The project was carried out by the fellow between the host institution, Universitat de Barcelona (Barcelona, Spain), and the secondment institution, National Center of Scientific Research Demokritos (Athens, Greece). 545 Sugar pots from 17 different sites in modern Sicily and Spain were studied in detail, measured, catalogued and the most representative individual (267) sampled for performing the analytical study to reach the objectives of the project. Sugar pots were studied by integrating chemical data, mineralogical and microstructural data with mascroscopic examination to investigate the provenance and technology of the vessels. In the case of Sicily, sugar pots were mostly produced nearby or within the sugar production premises. Nevertheless, our study revealed that sugar pots from Palermo reached also other areas, evidence missing from the written sources. The study of the materials in Spain revealed a more diversified panorama where sugar pots were produced nearby the sugar production area, as in the case of Motril and Gandia-Oliva; but also, they were made in distant sites such as the case of sugar cones from Paterna reaching Gandia and Barcelona. In addition, consumption centres such as Barcelona and Granada were also producing smaller cones for sugar refining. This revealed a much more complex picture of the sugar cycle in the Iberian Peninsula than previously thought and which needs further exploration. This study shows that how sugar pots were designed and manufactured followed some common features across phases and geographical areas, such as a similar design. Conversely, some technological characteristics were specific to each area. Thus, potters were applying a common idea when manufacturing sugar pots, but these were transformed locally according to each place's way of manufacturing ceramics.Part of the results have been published as an open-access paper and as 6 datasets, and at least two other publications are in preparation. The database including the archaeological, typological and morphometric information of the studied material will form part of the online database of the host institution and could be used for further research on sugar pots. Projects objectives and results were communicated at 8 international conferences, in 2 outreach events for schools, in public lectures and seminars, and continuously during fieldwork and through social media and email communications with the museums and institutions. In terms of training, the fellow: got the training needed to perform the analyses and publish the results in a peer-reviewed international paper; run the scientific and administrative part of the project, also maintaining the network of institutions and collaborators in 3 different countries; she benefitted from sharing different skills and experiences with the research teams at the host and secondment institutions creating new collaborations and more integrated practices; she learned two new languages (Spanish and Catalan); she taught at master courses and supervised 3 master thesis. The fellowship successfully served also the purpose of reintegration the fellow back into the academic environment after a parental leave as she got the qualification of lecturer from the ‘Agència per a la Qualitat del Sistema Universitari de Catalunya’ and she has gained a 3-years post-doc position at the UB starting immediately after the end of the fellowship.
