Trinacria, 'An Island Outside Time'

Trinacria, the ancient name for Sicily extending back to Homeric Greek, has understandably been the focus of decades of archaeological research. Recognising Sicily’s rich prehistory and pivotal role in the history of the Mediterranean, Sebastiano Tusa - professor, head of heritage agencies and councillor for Cultural Heritage for the Sicilian Region - promoted the exploration of the island’s heritage through international collaboration. His decades of fostering research initiatives not only produced rich archaeological results spanning the Palaeolithic to the modern era but brought scholars from a range of schools and disciplines to work together in Sicily. Through his efforts, uniquely productive methodological, theoretical and interpretative networks were created. Their impact extends far beyond Sicily and Italy.

To highlight these networks and their results, the Institutum Romanum Finlandiae, the Swedish Institute in Rome, the Norwegian Institute in Rome, the British School at Rome and the Assessorato dei Beni Culturali of Sicily, with generous support from the Swedish Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, assembled this anthology of papers. The aim is to present a selection of the work of and results from contemporary, multi-national research projects in Sicily.

The collaboration between the Sicilian and international partners, often in an interdisciplinary framework, has generated important results and perspectives. The articles in this volume present research projects from throughout the island. The core of the articles is concerned with the Archaic through to the Roman period, but diachronic studies also trace lines back to the Stone Age and up to the contemporary era. A range of methods and sources are explored, thus creating an up-to-date volume that is a referential gateway to contemporary Sicilian archaeology.

Christopher Prescott is Professor in Archaeology at the University of Oslo, Norway, and Director of the Norwegian Institute in Rome (2017-2020). Arja Karivieri is Professor in Classical Archaeology and Ancient History at Stockholm University, Sweden, and Director of Institutum Romanum Finlandiae (2017-2021). Peter B. Campbell is Lecturer in Cultural Heritage Under Threat at Cranfield University. He received his PhD in Archaeology from the Centre for Maritime Studies at the University of Southampton and MA in Maritime Studies from East Carolina University. He served as a research fellow at the British School at Rome from 2017-2018 and Assistant Director for Archaeology and Archaeological Science from 2018-2020. His research broadly examines maritime connectivity and he has directed archaeological projects in seven countries, primarily in the Mediterranean, including co-directing the Egadi Islands Survey Project (Italy) and Fournoi Underwater Survey (Greece), but also research in the Atlantic and Indian oceans. Beyond maritime connectivity, Peter studies the illicit antiquities trade, research which has been used in policy papers and presented to the OSCE, INTERPOL, and UN/UNESCO. Peter is active in public engagement, publishing articles in Bloomberg, New York Times, and the Guardian, as well as recently appearing on BBC, CNN, History Channel, Discovery, and National Geographic. Kristian Göransson is Senior Lecturer in Classical Archaeology and Ancient History at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, and previous Director of the Swedish Institute of Classical Studies in Rome (2013-2019).