Papers by Tommaso Quirino
Archeologia e Calcolatori, 2017
The Po Valley was occupied by the Etruscans starting in the 9th century BC. This presence experie... more The Po Valley was occupied by the Etruscans starting in the 9th century BC. This presence experienced a significant transformation from the mid-6th century BC, when the territory underwent a widespread colonisation process, which brought about a new pattern in the organization of the landscape. A network of farms and secondary settlements appeared and expanded around both old and new cities. Through the structuring power and the analytical potential of GIS, this research develops new perspectives on the reconstruction of the ancient landscape. In addition to cultural aspects closely related to Etruscan society, in this study we have taken into consideration the role played by the resources of the territory itself, both from economic and the transport network points of view. First, we briefly present the conceptual and physical structure of the GIS. It includes an archive of all the known sites N of the Apennines (541), dating to between the 6th and 4th century BC (managed in a relat...
In Armi e strumenti nella preistoria e protostoria dell’arco alpino occidentale, Atti del Convegn... more In Armi e strumenti nella preistoria e protostoria dell’arco alpino occidentale, Atti del Convegno in occasione del cinquantennale del Gruppo Archeologico Mergozzo, in memoria di Alberto De Giuli, (19-20 Ottobre 2019), a cura di Elisa Lanza, Elena Poletti Ecclesia, Mergozzo 2022, pp. 67-87
Memnonia, XXXII, 2022
During the last four field seasons in the area of the northern annexes
of the Ramesseum (2017-202... more During the last four field seasons in the area of the northern annexes
of the Ramesseum (2017-2020, 2022) corresponding to sectors STL and STG (2), 15 tombs related to the necropolis of the Third Intermediate Period were unearthed and investigated. Ongoing research in these sectors is proceeding systematically from east to west. Although the main goal is to try to reconstruct the function of these rooms in the Ramesside Period, the most interesting information collected relates to the Third Intermediate Period, when these structures were modified to house funerary chapels and burials, creating a very characteristic funerary landscape.
At least 3 of the 15 tombs excavated so far were still intact and it was possible to reconstruct in detail the original burial assemblage, found in its
original position, and, in two cases, also the different phases of use.
One of these is the tomb known as STG.SA14.To1.
S. IKRAM, J. KAISER, S. PORCIER, The ancient Egyptians & the natural world. Flora, fauna, & science, Sidestone Press, Leiden, 2021
L. Zamboni, M. Fernández-Götz, C. Metzner-Nebelsick (ed.), Crossing the Alps. Early urbanism between northern Italy and central Europe (900‐400 BC), Proceedings of the International Conference, Milan, 29-30 Marzo 2019, pp. 227-241, 2020
This paper deals with the urban character of the Etruscan site discovered at Forcello (Bagnolo S.... more This paper deals with the urban character of the Etruscan site discovered at Forcello (Bagnolo S. Vito, Mantua). It was the main Etruscan settlement north of the Po during the 6th and 5th centuries BC, when it flourished as a port of trade facing a lake, now drained. This paper discusses different factors relevant for identifying an urban pattern. In terms of settlement structures, we present a synthesis of the data achieved about the orthogonal planning, the defence structures, the dwelling density and the facilities. Indirect indicators helpful for recognising the essence of the city from an economic perspective are discussed on the productive economy of the site. A well-developed husbandry system based on intensive pig breeding shows that the productive economy extended beyond the simple settlement’s livelihood to a wider scale. The imports and luxury goods, as well as practice of writing, are also treated as indicators of a stratified society that correlates with an urban way of life. The site is approximately 12 ha, but excavation data covers only certain sectors. To acquire additional data about the pattern organisation of both the settlement and the outer space, new research was launched with the preliminary results being presented in this paper. The German Archaeological Institute performed a geomagnetic survey on a field adjacent to the Archaeological Park of Forcello. The survey resulted in exciting evidence, including traces of the embankments, a passageway, and building structures. The results not only confirm, but also enhance the discoveries made by surveys and excavations in the 1980s and show very distinctive features
