Da Camarina a Caucana: Ricerche di archeologia siciliana by Paola Pelagatti

BOOK REVIEWS/COMPTES RENDUS 197 the study of classical art, ending with a consideration of Victorian classicism. The twentieth century (Chapter Nine, “The Death of Classical Art”) brings a change of emphasis, with the superiority of western culture and classical art now challenged. Some space is given in this chapter to the scholar of Roman art, providing a useful, if brief historiography (230–235). Finally discussion moves to the modern museum, as represented by the Mougins Museum of Classical Art. There, an enthusiasm to juxtapose the classical with the contemporary ensures that the former maintains currency, and thus mirrors Vout’s own expert overview of the continuing importance of classical art. Sadie Pickup Da Camarina a Caucana: Ricerche di archeologia siciliana. By Paola Pelagatti . Rome: Gangemi Editore International. 2017. Pp. 590. The city of Camarina anchored a Greek presence in the southeastern corner of Sicily and flourished throughout the classical period. A secondary foundation of Syracuse from 598 b.c.e., Camarina fought with its mother city half a century later (553 b.c.e.), and developed close relations with the indigenous population who lived in the high Hyblaean plateau in the archaic period. Camarina was re-founded twice in the fifth century: first in 493 by Gela, and then again in 461 following the fall of the tyrants at Syracuse. It suffered attack by the Carthaginians in 405 and saw a revival by Timoleon in the second half of the fourth century b.c.e. Camarina was sacked by Rome in 258 b.c.e., but nearby Caucana provided continuity of occupation through the late Roman period. Camarina has received significant scholarly attention in recent years with two conferences in Italy and their proceedings.1 The volume under review is an extremely valuable addition to the scholarship of the apoikia and the territory of the province of Ragusa. Consisting of fifty-four previously published chapters, the volume presents both the development of archaeological understanding of the site and serves as a type of career retrospective of P. Pelagatti, whose prodigious work first as superintendent of eastern Sicily and later at the University of Tuscia forms the basis of understanding of much of this region. It is designed to be the first in a series of three volumes, to be followed by a book on Syracuse and Naxos and one on the conservation of cultural patrimony. The book contains five sections: (1) Camarina (ch. 1–34); (2) prehistoric and indigenous sites (ch. 35–40); (3) Santa Croce Camarina–Punta Secca–Caucana (ch. 41–46); (4) museums and preservation (ch. 47–51); and (5) history of archaeological research (ch. 52–54). Many chapters offer updated bibliography or addenda, or contain previously unpublished supplementary material (including notes from early twentieth-century excavators Paolo Orsi and Biaggio Pace). The first part is divided into three sub-sections: city, necropolis, and farmsteads (ch. 1–25); artifacts (ch. 26–31); coins (ch. 32–34). Excavation reports (starting from 1961) trace the development of understanding of the site and present evidence for elements central to the reconstruction of the city. 1 Cf. P. Pelagatti, G. Di Stefano, and L. de Lachenal (eds.), Camarina 2600 dopo la fondazione: Nuovi studi sulla città e sul territorio. (Rome 2006); M. Bonanno Aravantinos and M. Pisani (eds.), Camarina: Ricerche in corso. Atti della Giornata di Studio, Roma, 12 marzo 2013 (Temata 16; Rome 2014). 198 PHOENIX Collectively, these chapters present the principal archaeological data of Camarina (the urban grid, sanctuary with temple, fortification walls, necropoleis, the agora, and outlying sites). The residential area (ch. 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 13, 15, 16, 22) was largely brought to light through excavations beginning in the 1960s. A nucleus of houses located on the western hilltop closest to the coast (in the area of the future city blocks C7–C9) demonstrated regular alignment but did not give allowances for streets; the wide plateia must have been put in place at a later time. Pelagatti raises the question of whether the initial arrangement is similar to that at Megara Hyblaia, despite over a century separating their foundations (p. 154). The houses were situated on sterile soil indicating that there was no...

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