Panel 3.9 – Messapia: economy and exchanges in the Land between Ionian and Adriatic Sea

Organiser/Chair:

• Francesco D’Andria and Grazia Semeraro (Università del Salento)

Speakers:

• Grazia Semeraro (University of Salento)
  Methods and practices in studies of the economy of Messapia
• Katia Mannino (University of Salento)
  Consumption of luxury goods and art among Messapian aristocrats
• Hedvig Landenius Enegren (CTR Copenhagen) / Francesco Meo (University of Salento)
  Textile Manufacture in Messapia
• Francesco D'Andria (University of Salento)
  Economy of the cult in Messapia
• Jacopo De Grossi Mazzorin and Claudia Minniti (University of Salento)
  The use of animals in economic practices and ritual offerings of Messapia

Ever since the Bronze Age, the geographical position of Messapia, between the Ionian and Adriatic seas, has enabled the development of relations characterised by continuity within the framework of mobility in the Mediterranean. In the light of the most recent investigations, the panel will adopt a multidisciplinary approach to the regional economy, production and exchange, in a period from the Iron Age to the Roman conquest in the mid 3rd century BC. The panel will focus on certain aspects of the economy in Messapia, with particular reference to bio-archaeological themes (including livestock rearing and the consumption of animal resources), textile production (to be analysed by applying archaeometric methods to residues of fabric) and imports of luxury products from Greek cities and the Greek colonies of southern Italy. The Iron Age, a period when the Salento was at the centre of traffic and migrations that led to the establishment of the Greek settlement of Taranto in the late 8th century BC, will be the focus of special attention. Of interest are the production techniques of the indigenous settlements and commercial exchange, which is seen from an early period, particularly on the shores of the Strait of Otranto. The presence in grave goods of imported prestige items will be investigated with reference to the forms of self-representation adopted by the Messapian aristocracy in both funerary rituals and manifestations of power within the settlements. The variety of religious manifestations in the Messapian world constitutes a particular case study linked to cultural exchanges, which, thanks to the recent discoveries of places of worship, can now be investigated in detail. Important in this regard are the discoveries made in Castro, where the Athenaion – linked to the myth of Aeneas's first landing on the shores of Italy – was identified. In this site, the abundance of votive offerings, the richness of the structures of the cult and the ways in which the rituals were performed all enable us to investigate the investment of resources in the religious dimension, especially the consumption of collective energy in the manifestations of the cult. A further objective is to reconstruct the economic system underlying the cult in Messapian society, considering its relationships with the other peoples of the Mediterranean.

1. Jacopo De Grossi Mazzorin and Claudia Minniti (University of Salento)

The use of animals in economic practices and ritual offerings of Messapia
In this paper the animal remains from several sites of Messapia are discussed in view of our understanding of the dynamics of animal exploitation in the region from the 8th to the 3rd century BC.
Zooarchaeological data were obtained from a great variety of different context types, the most common being residential, suburban and ritual features. Those from residential features observed in many settlements provide significant information on animal management and diet practiced by Messapic communities particularly in view of the relative interaction between local and introduced cultural elements as a consequence of Greek colonisation of southern Italy at the end of the 8th century BC.
The scenario presented by ritual contexts enlightens about the interaction between man and animals in an abstract symbolic system consisting of beliefs, myths, and doctrines of religion, in which the emphasis of one of animal species than the other, difference in the composition of the animals offered, their ages and anatomical parts would seem strictly tied to the rituals that were practiced.

2. Katia Mannino (University of Salento)

Consumption of luxury goods and art among Messapian aristocrats
In the framework of studies into ancient economies, the research by the University of the Salento focused on those contexts of southern Puglia where imported goods have been discovered have thrown some light on the role played among the Messapians by the purchase of luxury goods, above all bronzes and Greek vases. The discoveries in dwellings, sanctuaries and funerary areas reveal that from the 6th to the 4th centuries BC the phenomenon - linked to the dynamics of self-representation on the part of aristocratic groups and the consolidation of power in the settlements - presents features that are distinct to the various types of context. This takes us considerably beyond the generic equation ‘luxury goods = indicators of status’: indeed, analysis of the objects in contexts makes it possible to determine, case by case, the meaning that the purchasers attributed to the luxury goods selected with reference to their ‘function’ and, in the case of vases, ‘images’. Given their symbolic value, the latter were fundamental in the communication strategies adopted by the aristocracies, who, thanks to knowledge handed down from one generation to the next, felt an affinity for the myths and cultural phenomena of the Greek world. These luxury goods constituted an important tool for the aristocrats, for whom the objects were elements of a shared language, used as a strong sign of cultural identity, communicating a range of messages useful for the affirmation of the individual groups.