RUGGIERO M.G., BASILE W., FAVERO-LONGO S., MATTEUCCI E., QUIRINO T., TALARICO F., TORRE M., Il secondo progetto di monitoraggio dell’arte rupestre della Valle Camonica: nuovi dati sulla distribuzione territoriale e sugli aspetti conservativi, BCSP 45, 2021, pp. 145-155. BCSP 45, 2021
La tutela e la conservazione delle incisioni rupestri sono temi delicati e strettamente legati al... more La tutela e la conservazione delle incisioni rupestri sono temi delicati e strettamente legati alla conoscenza delle caratteristiche di ciascuna roccia. Dopo il primo progetto di monitoraggio conservativo dell’arte rupestre della Valle Camonica avviato tra il 2012-2014, nel 2017 il Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali (ora Ministero della Cultura) ha avviato un nuovo progetto (Legge 77/06, E.F. 2015), focalizzato sulle nuove rocce rinvenute negli ultimi anni, sulle rocce presenti all’interno del Parco Nazionale delle Incisioni Rupestri (loc. Naquane), sulle stele e sui massi-menhir eneolitici e su alcune pitture rupestri. Come nel primo progetto, tutti i gruppi di ricercatori che lavorano in Valle Camonica sono stati coinvolti nel lavoro. I nuovi dati ampliano le conoscenze sulla distribuzione territoriale, come appare evidente dal Sistema Informativo Geografico. La caratterizzazione chimica e fisica dei materiali pittorici è stata effettuata con la collaborazione dell’Istituto Centrale per il Restauro, mentre il Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e Biologia dei Sistemi dell’Università di Torino si è occupato dei temi del biodeterioramento avviando attività sperimentali nel Parco Nazionale.
The protection and conservation of the rock engravings are sensitive subjects and strictly linked to the knowledge of the characteristics of each rock. After the first project about monitoring and preservation of the Valle Camonica rock art led between 2012-2014, in 2017 the Ministero per i beni e le attività culturali (now Ministero della Cultura) started a new project (according to the Law 77/06, Financial Year 2015). It is focused on new rocks found in the last years, on rocks located in the National Park of Rock Engravings (loc. Naquane), on Eneolithic stelae and boulder-menhirs and on few rock paintings. As for the first project, all groups of researchers working in Valle Camonica were involved in the work. The new data extend the knowledge on territorial distribution as shown by the Geographic Information System. The chemical and physical characterization of the painting material was performed with the collaboration of the Istituto Centrale per il Restauro, while the Università di Torino-Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e Biologia dei Sistemi has tackled the biodeterioration issues and started experimental investigations in the National Park.
Bulletin du Musée d'Anthropologie Préhistorique de Monaco, 2021
A comparatively new discovery amongst the well-known pitoti rock-engravings that comprise most of... more A comparatively new discovery amongst the well-known pitoti rock-engravings that comprise most of the prehistoric art of Valcamonica (BS), northern Italy, is ancient painting on open and exposed rock surfaces. Very faded and faint, these pitoti dipinti have been briefly reported since the first was seen in 1992, but they have not been studied in detail. The digital technology of colour transforms, so far mostly used outside Europe, now makes it possible to recover a clearer image from even the faintest traces. Applied to the main Valcamonica painted panel, the colour-transform method recovers clear images from four faint figures there, and discovers two further “invisible” figures from places where the naked eye notices nothing. These six figures, mostly of horses with riders, are reported with colour transforms and drawings; one is resolved as two overlapping images. Another site is reported where for the first time both painting and pecking (rock-engraving) techniques occur together on the same surface. The dangers of confident recovery with the powerful graphic tools of colour transforms are explored with examples from Valcamonica and elsewhere that answer the question: are the pictures made by our image transforms real? A distinctive type of axe dates one figure to the Late Iron Age.
