Index for 2014
- 323 - Alessia Savi Scarponi. 2014. Prima interpretazione di rinvenimenti di epoca etrusca e tardo-ellenistica in territorio vulcente Farnese (Viterbo), loc. Chiusa del Belli . Preliminary archaeological research in Farnese, a small town in the province of Viterbo (Italy), revealed late Etruscan archaeological evidence. These findings are probably related to a settlement dating back to the last decades of the fourth and early third century BC. The remains consist of a checkered masonry water tank, an underground tunnel (probably a sewer), a wall made of tufa blocks, and a quite large area scattered with potsherds and heaps of stone chips. Tentatively, some underground cavities (basement/cellars), later reused as dwellings, may also be related to this settlement. This second phase of the settlement – apparently less permanent and less structured than the first – can be dated to the second century BC, or a little later. The stratification within the late Etruscan dwelling consists of some beaten earth floors associated with hearths and few finds: food remains and fragments of pottery (mostly jars, lids, and amphoras for domestic use). PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 322 - Alex Walthall, Randall Souza, Jared Benton, James F. Huemoeller. 2014. Preliminary Report on the 2013 Field Season of the American Excavations at Morgantina: Contrada Agnese Project (CAP). This article provides a preliminary report on the 2013 excavations carried out by the American Excavations at Morgantina (Sicily): Contrada Agnese Project (CAP). The 2013 season marked the start of this multiyear re-search and excavation project aimed at investigating both the urban planning of the city and the lives of its resi-dents, with a specific focus on the periods of occupation and cultural transformation from the third to first century BCE. During the first season, three trenches were excavated in two parts of the ancient city. Their locations were chosen, in part, based on the results of a geophysical survey, conducted on the archaeological site in the spring of 2012. This preliminary report presents the significant stratigraphic units and material finds encountered in each trench, along with a provisional outline of the phases of activity, setting the developments observed in each trench within the broader historical and archaeological context of the urban center at Morgantina. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 321 - Eric E. Poehler, Steven J.R. Ellis. 2014. The 2013 Season of the Pompeii Quadriporticus Project: Final Fieldwork and Preliminary Results . The present article outlines some of the research outcomes for the final season of fieldwork (2013) for the Pompeii Quadriporticus Project (Universities of Massachusetts Amherst and Cincinnati). The focus of our fourth season was on in-field documentation of archival resources, the exploration of various spectrometric methodologies for identifying mortar types, and the use of metrology for identifying construction ‘signatures’ in the various development stages of the Quadriporticus. The season thus aimed to nuance and further build upon the results of our earlier work, from which it is now possible to reconstruct the original form of the Quadriporticus and to chart its development over time – in relative and absolute terms – as well as to know something of its place in the infrastructural history of Pompeii. Even so, and although the following outlines the results of the last of four seasons of fieldwork for the project, this article remains as ‘preliminary’ as the preceding reports, and ultimately anticipates the more complete preparation and publication of the data and of our analysis of it in a final volume. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 320 - Alessandro Sebastiani. 2014. Spolverino (Alberese – GR). The 4th Archaeological Season at the Manufacturing District and revision of the previous archaeological data. The aim of this paper is to present the preliminary results of the fourth archaeological season (August and September 2013) at the river port of Rusellae (Spolverino, Alberese – GR). Our research focused on some previously discovered rooms of the manufacturing complex, as well as some new spaces, and revealed the existence of storage facilities in Room II and VIII and a series of new workshops dedicated to the production of iron and lead ingots. More generally, the excavations illuminate a shift in the economic axis in Central Italy during the second half of the 2nd century AD, when agriculture was progressively replaced by artisanal productions – through until the late 5th century, when the complex was abandoned. