Water harvesting on Pantelleria Island. Archaeological survey and analysis of the bottle-shaped cisterns

The history of Pantelleria is deeply conditioned by the lack of water. Because of the climatic and environmental conditions, since the Bronze Age to present the settlement development on the island is related to the digging of underground structures for collecting and storing water. This paper presents the results of an intensive survey of the cisterns carried out throughout the island. The main challenge for the typological-chronological attribution of the cisterns will be discussed, as well as the distribution of the bottle-shaped cisterns. The latter will be analysed in relation to both the archaeological data available from field survey and the results of the recent excavations at the Acropolis and Scauri Scalo. Finally, the case of Pantelleria will be compared with other Punic and Roman Mediterranean settlements where the cisterns played a fundamental role in the supply of water.