Potsherds, Walls, and Lions. Stato da mar, Memory and Archaeological Heritage in the Albania Veneta areas

Abstract [IT]

The Montenegrin coastal cities (Kotor, Budva, Stari Bar and Ulcinj) are commonly known as Venetian strongholds, symbols of the power of the “Serenissima” in the southern Adriatic area. The Venetian-Adriatic architectural styles, the Italian place names and the Italian material culture permeate the historical centers, and impart them a specific identity.

Today the historical identity of these centers is re-established also by recovering the “golden” Venetian time. On the contrary, the Ottoman phase are perceived in contrasting ways. Stari Bar and Ulcinj, for instance, were under the Turkish power in the 17^th century. Commonly this time has been seen as a period of decline, during which the Venetian ‘glory’ was replaced by Ottoman ‘dark ages’. It is obvious that this perception has been biased by the recent historical and political events in the Balkan area. Also in the specialized historical literature it is difficult to find a serene description of the Venetian and Ottoman period, without necessarily consider them in contrast.

The recent archaeological excavations in Stari Bar has helped a different way to define the Venetian and the Ottoman ‘rules’. They were both colonial powers which have deeply transformed the material culture of the coastal cities. For instance, the Venetian city walls, the Latin churches or the public Venetian buildings altered in a very specific way the patterns and the topography of the medieval Montenegrin cities. Newcomers and new social groups defined themselves with new spaces. In the same way, mosques, Turkish baths or new souk areas characterized the Ottoman cities. These transformations yielded to new architectonic hierarchies.

The market system and the availability of the consumption goods are strongly affected by the distribution policies of the Venetian and the Ottoman market structures. Archaeological data demonstrate how the Montenegrin cities were economically “colonized” by the Venetians before the effective annexation. Analysis of the pottery consumption evidence of the Ottoman élites during the 17^th and 18^th centuries, demonstrates both the peripheral role of the Montenegrin area in the Ottoman Empire, and the significant presence of the ‘globalized’ north European market.

The historical archaeological approach of the Adriatic coast is still at the beginning. Many centers are rich of undiscovered archaeological “archives” regarding  the post-medieval period. According to what is known, for instance, about the Stari Bar’s deposits  there is a massive potential research which could shine a light into the consumption of various types of products  from different socio economic groups within the late Venetian and the Ottoman empire.