A study published in the journal iScience reveals that Ischia was home to a diverse community of Greeks, Phoenicians, and Italians in the 8th century BCE. The research demonstrating that the island was a meeting place for these groups and played a fundamental role in shaping cultural interactions in the western Mediterranean during the early Iron Age.
Led by the University of Padova, the study involved collaboration from the University of Bologna, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Museum of Civilizations in Rome, Ministry of Culture, University L'Orientale of Naples, and Sapienza University of Rome. Researchers analyzed human remains from the necropolis of Pithekoussai—the ancient name of Ischia—using strontium isotope analysis on teeth and bones.
Euboean Greeks established the colony of Pithekoussai on Ischia, which became the first Greek settlement in the western Mediterranean Sea and a melting pot of cultural groups. On the island, Greek, Phoenician, and Italian immigrants coexisted in a complex and cosmopolitan society, contributing to the emergence of Magna Graecia.
"Thanks to the analysis of the strontium isotopic ratio, our study has identified an important component of foreigners at Pithekoussai, revealing a strongly heterogeneous society in which newcomers, namely Greeks, Phoenicians, and Italians, coexisted and interacted, contributing to the formation of a multifaceted and cosmopolitan social identity," said Melania Gigante from the University of Padova, according to ANSA.
The researchers examined the remains of over 50 individuals found in the necropolis, including both buried and cremated individuals. The analysis revealed the complexity of cultural and biological interactions at this key site for the birth of Magna Graecia. The results confirmed that Ischia not only received immigrants from early times but also became a center of biocultural integration.
The study suggests that not only male traders and merchants traveled to settle on Ischia, but women were also integral to the migratory process, indicating equitable participation in cultural and commercial exchanges.
"This integration of archaeological, anthropological, and biogeochemical data allowed us to reconstruct the movements and interactions between the peoples who populated the island of Ischia with a level of detail never reached before, confirming the image of a Mediterranean of dialogue and mobility during the first millennium BCE," said Carmen Esposito of the University of Bologna, according to ANSA.
One of the most emblematic discoveries in the necropolis of Pithekoussai is the tomb containing the Cup of Nestor, an artifact with one of the oldest known inscriptions in the Greek alphabet. For years, scholars have debated the identity of the individual buried alongside the Cup of Nestor. Now, isotope analyses have determined that at least one of the individuals in the tomb was born on the island itself, reinforcing the idea of a community that not only absorbed external influences but also had a stable local base.
The inscription on the cup refers to the famous chalice of the Homeric hero Nestor, making the Cup of Nestor a key testament to the spread of Greek writing and culture in the West.
The article was written with the assistance of a news analysis system.