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 319 - Giulia Lodi. 2014. Ariano Ferrarese (Mesola, Ferrara): lo scavo, le anfore inscritte e gli opercola. Una prima analisi. The excavations undertaken between 1994 and 1995 at Ariano Ferrarese (Mesola, Ferrara) led to the identification of a quadrangular structure with foundations in wood and wooden trusses and roof tiles. In the vicinity of the structure, belonging to a wider settlement, was brought to light a discharge containing ceramic gray, black paint, terra sigillata, lamps, thin walls, jars and lids, coarse and plain wares. Some interesting artifacts that are legible stamps: it is Dressel 2-4 amphora, Dressel 6 A and 6 B. Interestingly a Gauloise 3 to which seems to belong a wheel made cap. Based on the evidence analyzed so far, and given the presence of vitrified waste and furniture items, it was possible to hypothesize the existence of furnaces for the production of ceramics in the area, with a maximum period of activity from the first century BC and II A.D. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 318 - Denis Sami, Anna Booth (British Museum, Portable Antiquity Scheme, University of Leicester), Luana Toniolo, Elena Baldi, Tania Chinni. 2014. Ad Novas-Cesenatico From Roman Road to Late Antique Wooden Structures. An Interim Report on the Evaluation Test Pits and Excavation at Cà Bufalini, 2006. This paper presents the preliminary data from excavations undertaken at Cà Bufalini in Cesenatico in April 2006. This was the pilot fieldwork from which developed the Ad Novas-Cesenatico Project 2008-13 organised by Denis Sami and Neil Christie from the University of Leicester. During the 2006 season four test trenches were opened. This paper outlines the evidence retrieved both of late antique (fifth - sixth century AD) wooden structures as well as of a substantial paved Roman road. Potentially, the Cà Bufalini site may relate to the likely statio of Ad Novas depicted on the Tabula Peutingeriana PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 317 - Antonio Alfano, Ferdinando Maurici, Sebastiano Muratore, Filippo Salamone, Alberto Scuderi. 2014. Il «Castellazzo» di Monte Iato in Sicilia occidentale (prov. di Palermo). Terza e quarta campagna di scavo. Ricognizioni nel territorio. The first archaeological investigation concerning the site of “Castellazzo” was undertaken in the spring of 2011, in the context of an agreement between the “Parco Archeologico di San Guseppe Jato e dei comuni limitrofi” and the “Gruppo Archeologico Valle dello Jato”. The stronghold, built upon a plateau located in front of the East Gate of the antique city of Jato, is linked to the last siege of Federico the 2nd against the rebel Muslims in Sicily, during the first half of the13 C. The excavation revealed a surrounding wall characterized by outward towers at regular intervals. An entrance was found on the north side. Moreover, it is possible to conjecture a further doorway to the southwest. The archaeological layers lay immediately under topsoil which, since antiquity, has undergone few activities, mainly related to the installation of vineyards. Furthermore, a rectangular room leaning against the surrounding wall was entirely excavated. Adjacent to it was found a burial relating to a single soldier. In parallel, a field survey was carried out onto the valley areas of “Iato” and “Belìce Destro”. The research identified and documented more than 200 sites with archaeological or structural evidence. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 316 - Alessandra Albiero, Valentino Vitale, Valentina Petrucci, Agnese Ugolini, Chiara Fernandez. 2014. Le terme centrali di Aquinum (Castrocielo, FR). Campagne di scavo 2009-2013. The aim of this paper is to show the preliminary results of the archaeological excavations, which took place over five campaigns between June 2009 and July 2013. Until now it has been dug a area, covering about 4500 square meters, which has brought to light some spaces related to a thermal complex. The excavation have brought to light a public road, also, that defines the complex (and the entire block) on the northern side. The roadway of this urban street is parallel to the via Latina. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 315 - Maria Ausilia Fadda. 2014. Il villaggio adiacente al nuraghe Tanca Manna e l'età del Bronzo nella città di Nuoro. Tanca Manna site, situated in the modern town Nuoro, is a monotower nuraghe on a granite spur village. During the undertaken works of 2005 in the site the tower was restored and different huts of the village were identified. The old settlement was born in a strategic location to control the transhumance path that leads to the below dales. They found 4 rectangular cabins, with an absidal wall, or elliptical or sub-circular. The 1 and 2 structures are on the North sideof the granitic cape, occupied by the Nuraghe and the 3 and 4 structures are really close to the Nuraghe. This settlement is very important for its early foundation: between the end of the Earl Bronze Age and the very early Middle Bronze Age exactly during the formative period of the nuragic civilization. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 314 - Paolo Visonà, George M. Crothers, Justin N. Carlson , Donald L. Handshoe , Silvana Lora, Piera Allegra Rasia – Università degli Studi di Venezia - Ca’ Foscari, Luana Toniolo. 