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Published byErica Barone Modified over 7 years ago
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THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF REGIME CHANGE - Sicily in Transition 6th to 13th century
Byzantine – Afghlabid- Kalbid- Norman - Swabian
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Odinic Celtic Christian Eastern Roman Christian Western Roman Christian Abbasid Islam Umayyad Islam Fatimid Islam Context: the ideological theatre in Europe 6th to 10th century Centre stage is Sicily See Med. Arch. 59 (2015)
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Cefalu, Kassar and Enna surrendered to the Arab forces in 858-9; Syracusa in 878
Palermo Cefalu Monte Iato Val Demone Segesta Calatafimi CASTRONOVO Entella Val di Mazara Enna ARAB/ISLAMIC GREEK/BYZANTINE Selinunte Arab forces Byzantine forces Sofiana\Villa del Casale Agrigento Val di Noto Syracusa SICILY IN TRANSITION Kaukana Byzantine 6-8th c ---- Aghlabid (Sunni) 9th c Kalbid (Shi-ite) 10-11th c----Norman 12th c ---Swabian 13th c
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Main excavation CASTRONOVO Previous excavations OUR SOURCES
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STRUCTURE of the ARGUMENT
What happens to communities when a regime changes? Trade and contact Industrial economy Agricultural economy demography Ceramic types and contents Type and use of animals Plant regimes Diet Place of origin cemeteries Settlement sequence Previous early medieval excavations in Sicily Investigations at Castronovo Area surveys 800 900 1000 1200 REGIME CHANGE: Byzantine Aghlabid Kalbid Norman Swabian
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ADVISORS YORK ROME OUR TEAM 2016 SALENTO Martin Carver (York) PI
Lucia Arcifa (Catania) Giuseppe Barbera (Palermo) Eduardo Manzano (Madrid) Annelies Nef (Paris) Stefano Vassallo (Palermo) Chris Wickham (Oxford) Martin Carver (York) PI Jo Tozer (York) Management Alessandra Molinari (Rome) Co-director Ol Craig Residues Michelle Alexander Isotopes Camilla Speller aDNA Emanuele Vaccaro Survey Vivien Prigent Coins & seals Jane Thomas-Oates Analytical chemistry Malin Holst Human bone Veronica Aniceti Animal Bone Fabio Giovannini Supervisor Antonino Meo Supervisor Helen Goodchild Geophysics Madeleine Hummler Editor/Supervisor Paola Orrechioni Records/Supervisor Nicoletta Giannini Buildings research YORK Girolamo Fiorentino Paleoecology ROME Milena Primavera Plant remains OUR TEAM 2016 SALENTO
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Some SICTRANSITEERS Nicoletta Ol Paola YORK Alessandra Ol Stefano
Michelle Claudio ROME Martin S A L E N T O Madeleine Camilla Volunteers…...... Emanuele Some SICTRANSITEERS Milena & Girolamo
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THE ARCHAEOLOGY of REGIME CHANGE
Sicily in Transition 6th to 13th century Byzantine-Aghlabid-Kalbid-Norman-Swabian Directed by Martin Carver (PI) and Alessandra Molinari Website:
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INTERIM RESULTS 2016
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The four main sites
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Monte Kassar
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Target sites on Monte Kassar
Defensive wall West Gate? East gate Church and cemetery HQ building Barracks? House and assembly point Exc 2015 Target sites on Monte Kassar Monte Kassar Investigation programme 2016
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ON MONTE KASSAR. Defensive wall of the fortress with steps, 7-9th century
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Defensive wall Steps onto parapet Assembly area House Buildings constructed against the defensive wall, 7-9th century
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CLEARING THE “CASERMETTA” SITE 2016
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Building II window Building I Floor of cocciopesto Entrance Tower The Byzantine Headquarters Building. 7-9th century. Exc 2016, as seen from a drone
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Monte Kassar hypothetical defensive viewsheds
Headquarters Colle San Vitale Monte Kassar hypothetical defensive viewsheds
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“Casa Emiro” SAN VITALE *Citadel constructed by Arabs 9th century? *Thought to be an Islamic/Christian hybrid community 10th century *Captured and rebuilt by Normans 11th century *Re-fortified in 13-15th century
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Castronovo – the old town
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Underground system of irrigation, terraces and mills
discovered by Nicoletta Giannini
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The historic buildings at Casale San Pietro on the Agrigento-Palermo road.
Monte Kassar in the background
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Byzantine agri-town Int 6 Int 8 Casale San Pietro Church/mosque/church? Int 5 Arab village Excavation programme at Casale San Pietro
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Arab wall 10th c Norman wall 12th c Arab hearth Byzantine wall? Casale San Pietro --- finale 2016
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1000 aratura 21st c 1004 strada 18th c SECTION through Int 5 1003 aratura 11/12th c 1005 crollo 10/11th c 1016 distruzione 9/11th c 1019 piano d’uso (with Residual 6/7th c) Arab wall Stratified assemblages at Casale San Pietro. Building the typology
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Stratified pottery from Castronovo
Casale San Pietro, 10/11th century Lamps from Palermo, 10th century
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The 10° century take off as seen at
Casale San Pietro
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Arab glass drinking vessels
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Sugar comes to Europe Palermo, via dei Mille, 10th c
Pots for refining sugar
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WORKFORCE
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