The first English-language survey of medieval and modern Sardinia, this volume offers access to long-awaited European scholarship on a critical missing link in the Mediterranean. Based on new archaeological fieldwork and current research from a variety of academic perspectives— architecture, colonialism, ecclesiastic history, cartography, demography, law, musicology, politics, trade, and urban planning—the authors provide the foundation to incorporate Sardinia into a broader European history. Among other contributions, archaeology adds critical insight into the relationship between Christian, Muslim, and Jewish inhabitants of Sardinia, through examinations of urban and rural settlement patterns. This volume aims to stimulate further analysis of the critical role Sardinia has played as one of the largest and most strategically located islands in the Mediterranean.
Contributors are Laura Biccone, Nathalie Bouloux, Henri Bresc, Marco Cadinu, Roberto Coroneo, Laura Galoppini, Henrike Haug, Michelle Hobart, Rossana Martorelli, Giampaolo Mele, Marco Milanese, Giovanni Murgia, Gian Giacomo Ortu, Daniela Rovina, Olivetta Schena, Cecilia Tasca, Raimondo Turtas, and Corrado Zedda.
Michelle Hobart, Ph.D. (2006) Institute of Fine Arts, New York University, and Adjunct Associate Professor at the Cooper Union for the Advancement of the Science and Art in New York, is an archaeologist and architectural historian specializing in the medieval history of the Mediterranean; forthcoming publications include A Frontier Castle in Southern Etruria: Final Report of the Archaeological research at Capalbiaccio/Tricosto (Grosseto, Italy) (1976 - 2010).
"A Companion to Sardinian History will guide non-Italian researchers in finding new lines of inquiry into a burgeoning subject, with scholarship that goes beyond the "traditional" works of the last century. Graduate students and medievalists who begin to consider Sardinia will find this collection particularly revealing, as it exemplifies central but still challenging themes. [...] the overall contribution of this book deserves serious consultation by any student or scholar interested in the medieval Mediterranean, as it illuminates an island that has been frequently marginalised from historical consideration. The many threads in this book allow it to accomplish its original aim: to dispense with a unifying narrative and produce a multivocal perspective of Sardinia’s medieval and early modern history". Hervin Fernández-Aceves, in Mittelalter, 2020.
AcknowledgementsList of Figures and PlatesNotes on ContributorsSardinia as a Crossroads in the Mediterranean: An IntroductionMichelle Hobart
Setting the Scene
1 Archives and Documents Pertaining to the History of Medieval SardiniaOlivetta Schena 2 Sardinia in Geographical Descriptions and Maps from the Middle AgesNathalie Bouloux
History
3 Overview of Sardinian History (500–1500)Laura Galoppini 4 A Revision of Sardinian History between the Eleventh and Twelfth CenturiesCorrado Zedda 5 Medieval and Modern Sicily and the Kingdoms of Sardinia and CorsicaHenri Bresc 6 Jews in Sardinia: From Antiquity to the Edict of Expulsion of 1492Ceclia Tasca 7 The Sardinian ChurchRaimondo Turtas 8 The Struggle for Sardinia in the Twelfth Century: Textual and Architectural Evidence from Genoa and PisaHenrike Haug 9 Establishing Power and Law in Medieval and Modern SardiniaGian Giacomo Ortu 10 Spanish Sardinia: Conflicts and AlliancesGiovanni Murgia
Archaeology
11 Contribution of Archaeology to Medieval and Modern SardiniaMarco Milanese 12 CagliariRossana Martorelli 13 SassariDaniela Rovina 14 Catalan Alghero: Historical Perspectives from the Vantage Point of Medieval ArchaeologyMarco Milanese 15 Medieval and Early Modern PotteryLaura Biccone 16 Fashion and JewelryDaniela Rovina
Culture
17 A Historical Overview of Musical Worship and Culture in Medieval SardiniaGiampaolo Mele 18 Architecture in Sardinia from the Fifth to the Sixteenth CenturiesRoberto Coroneo 19 Urban Planning and New Towns in Medieval SardiniaMarco Cadinu
Appendices
TimelineGlossaryBibliographyIndex
Of interest to undergraduate, graduate, and post-doctoral historians and scholars in the fields of history, economics, archaeology, art and architectural history, religion, Islamic and Jewish studies, urban planning, cartography, musicology, law.