Enrico Cirelli

Archaeological and archaeometric study of the glass finds from the ancient harbour of Classe (Ravenna- Italy): new evidence

IntroductionThe present study focuses on Late-Roman/Early Medieval glass found in the productive area within the ancient harbour of Classe near Ravenna, one of the most important trade centres between the 5th and 8th centuries AD of the Northern Adriatic area. Aims of the study were the identification of the main glass compositions and their contextualisation in Late-Antique groups; the identification of provenance of raw glass, and, consequently, of commercial routes; the extent, if any, of recycling glass cullet, as an alternative to the import of fresh raw glass; the identification of possible connections between archaeological typology and glass chemical composition.Results32 glassworking wastes and 25 drinking vessel fragments for a total amount of 57 fragments were devoted to chemical analysis in XRF and EPMA. All the analysed fragments are silica-soda lime glasses, produced with natron as a flux, and are compositionally similar to Late-Antique groups HIMT, Série 3.2 and Levantine1. Raw glass chunks, glassworking wastes and objects of comparable compositions are identified into HIMT and Série 3.2 groups, while the Levantine 1 group includes only objects and glassworking wastes. Systematic comparisons between Classe and Aquileia, the two most important Late-Antique archaeological sites of North-Eastern Italy, were also carried out, and the same compositional groups were identified, although Série 3.2 in the Classe assemblage is more represented. Sr and Nd isotopic analysis confirmed that the composition of the three glasses derive from coastal sands of the Syro-Palestinian and Egyptian shore, with a slight shift in comparison to the published data. Little evidence of recycling was identified in the assemblage.ConclusionsIn the 5th century, a secondary glass workshop devoted to the shaping of glass vessels starting from raw glass chunks and, possibly, glass cullet, was active in the area of the harbour.Raw glass of HIMT and Série 3.2 was imported from the Levant and Egypt. Comparisons between Classe and Aquileia show that during the Late Antiquity these sites seem to be supplied of raw glass by the same trade routes. In addition, some connections between types and chemical compositions were highlighted.

Considering the effects of the Byzantine–Islamic transition: Umayyad glass tesserae and vessels from the qasr of Khirbet al-Mafjar (Jericho, Palestine)

The paper reports and discusses data obtained by archaeological and archaeometric studies of glass vessels and tesserae from the qasr of Khirbet al-Mafjar (near Jericho, Palestine). Archaeological contextualisation of the site and chrono-typological study of glass vessels were associated to EPMA and LA–ICP–MS analyses, performed to characterise the composition of the glassy matrix (major and minor components as well as trace elements). Analyses allowed achieving meaningful and intriguing results, which gain insights into the production and consumption of glass vessels and tesserae in the near East during the Umayyad period (seventh–eighth centuries). Within the analysed samples, both an Egyptian and a Levantine manufacture have been identified: such data provide evidence of a double supply of glass from Egypt and the Syro-Palestinian coast in the Umayyad period occurring not only in the glassware manufacture but also in the production of base glass intended to be used in the manufacture of mosaic tesserae. Thus, the achieved results represent the first material evidence of a non-exclusive gathering of glass tesserae from Byzantium and the Byzantines in the manufacture of early Islamic mosaics.

Late Antique marble trade: new insights obtained from stone artefacts from the San Severo complex (Ravenna, Italy)

Abstract Ravenna represented an important administrative, commercial and cultural centre in the fifth and sixth centuries. The present study explored the commercial mechanisms of Ravenna in Late Antiquity from the point of view of the marble trade, as well as the trade in other architectural elements. A portion of the research is based on the macroscopic and quantitative study of stone materials (around 1000 fragments) from the Late Antique and medieval complex of San Severo in Classe (Ravenna, Italy). The results indicated that the predominant commercial relationships of Ravenna with respect to stone artefacts (marbles, limestones, porphyry, breccia, granites) were orientated mainly towards the regions of Asia Minor, with some trade also occurring in minor quantities with North Africa, Greece, Italy, and France. Three representative marble samples were analysed to make determinations of their provenance. The methods used were based upon a combination of petrographic image analysis, polarizing and cathodoluminescence microscopy of thin sections, and stable isotope geochemistry of carbonates. The Proconnesos and, eventually, other Turkish provenance of the selected samples is considered.

