo, Mozia vide le prime esplorazioni archeologiche alla fine del ‘700 . Le prime indagini sistematiche a Mozia cominciarono all’inizio del XX secolo grazie a Joseph Whitaker , all’epoca proprietario dell’isola, e all’archeologo Antonio Salinas, che portarono alla luce alcune delle testimonianze fenicie più importanti, come alcuni tratti della cinta muraria e le porte urbiche, il Kothon, il Tofet, la Necropoli e il santuario del Cappiddazzu . Le indagini archeologiche proseguirono anche dopo che l’isola fu acquisita dallo stato italiano dopo la morte di Lady Delia, ultima erede degli Whitaker. Negli anni ’60 la missione delle Università di Leeds e Fairleigh Dickinson diretta da Benedikt S.J. Isserlin concentrò gli scavi nel settore meridionale della cinta muraria e al Kothon (Quartiere di Porta Sud) , e a Porta Nord (scavo dei due sacelli esterni alle mura) , ed effettuando dei sondaggi esplorativi lungo la cinta muraria nei pressi della Necropoli . Seguirono, dalla fine degli anni ‘60 e gli inizi degli anni ‘90 le missioni della Sapienza e della Soprintendenza di Palermo dirette da Antonia Ciasca e Vicenzo Tusa , e delle Università di Palermo e Bologna ; grazie a queste sono state portate alla luce ampie porzioni della città antica e un notevole repertorio di materiali e di ceramica. Dopo quasi un decennio di interruzione, nel 2002 La Sapienza, in collaborazione con la Soprintendenza Regionale ai Beni Culturali e Ambientali di Trapani, ha inaugurato una nuova stagione di scavi, tuttora in corso, incentrati su alcuni punti nevralgici dell’isola: l’Area Sacra del Kothon nel settore meridionale, la zona residenziale alle pendici dell’Acropoli , il Tofet e la cinta muraria . L’indagine archeologica ha portato alla scoperta di uno dei più grandi complessi sacri fenici del Mediterraneo, di un edificio militare con sacello annesso presso la Porta Ovest e all’approfondimento della conoscenza di alcuni settori solo parzialmente noti come il Tofet e le mura. La ricerca, inoltre, ha prodotto una sequenza stratigrafica degli eventi dell’isola dalla fondazione dell’emporion fenicio all’ultima distruzione della metà del IV secolo a.C. , la divisione in periodi in concordanza con gli eventi storici documentati dalle fonti e i dati archeologici, e una quantità considerevole di materiali provenienti da contesti documentati e stratigraficamente affidabili. Questo ha costituito la necessaria premessa per lo studio dei materiali ceramici dipinti oggetto della ricerca.
![Research paper thumbnail of [FULL TEXT] Landing on Motya. The earliest Phoenician settlement of the 8th century BC and the creation of a West Phoenician Cultural Identity in the excavations of Sapienza University of Rome - 2012-2016 (= QAFP/CM 04), Rome 2017.](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/64540396/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](The earliest Phoenician settlement in the 8th century BC on the island of Motya is thoroughly ill... more The earliest Phoenician settlement in the 8th century BC on the island of Motya is thoroughly illustrated with new discoveries by Sapienza University Expedition: the earliest temples of Baal (Shrine C14 and Temple C5) and Astarte (Shrine C12), the Tophet, the earliest necropolis and the 'Funduq' (Building C8) in Area C. Ceramic materials and other finds are also published.
Séminaires EFR - Université de Rome "La Sapienza" (février-octobre 2018): "Animaux, religions et ... more Séminaires EFR - Université de Rome "La Sapienza" (février-octobre 2018): "Animaux, religions et sociétés : pour une approche multidisciplinaire et comparative de l’étude du rapport entre l’homme et l’animal dans la Méditerranée antique"
CaSteR 7 , 2022
due volumi di studi in onore di Piero Bartoloni, uscito all’interno della collana Le Mo-nografie... more due volumi di studi in onore di Piero Bartoloni, uscito all’interno della collana Le Mo-nografie della SAIC, della Società Scientifica “Scuola Archeologica Italiana di Cartagine” nel 2020 (volume I) e nel 2021 (volume II), nascono da una illuminata iniziativa di tre dei suoi più cari allievi, Sara Muscuso, Rosana Pla Orqín e Michele Guirguis, che nel luglio del 2017 hanno organizzato una giornata di studi e ricerche dal titolo “Cartagine, il Mediterraneo cen-tro-occidentale e la Sardegna. Società, economia e cultura materiale tra Fenici e autoctoni”, presso il Museo Archeologico “Ferruccio Barreca” di Sant’Antioco. In sede di pubblicazione, i curatori dell’opera hanno voluto allargare ulteriormente l’orizzonte cronologico, culturale, tematico e geografico dei volumi, in modo da poter includere più Autori, che hanno voluto rendere omaggio a Piero Bartoloni con i loro scritti, condividendo le ricerche che si ricollega-no, in maniera più o meno diretta, ai suoi molteplici studi ed interessi.