2014. A Forgotten Roman Settlement in the Veneto. University of Kentucky Geoarchaeological Investigations at Tezze di Arzignano (Vicenza, Italy) in 2012 . The results of a geophysical survey at località Valbruna near Tezze di Arzignano (VI), in Italy’s western Veneto, cast new light on a Roman site that has never been systematically investigated. Conspicuous remains of houses possibly belonging to a large Roman settlement were uncovered in this area in 1795 and 1882 after major river floods. Among a series of buried anomalies revealed by gradiometer and GPR data, a rectangular wall-like feature (corresponding on the surface with a cluster of roof tiles and mosaic tesserae) has been interpreted as a portion of a Roman building. Another significant anomaly has been tentatively identified as an ancient roadway. Several small, pit-like anomalies found at a lower depth than these installations have affinities with prehistoric features but cannot be conclusively explained without further testing. There are indications that this building, whose size and functions could not be determined, may have been located near a burial ground outside the main settlement. The dating of the pottery recovered from the survey area suggests that the site was continuously occupied from the final phase of the late Iron age until the 3rd century A.D. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 313 - Paolo Bernardini , Pier Giorgio Spanu , Raimondo Zucca. 2014. Tharros: indagini nell’area dell’anfiteatro romano. The hill of Muru Mannu occupies the northern sector of the city of Tharros. It is affected by a stratigraphy documenting settlement phases ranging from the Middle Bronze Age to the Byzantine Age. The settlement of round huts arranged around a nuraghe was partially used by the Phoenicians for the creation of the tophet from 620 BC. The whole area undergoes radical changes in the Carthaginian period with the renovation of the tophet and the impressive fortifications that were renovated during the Late Republican period. Between the second and the third centuries AD, the top of the hill is affected by the installation of a circular structure recognized as an amphitheater. Here , in a sector of the cavea, a research of the School of Specialization in Archaeological Heritage of the University of Sassari in 2013 has started. The objective of the survey, just begun, is to check the exact date of construction of the amphitheater and its possible overlap with the previous levels of tophet and protohistoric settlement . The data collected so far seem encouraging: it seems to specify a terminus post quem for the construction of the amphitheater between the late second and the third centuries AD while fragments of urns, Phoenician and Punic amphorae and a fragment of a mask suggests the probable existence of the remains of the sanctuary below the amphitheater. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 312 - Paolo Bernardini , Pier Giorgio Spanu , Raimondo Zucca. 2014. SANTA GIUSTA - OTHOCA Ricerche di archeologia urbana 2013 . Othoca (Santa Giusta ) was inhabited by indigenous communities whose villages were arranged around a nuraghe perched on the hill of the Basilica in the Late Bronze and the Early Iron Age. Into this place came the Phoenicians around 750 BC; the resulting “mixed” community gave rise to an urban center around the last quarter of the seventh c. B.C. Thanks to research conducted between 1980 and 1990 it is possible to follow the history of the center from the archaic period up to the Hellenistic and Roman phase: it was affected by the geo- environmental factors typical of the area of a lagoon. The geomorphological analysis today shows the physical appearance of the habitat of Othoca more responsive to the old situation: a large sea bay with some small islands located upon little reliefs. The Postgraduate School of Archaeological Heritage of the University of Sassari launched in 2013 a survey and excavation in the neighborhood of Is Olionis of Santa Giusta, within the precincts of the ancient Phoenician and Punic city. The first evidence is the discovery of a large wall built between the eighth and seventh c. B.C.; unfortunately modern upheavals have destroyed the ancient stratigraphy at this point, but it is possible that in the future new research are able to recover significant remains of the archaic settlement. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 311 - Giuseppa Tanda , Marco Serra , Riccardo Cicilloni. 2014. Indagini archeologiche presso la grotta di Su Mrajani di Monte Casula – Iglesias (Sardegna meridionale). Relazione preliminare (campagne 2011-2012-2013) . This work reports the preliminary results of the archaeological investigations carried out in the Su Mrajani Cave, near Iglesias (South Sardinia). The cavity, located on the top of Monte Casula, is formed by two communicating rooms: a great room covered by a rock vault and an uncovered space, in which the vault collapsed in remote times. The didactic archaeological excavation was carried out in the second space by the University of Cagliary between 2011 and 2013, with the participation of students from the Universities of Cagliari, Sassari and Roma Tre. The archaeological materials recovered, have allowed us to outline a rich and articulated chronological-cultural picture, with a continuous anthropic occupation of the cave, probably for housing and funeral purposes, from the Early Neolithic to the Middle Ages. Occupation during the Monte Claro and Nuragic periods is particularly evident. