- Laboratorio di Archeobotanica e Paleoecologia
Dipartimento di Beni Culturali
Via D. Birago, n.64
73100 Lecce (Italy) - (+39) 0832 29 56 44
- Landscape Archaeology, Geoarchaeology, Landscapes in prehistory, Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, Prehistoric Archaeobotany, Beni Culturali, and 18 moreNeolithic Archaeology, Paleoclimatology, Archaeobotany, Agricultural landscapes, Agriculture and Food Studies, Food History, Ancient Agriculture & Farming (Archaeology), Environmental Archaeology, Paleoethnobotany, Wood Charcoal, Palaeoethnobotany, Bronze Age Europe (Archaeology), Pollen analysis, Palaeobotany, Diatoms, Palaeoclimates, Palaeoecology, and Foodways (Anthropology)edit
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From the 9th to 14th centuries AD, Sicily experienced a series of rapid and quite radical changes in political regime, but the impact of these regime changes on the lives of the people that experienced them remains largely elusive within... more
From the 9th to 14th centuries AD, Sicily experienced a series of rapid and quite radical changes in political regime, but the impact of these regime changes on the lives of the people that experienced them remains largely elusive within the historical narrative. We use a multi-faceted lipid residue approach to give direct chemical evidence of the use of 248 everyday domestic ceramic containers from Islamic and post-Islamic contexts in western Sicily to aid our understanding of daily habits throughout this period of political change. A range of commodities was successfully identified, including animal fats, vegetable products, fruit products (potentially including wine) and plant resins. The study highlights the complexity of residues in early medieval Mediterranean society as, in many cases, mixtures of commodities were observed reflecting sequential cooking events and/or the complex mixtures reflective of medieval recipes. However, overall, there were no clear changes in the compo...
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In the studies of ancient bread or bread-like remains, the well-preserved findings from the Messapian/GreekSanctuary of Monte Papalucio (Oria, southern Italy) represent one of the most famous example in the Mediterranean region. The... more
In the studies of ancient bread or bread-like remains, the well-preserved findings from the Messapian/GreekSanctuary of Monte Papalucio (Oria, southern Italy) represent one of the most famous example in the Mediterranean region. The sanctuary, dated to Archaic and Hellenistic periods, was dedicated to the cult of Demeter and Persephone/Kore, strictly associatedto agricultural cycles and fecundity rituals; effectively, during the excavation of the terraces where the sanctuary lies, a large amount of charred plants and, above all, cakes and biscuits were recovered and interpreted as food offerings (Ciaraldi 1997-1998). As for the latter finds, the author identifieddifferent kinds of doughon the base of macroscopic analysis, some bearing resemblance to modern filo-pastry, possibly corresponding to plakous(typical cakes offered to Demeter), some others decorated with knobs, or ring shaped. For a third type, Ciaraldisuggested the use of broad beenflour among the ingredients. Given that these unusual finds represent direct and rare evidence of the food productsoffered by indigenous and south Italian Greeksinside a particular "place of encounter" between the Messapian and the Greek form of the cult of Demeter, their detailed analysis and microscopical re-evaluation seemed crucialfor understanding further aspects of food production (the plant components and processes involved),as well as thecultural dimension of the offered foodstuff. Therefore, ESEM (Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope) analyses were performed on theMonte Papalucio findings: Tissue remains and their particle sizes, along with other parameters, were used in order to elucidate ingredients and production techniques, and the various processes involved (grinding, sieving, leavening, baking). Also, the hypothesis of a connection between ingredients, production techniques and cake/biscuit shape and decoration was tested. The contribution presents and discusses the unexpected results of these analyses.
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Il testo che segue riguarda la nostra ricerca archeologica sulla Sicilia bizantina, islamica e normanno-sveva e in particolare riporta le ultime scoperte a Castronovo di Sicilia, che includono il riconoscimento di una chiesa del XII-XIII... more
Il testo che segue riguarda la nostra ricerca archeologica sulla Sicilia bizantina, islamica e normanno-sveva e in particolare riporta le ultime scoperte a Castronovo di Sicilia, che includono il riconoscimento di una chiesa del XII-XIII secolo sul Monte Kassar, la continuazione dello scavo a Casale San Pietro e una sintesi delle nuove ricognizioni nelle sue vicinanze. Quest’ultimo sito rimane il focus principale del Progetto ERC sictransit, ma in questa sede diamo anche conto dei primi risultati di un’indagine piu ampia, che include una grossa quantita di reperti che provengono da tutta la Sicilia da siti scavati in precedenza (Fig 1). Questi reperti consistino in ceramiche, metalli e vetri assieme a resti umani, animali e vegetali, che vengono analizzati nei laboratori delle universita partner del progetto: York, Roma e Lecce. I principali metodi scientifici applicati sono: analisi tipologiche, petrografiche e del contenuto organico delle ceramiche da cucina e da trasporto; degli ...
