SOMA 2023: Proceedings of the 24th Symposium on Mediterranean Archaeology

SOMA 2023, held in Udine, explored how ideas, technologies and cultures moved across the ancient Mediterranean. Conference papers examine navigation, ports, coastal landscapes, shipbuilding, trade and underwater archaeology, highlighting innovative and interdisciplinary approaches to maritime connectivity.

The 24th Symposium on Mediterranean Archaeology (SOMA 2023), held in Udine from 2 to 4 February 2023, offered an important occasion for the international community engaged in the study of the ancient Mediterranean. The theme “Ideas that travelled by the sea” provided a broad and stimulating framework for examining the movement of knowledge, technologies and cultural practices across the region.

Contributions explored navigation, ports and landing places, coastal landscapes and maritime connectivity, with particular attention to shipbuilding traditions and ancient trade routes. Underwater archaeological research featured prominently, offering new perspectives on the dynamics of maritime interaction and on the mechanisms through which ideas, skills and materials circulated across the Mediterranean.

Organised by the Department of Humanities and Cultural Heritage of the University of Udine, in collaboration with the General Association for Mediterranean Archaeology and under the patronage of the Italian Institute of Underwater Archaeology, the Symposium brought together scholars from across the Mediterranean basin and Europe. The Proceedings gather the papers submitted after the event, presenting a representative overview of current research and illustrating the vitality and diversity of contemporary Mediterranean archaeology. SOMA 2023 emerges as a space where ideas circulated freely, continuing the long tradition of exchange that has shaped the Mediterranean world.

About SOMA 2023 

Shipwrecks and Site Investigations

Roman Period Shipwrecks off the North Shores of Ist Island – Luka Bekić

The San Nicoletto Shipwreck (Venice Lido Island). Results of Excavation Work and Documentation – Massimo Capulli

New Insights into the Alleged Roman Shipwreck ‘Aura’ off Debeli rtič (Bay of Koper, Slovenia) – Andrej Gaspari, Saša Koren, Rene Masaryk, Matej Dolenec, Andrej Šmuc, Primož Miklavc, Tomislav Popit, Maks Merela, Borut Mavrič

A 15th–17th Century Beech Logboat from Lake Bohinj (Slovenia): Wood Identification, Construction, and Function – Andrej Gaspari, Borut Slokan, Maks Merela, Metka Štrajhar

Recent Discoveries of Deep-Sea Archaeological Wrecks in Sicily: A Valorization Hypothesis – Fabrizio Sgroi

Underwater Archaeology and Nautical Technology

Medical Consultancy in the Archaeological Diving Project of the Antalya-Kumluca Bronze Age Shipwreck (2022)  – Şamil Aktaş, Bengüsu Mirasoğlu, Selin Gamze Sümen, Hakan Öniz

Reassessing Polybius’ Account of the Battle of Aegates (241 BC) Using Underwater Material Culture – Mark Davies

Implementing in situ Protection of Iron Cannon at the Cape Franina Site: Experimental Use of Cathodic Protection  – Zdenka Vrgoč

Roman-Era Northwestern Adriatic Sewn Boats: A Local Tradition Tied into the Broader Mediterranean World – Staci Willis, Massimo Capulli

Coastal Landscapes, Harbours and Ports

Submerged Baiae: The Amphitrite Project and the New Underwater Investigations in the Area North of the Channel to Baianus Lacus  – Barbara Davidde, Salvatore Medaglia, Giovanna Bucci, Maria Francesca Pipere, Alessandra Dell’Anna

Paleolandscape Dynamics of San Bartolomeo Bay (Italy–Slovenia): Geomorphological and Archaeological Evidence from the Sea-Cliff–Shore-Platform Transition Zone  – Stefano Furlani, Alberto Collodet, Stefano Devoto, Matteo Mantovani, Federica Ceccotto, Federico Bernardini

A Multidisciplinary Approach to Underwater Cultural Heritage: Case Study from the Venice Lagoon  – Fantina Madricardo, Maddalena Bassani

Three Unknown Ports from the Mediterranean  – Hakan Öniz, Ceyda Öztosun

Seascape Archaeology of the Harbour of Constantinople around Küçükçekmece Lagoon: The Perception and Conceptualization of the Sea  – Błażej M. Stanisławski

Puteoli and the Ripa Puteolana. New Underwater Research in the Portus Annonarius – Michele Stefanile, Michele Silani, Maria Luisa Tardugno

New Thoughts on the Land and Sea Routes of Ancient Knidos  – Derviş Ozan Tozluca

Trade, Ceramics and Economy

Archaic Period Ionian Non-Figurative Ceramics  – Fatma Bozdağ

Roman Period North African Imports at East Adriatic Underwater Sites  – Mladen Pešić

Knidos Late Antique Period Amphorae: Contexts and Underwater Finds  – Songül Sözel

Roman Market Integration and Transport Amphorae in the Eastern Balkans, 4th-7th c. AD: Preliminary Thoughts  – Claire Sparrow

Reflection of the Roman Cultural and Commercial Relationship Network of the Mediterranean from Andriake Amphorae  – Beste Tomay

Architecture and Society Mosaic Villa I: Iasos  – Asuman Baldiran, Burak Baldiran

Housing in the Iron Age Mediterranean from the Levant to Sicily  – Giuliana Bonanno

Reconstructing Aspects of Everyday Life in Ancient Macedonia in the Classical and Hellenistic Era – Maria Girtzi

Architecture which Travelled over the Seas: The Church in Dereağzı Case Study – Evelina Kachynska

The Granarium as a Focus of Sea-Borne Memory: The Case of Andriake – İlkiz Öztürk

Iconography, Symbolism and Small Finds

Birds on Mosaic Floors in the Southern Levant: Evidence of Mediterranean Cultural Transmission over the Generations – Lihi Habas

Archaic and Classical Lamps from Sinop Museum – Deniz Pastutmaz Sevmen, Suhal Sağlan

Archaeological and Philological Interpretation of the Globus Cruciger Symbol – Grzegorz Sus

Eros at Sea – Sema Talu

Heritage Management, Technology and Outreach

The ‘Time-Traveller’ Visits Minoan Crete: An Innovative Museological Project – Maria Girtzi, Nena Papadopoulou, Athanasia Bountidou

Collection and Analysis of Web Resources for Underwater Cultural Heritage – Lucrezia Maghet

All About Access: Overcoming Physical Barriers to Visiting Underwater Cultural Heritage Sites in Malta – Rebecca Xerri

• By (author) Massimo Capulli