Use of Space and Domestic Areas: Functional Organisation and Social Strategies Proceedings of the XVIII UISPP World Congress (4-9 June 2018, Paris, France) Volume 18 Session XXXII-1 edited by L. Jallot and A. Peinetti, 2021
Current excavation at Lucone di Polpenazze (Brescia – ITA) – a pile-dwelling village dating to th... more Current excavation at Lucone di Polpenazze (Brescia – ITA) – a pile-dwelling village dating to the beginning of the Early Bronze Age, situated in a small intramoraine depression west of Lake Garda – has yielded many data, revealing the daily activities that took place on platforms above the water. This operation was conducted by cross-referencing data from different fields (dendrochronology, palaeobotany, archaeozoology, micromorphology) with plentiful archaeological information, using a GIS program. This analysis made it possible to identify waste-dumping areas, house structures and storage areas, and to recognize certain activities that were performed frequently in the huts. The pile dwelling has dendrochronological dates between 2034 and 1967 BC. The abundant archaeological finds can be attributed to the Polada Culture, characteristic of the Early Bronze Age of northern Italy.
Memnonia, 2019
Beginning in the 2017 field season, the Italian team of the Centro di Egittologia Francesco Balle... more Beginning in the 2017 field season, the Italian team of the Centro di Egittologia Francesco Ballerini (CEFB), under the field direction of Tommaso Quirino, was involved in the research of the Franco-Egyptian mission in the area occupied by the Ramesseum, carried out by the Mission Archéologique Française de Thèbes-Ouest (MAFTO) in partnership with the Association pour la sauvegarde du Ramesseum (ASR) and with the Centre d’Étude et de Documentation sur l’Ancienne Égypte (CEDAE, Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities). In particular, the Italian team was entrusted with the archaeological research in the northern annexes of the temple, corresponding, in the terminology used in the area since 2007, to the sectors – from east to west – STM, STL, STG, STH and, if we also consider the extreme northwest corner – STI.
This is the report of the work carried out in the sector STL.
IpoTESI di Preistoria, 12, 2019
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RIASSUNTO Il Forcello di Bagnolo S.V... more https://ipotesidipreistoria.unibo.it/issue/view/848/showToc
RIASSUNTO Il Forcello di Bagnolo S.Vito (MN) è il principale abitato dell'area di espansione etrusca a nord del Po nel VI e V secolo a.C. Si tratta di un insediamento esteso circa 12 ettari dalla struttura pienamente urbana: un impianto ortogonale caratterizzato da assi viari principali e strade minori che si intersecano ortogonalmente e individuano quartieri, occupati da edifici sia di tipo residenziale che produttivo. Le indagini archeologiche, estese su un'area di circa 900 m 2 nel nucleo centrale dell'insediamento, si susseguono da oltre trent'anni e hanno permesso di riconoscere nove fasi insediative, definite dallo stratificarsi di attività domestiche, attività artigianali ed eventi catastrofici. L'estensione e la lunga durata delle ricerche hanno permesso di riportare alla luce decine di strutture da fuoco: focolari, forni a fossa per attività pirotecnologiche, resti di fornaci per la cottura della ceramica. L'ampia varietà tipologica delle strutture da fuoco rinvenute è così associata alla funzione degli ambienti in cui esse si trovano, interpretata a sua volta grazie allo studio parallelo dei reperti associati e delle tecniche edilizie.
ABSTRACT The Forcello site (Bagnolo S. Vito, Mantua) is the main Etruscan settlement north of the Po in the 6th and 5th centuries BC. It is approximately 12-hectare wide, with a fully urban pattern. It's characterized by an orthogonal plan, defined by main and secondary roads that intersect each other orthogonally and outline blocks, occupied by both residential and productive buildings. The archaeological investigations are carried out in the settlement's core area, over about 900 m2. After more than thirty years of excavations, nine archaeological phases have been recognized, resulting by the stratification of domestic activities, craft activities and catastrophic events. The extension and the long duration of the researches have brought to light dozens of fire structures: hearths, pit furnaces to cast bronze or to forge iron objects, remains of kilns. The wide typological variety of the fire structures can be evaluated according to the function of the buildings in which they are located, detected by study of archaeological findings and building techniques.
