Papers by Tommaso Mattioli
La limitatio dell'ager Reatinus : paradigma del rapporto tra agrimensura e pastorizia, viabilità e assetto idrogeologico del territorio, 2009
This paper presents the results of an interdisciplinary study on the drainage of damp or humid ar... more This paper presents the results of an interdisciplinary study on the drainage of damp or humid areas, the control of surface water and the centuriation operated in the plain of Rieti by the Roman consul Manius Curius Dentatus during the conquest of the Sabina region in the third century BC. This research, organised on the occasion of the bimillenary anniversary of the birth of the Emperor Vespasian, brings more wareness to consider the work of Gromatici as an inseparable unity of various processes concerning hydrographical network, road systems, land reclamation and agrarian organization. Some parallels could be established between the cases of Rieti, Pianura Pontina and the latin colony of Spoletium. This study could bring us to a better and deeper understanding of events and patterns of Romanization of central Italy.
Mattioli, T., García Atiénzar, G., Barciela González, V. y Díaz-Andreu García, M. 2019. Escuchar ... more Mattioli, T., García Atiénzar, G., Barciela González, V. y Díaz-Andreu García, M. 2019. Escuchar con los ojos: la aplicación del GIS al estudio del campo visual y sonoro en los paisajes de arte rupestre de la montaña alicantina. En García Atiénzar, G. y Barciela González, V. (eds.), Sociedades prehistóricas y manifestaciones artísticas. Imágenes, nuevas propuestas e interpretaciones: 285-302. Alicante: Instituto Universitario de Investigación en Arqueología y Patrimonio Histórico de la Universidad de Alicante (INAPH) (Colección Petracos 2). 1. Introducción; 2. El área de estudio: el arte rupestre de la Montaña de Alicante; 3. Modelando la visibilidad y la sonoridad en el arte rupestre de Alicante; 4. Interpretando los resultados del análisis GIS; 5. Discusión: cambiando la percepción del arte rupestre de la montaña alicantina; 6. Conclusión
This paper presents research on viewshed analysis of a sample of 12 rock-art sites in central Ita... more This paper presents research on viewshed analysis of a sample of 12 rock-art sites in central Italy. The simple Boolean approach of GIS software is supplemented by a visual distance decay index based on the resolution of the human eye. From data so far collected, this approach seems to provide interesting information about visual potential function of rock-art sites that can be subdivided into three types: narrow gorge view-dominance, river valley view-dominance, wide territory view-dominance. Rock-Art Studies in Central Italy Prehistoric rock-art, including paintings and engravings on rock surfaces as a whole, appears in Italy during the final Upper Paleolithic age and manifests itself sporadically and with varied geographical distributions in subsequent ages up to historical times. Most of the Italian examples are in northern Italy, in particular in the Alps, and in a few of the regions of southern Italy and islands. In central Italy rock-art has remained until now practically unk...
Heritage & Society
This article explores the potential of social media in disseminating and communicating archaeolog... more This article explores the potential of social media in disseminating and communicating archaeological knowledge and the ways in which their impact on the public can be enhanced through marketing plans. It examines the implementation of such a plan in the context of the Facebook page of the ERC Advanced Grant project "The sound of special places: exploring rock art soundscapes and the sacred" (acronym: Artsoundscapes). Using quantitative and qualitative data provided by the Facebook Insights altmetrics tool, the article evaluates the general performance of the Artsoundscapes page and measures the effectiveness of the marketing plan. It discusses the components of marketing plans with emphasis on a carefully designed content strategy that, in the case of the Artsoundscapes Facebook page, in only 19 months of existence has resulted in the organic development of an active online community of 757 fans and 787 followers from 45 countries. The marketing plan has contributed to raising awareness of the Artsoundscapes project and an emerging, highly specialized and little-known branch of archaeologythe archaeoacoustics of rock art sites. It rapidly and engagingly disseminates the project's activities and outcomes among both specialist and non-specialist audiences, and informs the non-specialist public about relevant advances in the multiple fieldsrock art studies, acoustics, music archaeology and ethnomusicologythat intersect in it. The article concludes that social media are effective means for archaeologists and archaeological organizations and projects to reach various audiences, and that marketing plans significantly augment this process.
La Linde (Valencia), 2015
es una ciencia en gran auge en los últimos años dentro de los estudios arqueológicos. En la actua... more es una ciencia en gran auge en los últimos años dentro de los estudios arqueológicos. En la actualidad, se están realizando diferentes investigaciones en la Península Ibérica con este nuevo enfoque. Estos buscan determinar la influencia y relación que puede llegar a existir entre el arte rupestre prehistórico (Paleolítico, Levantino y Esquemático), los lugares que lo contienen (cuevas y abrigos) y su acústica. En este artículo definimos qué es Arqueoacústica, detallamos de forma general el estado de sus investigaciones de cronología prehistórica en la actualidad y presentamos la metodología y los resultados de los estudios que se están realizando en la Península Ibérica en el arte rupestre postpaleolítico. PALABRAS CLAVE.-Arqueoacústica, arte rupestre prehistórico, Península Ibérica, acústica, sonido. ABSTRACT.-Archaeoacoustics is an increasingly popular field of research within archaeology. In the Iberian Peninsula there are currently several different projects being undertaken. In the area of rock art studies, these seek to determine the relationship between prehistoric rock art (Palaeolithic, Levantine and Schematic) in its landscape context (caves and shelters) and acoustics.In this article we will first define Archaeoacoustics and detail the research being undertaken in relation to prehistoric rock art. We will also explain the methodology and results of current research projects related to postpaleolithic rock art in the Iberian Peninsula. KEY WORDS.-Archaeoacoustics, prehistoric rock art, Iberian Peninsula, acoustic, sound.
Datos recogidos en el marco del proyecto de la ERC "The sound of special places: exploring r... more Datos recogidos en el marco del proyecto de la ERC "The sound of special places: exploring rock art soundscapes and the sacred" (acrónimo: Artsoundscapes) que tiene como Investigadora Principal la ICREA Research Professor Margarita Díaz-Andreu centrado en el campo de la arqueoacústica y el arte rupestre. En el artículo se analiza el potencial de los medios de comunicación social en general y de Facebook en particular para difundir y comunicar los conocimientos arqueológicos y las formas en que se puede mejorar su impacto en el público inspirándose en planes de comercialización desarrollados para el mundo de la empresa. Utilizando datos cuantitativos y cualitativos proporcionados por la herramienta de altmetría Facebook Insights, el artículo evalúa el impacto de la página Artsoundscapes y mide la eficacia del plan de comercialización, examinando los diferentes componentes de estos planes y haciendo hincapié en la estrategia de contenido que se ha seguido y que fue cuidadosa...
The results of the search conducted on Facebook based on the keyword "archaeoacoustics"... more The results of the search conducted on Facebook based on the keyword "archaeoacoustics" (as of 4 August 2020)
Fans of the Artsoundscapes Facebook page by gender and age (as of 4 August 2020) / The success of... more Fans of the Artsoundscapes Facebook page by gender and age (as of 4 August 2020) / The success of posts including images and links on the Artsoundscapes Facebook page (as of 4 August 2020)
Proceedings of the ICA congress, 2019
Anthropological studies and ethnohistorical sourcesshow that most hunter-gatherer and early agric... more Anthropological studies and ethnohistorical sourcesshow that most hunter-gatherer and early agricultural societies around theglobe believe the world to be ensouled or numinous. This means thatnatural phenomena, including acoustic effects (echoes, for example), were perceived as being linked to supernatural agents (2) (3).Although the supernatural is everywhere, particular places in the landscape are identified as being special for transcendental communication. In prehistory, the information about these places is lost, except when they have been marked with rock paintings. In fact, rock art-when it is preserved-is situated precisely still in places where the artist chose to put it. Intriguingly, while experiencing rock art landscapes, one also occupies the same space where the artist was. This placement has particular advantages on the interpretation of rock art landscapes compared to other types of archaeological features, because the knowledge of its exact location in the environment can provide a powerful insight into what lay behind its production. In our hypothesis, acoustics can be considered as one of the potential key element in the placement, production and use of rock art. We were not the first to address this issue, but some efforts have been made in the past to explore, for example, the role of echoes in rock art landscapes or the relationship of rock art with specific sonotopes (4). In archaeology, there have also been researches about the function of musical instruments found in the archaeological deposits associated to rock art panels, or about the meaning of musical instruments depicted in rock art panels-and, finally, about the use of the rock art support itself , i.e. lithophones (4), as a musical instrument. Other interesting approaches briefly addressed in the literature dealt also with the importance of sound and music present in rituals (5:21) (6) (7), including those performed in rock art landscapes (8:650) (9:39) (10) (11:248), see (12)). It is in this context that since 2014 we have started a series of research projects aimed at exploring the acoustics of rock art landscapes. The aim of these projects has been to put together a group of researchers from different disciplines (i.e. archaeology, acoustics, psychoacoustics, anthropologists) to explore from different perspectives the sensorial experience sought by prehistoric communities and the potential use of landscape acoustics to produce sounds in the past. Regarding physical acoustics, measuring the acoustic properties of rock art environments is not a trivial task; it involves handling and moving equipment over highly demanding terrains (i.e. gorges, cliffs, canyons, etc.), while providing sound recordings that are as accurate and authentic as possible. Thus, the foremost problem that we overcame was designing a compact, small-sized, portable and battery-powered equipment to
Archaeology in the Digital Era, 2014
This research aims to present a new interpretation of the land exploitation and management by the... more This research aims to present a new interpretation of the land exploitation and management by the Italic population of Umbria and Sabina in central Apennines mountains. Starting from the results of a detailed topographic study of Roman land division of some intermontane basins through which we have identified the route of ancient transhumance trails, we propose a new gis-based approach to land exploitation during the pre-roman period. By comparing historical data and computer-aided analysis of territory and settlements (e.g. the typical italic hillforts, the so called “castellieri”), we increase the scientific data base and knowledge available to understand the historical significance and characteristics of transhumance in the ancient Italy and the great economic importance of sheep farming, a phenomenon always mentioned by archaeologist but never before studied in depth.
This paper presents two different methods (topographic and GIS based analysis) applied by the aut... more This paper presents two different methods (topographic and GIS based analysis) applied by the authors to recognize the layout of transhumance pathways in Umbria and Sabina regions (Central Italy) and to investigate the spatial correlation between pre-Roman ‘castellieri’ (Italic hillforts) and transhumance routes.
Oxford Journal of Archaeology, 2021
We argue here that it is possible to study dance in prehistoric societies by analysing how it was... more We argue here that it is possible to study dance in prehistoric societies by analysing how it was depicted in rock art. For this research to be effective, subjectivity must be minimised by analysing the images systematically. We adapt a series of criteria first established in Garfinkel's 'archaeology of dance' and apply them to our case study of dance representations in Spanish Levantine rock art. We conclude that only twelve scenes fit the typical parameters of dance representations. By studying this set of images, we are able to identify dances with a single individual, couples and groups. We suggest that dances took place in more than one context and followed specific cultural patterns, among which we highlight gender identity.
L'Anthropologie, 2019
Pour citer cet article : Diaz-Andreu, M., et al., Des sites à voir et à entendre : les abris à mo... more Pour citer cet article : Diaz-Andreu, M., et al., Des sites à voir et à entendre : les abris à motifs sché matiques de la falaise de Baume Brune (Vaucluse). L'anthropologie (2019),
Many pre-state societies around the world give special importance to places where distinctive aco... more Many pre-state societies around the world give special importance to places where distinctive acoustic effects are generated. These places often receive special treatment including the production of rock paintings in them. In the Western Mediterranean, it seems that outstanding acoustic effects such as directional echoes, augmented audibility and long reverberation time are present in some rock art areas with Neolithic depictions made between the 7 and 4 millennia BC. These have been painted in different styles that have been given the name of Macroschematic, Levantine and Schematic rock art styles. On the basis of the results of our acoustic tests, we argue that there is a strong probability of acoustics having been used as a method by Neolithic artists to select the shelters in which to produce rock art. This paper presents the results of the ongoing ARTSOUNDSCAPES ERC Project on archaeoacoustics. This project seeks to explore the role of sound in the creation and use of rock art ...
This paper presents research on viewshed analysis of a sample of 12 rock-art sites in central Ita... more This paper presents research on viewshed analysis of a sample of 12 rock-art sites in central Italy. The simple Boolean approach of GIS software is supplemented by a visual distance decay index based on the resolution of the human eye. From data so far collected, this approach seems to provide interesting information about visual potential function of rock-art sites that can be subdivided into three types: narrow gorge view-dominance, river valley view-dominance, wide territory view-dominance.
Oxford Journal of Archaeology
We argue here that it is possible to study dance in prehistoric societies by analysing how it was... more We argue here that it is possible to study dance in prehistoric societies by analysing how it was depicted in rock art. For this research to be effective, subjectivity must be minimised by analysing the images systematically. We adapt a series of criteria first established in Garfinkel's 'archaeology of dance' and apply them to our case study of dance representations in Spanish Levantine rock art. We conclude that only twelve scenes fit the typical parameters of dance representations. By studying this set of images, we are able to identify dances with a single individual, couples and groups. We suggest that dances took place in more than one context and followed specific cultural patterns, among which we highlight gender identity.
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Papers by Tommaso Mattioli