Il ruolo delle città portuali nelle dinamiche del commercio tra Adriatico e Ionio nell’alto Medioevo (V-IX sec.)

Between Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages the routes that connected East and West underwent many changes. New archaeological discoveries show the economic vitality of some Ionian port cities close Corfu’s channel during the 7th and 8th century, in contrast to other Mediterranean regions. Some pottery contexts found in the ports of Saranda, Butrint and Durres are framed perfectly in the dynamics of Mediterranean trade, with substantial growth of quantity of finds especially at this time. This trend is very different from what occurred in Middle and North Adriatic sites. The numerous contexts so far studied a spike in imports towards the middle of the fifth century and a consistent volume of trade until the middle of the 6th century. In this period we observed in the Adriatic port-cities a turnaround of imports from North Africa, towards the Eastern Mediterranean products, that Justinian war was not only a military conquest but also the supremacy of Eastern merchants in Western ports.

Applicazioni GIS all’archeologia urbana: il caso di Ravenna

Over the past few decades Geographical Information Systems in archaeological practice and above all in urban archaeology have become a standard tool for understanding the development of late antique towns. This paper analyses the city of Ravenna as a case-study, illustrating some standard and innovative GIS applications in a city characterised by non-systematic archaeological research. GIS helped us to systematize archaeological investigations and to guide city planning. New important excavations, in Piazza Kennedy, with the discovery of the 5th c. church of S. Agnese, and other smaller trenches in the city centre, add a fundamental collection of archaeological data. The creation of new chronological evaluation maps highlighted empty research zones in the old city, where urban archaeology should focus new excavations and archaeological evaluation projects.

La ridefinizione degli spazi urbani nelle città dell’Adriatico centrale tra la tarda Antichità e l’alto Medioevo

Between the 4th and 8th centuries disappear around a third of Italian urban centers of Roman tradition. These crises of the cities have different characters in various parts of Europe. The parameters used to define the state of health of the city, however, are numerous. Fundamental is the possibility to be reached easily from the Mediterranean trade, especially and the availability of primary resources, such as salt. Center-Adriatic Italy presents several cases of abandons and transfers of urban locations. Romagna, the region of Ravenna, lives a period of economical increase and its expansion and enrichment enables vast new investments in its territory and surrounding urban settlements such as Rimini, Faenza, Forli and Cesena. In other areas just to the south, the phenomenon is very different. The Marche are undergoing a crisis of the urban system and many major cities were instead abandoned. In this paper I will try to examine the different characteristics and causes that led to the continuity of life an...

La dieta dei monaci. Cultura materiale e alimentazione nei monasteri benedettini tra IX e X secolo

The archaeological excavation of new Benedictine monastic complexes in Italy, during the last years has allowed the study of the material culture that characterized the life of these institutes, since their foundation up to the last phases of life. The goal of this contribution is describe the characteristics of the vessels used inside the Italian monasteries and to follow their distribution in the service and meeting rooms of the Monastery, in relationship with the different qualities of animal bones found inside the same stratifications. Different sites will be analyzed for this type of analysis: the Monastery of St. Severo in Classe (Ravenna), excavated by the Department of Storia Culture Civilź (University of Bologna), under the direction of prof. Andrea Augenti, S. Vincenzo al Volturno, S. Michele alla Verruca and many others early medieval Italian monasteries. It will be possible in this way to also point out the different tendencies in the material culture and the peculiarities of the peninsular an...

Spolia e riuso di materiali tra la tarda antichità e l’alto medioevo a Ravenna

The elevation of Ravenna as a new Imperial capital, at the beginning of the 5th century, determined a redefinition of the housing space and the creation of new buildings destined for the Court and for the display of the Imperial power. In this extensive urban renewal programme, materials and structures of the earlier Roman city came to be consistently reemployed. Reuse of tiles and architectural material was considerable, due to economic reasons and the necessity for immediate or rapid provision of necessary materials and structures for the Imperial bureaucracy. The re-employment of ancient materials (spolia) was so vast that most of the buildings of the previous Roman city were demolished and destroyed – even the larger public monuments. Temples, the area of the Forum, buildings for the administration and the civil basilica were all completely absorbed and turned into the Late Antique urban fabrics, without leaving any material evidence. In this contribution we will consider spolia as a material of commo...