Papers by Frances Pinnock
Atti del colloquio internazionale sulla cronologia del Levant
In the chairmanship of Asst. Prof. Dr. Şengül Aydıngün from Kocaeli University, after getting the... more In the chairmanship of Asst. Prof. Dr. Şengül Aydıngün from Kocaeli University, after getting the permission from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Turkey in 2007, a scientifi c team begun a survey to gather more information about the prehistoric periods of Istanbul/Turkey. The fi rst survey point was the Küçükçekmece Lake environment. Küçükçekmece lake is situated 20 km West of the Bosphorus, İstanbul. To the North there are small rivers feeding the lake. The two most important ones are Sazlidere and Eskinoz. The banks of these rivers near the lake had to be the most probable settlement places. The West Bank of Küçükçekmece Lake remains within the boundaries of the town of Avcilar-Firuzkoy. Our investigations brought us very important fi ndings concerning pottery and stone tools. These were similar to the Low and Upper Paleolithic stone tools and Neolithic pottery as yet unseen anywhere near Küçükçekmece. The vases were poorly fi red, hand made from black clay containing different minerals. The lack of straw in their texture made us think that these pieces might belong to a time even previous to the beginning of agriculture. The second survey point was Silivri-Danamandıra village. We found there a cave including chalcolithic pottery and some rock carvings with a man and some graffi tis at the mouth of the cave.
Cell, 2020
Here, we report genome-wide data analyses from 110 ancient Near Eastern individuals spanning the ... more Here, we report genome-wide data analyses from 110 ancient Near Eastern individuals spanning the Late Neolithic to Late Bronze Age, a period characterized by intense interregional interactions for the Near East. We find that 6th millennium BCE populations of North/Central Anatolia and the Southern Caucasus shared mixed ancestry on a genetic cline that formed during the Neolithic between Western Anatolia and regions in today's Southern Caucasus/Zagros. During the Late Chalcolithic and/or the Early Bronze Age, more than half of the Northern Levantine gene pool was replaced, while in the rest of Anatolia and the Southern Caucasus, we document genetic continuity with only transient gene flow. Additionally, we reveal a genetically distinct individual within the Late Bronze Age Northern Levant. Overall, our study uncovers multiple scales of population dynamics through time, from extensive admixture during the Neolithic period to long-distance mobility within the globalized societies of the Late Bronze Age. VIDEO ABSTRACT.
The development of the so-called “secondary” urban civilizations is related to the capacity/neces... more The development of the so-called “secondary” urban civilizations is related to the capacity/necessity to exploit ecosystems different from those created by the presence of large rivers. In north inner Syria the different ecosystems and the possibilities they offered were exploited in a most effective way, leading to the birth and development of complex urban systems, which flourished during the second half of the third and the first half of the second millennium BC. In this contribution, also the ideological and ritual relation with water is taken into account, a relation which was quite different from that of Southern Mesopotamia and was closely related with the presence of underground water
Ancient Egypt and the Surrounding World: Contact, Trade and Influence. Studies presented to Marilina Betrò, 2024
The paper analyses the development of northern Lebanon in the 3rd millennium BCE, in the frame of... more The paper analyses the development of northern Lebanon in the 3rd millennium BCE, in the frame of the elaboration of the models for the so-called ‘secondary urbanisation’. The urban planning and the architectural models elaborated in Byblos are compared with the contemporary evidence from north inner Syria and Egypt, with which Byblos was certainly in contact. The originality of the solutions elaborated in northern Lebanon and north inner Syria was the main key for the success of the urban model in regions where no important river was present.
Studia Eblaitica, 2024
The systematic excavation of Ebla, in north inner Syria, with the quantity and quality of the evi... more The systematic excavation of Ebla, in north inner Syria, with the quantity and quality of the evidence thus far brought to light for both the mature Early Syrian period (Early Bronze IVA, c. 2400–2300 BC) and the mature and late Old Syrian periods (Middle Bronze I–II, c. 2000–1600 BC), allows us to examine in a new light evidences yielded by other Syrian sites, and to reconstruct in a more complete way the overall picture of the artistic expressions of Syria between Early Bronze IVA and Middle Bronze II. In this perspective, I will examine here some Early Syrian evidence coming from two sites of upper Syria, Tell Bi‘a/Tuttul and Tell Selenkahiyeh. They are quite different in size and political role, and it might be interesting to place them
within the more general frame of the development of the artistic expressions of pre-classical Syria.
