Libye

Fighting at Lepcis Magna: Libyan War Archaeology.
Just 100 years ago, declaring war on Turkey for the conquest of the Ottoman provinces of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica, Italy started one of the last great colonial wars (the last should have been Mussolini’s war against Ethiopia in 1935-1936). During this conflict, the outskirts of the small village of Lebda were the location of bloody battles. The Italian troops landed at Khoms on the 21st of October 1911 and conquered the dominant hill of Ras el-Mergheb on the 27th of February 1912, but bloody fights occurred again on the 5th-6th of March, when Arab-Turks came back in order to recover the strategic position. After the Italian occupation of the ruins of Lebda (Lepcis Magna) on the 2nd of May, the opposing troops clashed on the ancient agger of Monticelli on the 12th of June. The location of Italian strongholds and the lines of Arab-Turkish attacks were roughly known through the contemporary military accounts. The more precise locations of the battlefields were accidentally recorded in one of the samples of the multi-period archaeological survey which the University of Roma Tre has conducted in the territory of Lepcis Magna since 1995. Classical and medieval archaeologists have had to examine the military evidence for more modern conflict archaeology. The discovery of elements of the munitions supplied to the two armies made it possible to identify their positions in the field. Surface finds included cartridge cases and bullets of the Italian guns Vetterli Vitali mod. 1870/87 and Carcano mod. 1891, of which there were also brass stripper clips, and the Turkish Mauser M1887. Fragments of shells and numerous shrapnel lead balls testify to the widespread use of artillery.

È dal 1995 che la missione archeologica dell'Università Roma Tre conduce ricognizioni nel territorio di Leptis Magna (Libia). Ad oggi sono stati indagati oltre 100 km2 e documentati oltre 450 siti. Sulla base di tale ingente corpus documentario si traccia una sintesi preliminare sull’evoluzione del paesaggio rurale tripolitano tra le età tardoantica e ottomana. I dati raccolti permettono di rilevare non solo alternanze congiunturali di crescita e contrazione, ma anche trasformazioni dei sistemi insediativo-produttivi, in cui varie gamme di agricoltura e pastoralismo si avvicendano e talvolta convivono, anche in funzione dell’apertura del territorio al mercato regionale e mediterraneo. La sostanziale sopravvivenza del sistema rurale antico, incentrato su ville-fattorie dotate di torcularia per la produzione olearia, alcune delle quali tra IV e V secolo attrezzate per la difesa, entra in crisi dalla metà del V secolo, quando gli insediamenti si riducono drasticamente fin quasi a scomparire nel corso del VII secolo, lasciando immaginare la riconversione della popolazione sopravvissuta al nomadismo. Un sistema agro-pastorale si riforma nei secoli aglabiti e fatimiti, quando villaggi fortificati e torri-granaio popolano il wadi Taraglat, servendo di rifornimento e stoccaggio alle carovaniere verso Lebda. Ad un possibile intervallo nomadico-pastorale, forse spiegabile con lo spostamento delle direttrici carovaniere, segue, con la conquista ottomana, la formazione di quel paesaggio di villaggi e marabutti, che apparirà ai viaggiatori europei.

Rural Tripolitania in the Late Antique, Medieval and Ottoman Periods in the light of recent archaeological surveys in the region of Leptis Magna
Since 1995 the Archaeological Mission of University of Roma Tre has conducted surveys in the territory of Leptis Magna (Libya). To date, more than 450 sites have been surveyed in an area of about 100 Sq.Km. Based on this collection of data, an outline can be drawn as a preliminary synthesis about the Tripolitanian rural landscape from the Late-Antique to the Ottoman period. The data gathered not only make it possible to distinguish alternate phases of growth and contraction, but also to emphasize the changes in the productive and settlement system in which different modes of agriculture and sheep-farming alternated or even coexisted, due to the opening of the Tripolitanian market to the regional areas and to the Mediterranean. The survival of the ancient rural system, based on villae-farms with torcularia for the olive oil production (several of these sites in the 4th and 5th century were equipped with defensive structures), went into a decline starting in the second half of the 5th century, and settlements were reduced dramatically and almost disappeared in the 7th century when most of the surviving population probably became nomadic. New agricultural and pastoralism systems developed in the Aghlabid and Fatimid periods, when fortified villages and tower-granaries were scattered over the wadi Taraglat landscape and also acted as restocking and warehouse depots for the convoys leading to Lebda. After a possible nomadic interlude, maybe due to the shift in trade routes, with the Ottoman domination a new system of villages and marabouts was born and this was the landscape found by the European travelers.