in Porcier St., S. Ikram & St. Pasquali. Eds. Creatures of Earth, Water and Sky. Essays on Animals in Ancient Egypt and Nubia. Proceedings of the International Symposium on Animals in Ancient Egypt, ISAAE 1 (01-04 Juin 2016, Lyon/France). - Leiden, Sidestone Press., 2019
Photographs cover: Relief of Merymery and Apis statuette (photographs by K. Wentink) ISBN 978-90-... more Photographs cover: Relief of Merymery and Apis statuette (photographs by K. Wentink) ISBN 978-90-8890-772-2 (softcover) ISBN 978-90-8890-771-5 (hardcover) ISBN 978-90-8890-773-9 (PDF e-book) L a b E x A N R -1 1 -L A B X -0 0 3 2 -0 1
Incontri Annuali di Preistoria e Protostoria, 6, 2019
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Rapi M., Quirino T., Ca... more https://www.iipp.it/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/IAPP-6_Abstract-Book1.pdf
Rapi M., Quirino T., Castellano L., Hirose M., Amato A., Barbieri E., Busnelli S., "Per scaldare, per cuocere e per produrre. Le strutture da fuoco dell'abitato etrusco del Forcello di Bagnolo S. Vito: aspetti tipologici e funzionali", in Peinetti A., Cattani M., Debandi F., a cura di, "Sesto Incontro Annuale di Preistoria e Protostoria. Focolari, forni e fornaci tra Neolitico ed età del Ferro", Bologna, 29 marzo 2019, 2019, pp. 107-109
Rapi M., Quirino T., Castellano L., Hirose M., Amato A., Barbieri E., Busnelli S., "To warm, to cook, to produce. The fire structures of the Etruscan settlement of Forcello di Bagnolo S. Vito: typological and functional aspects", in Peinetti A., Cattani M., Debandi F., eds., "Sixth Annual Meeting of Prehistory and Protohistory. Hearths, ovens and kilns from the Neolithic to the Iron Age", Bologna, march 29th 2019, 2019, pp. 107-109
Journal on Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics: JSCI, 2018
In this paper we will report on the importance of 3D documentation as a tool for study and commun... more In this paper we will report on the importance of 3D documentation as a tool for study and communication in Cultural Heritage, with particular reference to the experience grown up at Centro Conservazione e Restauro La Venaria Reale (in the text: CCR La Venaria Reale) and to its application on Egyptian artefacts. We will focus on the purpose-built virtual viewer, set up in order to solve specific operational needs of the working group. We will consider for that significant case studies for innovation that 3D technology has brought in terms of streamlining processes and sharing results. We will also focus on technical advantages obtained by the realization of a 3D model of the remains of a 22 nd dynasty cartonnage, found by the Italian Archaeological Mission at the area of the Temple of Millions of Years of Amenhotep II (Luxor, West bank, Egypt), and on the benefit in using 3D documentation on archaeological excavations.
RISE - Ricerche Italiane e Scavi in Egitto, 2018
Proceedings of the XI ICE (Florence 23-30 August 2015), ed. M.C. Guidotti, G. Rosati, Archeopress Egyptology 19, 2017
ISBN 978 1 78491 600 8 ISBN 978 1 78491 601 5 (e-Pdf)
Archeologia e Calcolatori, 2017
The Po Valley was occupied by the Etruscans starting in the 9th century BC. This presence experie... more The Po Valley was occupied by the Etruscans starting in the 9th century BC. This presence experienced a significant transformation from the mid-6th century BC, when the territory underwent a widespread colonisation process, which brought about a new pattern in the organization of the landscape. A network of farms and secondary settlements appeared and expanded around both old and new cities. Through the structuring power and the analytical potential of GIS, this research develops new perspectives on the reconstruction of the ancient landscape. In addition to cultural aspects closely related to Etruscan society, in this study we have taken into consideration the role played by the resources of the territory itself, both from economic and the transport network points of view. First, we briefly present the conceptual and physical structure of the GIS. It includes an archive of all the known sites N of the Apennines (541), dating to between the 6th and 4th century BC (managed in a relational database), and a set of geographic and thematic data of general interest, recorded in the same cartographic
reference system, handled with GIS software. Second, on the basis of certain distinctive characteristics of settlements such as the size of the occupied area, the internal organization and the building techniques employed, a possible hierarchical subdivision of the settlements is identified. The final aim is to propose a settlement model that can then be compared to the reality of the current archaeological record.
