Il Progetto Sarcapos: un porto fluviale di età fenicia e punica lungo la costa orientale della Sardegna

The ancient settlement of Sarcapos is usually counted among the most important river ports of the Phoenician and Punic world, though little remains known on the archaeological level. Since 2017, it has been the subject of a systematic research programme conducted by the University of Bologna in accordance with the competent Superintendency and the Municipality of Villaputzu. The programme explores the chronological, topographical and urban definition of the settlement, as well as the reconstruction of the coastal landscape at the mouth of the Flumendosa river, based on geophysical surveys, geomorphological analyses and regular excavation campaigns. Among the notable discoveries thus far is a building from the Punic-Roman period (3rd-2nd century BC), equipped with a winemaking installation, which was also used to produce other fermented fruit-beverages. On the other hand, the geomorphological study indicates that in the 1st millennium BC, the coastline reached considerably further back than the present, placing the site within a coastal inlet that had an extensive lagoon system and a large river estuary with one or more openings to the sea.