An opportunity to learn about Sardinia's maritime routes from three thousand years ago, followed by two days out. This Saturday , culminating the "New Eyes on the Past" experience that concluded just last week, the Kalaritano Archaeological Group will return with " The Sardinian Sea Paths ": at the Lazzaretto in Cagliari, some authoritative voices in Mediterranean archaeological research will take turns in a conference dedicated to the mosaic of connections that linked the island to the rest of the Mediterranean during the Iron and Bronze Ages. And on Sunday the 31st and Monday the 1st, guided tours will be offered outside the capital to the Nuragic sites of Orroli , Ballao , Villanovafranca , and Serri .

May 30th will therefore be a broad look back at the past, with the aim of conveying to those present the image of a land that has been an active protagonist in exchanges and encounters between Mediterranean peoples . The day's introduction will be entrusted to Fulvia Lo Schiavo , former Superintendent of Archaeological Heritage for the provinces of Sassari and Nuoro for twenty-six years, a role she also held for Tuscany, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, and, most recently, our region. Her research on prehistoric and Nuragic Sardinia focuses on the study of metal artifacts in the Euro-Mediterranean context .

Thus, the first presentation will be by Emanuela Alberti , professor at the University of Florence, whose work has spanned the years between Crete, Cyprus, the island, and the Hellenic peninsula, retracing the network of relationships that brought the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations closer to the rest of the Mediterranean between 1650 and 1200 BC, through trade, political changes, and cultural ties. This will be followed by Maria Rosaria Manunza , an archaeologist, author, and student of Giovanni Lilliu, who will present the results of excavations in the Bia 'e Palma area in Selargius . In 2015, a Nuragic settlement emerged—probably serving as a trade crossroads—that shows strong signs of contact with the Mycenaean world.

Alessandro Usai , an archaeologist and scholar of the social and economic processes of that era, will present the history of the Nuragic complex of Antigori in Sarroch and its probable defensive and maritime purpose, confirmed by the Mycenaean, Minoan, and Cypriot craftsmanship discovered there. After a coffee break, Mauro Perra , author and director of the Su Mulinu Museum in Villanovafranca (and of numerous archaeological excavations), will describe the Mediterranean as a "liquid continent," inhabited by sailors, merchants, and communities marginalized by the powers of the time, yet protagonists of their time. The morning's presentations will conclude with Giovanna Fundoni , a researcher from the University of Sassari, who will illustrate the evidence regarding Sardinia's active role in maritime trade between the Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age , in the circulation of goods but also of people, customs, and cultures.

The work will resume directly at 3 pm , once again introduced and moderated by Lo Schiavo , this time supported by the archaeologist Rubens D'Oriano : the Roman archaeologist and professor Marco Bettelli will open the analysis of the contacts with Crete in the late Minoan era and of the ceramics produced in the style of the Aegean island, which demonstrate multiple and differentiated relationships over time. They will be followed by their colleague at Sapienza Alessandro Vanzetti , in a reconstruction of the traces left by the Nuragic groups in Sicily and beyond in the late Bronze Age, pushing as far as ancient Ugarit in Syria, and by the "landscape" archaeologist Alfonso Stiglitz , former director of the Museum of San Vero Milis and co-director of the excavation campaigns at S'Urachi and Sant'Elia: the scholar will thus propose an "undisciplined" look at the relationships between the Nuragic and Phoenician people , rejecting the idea of monolithic and opposing civilizations to embrace instead a concept of communities in movement and relationships that changed over time.

D'Oriano himself, who for over four decades worked as an archaeologist for the Superintendency of Sassari and Nuoro, and also studied the island during the Phoenician, Punic, and Roman eras, will close the conference. His contribution will consist of a reconstruction of the relationship between Sardinia and the Greek world , from the Phoenicians to the Carthaginian conquest, focusing on the unique case of the Hellenic presence in Olbia. D'Oriano will then turn his attention to denouncing so-called "fantarcheosardism," that is, the pseudoscientific narratives that transform the history of the Nuragic civilization into an identity-based, supremacist, and fundamentally anti-historical myth.

Combining high-level scientific excellence and academic rigor with accessible dissemination , the talks scheduled for Saturday will be recorded and made available on the Gak YouTube channel . Once the conference concludes, guided tours will be offered, led by Mauro Perra and Maria Rosaria Manunza: on Sunday, visitors will be able to visit the Arrubiu nuraghe in Orroli and the Funtana Coberta sanctuary in Ballao , while on Monday , they will be able to explore the Su Mulinu nuraghe in Villanovafranca and the Santa Vittoria sanctuary in Serri . This enriching three-day event is part of a period of intense attention to Sardinia's archaeological heritage, finally recognized by UNESCO.

Promoted and organized by Gak with the contribution of the Municipality and the Fondazione Sardegna , the initiative enjoys the patronage of the Superintendency of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape , the Region , the University of Cagliari , the Centre for Studies on Identity and Memory , the Archaeological Groups of Italy and the Dettori High School of Cagliari , as well as the municipalities involved in the guided tours.

© Riproduzione riservata