Valcamonica is known all over the world for the development of rock art between the Lateglacial a... more Valcamonica is known all over the world for the development of rock art between the Lateglacial and the Middle Ages. We present here an updated synthesis on the environmental history of Valcamonica, focussing on the relationships between natural ecosystems , climate and human peopling. Among the natural archives reviewed, a reference is the Pian di Gembro succession, a middle-altitude site offering a chronologically and taxonomically highly-resolved ecological investigation for the last 15.5 cal ka BP. For this site we present quantitative reconstructions of climate parameters obtained from fossil pollen spectra. The deglaciation of the valley floor occurred about 18-17.5 cal ka BP. Remnants of a hut and rock engravings, referred to the Upper Paleo-lithic, are indication of human groups on the valley floor, possibly related to hunting activities on wild mammals sheltering in newly-established pine and larch forests. Lowering of the timberline and expansion of xerophytic formations affected the montane and subalpine belts in the Younger Dryas. Fast afforestation and timberline rise mark the Holocene onset, as a result of abrupt climate improvement. A phase of hemisphaeric climate change, also recorded in ice cores at 8.2 cal ka BP, promoted the expansion of spruce and fir at middle altitudes. Very high treeline altitudes (> 2,600 m asl) were withstood between 9.1-7.4 cal ka BP, as testified by finds of Pinus cembra trunks and seeds of relevant age in high-altitude mires. In this span, high-altitude camps of Mesolithic hunters, moving seasonally from the valley floor, left traces of forest fires, in the forms of charcoal fragments from hearths and pits with heat-fractured pebbles. Archaeological and palaeoecological data suggest peopling discontinuity between 7.5 to ca. 6.5 cal ka BP, when farming started to develop. The oldest cereal pollen grain is detected at ca. 6 cal ka BP, consistently with the cultural chronology of early settlements in Valcamonica. Mountain pastoral-ism is documented only for later periods (Bronze Age onward) but detecting earliest traces high-altitude husbandry needs further research at subalpine areas preserving natural archives. Alpine pastures and cereal fields further expanded since the Early Bronze Age, despite a poor archaeological record for the period. During the first millennium BC rock art spread across Valcamonica. Iron Age and Roman time display high rates of forest exploitation, often related to iron-smelting activities, and agriculture expansion. Chestnut and walnut appear between the I BC-II AD centuries.
Journal of Archaeological Science, 2017
In the ancient world beeswax and honey were of crucial importance not only for nutrition, but als... more In the ancient world beeswax and honey were of crucial importance not only for nutrition, but also for a range of activities including various artisanal practices. A rich body of iconographic and literary evidence has proven very informative, but archaeological data are strongly underrepresented in studies on ancient beekeeping. A multidisciplinary excavation project of the Etruscan trade center of Forcello near Bagnolo San Vito (Mantua province), led to the discovery of charred honeycombs in a workshop dated to 510-495 BCE. Morphoscopical, palynological and chemical analyses (IR, LC-MS, GC-MS) were conducted on these honeycombs and their associated materials (bee-breads and a mixture of melted honeycombs) in order to reconstruct beekeeping practices and the local environment. Palynological data indicate that honey-bees were feeding on plants from both aquatic and ruderal landscapes. The palynological record from the bee-breads suggests the practice of itinerant beekeeping along rivers, an activity described by Pliny the Elder (Natural History, XXI.43.73) a few centuries later in relation to the town of Ostiglia (Mantua province) ca. 20 km downstream the investigated site. Hence, confirming the historical source, beekeeping in Iron Age Northern Italy appears to be characterized by a remarkably high degree of specialization. In addition, the pollen content of the melted honeycombs provides evidence for an unprecedented Vitis vinifera (grapevine) honey. The pollination syndrome suggests that bees fed on nectar of pre-domesticated or early-domesticated varieties of Vitis vinifera, confirming the archaeobotanical record of pips from Iron Age Northern Italy.
