Il fortuito rinvenimento, in una discarica di terreno proveniente da vecchi edilizi scavi eseguiti probabilmente negli anni ’80 del secolo scorso nella moderna cittadina di Caronia Marina (Sicilia, ME), di materiale frammentario databile principalmente tra la seconda metà del VI e il V secolo a.C., ha offerto nuovi spunti di studio per la comprensione delle modalità con cui venne condotta la colonizzazione greca lungo la costa tirrenica siciliana. Soprattutto la preponderante presenza di anfore da trasporto arcaiche e classiche ha suggerito l’esistenza, nel sito della città ellenistico-romana di Kalè Akté – Calacte, di un insediamento greco precedente con funzioni di “emporion”, ovvero una stazione commerciale gestita dalla colonia di Zancle-Messina utile all’esercizio dei traffici commerciali che interessavano l’area tirrenica e che si indirizzavano in parte verso i centri indigeni ricadenti nell’area dei Monti Nebrodi. Si presentano in via preliminare alcuni materiali e si formulano nuove ipotesi non solo sulla prima frequentazione del sito di Kalè Akté ma anche sulla presenza greca lungo la costa settentrionale della Sicilia

The ongoing study of the rich cemetery of Siderospilia near Prinias reveals new, interesting, data on a little known area of central Crete at the beginning of the Early Iron Age. The tombs of the Protogeometric phase (970-840 BC) were concentrated on a rocky rise in the north-eastern quadrant of the necropolis. The place-name Siderospilia (Iron cave) may be linked to the discovery, in the past, of one or more tombs containing a large amount of iron objects, above all weapons (e.g. Tomb J). The presence of several (at least 20) tombs of horses and dogs not associated with human remains, dating since the Protogeometric period, is the main feature of the Siderospilia cemetery. This evidence validates the hypothesis of a Cretan origin of the mortuary practices - in particular the killing of horses and dogs - described by Homer in connection with the funeral of Patroclus. The reflection of Cretan burial customs in such an important event of the Iliad is a first, important, indication of the projection of Crete towards the "outside world". Ceramics and metal objects testify to specific connections with the Greek continent, with Cyprus and with Egypt. The products imported from these areas are often prestige goods that only the wealthy local elites could afford. The social need to exhibit these products in the context of expensive mortuary practices can be considered the driving force of the interconnections with the "outside world". The central position of the anonymous settlement, on the route connecting the northern and southern coasts of central Crete, made easier such contacts. Given these premises, the settlement on the Patela hill had to play a non-secondary role as a receiver and processor of cultural impulses coming from the "outside world". This will be visually evident, in the next Protogeometric B phase, thanks to the rich non-native decorative repertoire that will merge in the local pottery.

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The excavation of the ancient Bronze Age settlement situated on the island of Pantelleria, in the center of the Sicily’s channel, has been in progress since 2001, thanks to the collaboration between the Soprintendenza Archeologica of Trapani and the Dipartimento di Archeologia of the University of Bologna. The settlement site, known since the end of the XIX century and partially excavated in the last century, has been systematically the object of investigation and study over the past decade. New research activities have underlined the importance of the site, both from an archaeological point of view, for the maintenance of its structures, and from an historical point of view, for its location in the centre of Mediterranean Sea in a period of intense maritime traffic.