Ceramic assemblages from late antique destruction deposits at Campanaio (Sicily)

This data note presents a newly compiled dataset generated within the framework of a multidisciplinary study conducted as part of a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Global Fellowship funded by the European Commission. The dataset derives from a substantial assemblage of previously unpublished ceramic material recovered from well-preserved destruction deposits across four distinct areas of the rural settlement of Campanaio (Agrigento Province, Sicily, Italy).

The richness and diversity of the assemblage indicate a marked increase in African imports—particularly amphorae—during the fifth century CE. This detailed evidence raises renewed questions concerning the precise dating and character of the destruction event, while highlighting the pivotal role played by Campanaio within regional and Mediterranean-wide trade networks. The evidence broadly aligns with established models of Late Antique economic patterns in rural Sicily, yet also points to a gradual transition at the settlement from a production-focused agricultural economy (largely based on wine and oil) to one increasingly oriented towards consumption of imported goods during the course of the fifth century, when the site’s wealth may have been generated by an increased emphasis on grain production.

The original data were collected by the late Roberta Tomber during the Campanaio Project (1994–2001) and subsequently shared with Fabrizio Ducati for further research, who has restudied the material and increased the information to be gleaned from it. The legacy archive has now been standardised and transformed into a structured dataset, facilitating future analyses, enabling broader archaeological interpretation, and ensuring full adherence to FAIR data principles.

Many rural settlements from the Late Antique period are known in Sicily, especially along the central southern coast of the island. Archaeological evidence shows a clear peak in their prosperity during the fifth century CE, abruptly ended by widespread destruction, at least at some sites. Although this pattern appears repeatedly, the reasons behind the growth and its abrupt end, as well as the chronology of the destruction (not necessarily the same at all sites), are still debated by archaeologists and historians.

Campanaio provides an important case study within this broader landscape. Excavations revealed a flourishing rural settlement occupied from the second century BCE until the sixth century CE, but apparently with some breaks in occupation, at any rate in the part of the site sampled for excavation. In the second half of the fifth century, a sudden and extensive destruction event caused several structures to collapse, including a domestic dwelling and two buildings that may have functioned as warehouses. These deposits consisted of widespread falls of roof tiles sealing below them large quantities of amphorae—ceramic containers used in antiquity to transport oil, wine, and fish products—most of which were imported from north Africa.

This evidence raises key questions that also concern other sites in Sicily. What caused the dramatic destruction? Could it be linked to the Vandals, who established a kingdom in North Africa in 429 CE and raided Sicily periodically between 440 and 476 CE? If so, how do we explain the continued arrival of African amphorae at Campanaio—even though evidence suggests that the settlement had produced its own oil and wine in the later fourth century?

This dataset contains quantitative and qualitative information that helps shed light on the transformation of rural Sicilian communities and on the economic connections between Sicily and North Africa during Late Antiquity.