Scents of Home: Phoenician Oil Bottles from Motya

Olfactory cultures shape how societies perceive, value, and use scents in daily life, ritual, and social practice, embedding specific smells within collective identity. Mobility exposes these cultures to new environments, where scents may act as markers of heritage and belonging for migrants while also prompting diverse reactions—ranging from appreciation to disruption—within host or newly established communities. The Iron Age Mediterranean, marked by intense cultural encounters, offers key insights into how fragrances contributed to an increasingly interconnected world, with the Phoenicians playing a central role in disseminating Near Eastern aromatic practices westward. Despite the frequent association between the Phoenicians and scented substances, the contents of vessels traditionally assumed to have held unguents remain largely unknown. This study presents the first systematic, interdisciplinary analysis of the composition, technology, and contents of over fifty “Phoenician oil bottles” from the island of Motya, off the west coast of Sicily, Italy. This assemblage represents a significant sample of these plain-ware, slow-pouring juglets that circulated throughout and beyond the Mediterranean. The results suggest that aromatic unguents were likely produced and bottled in southern Phoenicia during the eighth–sixth centuries BCE and circulated to the western Mediterranean. While focused in scope, this evidence contributes to broader discussions of Phoenician involvement in the production, trade, and consumption of fragrant substances. The study also highlights the potential for such vessels to inform future research into the sensory, social, and cultural dimensions of mobility and interaction in the ancient Mediterranean.