Byzantine Butrint

by Hodges, Richard; Bowden, William; Lako, Kosta; Andrews, Richard

• ISBN13: 9781842171585
• ISBN10: 1842171585
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-03-31
• Publisher: Oxbow Books Ltd

Summary

The ancient walled town of burtint sits at the crossroads of the Mediterranean. In its heyday it could command sea-routes up the Adriatic Sea to the north, across the Mediterranean to the west, and south through the lonian islands. It also controlled a land-route into the mountainous Balkan interior, For much of its long history it occupied a hill on a bend in the Vivari Channel, which connects the Straits to the large inland lagoon of Lake Burtint. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage sit in 1992, Butrint covers an area of around 16 ha, but geophysical survey has shown that at times it was almost twice this size. The site itself is made up of two parts: the acropolis and the lower city. The acropolis is a long narrow hill, whose sides are accentuated by a circuit of walls that separate it from the natural and artificial terraces gathered around the flanks of the hill. The lower city occupies the lower-lying contours down to the edge of the Vivari Channel. This book brings to life this extraordinary Byzantine town, with chapters on the historical sources, various aspects of the archacological excavation and survey, finds of pottery and environmental remains.

Table of Contents

List of contributors	p. vii
Introduction	p. 1
Context
The historical sources for Butrint in the Middle Ages	p. 20
The environs of Butrint 1: the 1995-96 environmental survey	p. 27
The environs of Butrint 2: the 1995-96 field survey	p. 47
The geophysical survey: the extent and structural layout of the suburbs of Butrint on the Vrina Plain	p. 64
The topography of Butrint	p. 76
The Christian topography of Butrint	p. 104
The late antique and medieval fortifications of Butrint	p. 126
Excavations in the Walled Town
Excavations at the Triconch Palace	p. 151
The Baptistery	p. 176
The mosaic pavements of the Baptistery	p. 202
Trial excavations within the city	p. 219
The Finds
The Roman pottery from the Trionch Palace	p. 224
The medieval amphorae	p. 270
The medieval and post-medieval fine wares and cooking wares from the Triconch Palace and the Baptistery	p. 278
The small finds and coins	p. 293
The faunal remains	p. 305
Conclusions
Byzantine Butrint: concluding remarks	p. 321
Appendices
Catalogue of Roman ceramics and selected medieval pottery from Butrint 1994-99	p. 327
Holocene environmental change at Butrint: a preliminary evaluation of alluvial sediments using archaeomagnetic dating	p. 396
Three buckles from the late antique period	p. 398
The geophysical trial trench on the Vrina Plain	p. 400
Bibliography	p. 401
Index	p. 418
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