Changes in the intercultural relations of local communities in medieval Sicily after the Norman Conquest in the light of
archaeological research (on the example of the Altavilla Milicia area)
The project concerned the history of a local cult centre established at the beginning of the Norman conquest of Sicily, an Italo-Greek
monastery is known as Santa Maria di Campogrosso. One of the aims was to determine, based on material culture research and
information from written sources, how relations between different religious, ethnic and cultural groups developed in the period after
the Norman conquest of Sicily in the eastern area periphery Palermo. As a result of the acquisition of many material sources and
the necessary analyses, it was possible to confirm the hypothesis of a faster and more profound process of Latinisation and
Christianisation of this part of the island after the Norman conquest than the historical literature assumes. This is indicated by the
apparent western European cultural influence evident in the church's architecture, the patterns of which can be traced back to France,
possibly even directly to Normandy (Saint-Céneri-le-Gérei). In the period before the archaeological investigations carried out by
the project, the church of Santa Maria di Campogrosso was reconstructed, according to the prevailing paradigm, as a conglomerate
of northern influences with Byzantine and Arab influences. However, both in the architecture and among the numerous finds from
the site, there are no clear elements of Byzantine or Arabic culture (the exception being a fragment of a tombstone with an Arabic
inscription) and several William I and II coins with Arabic inscriptions.
During the three years of excavation, about 250 m2 at a depth of 1 to 2 metres were excavated. As a result, numerous valuable
artefacts were recovered, and many hitherto unknown architectural elements of the church, essential for the reconstruction of its
original shape, were uncovered. These excavations were one of the few regular excavations of a Sicilian archaeological site from
the Norman period.
An accurate spatial model of the site and its surroundings was created using drone photography and several hundred GPS-RTK
measurements.
Non-invasive geo-radar, magnetic and electrical resistivity surveys revealed the remains of the monastery walls in the area south of
the church.
The stratigraphic method, analysis of a rich assemblage of coins, the radiocarbon dating of lime mortar from the church walls, and
human bone remain from the cemetery made it possible to establish the chronology of the construction of the church to the 2nd half
of the 12th century. Such dating undermines both the theses of modern historians (Fazello, Pirri), who consider the church to be the
work of the first Norman rulers in Sicily and those of architectural historians (Schwarz, Guiotto, Di Stefano), who conclude, based
on the form of the preserved walls, a later, thirteenth- or fourteenth-century chronology. Inside the masonry church, the remains of
a post structure with timber and brick construction and a radiocarbon chronology dating to the second half of the 11th century were
discovered, which can be interpreted as the primary monastery church. It is the first such structure of medieval church building discovered in Sicily and one of the few known in western Europe. Previously unknown architectural elements of the masonry church were discovered, indicating the existence of two towers. The discoveries of probable towers juxtaposed with the high location of a
few narrow window openings confirm the assumptions about the building's defensive character. It seems understandable because of
the island's armed conquest and the growing economic exploitation of its inhabitants, sometimes encountering resistance. Eighty-eight
coins were discovered, which constitute a valuable source for Sicily's history of money circulation. It is all the more valuable
that among the known medieval coins discovered in Sicily so far, only a few have been found in situ during regular excavations.
The analysis of coins helps establish the chronology of the masonry church's use from the 12th to the 17th century.
A cemetery was discovered by the southern wall of the church with about 40 burials. The discovered bone remains were used for
radiocarbon dating of the site. Strontium isotope analyses were also carried out. As a result, two groups of individuals were found
buried here: newcomers and locals. Anthropological study of the skeletons also supports their origin from outside Sicily.
Another achievement of the project is the start of regular, long-term Polish archaeological mediaeval research in Sicily and extensive
scientific contacts with local scientists.
A significant achievement of the project is creating the website www.santamariadicampogrosso.com containing a wealth of
information on the project and its results and dedicated databases on the excavations' effects. A dynamic e-publication of the
research results has also been created on this portal, consisting mainly of articles by the young researchers involved in the project.
These are open articles, which means that during the project, but also after its completion, their content can be modified and
supplemented as new archaeological facts or new results of the queries appear.