Les Phéniciens de Santo Mazzarino

Abstract

This article examines the place of the Phoenicians and Punic world in the historical thought of Santo Mazzarino, focusing on two major works published in 1947: Fra Oriente e Occidente and Introduzione alle guerre puniche. Although Phoenicians were not central to Mazzarino’s research agenda, they played a significant role in his interpretation of Mediterranean interactions between East and West. The study analyzes how Mazzarino conceptualized the “Phoe­nician route” as a key channel of commercial and cultural exchanges during the archaic period, while contrasting it with the Anatolian–Ionian route, which he regarded as more influential in the formation of Greek political and intellectual traditions. The article reassesses Mazzarino’s views in light of subsequent developments in Phoenician and Mediterranean studies. Ultimate­ly, it argues that Mazzarino’s work, despite its essentialist assumptions and some outdated conclusions, anticipated later debates on cultural transfers, connectivity, and intercultural dynamics across the ancient Mediterranean.