Two Mycenaean Stirrup-jars from the Levant

A cache of artifacts, recovered in 2014 by the cultural heritage squadron of the Guardia di Finanza (Gruppo Tutela Patrimonio Archeologico of the Nucleo Polizia Tributaria di Roma), included two Mycenaean stirrup jars among the pottery illegally brought into Italy from the Northern Levant. The stirrup jar has one of the most distinctive shapes of the Mycenaean repertoire and is found throughout the Mediterranean around the end of the Late Bronze Age. Even if removed from their original context, both of these stirrup jars can be ascribed to a distinctive cultural milieu within a specific chronological range, based upon morphological and stylistic parameters. Furthermore, their good state of preservation suggests that the original context of deposition may have been a tomb. Comparison with stirrup jars found at key sites in the Eastern Mediterranean allows us to re-contextualize them as part of the wide diffusion of Mycenaean luxury goods in the Levan

Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) from Motya and its deepest oriental roots

Pomegranate remains and representations found in the Phoenician site of Motya in Western Sicily give the cue for a summary study of this plant and its fortune in the Near East and the Mediterranean. Fruits offered in wells, a terracotta relief depicting a pomegranate held by a goddess found in the Sacred Area of the Kothon at Motya, and, especially, a pottery vase in the shape of a pomegranate retrieved inside the Temple of Astarte in the same compound, witness the symbolic transcultural role of this fruit and of the pomegranate tree in ancient Mediterranean, from its farthest oriental origins to modern art and religio

Una brocchetta dipinta dal tempio di Astarte nell'area sacra del Kothon a Mozia

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 B

Una testa di sileno in bronzo da Mozia

The occasional (and fortuitous) discovery of a bronze head of a silenus, occurred during the XXXV season of excavations carried out by Rome «La Sapienza» University Expedition to Motya, gives the cue to shine a light on the reception and the re-interpretation of Greek themes and iconographies in a period of deep changes on the culture of the islan

Una brocchetta con protome d'ariete dall'area sacra del Kothon a Mozia

During the 25th and 26 th 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 Are

3d modelling of archaeological small finds by a low-cost range camera. Methodology and first results

The production of reliable documentation of small finds is a crucial process during archaeological excavations. Range cameras can be a valid alternative to traditional illustration methods: they are veritable 3D scanners able to easily collect the 3D geometry (shape and dimensions in metric units) of an object/scene practically in real-time. This work investigates precisely the potentialities of a promising low-cost range camera, the Structure SensorTM by Occipital, for rapid modelling archaeological objects. The accuracy assessment was thus performed by comparing the 3D model of a Cipriot-Phoenician globular jug captured by this device with the 3D model of the same object obtained through photogrammetry. In general, the performed analysis shows that Structure Sensor is capable to acquire the 3D geometry of a small object with an accuracy comparable at millimeter level to that obtainable with the photogrammetric method, even though the finer details are not always correctly modelled. The texture reconstruction is instead less accurate. In the end, it can be concluded that the range camera used for this work, due to its low-cost and flexibility, is a suitable tool for the rapid documentation of archaeological small finds, especially when not expert users are involved

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

Presentation of the 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, 2020-2021Presentazione 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, 2020-202

Investigating plant micro‐remains embedded in dental calculus of the Phoenician inhabitants of Motya (Sicily, Italy)

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

Micro-Raman spectroscopy and complementary techniques applied for the study of copper and iron wastes from Motya (Italy)

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

Integrated Care for Heart Failure in Primary Care

Chronic heart failure (CHF or simply HF) is a complex clinical syndrome that involves more than 2% of the general population and over 10% of the older people. For people with reduced ventricular function (the classical HFrEF phenotype), the guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) (e.g., Ace-inhibitors, beta-blockers, diuretics, rehabilitation or implantable ventricular devices) demonstrated to be efficacious in reducing hospitalisations and prolonging survival. Vice-versa, the HF with preserved ejection fraction (diastolic HF or HFpEF phenotype) is a much more complex syndrome, in which co-morbidities (such as COPD, depression, anemia, and diabetes, CAD) play a significant role in the decompensation episodes