Plants and Vegetation in the Archaeological Park of Neapolis of Syracuse (Sicily,Italy): A Management Effort and also an Opportunity for Better Enjoyment of the Site

Syracuse has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2005. Notable for its visible traces of the ancient Greek city, the inscribed sites are mainly located on the Ortigia Islet and in the Neapolis Archaeological Park. In this park, in addition to monuments of global significance such as the Greek theatre carved into the rock in the fifth century bc, wild flora of great interest are preserved. Some species may have been introduced in the classical period. In 2013, significant maintenance interventions of green areas were made, aimed at safeguarding the monuments and the most relevant flora present. This activity provided an opportunity to create, through an interdisciplinary project, some guidelines for the management of the green cover, and has also created new opportunities for the use of the site through thematic routes.     

O. Elusa 2: Another Enigmatic Ostracon from the Pottery Workshop at Elusa in Byzantine Palestine

Abstract

A rather enigmatic Greek ostracon (O. Elusa 2) was recovered during the 1997 excavation season at Elusa in the Negev Desert. This ostracon is analysed in light of its archaeological setting, namely, a Byzantine pottery workshop, and the associated finds from the workshop, including a previously published ostracon (O. Elusa 1). Such an integrative approach underscores the importance of combining papyrological and archaeo- logical information for the interpretation of excavated texts.     

The Turkish Oedipus: National Self and Stereotype in the Work of a 1960s Greek Cartoonist 1

This article analyzes a particular type of radical political discourse in Greece—namely the articulation of stereotypes of Greek-ness and Turkish-ness in the work of Mendis Bostantzoglu, a Greek satirist and cartoonist. The author examines a poem and a sketch published in the 1960s, in which stereotypes of Greek-ness and Turkish-ness are presented and mocked. Relating their production to their specific historical context and current academic discussions in Greece on nationalism and Otherness, the author argues that the ways in which ethnic stereotypes of “self” and “other” are used to discuss political issues have more to tell about internal Greek issues (such as a critique of the government and its policies) than about Greece's foreign affairs. Such analyses, it is further argued, also lead to a greater appreciation of the complex and implicit sets of meanings negotiated by the stereotypes themselves.     

Magnetic properties of ancient coins

The almost ubiquitous presence of small amounts of iron in ancient coins gives them remanent magnetic properties which can be measured easily on commercial magnetometers. The stability of the remanence suggests that ancient coins might retain information about the geomagnetic field at the time and location of manufacture and so be valuable in setting up archaeomagnetic dating curves. However, measurements show that the remanence directions tend to be too scattered for this purpose, although it is quite possible to distinguish magnetically the obverse and reverse faces of struck coins.Saturation remanence studies of coins and coin analogues indicate that the main carrier of the remanence in struck coins is precipitated fine-grained iron (rather than the oxides of iron) which is produced during the minting process. The intensity of the remanence generated depends upon the thermo-mechanical history of the flan prior to striking, which suggests that the magnetic properties of such coins are not simply related to the provenance of the ores used.     

Integrated geophysical surveys at the archaeological site of Tindari (Sicily,Italy)

The results of geophysical survey carried out at the archaeological site of Tindari, located 70 km west-north-west of Messina (Sicily, Italy), are presented and discussed. The site is one of the most important archaeological sites, about 90 ha large, on the north-eastern side of Sicily and it was one of the last Greek settlements in Sicily. Keeping in mind the vastness of the site, according to the archaeologists an area, of about 1200 m² was selected, for a geophysical survey. Electrical resistivity tomography (ERT), including induced polarization (IP) measurements, and seismic refraction tomography were applied in the course of geophysical exploration in the area. The objective of this preliminary geophysical investigation was to verify the effectiveness of the technique for a spatial definition of the buried archaeological structures (mostly walls, columns, etc.) to determine their characteristics and to study the presence of collapsed columns within the zone of archaeological interest, in view of their application in the rest of the site, that, for obvious reasons, could not be entirely excavated in brief times. The geophysical data, visualized in 3D space, revealed a distribution of low-contrast shallow anomalies that indicate the presence of different types of buried structures in the surveyed area. Also, the probable accumulations of collapsed columns could be determined. These results confirm the hypothesis of a large northern extension of the archaeological site and provide useful information to design a more efficient excavation plan.     

柳孜运河遗址出土"仁和馆"铭四系瓶及相关问题

本文以淮北柳孜大运河遗址出土的"仁和馆"铭四系瓶为切入点,回顾了其研究史,对这种四系瓶的形制和年代进行分析,认为它出现于金代,流行于元代,其烧造的中心窑场在河北磁县彭城镇,流布于冀、鲁、京、皖北、内蒙等省区.作为酒具,"仁和馆"四系瓶上的这种与酒肆有关的名号反映了当时酒肆繁昌的现实.     

Kinship terms in the Nabataean inscriptions

This paper examines one of the most important aspects of Nabataean social structure, namely kinship terminology. It examines the linguistic derivations, meanings and social significance of kinship terms, and compares them with those found in other Semitic languages.     

20世纪中后期国外学者对古希腊演说研究述评

20世纪后半期,西方古典学界,主要是欧美学者对古希腊演说的研究开始摆脱亚里斯多德的传统,将其作为一种社会政治文化现象,与雅典民主政治结合起来进行研究,重点分析和探讨了演说与雅典政治领袖、雅典法律诉讼和雅典城邦民主政治意识形态的建构等之间的关系,取得了丰硕的成果。不可否认,这些研究成果具有很大的启发性,为国内外同仁进行相关的研究提供了宝贵的借鉴和参考价值。     

Discovery of Ancient Harbour Structures in Calabria, Italy, and Implications for the Interpretation of Nearby Sites

During underwater survey around Crotone, Calabria, Italy, in 2005, structures from two harbour phases were located, possibly dating from the Archaic Greek and Roman periods. Both harbours are close to the Greek and Roman architectural remains on Capo Colonna, as well as to underwater deposits of large stone blocks and other, previously-excavated sites. With the discovery of these harbour structures, new hypotheses arise for understanding the building-material deposits and excavated sites. A critical component of these hypotheses is the assessment of local geological data, specifically ancient sea-level, in relation to the archaeological record.
© 2007 Author     

Beyond ethno‐nationalism: emerging trends in Cypriot politics after the Annan Plan†

ABSTRACT. Historically, conflict between the two communities in Cyprus has been characterised by the diverging demands of ethno‐nationalists. The introduction of the Annan Plan for the solution of the Cyprus problem has fostered new trends in Cypriot politics and a new alignment of the political forces on the island. This paper argues that the conventional ethno‐nationalist division and the left–right divide are no longer sufficient in understanding the conflict in Cyprus. The new dividing and unifying elements in Cypriot politics can be best understood through analysing the views of political actors on such issues as sovereignty, territoriality, identity and power‐sharing.