2021

The seventh archaeological research campaign of the Butrint Project took place between 06th September and 1st October 2021. As per agreements with the Albanian colleagues of the Institute of Archeology of Tirana and the Butrint National Park, this campaign marked the reprise of the excavation after one year stop due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The main objective of this year's works was trying to understand how the Acropolis was structured both in the Archaic age and in the Roman-Imperial one. 

The areas involved in the excavation were four:

• Two in proximity to the areas already investigated in 2019, which means on the plateau between Room VI, Room IX and X (reference: Butrint Foundation published plans on Butrint 4), called Area 4 and 5, respectively.

• Two right next to the Medieval wall circuit: one South of Room III and West of Room V, the other at the southern end of Room XI, called Area 6 and 7, respectively. 

Investigations in all four of these areas answered the initial research questions about the Archaic and Imperial life of the Acropolis, bringing with them very promising results that the Team is currently analysing and studying for future workshops and publications. At the end of the excavation some protective interventions were carried on the most damaged walls, whose conservation was at risk, in order to preserve the structures. 

At the same time, the topographic survey of the city continued. This year, it focused on the Archaic walls surrounding the southern slope of the Acropolis, which were freed from vegetation, surveyed using the Laser Scanning methodology, analysed and described in detail.

This year the Butrint Project team has been engaged in several surveys and visits both in Albania and Greece. Among the sites visited: Phoinike, Malathrea, Cuka e Ajtoit, Dobra, Amantia, Borsh, Kalivo, Dhrovjan, the sanctuary of Dodona.

Team: Enrico Giorgi, Belisa Muka, Francesco Pizzimenti, Francesco Belfiori, Veronica Castignani, Federica Carbotti, Francesca D'Ambola, Giacomo Sigismondo, Matteo Rivoli, Matteo Tempera, Mishel Prifti, Taip Kaca, Danjela Dodaj, Matilde Guerra, Caterina Bellucci, Jacopo Bellezza, Nadia Aleotti, Fabio Fiori

Bibliography

• E. Giorgi (2022), “Another Greece. The population of northern Epirus and the genesis of Butrint in the Archaic period” in Σχήματα. La città oltre la forma. Per una nuova definizione dei paesaggi urbani e delle loro funzioni: urbanizzazione e società nel Mediterraneo pre-classico, Proceedings of the Conference organised by the University of Catania and the University of Campania - Luigi Vanvitelli, Siracusa 26-28 February 2020, pp. 461-485
• E. Giorgi, B. Muka (2023), "Sulle orme di Enea. Pascoli, laghi e città d'Epiro: le vie d'accesso a Butrinto", in Atlante Tematico di Topografia Antica, vol. 33, pp. 239-257