Il quaternario, 2011
The Etruscan harbour of Forcello in lower valley of the Mincio River, N-Italy, was active between... more The Etruscan harbour of Forcello in lower valley of the Mincio River, N-Italy, was active between the VI to IV centuries BC. The stratigraphic investigations revealed that the settlement occupied a hill on the shore of a large lake, connected to the Mantua perifluvial lake system. The lake formed between the Late Bronze Age and the early Iron Age in the embanked floor of the Mincio Valley, and persisted till the late Middle Age. The diversion of the Po River at Guastalla during the Iron Age is considered responsible for damming the ...
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Papers by Tommaso Quirino
of the Ramesseum (2017-2020, 2022) corresponding to sectors STL and STG (2), 15 tombs related to the necropolis of the Third Intermediate Period were unearthed and investigated. Ongoing research in these sectors is proceeding systematically from east to west. Although the main goal is to try to reconstruct the function of these rooms in the Ramesside Period, the most interesting information collected relates to the Third Intermediate Period, when these structures were modified to house funerary chapels and burials, creating a very characteristic funerary landscape.
At least 3 of the 15 tombs excavated so far were still intact and it was possible to reconstruct in detail the original burial assemblage, found in its
original position, and, in two cases, also the different phases of use.
One of these is the tomb known as STG.SA14.To1.
The protection and conservation of the rock engravings are sensitive subjects and strictly linked to the knowledge of the characteristics of each rock. After the first project about monitoring and preservation of the Valle Camonica rock art led between 2012-2014, in 2017 the Ministero per i beni e le attività culturali (now Ministero della Cultura) started a new project (according to the Law 77/06, Financial Year 2015). It is focused on new rocks found in the last years, on rocks located in the National Park of Rock Engravings (loc. Naquane), on Eneolithic stelae and boulder-menhirs and on few rock paintings. As for the first project, all groups of researchers working in Valle Camonica were involved in the work. The new data extend the knowledge on territorial distribution as shown by the Geographic Information System. The chemical and physical characterization of the painting material was performed with the collaboration of the Istituto Centrale per il Restauro, while the Università di Torino-Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e Biologia dei Sistemi has tackled the biodeterioration issues and started experimental investigations in the National Park.
This is the report of the work carried out in the sector STL.
RIASSUNTO Il Forcello di Bagnolo S.Vito (MN) è il principale abitato dell'area di espansione etrusca a nord del Po nel VI e V secolo a.C. Si tratta di un insediamento esteso circa 12 ettari dalla struttura pienamente urbana: un impianto ortogonale caratterizzato da assi viari principali e strade minori che si intersecano ortogonalmente e individuano quartieri, occupati da edifici sia di tipo residenziale che produttivo. Le indagini archeologiche, estese su un'area di circa 900 m 2 nel nucleo centrale dell'insediamento, si susseguono da oltre trent'anni e hanno permesso di riconoscere nove fasi insediative, definite dallo stratificarsi di attività domestiche, attività artigianali ed eventi catastrofici. L'estensione e la lunga durata delle ricerche hanno permesso di riportare alla luce decine di strutture da fuoco: focolari, forni a fossa per attività pirotecnologiche, resti di fornaci per la cottura della ceramica. L'ampia varietà tipologica delle strutture da fuoco rinvenute è così associata alla funzione degli ambienti in cui esse si trovano, interpretata a sua volta grazie allo studio parallelo dei reperti associati e delle tecniche edilizie.
ABSTRACT The Forcello site (Bagnolo S. Vito, Mantua) is the main Etruscan settlement north of the Po in the 6th and 5th centuries BC. It is approximately 12-hectare wide, with a fully urban pattern. It's characterized by an orthogonal plan, defined by main and secondary roads that intersect each other orthogonally and outline blocks, occupied by both residential and productive buildings. The archaeological investigations are carried out in the settlement's core area, over about 900 m2. After more than thirty years of excavations, nine archaeological phases have been recognized, resulting by the stratification of domestic activities, craft activities and catastrophic events. The extension and the long duration of the researches have brought to light dozens of fire structures: hearths, pit furnaces to cast bronze or to forge iron objects, remains of kilns. The wide typological variety of the fire structures can be evaluated according to the function of the buildings in which they are located, detected by study of archaeological findings and building techniques.