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 310 - Lidia Puddu. 2014. Il complesso megalitico di Biru 'e Concas (Sorgono NU): lo scavo del 1994. Biru 'e Concas, in territory of Sorgono (Nu) in the historical region of the Mandrolisai, is one of the most impressive prehistoric megalithic monuments in the Sardinia. In the site are found menhir of various typologies: aniconici, protoantropomorfi, antropomorfi and one statua-menhir with a schematic face and dagger in its waist. The ceramic context recovered during the 1994 excavations, analyzed in this contribution, refers to some cultural phases inside the chronological arc of the Copper age, particularly to the Culture of Monte Claro. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 309 - Antonio Alfano, Viva Sacco. 2014. Tra alto e basso medioevo. Ceramiche, merci e scambi nelle valli dello Jato e del Belìce Destro dalle ricognizioni nel territorio (Palermo) . In the last years there has been a renewed interest in Medieval Sicily. With this contribution, we would like to introduce the preliminary data of the survey undertaken in the Valle of Jato, situated in Palermo’s hinterland. The time frame here taken into considerations extends from the 6th to the 13th centuries A.D. In this paper we would like to contribute to the reconstruction of the medieval history of this archaeological landscape, through the study of written sources, mainly the giarīda of Monreale, and of its material culture. The comparison of the pottery recovered in the valley with that of Palermo, object of a recent chrono-typological revision, has been very important for this study. Thanks to this we are able to recognise that some settlements already existed during the Islamic period, probably dating from around the 10th century A.D., in spite of the fact that our first written sources are dated from the end of the 11th century. Moreover, analysis of the ceramic fabrics recovered during the survey reveals that most of this pottery was produced in Palermo, reflecting the strong relationship of this territory to the Sicilian capital. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 308 - Giuseppe Lepore, Emanuele Mandolini , Francesco Belfiori , Michele Silani, Federica Galazzi. 2014. Archeologia urbana a Senigallia III: i nuovi dati dall’area archeologica “La Fenice” . In the context of the Senigallia Urban Archaeological Project, started in 2010, a new archaeological survey was carried out in February 2013 within the archaeological area of the “Teatro La Fenice", which had been interested by previous extensive excavations between 1990 and 2000. The realization of new targeted stratigraphical inspections and of some handheld core-drills led to a better understanding of the deeper layers, favouring a chronological review of the earliest occupation phases of this sector. In fact, the area, characterized by crossing two urban roads and at least three canonical atrium domus, can be now dated at the end of the third century BC. Also, the new research attested a large reclaim land operation in the second half of the second century BC, which caused the increasing of the all the domus’ floors, as well as the raising and displacement of the road axis NW-SE and the construction of a new logline. The recent discoveries allow us to define the main guidelines of the original project design at the base of the colony of Sena Gallica. Integrating the new data from the “Teatro La Fenice” with the recent discoveries from Via Baroccio, concerning the Roman city walls and a sanctuary with two sacella, is now possible to propose a reliable reconstruction of this important southern sector of the roman city. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 307 - Romina Carboni, Emiliano Cruccas, Luca Lanteri. 2014. Indagini archeologiche dell’Università degli Studi di Cagliari a Nora (CA) Progetto Isthmos - Ricognizione e campagna di scavo 2013 . The aim of this paper is to show the results of the first archaeological campaign of the Isthmos Project, in the Punic-Roman site of Nora (Sardinia). After a survey, geophysical analysis, and the new topographic map of the site made with the GPS-GLONASS system with contour lines every 1 m., the team of the University of Cagliari excavated two different areas, the Area Alfa and the Area Beta. The excavations revealed interesting information about the urban development of the city in the Roman period (Beta); moreover, some finds focuses on a possible defunctionalized sacred area (Alfa). PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 306 - Attilio Mastrocinque, Fiammetta Soriano, Chiara Marchetti, Ine Jacobs - Università di Anversa. 