This project analyzed a substantial series of pottery deposits from the Hellenistic and Roman rural site of Campanaio, near Agrigento. Nestled on a gently sloping hill 5 km from the coast, the site was discovered in 1978 during systematic archaeological survey in the hinterland of the Greek colony of Heraclea Minoa (sixth–first century BC). Between 1994 and 1998, the University of Nottingham investigated eight different areas under Professor Roger Wilson's direction, with the financial assistance of several UK bodies.
Campanaio covered an area of about three hectares and had a very long life, from the mid-Hellenistic until the late-Roman period. The quality and quantity of ceramic finds are impressive, and the project saw the involvement of many leading Roman pottery specialists, including the late John Hayes and the late Roberta Tomber. However, their studies did not reach final publication stage for various reasons. Preliminary post-excavation study seasons in 2000 and 2001 gathered a vast amount of information, part of the whole archive that Professor Wilson kindly shared with me.
During my stay at the BSR as Simon Keay awardee in Mediterranean Archaeology, I focused on this dataset that included over 3,000 drawings, preliminary catalogues, handwritten notes and Excel spreadsheets, trying to make sense of a heterogeneous mass of information. Most of the effort was focused on sorting and arranging this into a single database. More than 690 pottery drawings have been reviewed and connected to their respective entries in the catalogues, new observations were made and typologies and chronologies were updated as appropriate. As a result, we took a small step forward in our current knowledge of daily life in a Roman rural settlement of southern Sicily and of the ceramic wares, local and imported, circulating there.
Among the novelties are ceramic spacer-pins, the first known in Sicily, which, together with vaulting tubes, hint at the presence of a bath suite whose location is still unknown. The evidence for marble slabs already mentioned in one preliminary report leans towards the same conclusion. Another new discovery concerns the abandonment of the settlement, whose occupation lasted at least a century and a half after the violent destruction that affected at least three different areas – including two amphora warehouses – during the fifth century. A Vandal raid remains one possible explanation but deserves further investigation. Like most rural sites in southern Sicily, Campanaio maintained close links with Africa, notably with Cape Bon, throughout the fifth century, as frequent amphorae from Nabeul and its hinterland testify. There is also evidence of contemporary imports of eastern Mediterranean amphorae, while other late-Roman eastern wares are currently absent. The number of African amphorae drastically decreased during the sixth century, while African Red Slip is still quite common at the end of the sixth. At the moment, we lack clear evidence suggesting continuity of occupation beyond the early seventh century, despite three Muslim burials of early medieval date which cut through late Roman levels.
Most cooking wares come from the island of Pantelleria, halfway between Cape Bon and Sicily. The most common shapes are lids and shallow, thick-rimmed casseroles with flaring walls. An interesting aspect is a pierced hole (D. 1 cm) either at the bottom of some casseroles or at the centre of lids. Its purpose requires explanation; Professor Wilson suggested a connection with weaving or specific cooking practices.
Finally, reviewing finds from the fill of a late-Roman kiln yielded evidence of local manufacture, which included flat-bottomed amphorae with everted rims and round-section handles, plain-ware jugs, bowls, mortaria, jars and basins. Wasters and blistered sherds prove onsite production of such wares, whose common feature is a whitish surface.
