Archaeometry of Sicilian glazed pottery

2004

Petrographic and chemical analyses of the “ceramic body” of 114 majolica artefacts manufactured in Sicily over a wide time range (16th–-19th century) are presented. All the analysed samples, which belong to museums and private collections, were previously attributed to Sicilian workshops based on stylistic features evaluated by expert historians of art. Unambiguous identification of the production sites of majolica handicrafts in Sicily remains, however, open to question when this relies only on purely stylistic considerations. To this end compositional and/or textural markers have been searched for in the “ceramic body” of the majolica artefacts in order to differentiate between the centre…

The production cycle of lime-based plasters in the Late Roman settlement of Scauri, on the island of Pantelleria, Italy

2018

This paper deals with the archaeometric study of lime-based plasters found in the archaeological settlement of Scauri, located in the homonymous bay in the south-western part of Pantelleria Island. Since 1999, archaeological surveys have led to the recovery of the huge remains of a Late Roman settlement dating back to the fourth-fifth century AD. It is well known that the island of Pantelleria is entirely composed of volcanic rocks. Accordingly, the production of quicklime required calcareous rocks to be imported. Also, the selection criteria of the sandy aggregate are relevant and of interest to this study, to evaluate the achieved technological level. Within this context, a mineralogical …

I materiali lapidei dell’edilizia storica di Palermo: conoscenza per il restauro

2008

The production cycle of lime based plasters in the Late Roman settlement of Scauri, Island of Pantelleria (Italy)

2016

This paper deals with the archaeometric study and analysis of lime based plasters recently found in the archaeological settlement of Scauri, located in the homonymous bay at the island of Pantelleria (central Mediterranean, Strait of Sicily). The Bay of Scauri is sited in the south-west part of the island. It can be considered a natural harbour overlooking the coast of Cape Bon in Tunisia. Since the 1999, the archaeological importance of place was reconsidered thanks to the recovering of huge remains of a Late Roman settlement dating back to the 4th-5th century AD. A production quarter, a residential area, a necropolis and a religious area were brought to light. The economy of the settlemen…

Coloured limestones and white marbles in the courtyard of the Temple of Venus (Pompeii): consideration of provenance by petrographical, mineralogical…

2009