Index for 2018

• 9 - Federica Boschi (University of Bologna, Department of History and Cultures). 2018. Filling in the gaps: half-hidden pre-Roman settlements in the northern Marche (Italy). Abstract: The paper discusses the most recent results achieved by the University of Bologna in the northern Marche region, across the valleys of the Rivers Cesano, Nevola and Misa, within a young project of landscape archaeology mainly focused on the systematic employment of non-invasive techniques of investigation and mapping for evaluating buried archaeological assets. Started in 2009, the Mapping the Adriatic Landscape Project has led to the discovery of several sites, enriching the current state of knowledge concerning Iron Age's settlements and, in particular, the presence of Piceni in this sector of the region, which has so far been characterized by significant information gaps. The new activities fit into the background of the long tradition of study in Bologna of the northern Marche, aimed at achieving a better understanding of the dynamics of settlement and of the process of urbanization. In this light the present study is of a particular relevance, allowing us to enhance the framework of occupation during the Iron Age, which in the area considered, still poorly archaeologically documented, remains a complex and fascinating period, characterized by a “cultural melting pot”, with the coexistence and blending of Piceni, Celts and Roman people, but still poorly archaeologically documented. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
• 8 - Francesco Martorella. 2018. Tracce di urbanizzazione nella vallata mediana della città di Eraclea. Abstract: The urban area of the ancient city of Eraclea, in the territory of the modern city of Policoro (Basilicata), is mor- phologically divided into three sections: the upper city, the middle valley and the lower city, distinguished by very evident morphological characteristics. The urban layout of the city of Eraclea is known only in the upper and the lower parts of the city where in addition to the archaeological excavations (in the upper city) data has been added from the archaeological photointerpretation of Schmiedt and R. Chevallier (lower city). The middle valley has always been considered a rural area destined for religious activity. Recent geophysical surveys, carried out to the west of the sacred area called the Vallo, have highlighted the urban layout of the valley with orthogonal road axes in relation to the orientation of the lower city. This represents an unprecedented piece of information that sheds new light on an unknown area never before considered urbanised, and which on the contrary confirms the presence of a grid and road axes and thus demonstrates evident phenomena of urbanisation. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
• 7 - Linda R. Gosner – Alexander J. Smith. 2018. Landscape Use and Local Settlement at the Nuraghe S’Urachi (West-Central Sardinia): Results from the First Two Seasons of Site Survey (2014-2015). Abstract: The nuraghe S’Urachi is a monumental stone tower complex that has served as regional center in the landscape of west-central Sardinia from the Bronze Age to the present day. The site was subject to investigations in the 1940s and 1980s, producing evidence of the construction of the towers as well as for later domestic occupation outside the tower walls in the Punic periods. In-vestigations of the site were re-initiated in 2013, when the Progetto S’Urachi (Brown University, Comune di San Vero Milis) began a collaborative research project aimed at understanding co-lonial encounters and daily life at the nuraghe in the Iron Age and Roman period. In conjunction with the Progetto S’Urachi, a multi-phase site survey was carried out consisting of a geophysical survey (2014), microtopographical survey (2014), intensive survey (2015), and a series of test trenches to confirm survey findings (2016-2017). The goal of the survey was to better understand settlement patterns and land use in the wider landscape surrounding the nuraghe. This article details the results of the first two seasons of site survey, which show that settlement extended far beyond the limits of the modern archaeological site boundaries and that the site was heavily occupied in the Punic and early Roman periods. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet
• 6 - Giuseppe Romagnoli – Filippo Bozzo – Roberto Montagnetti – Giancarlo Pastura – Lavinia Piermartini – Annamaria Villari. 2018. Ferento medievale: le campagne di survey 2015 e 2016. Abstract: Since 1994 University of Tuscia conducts archeological researches on the site of the roman and medieval city of Ferento, abandoned after the destruction by Viterbese in 1170-1172. The paper presents the first results of the survey conducted on the urban area in the 2015 and 2016 campaigns, in order to implement the digital archaeological mapping and to increase the knowledge on the topography and urban setting of a central section of the medieval city. This was obtained thanks to the integration of different non-intrusive research methods: topographic and aerial photography surveys, fieldwalking, radar analysis. PDFpermalinkRecord Sheet