Mission franco-albanaise du Bassin de Korçë C.N.R., Roma

The project runs in collaboration with the Mission franco-albanaise du Bassin de Korçë co-directed by P. Lera and G. Touchais until 2017 and now by C. Oberweiler and R. Kurti, focuses on the petrographic study of Bronze Age pottery from the lakeside settlement of Sovian. The site is located in southeast Albania close to the modern village of Maliq. The preservation of the site’s material remains is exceptional. Due to the former lake and marsh environment, the high-water table produced favourable anaerobic conditions for the preservation of a wide range of organic remains. A selection of pottery fragments covering all layers from the Early Bronze Age to the abandonment of the site in the Early Iron Age (2400 – 700 BC) have been selected for petrographic analysis. In combination with a larger scale pXRF analysis campaign, which included nearby clay resources, new insights into local pottery technology are expected. Additionally, to the fragments from Sovjan, four sherds of local matt painted ware were sampled from the neighbouring site of Maliq, allowing a first comparison between the two sites. Finally, yet importantly, the inclusion of a few Mycenaean fragments and of a sherd with incrusted decoration will shed light on long distance contacts.