In reconstructing connections across the Late Bronze Age Mediterranean, Nuragic pottery has had a bad deal. In contrast to the attention given to other Sardinian wares that borrow shapes and motifs from the Aegean, this dark burnished pottery often laboured under the perception of its aesthetics and technology as representing the backwa- ters of the Mediterranean. The eastern Mediterranean “privilege” re- mains strong in our narratives of this time of intensive inter-regional con- tact. This paper aims to contribute to the emerging integration of these wares into our wider considerations of the mobility of pots and people. The dark burnished pottery of Nuraghe Antigori near Sarroch and Bia ’e Palma at Selargius has been subjected to an integrated analyti- cal programme. We focus on two main fabric groups from the western and eastern parts of the Gulf of Cagliari, whose distinctive compositions in thin section provide a window not only on neighbouring production centres, but also on the distribution of Nuragic style pottery between sites. Antigori and Selargius exchanged each other’s “local” ceramic products, whilst also consuming the same distinctive pottery of oth- er on-island centres. This mobility of pottery on the island is shown to have a substantial time-depth, implying that consumption-based ap- proaches would be fruitful and are indeed a necessary prerequisite for the interpretation of the movement of any Aegean-style or imported vessels within Sardinia. We examine the appearance of Nuragic pottery beyond the island, at Cannatello in Sicily and Kommos on the south coast of Crete, in ad- dition to that from Pyla-Kokkinokremos and Hala Sultan Tekke on Cy- prus. The majority of the analysed exported Nuragic pottery belongs to the main fabrics local to Antigori and Selargius, placing the Gulf of Cagliari in the important series of maritime nodes that stretch from the Levantine coast to Sardinia and beyond at the end of the Bronze Age.
Ceramic Echoes of the Gulf of Cagliari across the Late Bronze Age Central and Eastern Mediterranean
Valentina Cannavo;Sara Tiziana Levi;
2025
Abstract
In reconstructing connections across the Late Bronze Age Mediterranean, Nuragic pottery has had a bad deal. In contrast to the attention given to other Sardinian wares that borrow shapes and motifs from the Aegean, this dark burnished pottery often laboured under the perception of its aesthetics and technology as representing the backwa- ters of the Mediterranean. The eastern Mediterranean “privilege” re- mains strong in our narratives of this time of intensive inter-regional con- tact. This paper aims to contribute to the emerging integration of these wares into our wider considerations of the mobility of pots and people. The dark burnished pottery of Nuraghe Antigori near Sarroch and Bia ’e Palma at Selargius has been subjected to an integrated analyti- cal programme. We focus on two main fabric groups from the western and eastern parts of the Gulf of Cagliari, whose distinctive compositions in thin section provide a window not only on neighbouring production centres, but also on the distribution of Nuragic style pottery between sites. Antigori and Selargius exchanged each other’s “local” ceramic products, whilst also consuming the same distinctive pottery of oth- er on-island centres. This mobility of pottery on the island is shown to have a substantial time-depth, implying that consumption-based ap- proaches would be fruitful and are indeed a necessary prerequisite for the interpretation of the movement of any Aegean-style or imported vessels within Sardinia. We examine the appearance of Nuragic pottery beyond the island, at Cannatello in Sicily and Kommos on the south coast of Crete, in ad- dition to that from Pyla-Kokkinokremos and Hala Sultan Tekke on Cy- prus. The majority of the analysed exported Nuragic pottery belongs to the main fabrics local to Antigori and Selargius, placing the Gulf of Cagliari in the important series of maritime nodes that stretch from the Levantine coast to Sardinia and beyond at the end of the Bronze Age.I documenti in SFERA sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
