The present study concerns the Phoenician-Punic site of Motya, a small island set in Western Sicily (Italy), in the Marsala Lagoon (Stagnone di Marsala), between Trapani and Marsala. A big disposal ...pit, datable to between the first half of the 8th and the mid-6th century
bc
, was identified in Area D. This context was sampled for plant macro-remains through bucket flotation. Palynological treatment and analysis were also performed on soil samples collected from each of the identified filling layers. The combination of the study of macro- and micro-remains has shown to be effective in answering questions concerning introduced food plants and agricultural practices, and native plants, including timber use. Here we investigate if a waste context can provide information about Phoenicians at Motya and their impact on the local plant communities. We found that human diet included cereals (mostly naked wheat), pulses and fruits. A focus was placed on weeds (including
Lolium temulentum
and
Phalaris
spp.) referable to different stages of crop processing. This aspect was enriched by the finding of cereal pollen, which suggests that threshing (if not even cultivation) was carried out on site. Palynology also indicates an open environment, with little to no forest cover, characterized by complex anthropogenic activities. Anthracology suggests the presence of typical Mediterranean plant taxa, including not only the shrubs
Pistacia lentiscus
and
Erica multiflora
, but also evergreen oaks. The presence of a stone pine nut and of
Pinus pinea
/
pinaster
in the pollen rain is noteworthy, suggesting the local occurrence of these Mediterranean pines outside their native distribution range. This represents the first such find in the central Mediterranean. Finally, the present study allows us to compare Motya’s past environment with the present one. The disappearance of
Juniperus
sp. and
Erica arborea
from the present-day surroundings of the Marsala lagoon appears to be related to land-overexploitation, aridification or a combination of both processes.
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-plant interaction in Motya’s Phoenician community, in terms of cultural traditions and land use.
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 4thcentury BC and hosts an important cult of Hera/Juno throughout the Roman period (3rd century BC-2ndcentury 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
Presentazione del volume M. Guirguis - S. Muscuso - R. Pla Orquín (eds), Cartagine, il Mediterraneo centro-occidentale e la Sardegna. Società, economia e cultura materiale tra Fenici e autoctoni. ...Studi in onore di Piero Bartoloni (Le Monografie della SAIC 3), voll. I-II, Sassari: SAIC Editore, 2020-2021
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.
During the 25th and 26th seasons of excavations carried out by Rome «La Sapienza» University Expedition to Motya (years 2015-2016) a ram’s head jug was found in the Sacred Area of the Kothon (Area C ...South). From a typological point of view, this vessel can be considered a late outcome of the early Phoenician bronze trefoil jug, largely widespread over the western Mediterranean colonies, while its relevant symbolic value is represented by the ram’s head, the animal traditionally consecrated to Baal, the deity worshipped in the Sacred Area.
This work is the first archaeometric investigation on copper and iron wastes from the Phoenician site of Motya (Sicily, Italy), dating back to the 8th to the 4th century BC. The samples were analyzed ...through micro‐Raman Spectroscopy (μ‐RS), Optical Microscopy (OM), Scanning Electron Microscope‐Energy‐Dispersive X‐ray Spectroscopy (SEM‐EDS), High‐Resolution Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (HR‐FESEM), and Electron Micro‐Probe Analysis (EMPA). Micro‐Raman techinique permitted to identify both primary phases, for example, calchopyrite, and secondary products such as cuprite and copper thrihydroxychlorides in the Cu‐slags and goethite in the Fe‐slags. SEM and HR‐FESEM imaging showed the occurrence of inhomogeneous microstructures in the Cu‐ and Fe‐slags due to elements segregation, solidification, and corrosion. EMPA data revealed that the archaeometallurgical wastes from Motya can be differentiated on the basis of their chemical compositions. These preliminary results showed different typologies of by‐products, such as base metals speiss, copper slags from smelting sulfide ore with matte, and iron smelting and smithing slags, suggesting different stages of copper and iron productions.
This work is the first archeometrical investigation of copper and iron wastes from Motya (Sicily, Italy), dating back to the 8th to the 4th century BC. Micro‐Raman technique permitted to identify both primary phases, for example, chalcopyrite, and secondary products such as cuprite and copper thrihydroxychlorides in the Cu‐slags and goethite in the Fe‐slags. The results showed different typologies of by‐products, such as base metals speiss, copper slags from smelting sulfide ore with matte, and iron smelting and smithing slags.
•Correlative microscopy is used to investigate complex corrosion systems.•X-ray microscopy offers valuable insights into the original shape of the nails.•This approach enhances the accuracy of ...investigations within the same region of interest.•The results reveal significant differences in the condition of archaeological iron nails from Motya.
In this work, we employed correlative imaging techniques to investigate the complex corrosion systems in nails from the Phoenician-Punic site of Motya (Sicily, Italy), combining analytical chemistry and imaging tomography across multiple dimensions and scales. To accomplish this, we used correlative light and electron microscopy, micro-Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray microscopy. The results showed remarkable differences in the condition of the nails, with one nail well-preserved and thinly coated with oxyhydroxides, while the other nail exhibited extensive corrosion and degradation with distinct corrosion layers and the presence of soil minerals. Multiscale X-ray microscopy provided 3D imaging of the internal structures, revealing cracks and the original shape of the nails. This work contributes to the understanding of stress corrosion in metals and has implications for the development of strategies to prevent and control corrosion processes.
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During the XXXIV season of excavations carried out by Rome «La Sapienza» University Expedition to Motya, a votive deposit (D.4362) lying west of the Temple of Astarte – Temple C4 of the Sacred Area ...of the Kothon – was brought to light. In addition to several cult objects and offerings, the deposit included a Punic painted juglet (lekythos) which may epitomize once again the complexity of the cultural tendencies ruling the ceramic repertoire of Motya during the 5th century BC.
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