3. Hedvig Landenius Enegren (CTR Copenhagen) / Francesco Meo (University of Salento)

Textile Manufacture in Messapia
In recent years research has highlighted the importance of textiles in the ancient economy. Experimental archaeology undertaken at the Centre for Textile Research (CTR) at the University of Copenhagen in collaboration with the Centre for Historical-Archaeological Research and Communication (CHARC) at Lejre, Denmark has been fundamental in this endeavour, focussing on the technical aspects of ancient textile manufacture. The study of the parameters of ancient textile tools such as the weight and thickness of spindle whorls and loom weights have now made it possible to calculate within a range the type of textiles produced at any given archaeological site.
The aim of this paper is to present a first overview of textile production in Messapia through textile tools and a few mineralised pieces of cloth.
The analysis of loom weights from some Archaic domestic contexts such as those at Cavallino and San Vito dei Normanni suggests a production of fine quality textiles in the Archaic period. Decorative schemes on the loom weight material reveal aesthetic choices and/or utilitarian preferences at the time. More importantly, these may also point to cross-cultural contact.
The study of textile tools from Hellenistic contexts such as those from Muro Leccese and the possibility to analyse some fragments of cloth mineralised on fibulae from Vaste give us the possibility to complete the picture of information also for later phases.

4. Francesco D'Andria (University of Salento)

Economy of the cult in Messapia
The systematic investigations conducted in Messapia since the 1970s have made it possible to reconstruct the system of settlements, some of which played a dominant role within a “cantonal” division of the region. In this framework we will examine the main places of worship that have been systematically investigated in order to assess the investment of resources by the ancient communities of Messapia in the religious dimension. Account will be taken of the various types and functions of the individual places of worship in the region. Indeed, coastal sanctuaries linked to trading activities, sanctuaries frequented by communities differing in terms of language and culture, sanctuaries situated in strategic locations for navigation (Castro, Athenaion), Thesmophoric sanctuaries linked to the production of staple goods and sanctuaries dedicated to polyadic divinities and aristocratic cults (Vaste) are all attested. From the variety and multiplicity of the cults and the procedures linked to the rituals, the various aspects of the economic dimension of worship can be reconstructed. Indeed, they are seen in in the construction of buildings, the use of craft skills imported from other contexts (mainly from Taranto, but also from Epirus and Macedonia), in the acquisition of precious goods and items imported from exotic locations. The case study of the Athenaion of Castro, with the wealth of mostly unpublished evidence, can provide many useful points for discussion.

5. Grazia Semeraro (University of Salento)

Methods and practices in studies of the economy of Messapiaa
The paper will discuss some aspects of archaeological research that allow to reconstruct the economic and relational framework of the Salento peninsula during the pre-Roman period.
1) Study of interaction and exchange. From quantitative analysis to the latest cognitive approaches, the research in this field led to a radical revision of the concepts traditionally used to describe the relationships and contacts with neighboring cultural systems (especially with the Greek world).
2) Settlements, landscapes, communities. The global approach to the study of the territory has allowed to reconstruct the development of settlement system over time. Numerous ongoing projects are aimed at reconstructing the cultural landscapes of the region, with specific attention to the human-environment relationship and the processes of definition and socio-political organization of local communities. Experimental archaeology and organization of individual and collective work.
3) Production and consumption of food. From the materiality of objects to their symbolic value in order to reconstruct the economic and social features related to production and distribution of agricultural resources. The contribution of archaeometry, social anthropology and ethnographic research. New projects on production and processing techniques of commodities (wheat, oil and wine).