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... The rock surfaces of the sinkhole are marked by several caves, inhabited also during the Bronze Age. ... in the Puglia region and its importance is strongly connected to the spread of the Neolithic from the Near East towards the... more
... The rock surfaces of the sinkhole are marked by several caves, inhabited also during the Bronze Age. ... in the Puglia region and its importance is strongly connected to the spread of the Neolithic from the Near East towards the western Mediterranean basin (Guilaine 1998). ...
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The objective of our research was to define the main human–environment interactions during the Neolithic period (6500–3700 bc) in the Apulia region of southeastern Italy based on available published and unpublished data. Knowledge of... more
The objective of our research was to define the main human–environment interactions during the Neolithic period (6500–3700 bc) in the Apulia region of southeastern Italy based on available published and unpublished data. Knowledge of these interactions is crucial to understanding the cultural and social dynamics of the period, particularly concerning the earliest farmers. Using a multidisciplinary approach, paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatological data at the regional and Mediterranean scales were compared with the results of analyses performed on natural deposits and deposits in Neolithic settlements. The following data sets were used: (1) 121 14C dates for settlements, from which probability curves (%) of the Apulian Archaeological Occupation (AAO) were developed; (2) offshore data obtained from analyses performed on two offshore sediment cores drilled in the Adriatic Sea; (3) offsite data from studies conducted in two natural coastal contexts; and (4) onsite archaeobotanical da...
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Research Interests: History, Archaeology, Geology, Archaeobotany, Hellenistic History, and 10 moreArchaic Greek history, Sacrifice (Anthropology Of Religion), Greek Colonization (Magna Graecia and Sicily), Cult of Demeter and Kore, Worship, Messapians, Indigenous, Food Remains In Archaeology, Cereal products, and Bread-Like Objects
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While we are struggling against the COVID-19 pandemic, it is with greater pleasure and nostalgia that we remember the intense and “free to hug” days of the 18th Conference of the International Work Group for Palaeoethnobotany held in... more
While we are struggling against the COVID-19 pandemic, it is with greater pleasure and nostalgia that we remember the intense and “free to hug” days of the 18th Conference of the International Work Group for Palaeoethnobotany held in Lecce, Italy, between the 3rd and 8th of June, 2019. Thanks to the hosting team of the Laboratorio di Archeobotanica e Paleoecologia and the great efforts of the researchers, students and administrative staff of the Department of Cultural Heritage at the University of Salento, the conference was a great success and pleased all participants. It was the first time that an IWGP meeting had taken place in Italy, where the young Maria Follieri (1932–2012) took the first steps in studying plant remains and who was among the small group of colleagues who met in Prague in 1968 to found the Internationale Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Paläoethnobotanik (IAP), the predecessor of the IWGP. While we were planning the 18th IWGP, we lost another great personality: it was o...
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En The paper presents the first archaeological evidences of bread and bread-like remains recovered in two important archaeological site of the Salento. After a review of the oldest bread findings from the Mediterranean and Europe, the... more
En The paper presents the first archaeological evidences of bread and bread-like remains recovered in two important archaeological site of the Salento. After a review of the oldest bread findings from the Mediterranean and Europe, the work addresses the issue of analytical/contextual approaches used in the study of these remains and presents the two archaeological sites (that of Rocavecchia, dated to II millennium BC, and that of Oria - Monte Papalucio, dated to archaic/hellenistic period) where the first and most important bread-like remains were recovered; some of these products are typical of the current eating habits of the Salento. It Il contributo presenta le prime evidenze archeologiche relative ai resti di pane e prodotti affini recuperati in due importanti contesti archeologici della Puglia meridionale.Dopo aver passato in rassegna i piu antichi "pani" del mediterraneo e dell'Europa, ed aver affrontato il tema degli approcci analitici e contestuali utilizzati ...
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Il testo che segue riguarda la nostra ricerca archeologica sulla Sicilia bizantina, islamica e normanno-sveva e in particolare riporta le ultime scoperte a Castronovo di Sicilia, che includono il riconoscimento di una chiesa del XII-XIII... more
Il testo che segue riguarda la nostra ricerca archeologica sulla Sicilia bizantina, islamica e normanno-sveva e in particolare riporta le ultime scoperte a Castronovo di Sicilia, che includono il riconoscimento di una chiesa del XII-XIII secolo sul Monte Kassar, la continuazione dello scavo a Casale San Pietro e una sintesi delle nuove ricognizioni nelle sue vicinanze. Quest'ultimo sito rimane il focus principale del Progetto ERC sictransit, ma in questa sede diamo anche conto dei primi ri-sultati di un'indagine più ampia, che include una grossa quantità di reperti che provengono da tutta la Sicilia da siti scavati in precedenza (Fig 1). Questi reperti consistino in ceramiche, metalli e vetri assieme a resti umani, animali e vegetali, che vengono analizzati nei laboratori delle università partner del progetto: York, Roma e Lecce. I principali metodi scientifici ap-plicati sono: analisi tipologiche, petrografiche e del contenuto organico delle ceramiche da cucina e da traspor...
