Riflessioni sulla cultura materiale a Butrinto. Nuovi contesti medievali dall'acropoli

The archaeological investigation conducted within the Butrint Project, jointly directed by the University of Bologna and the Institute of Archaeology of Tirana, has yielded new data on the Medieval phases of the city’s acropolis. In particular, the trial trenches excavated in 2023 in the central-southern sector provided significant new evidence for Early Medieval occupation in this area (6th-7th centuries AD). The analysis of the transport containers recovered from these levels has made it possible to reconstruct the main commercial routes, revealing preferential connections with the eastern Mediterranean, especially Greece and the Anatolian peninsula. These findings further corroborate the intensification of trade networks in the Ionian area during this period, a phenomenon already documented in other Early Medieval contexts at Butrint and, more broadly, across the Epirote region.