Clay Figurines in Context: Crucibles of Egyptian, Nubian, and Levantine Societies in the Middle Bronze Age (2100-1550 BC) and Beyond, 2024
During the 2006 excavation campaign at Ebla a votive deposit was found near the Middle Bronze II ... more During the 2006 excavation campaign at Ebla a votive deposit was found near the Middle Bronze II temple in Area HH, in the Lower Town east. The deposit contained, among a large amount of pottery and some clay and metal objects, a group of 226 nearly complete and fragmentary figurines made of unbaked clay. The figurines are predominantly female, very schematic, and sometimes difficult to understand, and they do not have comparisons elsewhere. In my contribution, I present this peculiar evidence, also discussing their manufacture and I relate it to the rituals that in my opinion took place in that region of the lower town of Old Syrian Ebla.
níĝ-ba dub-sar maḫ Studies on Ebla and the Ancient Near East presented to Amalia Catagnoti, 2024
The aim of this contribution is to analyse the main patterns of the private houses of Middle Bron... more The aim of this contribution is to analyse the main patterns of the private houses of Middle Bronze I-II Ebla and to try and highlight how the activities related with “private life” were not limited to the restricted spaces of the individual houses and rather entailed a rather widespread use of different spaces within and outside the town.
Kerstin Droß-Krüpe, Agnès Garcia-Ventura, Kai Ruffing and Lorenzo Verderame (Eds), Orientalist Gazes. Reception and Construction of Images of the Ancient Near East since the 17th Century, 2023
“I Passed over Difficult Mountains” Studies on the Ancient Near East in Honor of Mario Liverani, 2023
Studia Eblaitica 8, 2022
During the excavation of the structures of the North-West City Gate of Ebla (Aleppo Gate, Area DD... more During the excavation of the structures of the North-West City Gate of Ebla (Aleppo Gate, Area DD), a fragmentary clay figurine was found,which seems a miniature duplicate of the royal, nearly life-size images which decorated several parts of the town.
Studia Eblaitica 8, 2022
The archaeological excavations at Tell Mardikh, ancient Ebla, forcefully stopped in 2011 because ... more The archaeological excavations at Tell Mardikh, ancient Ebla, forcefully stopped in 2011 because of the political crisis in Syria. Immediately after, with a peak in 2018, the site suffered from illicit excavations and an extensive military occupation on its entire surface that caused heavy destruction of the buildings that were excavated and restored by the Italian expedition and severe changes of the morphology of the ancient city (particularly in the Lower Town and on the rampart). This contribution intends to offer a preliminary overview of the current situation through the analysis of satellite images and observations in the field.
Essays in Honor of Suzanne Richard, 2021
The Mummy Under the Bed, 2022
Studia Eblaitica 7, 2021
The article analyses the birth and development of the secondary urbanization in north inner Syria... more The article analyses the birth and development of the secondary urbanization in north inner Syria and the elaboration of the systems of territorial control and related symbolic imagery, with special concern for the period between Early Bronze IVA and Middle Bronze II in north inner Syria. One focus of the research is the relations between sedentary and mobile segments of the population and their strategies of adaptation to political and climatic challenges. The changes in the languages of architecture and visual art are also taken into account, with special concern for Ebla.
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Papers by Frances Pinnock
within the more general frame of the development of the artistic expressions of pre-classical Syria.
within the more general frame of the development of the artistic expressions of pre-classical Syria.
Sono queste le domande principali da cui muove il congresso che riunirà a Pisa il 5 e 6 giugno 2017 gli studiosi delle varie discipline orientalistiche del mondo antico.
