Archaeology of former and historical urban landscapes in the Mediterranean world: current trends and future perspectives

The present contribution discusses archaeological survey, drawing attention to the gap between the development and implementation or archaeological research within former townscapes as compared with historical urban landscapes in the Mediterranean area. The first part of the discussion summarises the development of landscape studies and survey methods during the last century, critically highlighting the outcomes and limitations of past experiences. The paper then presents some results of the Emptyscapes Project based on two urban areas, at Veii and Rusellae in Italy. Among the first outcomes of the project we have made it possible to challenge past landscape and theoretical paradigms, moving towards a more complex and comprehensive understanding of ancient urban layout including transformations across time and the blurring of boundaries between urban and rural environments. Finally, the paper introduces a new research project named SOS which is aimed, to a certain extent, to build upon the experience developed in previous survey work in urban and formerly urban areas and within historical towns, with particular regard to a case study in Siena.