Luigi Maria Ugolini, (1895–1936), Italian archaeologist, passed away in Bologna (Italy). He headed the Italian archaeological mission, created in 1926 according to the archaeological agreement between the Albanian government and the Italian government. The mission would carry out for a period of 30 years of archaeological research and excavations in the entire Albanian territory, with the exception of the prefectures of Shkodra, Durres and Vlora, issued a previously as a concession to a French archaeological mission. Luigi Ugolini started the excavations that same year in Finiq, but since they did not give the expected results, in 1928 he moved to Butrint. With the excavations carried out by his mission until 1937, a part of the city center was discovered, where the theater, a portico, temples and other buildings, as well as surrounding walls, etc. were preserved. He published three volumes entitled “Albania Antica” (“Ancient Albania”). Volumes II and III were dedicated to the excavations of Finiq (“L’Acropoli di Fenice “, Rome, 1932) and Butrint (” L’Acropoli di Butrinto “, Rome, 1942), whereby unconvincing opinions and dates are encountered, but they retain their value as a work of archaeological information for these two cities. Luigi Ugolini did not submit or leave any inventory of the objects discovered in the excavations. In 1928, he organized the transport to Italy of a number of objects of rare artistic value, among others the head of Apollo, discovered during excavations in Butrint. In 1981, the head of Apollo was returned by the Italian government and today it is in the National Historical Museum. (In the photo: Luigi Ugolini)
Text: Albanian encyclopedic dictionary – Vol. 3 , Academy of Sciences of Albania, “Kristalina-KH”, Tirana, 2009, page 2784.
Photo: © https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luigi_Maria_Ugolini
Graphic processing: AHCF