Rapi M., Quirino T., Castellano L., Hirose M., Amato A., Barbieri E., Busnelli S., "Per scaldare, per cuocere e per produrre. Le strutture da fuoco dell'abitato etrusco del Forcello di Bagnolo S. Vito: aspetti tipologici e funzionali", in Peinetti A., Cattani M., Debandi F., a cura di, "Sesto Incontro Annuale di Preistoria e Protostoria. Focolari, forni e fornaci tra Neolitico ed età del Ferro", Bologna, 29 marzo 2019, 2019, pp. 107-109
Rapi M., Quirino T., Castellano L., Hirose M., Amato A., Barbieri E., Busnelli S., "To warm, to cook, to produce. The fire structures of the Etruscan settlement of Forcello di Bagnolo S. Vito: typological and functional aspects", in Peinetti A., Cattani M., Debandi F., eds., "Sixth Annual Meeting of Prehistory and Protohistory. Hearths, ovens and kilns from the Neolithic to the Iron Age", Bologna, march 29th 2019, 2019, pp. 107-109
reference system, handled with GIS software. Second, on the basis of certain distinctive characteristics of settlements such as the size of the occupied area, the internal organization and the building techniques employed, a possible hierarchical subdivision of the settlements is identified. The final aim is to propose a settlement model that can then be compared to the reality of the current archaeological record.
of the Ramesseum (2017-2020, 2022) corresponding to sectors STL and STG (2), 15 tombs related to the necropolis of the Third Intermediate Period were unearthed and investigated. Ongoing research in these sectors is proceeding systematically from east to west. Although the main goal is to try to reconstruct the function of these rooms in the Ramesside Period, the most interesting information collected relates to the Third Intermediate Period, when these structures were modified to house funerary chapels and burials, creating a very characteristic funerary landscape.
At least 3 of the 15 tombs excavated so far were still intact and it was possible to reconstruct in detail the original burial assemblage, found in its
original position, and, in two cases, also the different phases of use.
One of these is the tomb known as STG.SA14.To1.
The protection and conservation of the rock engravings are sensitive subjects and strictly linked to the knowledge of the characteristics of each rock. After the first project about monitoring and preservation of the Valle Camonica rock art led between 2012-2014, in 2017 the Ministero per i beni e le attività culturali (now Ministero della Cultura) started a new project (according to the Law 77/06, Financial Year 2015). It is focused on new rocks found in the last years, on rocks located in the National Park of Rock Engravings (loc. Naquane), on Eneolithic stelae and boulder-menhirs and on few rock paintings. As for the first project, all groups of researchers working in Valle Camonica were involved in the work. The new data extend the knowledge on territorial distribution as shown by the Geographic Information System. The chemical and physical characterization of the painting material was performed with the collaboration of the Istituto Centrale per il Restauro, while the Università di Torino-Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e Biologia dei Sistemi has tackled the biodeterioration issues and started experimental investigations in the National Park.
This is the report of the work carried out in the sector STL.
RIASSUNTO Il Forcello di Bagnolo S.Vito (MN) è il principale abitato dell'area di espansione etrusca a nord del Po nel VI e V secolo a.C. Si tratta di un insediamento esteso circa 12 ettari dalla struttura pienamente urbana: un impianto ortogonale caratterizzato da assi viari principali e strade minori che si intersecano ortogonalmente e individuano quartieri, occupati da edifici sia di tipo residenziale che produttivo. Le indagini archeologiche, estese su un'area di circa 900 m 2 nel nucleo centrale dell'insediamento, si susseguono da oltre trent'anni e hanno permesso di riconoscere nove fasi insediative, definite dallo stratificarsi di attività domestiche, attività artigianali ed eventi catastrofici. L'estensione e la lunga durata delle ricerche hanno permesso di riportare alla luce decine di strutture da fuoco: focolari, forni a fossa per attività pirotecnologiche, resti di fornaci per la cottura della ceramica. L'ampia varietà tipologica delle strutture da fuoco rinvenute è così associata alla funzione degli ambienti in cui esse si trovano, interpretata a sua volta grazie allo studio parallelo dei reperti associati e delle tecniche edilizie.
