Case Bastione 2018 – 8th Campaign of Archaeological Excavation

Location: Villarosa, IT

Season: July 9, 2018 to July 28, 2018

Session Dates: Week 1: July 9-14, 2018; Week 2: July 16-21, 2018; Week 3: July 23-28, 2018

Application Deadline: June 9, 2018

Deadline Type: Contact for details

Website: https://www.arkeos.eu/field-schools

Program Type:
Field school

RPA Certified:
no

Affiliation:
Arkeos s.c.

Project Director:
Enrico Giannitrapani and Filippo Iannì

Project Description:

The Case Bastione Field School is part of a larger research project investigating the cultural and social dynamics of human occupation of the Erei upland in central Sicily, from the Neolithic to the Iron Age (5th-1st millenium BCE). Case Bastione is located along the valley of the Morello river, a tributary of the Salso/Imera meridionale, the longest river of Sicily. It’s a large settlement where Late Copper Age and Early Bronze Age deposits (mid-3rd to mid-2nd millennium BCE) have been investigated over the last decade. Large domestic structures and a rich material culture, including painted pottery and lithics, have been exposed so far, including clear evidence of complex craft activities, such as dairy and textiles production.

The main aim of the Case Bastione Field School is to provide students with a better understanding of how archaeology is practiced in the eld. This will be achieved with a speci c classroom-based introduction to the fundamentals of eld methods in archaeology, and by providing a specific and practical working knowledge of excavation, laboratory and eld recording methods, also using cutting edge photogrammetric techniques, including digital and 3D systems. Secondly, students will be introduced to the prehistory of Sicily, a key period that is the basis for later developments of Greek and Roman Sicily. The Field School is then a great opportunity to work in a unique location, in the heart of Sicily and of the Mediterranean basin. 

Period(s) of Occupation: Case Bastione, located in the valley of the river Morello, is a large settlement dating from the  Final Neolithic (4th mill. BC) to the Bronze Age (2nd mill. BC). In previous seasons a productionarea dating back to the Final Copper Age (2700-2300 BC) was investigated. Finds included some of the oldest metal smelting furnaces known in Sicily, along with some huts dating to the Early Bronze Age (2300-1600 BC), containing a rich collection of vases and tools.

Project Size: 1-24 participants

Minimum Length of Stay for Volunteers: 2 weeks

Minimum Age: 18

Experience Required: no

Room and Board Arrangements:
Accommodation for sessions is provided in a dormitory at the local primary school.  Cost: € 180 (220 $) per weeks (minimum two weeks)