Acknowledgements
When Julian Deahl approached me in 2011 to edit a volume in English on a
thousand years of Sardinian history, I don’t think either of us appreciated
just how ambitious the task would be, given the rich depth of the material.
The myriad challenges encountered could only be overcome thanks to a long
list of people who helped this book to materialize. This work owes much to
their encouragement, enthusiasm, and generosity. It is hoped that the themes,
debates, and questions raised in these essays will encourage other scholars to
pursue the “missing links” that contributed to the integration of the central
and western Mediterranean in the medieval and modern periods.
The book is part of my ongoing relationship with Sardinia, which started in
Siena during the 1980s when Riccardo Francovich and Graziella Berti encouraged
me to survey medieval churches in Sardinia decorated with glazed pottery, prov-
ing the crucial role that material culture plays in writing history. At the Courtauld
Institute, Paul Crossly was an influential mentor who not only imparted the fun-
damentals of architectural history, but was also an utter joy with whom to study.
At the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University, Marvin Trachtenberg shared
how to carefully break away from traditional narratives, while Priscilla Soucek
further encouraged me to focus on Sardinia, for which I thank her. Work related
to this project appeared in a similar Brill volume, Studies in the Archaeology of the
Medieval Mediterranean (2010). But, what furthered this project was a workshop
at the Kunsthistorisches Institute-Max Planck in Florence. Traveling with medi-
evalists and art historians clearly demonstrated the necessity for this book, as so
little is known and available in English about the island. This shared experience,
the discussions and confrontations that emerged from that journey, became the
perfect fuel to plan and outline this volume. I thank each one of the partici-
pants, in particular Henrike Huag (author in this volume), Lamia Balafrej, and
Avinoam Shalem for sharing their expansive approach to the Mediterranean.
The hospitality I’ve received in Sardinia over the years has made my visits easier
and more enriching, for which I must thank Francesca Porcella and her most
generous and welcoming family, Daniela Rovina, Alessandra Pasolini, Grete
Stefani, Marco Milanese, Francesca Segni Pulvirenti, and Donatella Salvi of the
Soprintendenza Archeologica of Sardinia. Marco Cadinu and Corrado Zedda
shared their unfolding work and many of their ideas in an early stage of the
book. Laura Galoppini provided suggestions and generously intervened to grant
the use of the cover illustration. Rossana Martorelli graciously found the images
for the chapter of Roberto Coroneo. I thank you all.