Phd in PHD SCHOOL OF ARCHAEOLOGY

Thesis title: Gli spazi dei morti nella città dei vivi a Creta: evidenze funerarie e urbanistica tra V e VIII secolo d.C.

This research addresses a key theme in Late Antique archaeology: the transformation of the topographical relationship between spaces devoted to the care of the dead and the city of the living between the fifth and eighth centuries, with a regional focus on Crete. Over this period, the progressive superimposition of burials onto sectors of the Roman-classical city and their increasing co-presence with spaces of everyday life constitute a sensitive indicator of broader processes reshaping urban form. The aim is to use funerary evidence as a proxy to observe diachronic changes in settlement dynamics, the management of space, and shifting ways of perceiving and organising the urban landscape. The study is structured around two main research questions: what Late Antique funerary areas in Cretan towns are, how they are configured, and where they are located; and how their distribution can contribute to a more coherent reconstruction of insular urban space between Late Antiquity and the early Byzantine period. The work adopts a multi-scalar approach, moving from the analysis of individual contexts and formation processes (where documented) to city-scale spatial synthesis. Methodologically, it combines a bibliographic survey, field checks, excavation data, and a relational GIS designed to archive, standardise, and spatialise the funerary dataset. The results outline a non-uniform picture, in which funerary solutions fall along a continuum of management regimes and topographical organisation. At an intermediate scale between sector and settlement, the proposed typology distinguishes burial grounds associated with cult buildings, necropoleis and cemeteries not functionally dependent on ecclesiastical structures, and isolated burials or small clusters embedded within the urban and peri-urban fabric. Overall, the thesis provides a systematic repertoire and a comparative basis for further interpretation, showing how the study of funerary distributions can illuminate the transformation of Cretan cities and, more broadly, Late Antique Mediterranean urban topography.