ABSTRACT The Forcello site (Bagnolo S. Vito, Mantua) is the main Etruscan settlement north of the Po in the 6th and 5th centuries BC. It is approximately 12-hectare wide, with a fully urban pattern. It's characterized by an orthogonal plan, defined by main and secondary roads that intersect each other orthogonally and outline blocks, occupied by both residential and productive buildings. The archaeological investigations are carried out in the settlement's core area, over about 900 m2. After more than thirty years of excavations, nine archaeological phases have been recognized, resulting by the stratification of domestic activities, craft activities and catastrophic events. The extension and the long duration of the researches have brought to light dozens of fire structures: hearths, pit furnaces to cast bronze or to forge iron objects, remains of kilns. The wide typological variety of the fire structures can be evaluated according to the function of the buildings in which they are located, detected by study of archaeological findings and building techniques.
Rapi M., Quirino T., Castellano L., Hirose M., Amato A., Barbieri E., Busnelli S., "Per scaldare, per cuocere e per produrre. Le strutture da fuoco dell'abitato etrusco del Forcello di Bagnolo S. Vito: aspetti tipologici e funzionali", in Peinetti A., Cattani M., Debandi F., a cura di, "Sesto Incontro Annuale di Preistoria e Protostoria. Focolari, forni e fornaci tra Neolitico ed età del Ferro", Bologna, 29 marzo 2019, 2019, pp. 107-109
Rapi M., Quirino T., Castellano L., Hirose M., Amato A., Barbieri E., Busnelli S., "To warm, to cook, to produce. The fire structures of the Etruscan settlement of Forcello di Bagnolo S. Vito: typological and functional aspects", in Peinetti A., Cattani M., Debandi F., eds., "Sixth Annual Meeting of Prehistory and Protohistory. Hearths, ovens and kilns from the Neolithic to the Iron Age", Bologna, march 29th 2019, 2019, pp. 107-109
reference system, handled with GIS software. Second, on the basis of certain distinctive characteristics of settlements such as the size of the occupied area, the internal organization and the building techniques employed, a possible hierarchical subdivision of the settlements is identified. The final aim is to propose a settlement model that can then be compared to the reality of the current archaeological record.
The geological situation of the area and the proximity of the cultivated fields caused the coffins to be badly damaged by humidity and by the actions of termites. Hence they were often preserved only as brownish or whitish imprints in the sand. Sometimes, more remained: areas of different coloured powders revealing details of the original decoration and texts, and, quite rarely, a quantity of gold leaves or a pair of inlaid eyes.
Due to the importance of coffins in establishing the ‘use-life’ of these tombs and in revealing the identity and social status of the dead, and taking into account the difficulties of stabilisation and conservation of these items, we granted particular attention to documenting the remains in situ, going beyond the traditional techniques of drawing and photography.
In particular, the recording of coffins has been undertaken using photorectification and photomosaics. The images obtained have been georeferenced in the GIS and vectorised for the creation of final plans. From the 17th field season on, we began using Structure from Motion methods to build 3D models of the coffin remains, in order to document the volume of the find and the state of preservation at the time of discovery. The study of the coffin decoration, on the other hand, is now supported by colour transform methods. With the aid of imaging programmes and a special plug-in created for the enhancement of rock paintings (ImageJ and DStretch), we try to bring out figures not clearly recognisable to the naked eye.
The total disappearance of the organic materials – linen or wood – that once supported plasters and pigments, and the sudden deterioration of which these items typically suffer once they have been exposed, make the consolidation and preservation of these vanishing traces almost always impossible, given the conservation interventions available on site. Thanks to the collaboration with the Centro di Conservazione e Restauro “La Venaria Reale”, we found a solution to preserve one of the best preserved cartonnages, despite its poor state of conservation. The scanty remains have been consolidated, removed and provisionally repositioned on a mould (gypsed polystyrene) specifically designed, inspired by cartonnages chronologically compatible with the one object of our intervention. This conservative work will allow the handling and the storage of this object in complete safety.
We will present an overview of our work in progress, showing a case study from a recently excavated tomb.