Urban Planning And New Towns In Medieval Sardinia 499
prelude to a major crisis that saw their disappearance or physical reduction.
In 534 AD, at the end of the Roman Empire, and following the Vandal occupa-
tion of the island, Sardinia became an important garrison for the Byzantine
Empire. Many ancient cities flourished, including Cagliari, Tharros, Nora,
Fordongianus, and Cornus. Sardinian society was still rich in settlements and
infrastructure that managed the island’s agricultural territory well. But the re-
currence of Islamic incursions, in particular from 709–710 AD on, witnessed
the destruction of major cities and created conditions for more intense Islamic
frequentation.4 The interruption of Byzantine coinage on the island in 720 AD,
after the temporary transfer of the mint from Carthage to Cagliari following
the collapse of the African exarchate in 698, was a clear sign of the Byzantine
political crisis. The decrease in the presence of bishops or the abandonment of
many of their seats confirmed the disintegration of central power in the early
eighth century.5 In 752, a gizyah recorded the Sardinian capitulation of per
capita taxation, for which there are no clear indications as to geographical ex-
tent and duration. More, less well-documented invasions followed this event.
This began a long period in which Islamic power in Sardinia arguably shaped
the island’s urban fabric, perhaps together with other elements anchored in the
Byzantine tradition.6 There are sufficient reasons to believe that the Islamic
4 For the widespread urbanization in the Roman period and its connections with Punic cit-
ies and ports, see Attilio Mastino, Mare Sardum: merci, mercati e scambi marittimi della
Sardegna antica (Rome, 2005). A complete overview of the cultural density in Byzantine
Sardinia, including in relationship with North African and eastern politics, can be found in
Pier Giorgio Spanu, La Sardegna bizantina tra VI e VII secolo (Oristano, 1998). Traditionally
the series of historically documented Arab incursions were always interpreted as short-lived
raids. Mahdia, the most important Mediterranean naval base, for Kairouan, founded in 670
AD and separated from Sardinia by 185 km of sea, as well as 55 km of African land—can be
considered the premise for the island’s decisive penetration and colonization, or at least the
reason for intense cultural exchanges between Sardinian society and the Maghreb.
5 Addressing the waning of the early Christian world in Sardinia see Marco Cadinu, Urbanistica
medievale in Sardegna (Rome, 2001), p. 19. On the question of the bishops, see Cadinu,
Urbanistica medievale, p. 19. Zedda and Pinna, “La nascita dei giudicati,” p. 53. As to the lack
of coinage during the years 717–720 AD, see Enrico Piras, Le monete della Sardegna dal IV
secolo AC al 1842 (Sassari, 1996), p. 10.
6 The conditions in Sardinia are comparable to those of other Mediterranean islands, like
Cyprus, where the concomitance of Arab and Byzantine influences led to territorial subdivi-
sions or to double taxation; see André Guillou, “La lunga età bizantina: politica ed economia,”
in Storia dei Sardi e della Sardegna, edited by Massimo Guidetti (Milan, 1988–1990), pp. 333–
- For an innovative interpretation, which takes into account the relative wealth of mate-
rial and cultural wealth of Islamic domains between the eighth and tenth centuries, when
other sources and documents are missing; see Zedda and Pinna, “La nascita dei giudicati,”