2014. Archaeological research at Grumentum 2013: a three-dimensional documentation . The results of recent archaeological excavations at Grumentum (Lucania) can be presented in a new way thanks to a series of 3D images. Below, three sectors are being presented, namely that of the round temple, the basilica, and buildings located southeast of the forum. The story of the round temple has been elucidated by a series of datable layers: a beautiful pavement of Augustan date was replaced by the temple, with a new pavement, in the Tiberian age. The story of the portico has not yet been satisfactorily ascertained. Several changes to its entrance are documented and there it is certain that its main transformation occurred in the central decades of the 1st century AD, when the abutting Capitol was built. In front of this temple another square was located, which may have been the republican forum. Close to the basilica an important stratigraphy has been brought to light, providing us with important chronological data. A period during which republican houses and shops occupied the border of the square was followed by great architectural works to build the basilica. The intention was to transform the square into a beautiful new forum. This occurred in the Augustan age, when the forum was planned and its construction was begun. To the southeast of the forum excavations uncovered two spaces, presumably shops, behind a street portico running parallel to the forum. All layers and features explored so far belonged to the late Roman/early medieval occupation phase of the area, which apparently followed a large-scale destruction of the structures. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 305 - Lidia Puddu. 2014. Un frammento di fiasca del pellegrino di Abini (Teti - Nu). This report reports on the identification of a portion of the "pilgrim flask" among the numerous fragments of pottery from the nuragic sanctuary of Abini. The exterior of the sherd is burnished with a flat stick. The fragment of a "pilgrim flask" increases our knowledge of this type of production in Sardinia and contributes to the understanding of the range of ceramics used in Abini. It evokes the contacts and trade relations with the Eastern Mediterranean, even in this sanctuary, which is located in the interior of Sardinia. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 304 - Simonetta Menchelli, Giulia Picchi. 2014. Distorsioni interpretative e concretezza epistemologica nello studio delle anfore romane: l’esempio dell’ager Firmanus (Marche meridionali, Italia) . The considerations presented here derive from the study of Roman amphoras found during the Pisa South Picenum Survey Project (in the Marches Region), which dealt with the territory of Firmum Picenum. A total of 1751 fragments were collected, equal to 991 NMI, comprising local and imported products dating from the 3rd century B. C. up to the 7th century A. D.. Our aim is to evaluate the informative potential of the amphoras and try to avoid any bias by adopting a global study approach. This takes into account that many wares were not traded in amphoras and that, on the contrary, an amphora could be used for transporting not only its primary ware, but also many other products and that once it was no longer used as a container it could be re-used in many important historical-economic processes (in drainage works, in constructing buildings, and in necropolises). PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
- 303 - Ilaria Frontori. 2014. Nora (Pula, Cagliari). Indagini archeologiche nel quartiere delle Terme Centrali, Area E (Campagna di scavo 2013) . Milan University began research at Nora in autumn 2002 continuing the project begun by Venice University, directed by Prof. Giorgio Bejor. The area in question is situated at the heart of the Roman city: the central insula of the peninsula, between the theatre and the so-called Temple of Eshmun, partially occupied by the grand Central Baths and numerous houses with standing remains, excavated and consolidated by the Superintendent Gennaro Pesce at the end of the 1950s. From 2006 onwards, the research followed two lines of investigation looking at the central residential structures and beginning the examination of the peripheral areas, which had not been excavated since the 1950s. The latter included the coastal strip overlooking the south bay (occupied by numerous houses known as “case a mare”), which was documented and analysed in order to gain a better understanding of the city’s road network, and to make visiting the site easier. The four campaigns undertaken in the years 2007-2010, aimed to clarify the occupation phases of the monumental Central Baths in order to define its architectural development and above all to reconstruct the dynamics of its transformation over the centuries. The stratigraphy showed at least two occupation phases distinguished by paved and plastered rooms, pre-dating the Bath’s construction, and belonging to the mid 2nd century A.D. houses. Thus, the recent excavations have documented the complex stratigraphy of this area from the early imperial period until the 7th century A.D., showing the continuity of the city’s occupation from the Phoenician period until the threshold of the late antiquity. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet