In July 2011, the Istituto Italiano di Preistoria e Protostoria partially funded the research p... more In July 2011, the Istituto Italiano di Preistoria e Protostoria partially funded the research project entitled “The Rinaldone facies: new dates”. The project, whose results are presented here, was coordinated by Nuccia Negroni Catacchio on behalf of the Centro Studi di Preistoria e Archeologia of Milan, while Elsa Pacciani was responsible for the dating itself. During the project, it soon emerged that Rittatore’s previous excavations of the very same necropoleis that were being dated were in need of revision, both from an archaeological perspective and from an anthropological one. The outcomes of all these different strands merge organically in the present work, complementing each other. The main topics discussed are listed below. Revision of the old excavations. The dating carried out on skeletal remains from the necropoleis of Chiusa d’Ermini and of La Porcareccia, which are presented here, fits well within wider scholarly trends that in relatively recent years have led to a renewed interest in the Eneolithic period and the Rinaldone culture. For example, the necropoleis of Ponte San Pietro and of Garavicchio, among others, have been recently dated (Dolfini et alii, 2012; Manfredini 2012). For the latter two necropoleis new analyses of materials and skeletal remains have been carried out, and they are presented here. In order to provide a framework for the dating and the analysis of the skeletal remains, here we briefly analyze, from an archaeological point of view, the four necropoleis excavated in the fifties and sixties by F. Rittatore Vonwiller. Renewed scholarly interest towards these necropoleis is partly due to the rediscovery of the diaries of F. Rittatore himself and L. Cardini, which are now kept at the Istituto Italiano di Paleontologia Umana. The new data. The twelve samples selected for dating within the research project “The Rinaldone facies: new dates” were taken from human skeletal remains from burial tombs in the necropoleis of Chiusa d’Ermini and La Porcareccia, presently housed in the Anthropology and Ethnology section of the University of Florence Natural History Museum, and from remains found at the necropolis of Poggialti Vallelunga and currently kept at the Laboratorio di Archeoantropologia of the Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici della Toscana. In detail, the samples selected are: four from Chiusa d’Ermini (Tomb I, individual 1; Tomb I, individual 4; Tomb IIIF.1; Tomb IIIM.A); three from La Porcareccia (Tomb IV, individual 1; Tomb IV, individual 3; Tomb IV, individual 4); five from Poggialti Vallelunga (Tomb 3, Tomb 4, Individual A, Tomb 4, Individual B, Tomb 5, Tomb 8). The samples were subjected to radiocarbon dating, using the technique of high-resolution mass spectrometry (AMS), at the Centro di Datazione e Diagnostica (CEDAD) of the University of Salento. All the samples from Chiusa d’Ermini and two of the samples from La Porcareccia yielded viable results. Here these results are discussed in the light of archaeological knowledge and the problems inherent in the methodology. The remaing six samples, including all those from Poggialti Vallelunga and one from La Porcareccia, failed to yield a sufficient amount of collagen and did not therefore produce any result, because of the diagenetic degradation of bone tissues. The new analyses of the skeletal remains. After more than forty years since the publication of the anthropological analyses by Raffaello Parenti (1970) on the skeletal remains from the Rinaldonian necropoleis of Ponte San Pietro, La Porcareccia, Chiusa d’Ermini and Garavicchio, it was deemed appropriate to review the data and to carry out an additional study of the human skeletal remains from these sites, also following recent studies published in the field of archeology and the new absolute dates acquired (Dolfini 2004, 2006, 2010; Negroni Catacchio et alii, 2005; Conti et alii, 2006; de Marinis, 2006; Petitti et alii, 2006; Sarti 2006; Cocchi Genick, 2008; Manfredini et alii, 2009; Aspesi 2012). These studies have highlighted the complexity of the Rinaldone culture, proposing new systems of interpretation for reconstructing the relations between the different communities and their social structure, with a degree of freedom from the original classification criteria. Similarly, in recent decades, in the field of anthropology, new areas of research have emerged, mainly aimed at outlining a broad paleobiological profile for human groups, one that takes into account economic, socio-cultural and environmental aspects; and it is precisely in light of this innovative approach (rather than following any traditional typological analysis) that a review of the skeletal remains has been undertaken. Working on these remains has also provided the opportunity to carry out their restoration, that it has become necessary due to the elapsed time; to update the inventory of the remains and, where necessary, to correct any inaccuracy or mistake found in previous publications.
with contributions by Erika Albertini, Marialucia Amadio, Valentina Bonora, Alessandro Conti, Giu... more with contributions by Erika Albertini, Marialucia Amadio, Valentina Bonora, Alessandro Conti, Giulia Dionisio, Francesca Dolcetti, Mariaelena Fedi, Marco Fioravanti, Lidia Fiorini, Martina Fissore, Peter Gasson, Carole McCartney, Martina Monaco, Giulia Muti, Daniele Redamante, David S. Reese, Alessanda Saggio, Caterina Scirè Calabrisotto, Grazia Tucci, Elena Vassio, Jennifer M. Webb and Mari Yamasaki
In July 2011, the Istituto Italiano di Preistoria e Protostoria partially funded the research p... more In July 2011, the Istituto Italiano di Preistoria e Protostoria partially funded the research project entitled “The Rinaldone facies: new dates”. The project, whose results are presented here, was coordinated by Nuccia Negroni Catacchio on behalf of the Centro Studi di Preistoria e Archeologia of Milan, while Elsa Pacciani was responsible for the dating itself. During the project, it soon emerged that Rittatore’s previous excavations of the very same necropoleis that were being dated were in need of revision, both from an archaeological perspective and from an anthropological one. The outcomes of all these different strands merge organically in the present work, complementing each other. The main topics discussed are listed below. Revision of the old excavations. The dating carried out on skeletal remains from the necropoleis of Chiusa d’Ermini and of La Porcareccia, which are presented here, fits well within wider scholarly trends that in relatively recent years have led to a renewed interest in the Eneolithic period and the Rinaldone culture. For example, the necropoleis of Ponte San Pietro and of Garavicchio, among others, have been recently dated (Dolfini et alii, 2012; Manfredini 2012). For the latter two necropoleis new analyses of materials and skeletal remains have been carried out, and they are presented here. In order to provide a framework for the dating and the analysis of the skeletal remains, here we briefly analyze, from an archaeological point of view, the four necropoleis excavated in the fifties and sixties by F. Rittatore Vonwiller. Renewed scholarly interest towards these necropoleis is partly due to the rediscovery of the diaries of F. Rittatore himself and L. Cardini, which are now kept at the Istituto Italiano di Paleontologia Umana. The new data. The twelve samples selected for dating within the research project “The Rinaldone facies: new dates” were taken from human skeletal remains from burial tombs in the necropoleis of Chiusa d’Ermini and La Porcareccia, presently housed in the Anthropology and Ethnology section of the University of Florence Natural History Museum, and from remains found at the necropolis of Poggialti Vallelunga and currently kept at the Laboratorio di Archeoantropologia of the Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici della Toscana. In detail, the samples selected are: four from Chiusa d’Ermini (Tomb I, individual 1; Tomb I, individual 4; Tomb IIIF.1; Tomb IIIM.A); three from La Porcareccia (Tomb IV, individual 1; Tomb IV, individual 3; Tomb IV, individual 4); five from Poggialti Vallelunga (Tomb 3, Tomb 4, Individual A, Tomb 4, Individual B, Tomb 5, Tomb 8). The samples were subjected to radiocarbon dating, using the technique of high-resolution mass spectrometry (AMS), at the Centro di Datazione e Diagnostica (CEDAD) of the University of Salento. All the samples from Chiusa d’Ermini and two of the samples from La Porcareccia yielded viable results. Here these results are discussed in the light of archaeological knowledge and the problems inherent in the methodology. The remaing six samples, including all those from Poggialti Vallelunga and one from La Porcareccia, failed to yield a sufficient amount of collagen and did not therefore produce any result, because of the diagenetic degradation of bone tissues. The new analyses of the skeletal remains. After more than forty years since the publication of the anthropological analyses by Raffaello Parenti (1970) on the skeletal remains from the Rinaldonian necropoleis of Ponte San Pietro, La Porcareccia, Chiusa d’Ermini and Garavicchio, it was deemed appropriate to review the data and to carry out an additional study of the human skeletal remains from these sites, also following recent studies published in the field of archeology and the new absolute dates acquired (Dolfini 2004, 2006, 2010; Negroni Catacchio et alii, 2005; Conti et alii, 2006; de Marinis, 2006; Petitti et alii, 2006; Sarti 2006; Cocchi Genick, 2008; Manfredini et alii, 2009; Aspesi 2012). These studies have highlighted the complexity of the Rinaldone culture, proposing new systems of interpretation for reconstructing the relations between the different communities and their social structure, with a degree of freedom from the original classification criteria. Similarly, in recent decades, in the field of anthropology, new areas of research have emerged, mainly aimed at outlining a broad paleobiological profile for human groups, one that takes into account economic, socio-cultural and environmental aspects; and it is precisely in light of this innovative approach (rather than following any traditional typological analysis) that a review of the skeletal remains has been undertaken. Working on these remains has also provided the opportunity to carry out their restoration, that it has become necessary due to the elapsed time; to update the inventory of the remains and, where necessary, to correct any inaccuracy or mistake found in previous publications.
with contributions by Erika Albertini, Marialucia Amadio, Valentina Bonora, Alessandro Conti, Giu... more with contributions by Erika Albertini, Marialucia Amadio, Valentina Bonora, Alessandro Conti, Giulia Dionisio, Francesca Dolcetti, Mariaelena Fedi, Marco Fioravanti, Lidia Fiorini, Martina Fissore, Peter Gasson, Carole McCartney, Martina Monaco, Giulia Muti, Daniele Redamante, David S. Reese, Alessanda Saggio, Caterina Scirè Calabrisotto, Grazia Tucci, Elena Vassio, Jennifer M. Webb and Mari Yamasaki
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