Survey and Settlement Reconstruction in West-Central Sardinia

Abstract

The University of Maryland-Wesleyan Survey has attempted to reconstruct the development of the countryside of Sardinia during the Roman period through the use of survey archaeology. The general assumption has been that Romanization in Sardinia produced major changes in the previous nuragic rural settlement structure. The Maryland-Wesleyan Survey selected two areas (Fordongianus and Usellus) with a strong nuragic presence and major Roman centers. The survey team found evidence for Roman-period continuity at a high percentage of nuragic sites. At the same time, the research produced little evidence for an alternative Roman rural landscape of villas and farmsteads. It appears that Roman rural Sardinia has a level of continuity from the pre-Roman period unusual for the western Roman Empire.