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archaeological and ethnoarchaeological studies. For the Bronze Age in the central Mediterranean spatial analyses integrating various ranges of data, from artefacts to ecofacts, still remain limited in number. Moreover, studies have mainly... more
archaeological and ethnoarchaeological studies. For the Bronze Age in the central Mediterranean spatial analyses integrating various ranges of data, from artefacts to ecofacts, still remain limited in number. Moreover, studies have mainly focussed on well-preserved contexts affected by sudden destructions; spaces inhabited over long periods and so subjected to dynamic depositional processes, are more challenging to interpret as to their function(s). Yet, these latter are commonly encountered archaeological contexts. Representing palimpsests of repeated activities, they are valuable case studies for investigating the spatial organisation of activities.
This paper presents an integrated spatial analysis of a long-occupied area of the Coppa Nevigata settlement from the Late Bronze Age. It is a trial, aimed at both building a viable methodology to deal with ‘dynamic’ deposits and verifying the potential of the observed record in terms of activity areas and fossilised patterns of behaviour.
This paper presents an integrated spatial analysis of a long-occupied area of the Coppa Nevigata settlement from the Late Bronze Age. It is a trial, aimed at both building a viable methodology to deal with ‘dynamic’ deposits and verifying the potential of the observed record in terms of activity areas and fossilised patterns of behaviour.
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The socio-cultural dynamics of the Bronze Age communities of Apulia (S-E Italy) during the 2nd millennium BC represent a crucial moment in the history of the relationship between humans and nature. Over the last few decades, several... more
The socio-cultural dynamics of the Bronze Age communities of Apulia (S-E Italy) during the 2nd millennium
BC represent a crucial moment in the history of the relationship between humans and nature.
Over the last few decades, several studies have highlighted the complex pattern of Late Holocene climate
shifts across the Mediterranean region and the difficulties in distinguishing these changes from human
impacts in many proxy records. This study consists of a regional-diachronic overview of Bronze Age
archaeobotanical data, pertaining to south-eastern Italy, derived from charcoal and seed/fruit analysis
performed on materials from several archaeological sites distributed across Apulia. The aim is to identify
possible plant-related changes in subsistence strategies during a period of transformation in the environment
as well as cultural systems. It follows an integrated approach in which the shifts in plant assemblages
(seeds/fruits and charcoals) are considered in the light of high-resolution palaeoclimate
proxies, available for the central Mediterranean area, and socio-cultural dynamics inferred from
archaeological evidences.
The different lines of evidence explored provide the basis for a discussion of the possible reasons for
changes in subsistence strategies during the course of the Bronze Age in the area. What emerges from
our analysis are major transformations of annual crop husbandry, seasonal harvesting strategies and
storage technologies, one in the Middle and one in the Late Bronze Age. Although the first transformation
appears to be linked to climate forces, the latter seems to be the result of social and political “pressure”.
BC represent a crucial moment in the history of the relationship between humans and nature.
Over the last few decades, several studies have highlighted the complex pattern of Late Holocene climate
shifts across the Mediterranean region and the difficulties in distinguishing these changes from human
impacts in many proxy records. This study consists of a regional-diachronic overview of Bronze Age
archaeobotanical data, pertaining to south-eastern Italy, derived from charcoal and seed/fruit analysis
performed on materials from several archaeological sites distributed across Apulia. The aim is to identify
possible plant-related changes in subsistence strategies during a period of transformation in the environment
as well as cultural systems. It follows an integrated approach in which the shifts in plant assemblages
(seeds/fruits and charcoals) are considered in the light of high-resolution palaeoclimate
proxies, available for the central Mediterranean area, and socio-cultural dynamics inferred from
archaeological evidences.
The different lines of evidence explored provide the basis for a discussion of the possible reasons for
changes in subsistence strategies during the course of the Bronze Age in the area. What emerges from
our analysis are major transformations of annual crop husbandry, seasonal harvesting strategies and
storage technologies, one in the Middle and one in the Late Bronze Age. Although the first transformation
appears to be linked to climate forces, the latter seems to be the result of social and political “pressure”.
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PLANT OFFERINGS AT ROCA BETWEEN RITUALS AND SYMBOLS- The archaeological investigations carried out in Area IX showed the specificity of this zone, characterized by an interesting cult sequences that goes up from the Recent to the... more
PLANT OFFERINGS AT ROCA BETWEEN RITUALS AND SYMBOLS- The archaeological investigations carried out in Area IX showed the specificity of this zone, characterized by an interesting cult sequences that goes up from the Recent to the Final Bronze Age, when the cult use appears well suggested by the presence of a large structure known as "Hut-Temple". The archaeological, archaeozoological and archaeobotanical evidences from the Recent Bronze Age levels from the same area, appear to be related to the same ritual sphere: the presence of Mycenaean pottery associated with the consumption of wine, the large number of faunal remains preserving cut-marks and traces of partial combustion, the deposition of large portions of animals and the large amount of burnt plant offerings, represent the main clues of a series of ritual events reiterated over time. The paper presents the results of the archaeobotanical analysis carried out in these contexts; it focus on some of the species used in different ritual acts and discusses their potential symbolic significance taking into account other sources of evidence (archaeological, documentary and iconographic) from the Eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean region.