Contributions by Frances Pinnock, Marta D'Andrea, Davide Nadali, Lorenzo Verderame, Anne-Caroline Rendu Loisel, Nicola Laneri, Agnese Vacca, Silvana Di Paolo, Paul Collins, Federico Buccellati, Elisabeth Wagner-Durand, Paolo Matthiae.
I Grandi Scavi rappresentano da quarant’anni una delle più rilevanti prospettive di ricerca della Sapienza. Nati per iniziativa del Rettore Antonio Ruberti, che ne intuì le rilevanti potenzialità sul piano culturale a livello nazionale ed internazionale, i Grandi Scavi, costituiti inizialmente da un numero limitato di ricerche di eccezionale importanza, sono nel tempo aumentati e oggi comprendono un elevato numero di missioni scientifiche (24), coinvolgendo un alto numero di docenti, ricercatori e studenti.
Gli scavi coprono un ambito geografico molto esteso (Italia, Vicino e Medio Oriente, Africa orientale e sahariana) e interessano un arco cronologico amplissimo, dal paleolitico al medioevo, costituendo un patrimonio eccezionale di conoscenze e pongono La Sapienza in una posizione di eccellenza nel campo dell’Archeologia, come tra l’altro confermato da ripetuti riconoscimenti internazionali, quali la costante ottima posizione nel ranking QS World University.
Alcune di queste ricerche hanno assunto una rilevante notorietà internazionale: basterebbe citare gli scavi di Arslantepe in Anatolia, di Ebla in Siria, di Mozia, di Pyrgi presso Caere, del Palatino e del Foro Romano, di Pratica di Mare, per richiamare alla mente di tutti eccezionali scoperte che hanno contribuito largamente all’affermazione della ricerca archeologica italiana. L’articolazione delle tematiche storiche ed archeologiche coinvolte nei Grandi Scavi della Sapienza è però nel suo complesso molto più ampia e riguarda tutte le grandi tappe della storia dell’umanità, delle prime forme di aggregazione sociale, alla nascita delle prime comunità agricole e delle prime società dotate di tecnologie fusorie del metallo, dalla origini delle più antiche società urbane e statali, ai grandi imperi del mondo classico e orientale, fino all’affermazione delle città comunali e dell’Europa medievale. Negli ultimi anni inoltre hanno trovato spazio anche alcune ricerche di ambito paleontologico e antropologico che ne hanno ulteriormente ampliato l’articolazione.
L’Archeologia è oramai una disciplina plurale che coinvolge anche molti altri ambiti scientifici e che dunque consente di creare sinergie ad ampio spettro all’interno e all’esterno della stessa comunità Sapienza, come dimostrano le molte collaborazioni già avviate e gli ottimi risultati raggiunti. Da questo punto di vista si auspica un rafforzamento di queste cooperazioni, con il fine di incrementare la rete di relazioni scientifiche e costituire un nucleo coeso all’interno dell’Ateneo, collocato nell’ambito di una vasta trama di relazioni con altre istituzioni di ricerca e dallo spiccato carattere interdisciplinare.
Sul piano didattico i Grandi Scavi hanno da sempre costituito una palestra insostituibile per formare sul campo generazioni di archeologi pronti ad affrontare le sfide di un mestiere tanto affascinante quanto complesso. L’ampio ventaglio dei Grandi Scavi infatti offre annualmente a centinaia di studenti un’opportunità unica nel panorama accademico nazionale ed internazionale per acquisire una professionalità di elevato livello.
Il successo ottenuto dalla Sapienza sul fronte della ricerca archeologica è stato raggiunto anche grazie alla collaborazione con il Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali e per il Turismo e al proficuo dialogo con le specifiche Soprintendenza territoriali, ma altrettanto prezioso e imprescindibile è stato il supporto del Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale per gli scavi all’Estero.
Nella prospettiva della Terza Missione la realizzazione di una pubblicazione e la sua presentazione pubblica vuole essere la testimonianza del ruolo che La Sapienza ha assunto e che intende ulteriormente incrementare, quale Università inclusiva e attenta alla ricaduta socio-culturale delle sue attività di ricerca in Italia e all’Estero, nonché degli aspetti socio-economici che tali attività assumono nei molti territori in cui opera.