The relationships between human modification of the environment and natural events in the Roman city of Leptis Magna (UNESCO world heritage), western Libya, are analyzed. For the first time, the history of Leptis Magna is tested against a geomorphological and stratigraphical reconstruction and radiocarbon dating.

Historical and archaeological interpretations or analyses indicate the occurrence of different extreme natural events as the cause of the town’s decline: earthquakes, flooding, and tsunami. Geological and geomorphological surveys investigated the dynamics of the nearby Wadi Lebda, a major dryland stream that forms the depositional and erosional systems of the settlement area. Alluvial phases were studied by applying traditional stratigraphic analyses of outcrops and hand-cores. Additionally, the mapped flights of inset terrace surfaces provided insights into the human modifications of the natural depositional/erosional environment during historical times and the following alluvial phases affecting the Leptis Magna harbor.

The results integrate the archaeological knowledge by providing some independent chronological constraints, and indicate that Leptis Magna history was tightly linked to the Wadi Lebda. Aware of the hazards related to devastating flooding, the Romans were able to cope with the threat posed by the wadi by performing engineering defensive hydraulic works around the town (dam and artificial channels). Once the economic decay began and the society could no longer guarantee the ongoing maintenance of these structures, the decline of the settlement started and the occurrence of destructive floods reclaimed the populated areas. Conversely, the occurrence of a large earthquake (365 CE), or of a tsunami that caused the disruption of the hydraulic systems and the infill of the harbor, has been discarded as primary cause of the decline of Leptis Magna.

Climate change and the emerging carbon-constrained economy of the 21st Century present new challenges and opportunities for countries of the Middle East and North Africa. This paper discusses the potential for Libya to participate in the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), the main flexibility mechanism of the Kyoto Protocol, which is designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote sustainable development. The paper considers the interaction of Libya's history and socio-cultural characteristics with global policy dynamics and economic forces. Libya's geography presents considerable potential in terms of CDM project opportunities, yet key developments would be required before these could be exploited. The nature of Libya's political system and social structures suggest that these developments are unlikely to occur while the Qadhafi regime endures, and therefore that Libya will not be able to engage successfully with the CDM and international mitigation activities in the short term. However, the CDM represents a means to implement capacity building and technical development programs, which will be integral components of reconstruction strategy in the aftermath of the dramatic events of early 2011.

Le changement climatique et le «carbon-constrained economy» du 21ème siècle présente quelques nouveaux défis et opportunités pour les pays du Moyen-Orient et de l’Afrique du Nord. Cet article examine le potentiel de la Libye à participer au Mécanisme de Développement Propre (MDP), le principal mécanisme de flexibilité du Protocole de Kyoto, qui vise à réduire les émissions de C02 et de promouvoir le développement durable. L’article examine l'interaction de l'histoire de la Libye et sa caractéristiques socio-culturelles avec la dynamique politique globale et les forces économiques. Les conditions géographiques de la Libye présente un potentiel considérable en termes de possibilités de projets MDP, mais les développements clés seraient nécessaires avant que ceux-ci pourraient être exploitées. La nature du système politique de la Libye et les structures sociales donnent à penser que ces évolutions ne sont pas susceptibles de se produire pendant la durée du régime de Kadhafi, et donc que la Libye ne sera pas en mesure d'engager avec succès les activités d'atténuation du MDP et internationaux à court terme. Toutefois, le MDP est un moyen de mettre en oeuvre le renforcement des capacités et programmes de développement technique, qui sera partie intégrante de la stratégie de reconstruction à la suite des événements dramatiques du début de 2011.

El cambio climático y el «carbon-constrained economy» limitada del siglo 21 presentan nuevos desafíos y oportunidades para los países de Oriente Medio y África del Norte. En este trabajo se analiza la posibilidad de que Libia a participar en el Mecanismo para un Desarrollo Limpio (MDL), el principal mecanismo de flexibilidad del Protocolo de Kyoto, que está diseñado para reducir las emisiones de C02 y promover el desarrollo sostenible. En el documento se considera la interacción de la historia de Libia y las características socio-culturales con la dinámica de la política mundial y las fuerzas económicas. Geografía de Libia presenta un potencial considerable en términos de oportunidades de proyectos MDL, sin embargo, los principales acontecimientos que se requiere antes de que estos podrían ser explotados. La naturaleza del sistema político de Libia y las estructuras sociales sugieren que estos acontecimientos es poco probable que ocurra mientras que el régimen de Gadafi perdura, y por lo tanto que Libia no podrá participar con éxito en las actividades de mitigación del MDL e internacional en el corto plazo. Sin embargo, el MDL representa un medio para poner en práctica la creación de capacidades y programas de desarrollo técnico, que será parte integrante de la estrategia de reconstrucción a raíz de los dramáticos acontecimientos de principios de 2011.