On the traces of lost identities: chronological, anthropological and taphonomic analyses of the Late Neolithic/Early Eneolithic fragmented and commingled human remains from the Farneto rock shelter (Bologna, northern Italy)

The present study examines the prehistoric human skeletal remains retrieved starting from the 1920s in the deposit of the Farneto rock shelter, situated in the area of the 'Parco dei Gessi Bolognesi e Calanchi dell'Abbadessa' (San Lazzaro di Savena, Bologna, northern Italy). An exact dating and a reliable interpretation of the assemblage had not been reached so far because of the lack of contextual data useful for dating purposes, the inaccurate recovery procedures of the remains and their state of preservation. In fact, the skeletal remains from the Farneto rock shelter are highly fragmented and commingled, whereas reliable information about their original position and their recovery procedures are not available. Despite these difficulties, radiocarbon analyses allowed the precise dating of the remains to a final phase of the Neolithic and an early phase of the Eneolithic period in Emilia Romagna (northern Italy). The study of the assemblage enabled to clarify the use of the context for funerary purposes. Moreover, the anthropological and taphonomic analyses of the skeletal remains shed light on the biological profile of the individuals and on some events that occurred after their death. In particular, the analysis of perimortem lesions highlighted the existence of intentional interventions related to corpse treatment, referable to dismembering/disarticulation and scarnification, i.e. cleaning of bones from soft tissues. Finally, the comparison with other Italian and European Neo/Eneolithic funerary contexts enabled a better understanding of these complex ritual practices

“Ricercaro Appenninico” Il percorso di vita e di ricerca di Luigi Fantini in una mostra organizzata dal Distretto di S. Lazzaro

«Questo angolo della terra è fra tutti il più ridente». Come non associare il verso di Orazio alla verde cornice collinare, dai morbidi profili sfumati dalla foschia, che circonda la città di Bologna sino a fondersi in essa come naturale sfondo scenografico? Nel giro di pochi chilometri, da quieto e sereno, questo stesso paesaggio può tuttavia assumere sembianze di un’asprezza geologica che sorprende emotivamente Goethe, di passaggio a Bologna il 20 ottobre 1786 durante il suo viaggio in Italia

Alle origini del Paleolitico medio in Emilia orientale: il deposito di Cave dall’Olio (Bologna)nel quadro delle sequenze ipotizzate da Arturo Palma di Cesnola

none2noThis paper is aimed at assessing the role of the lithic assemblage from the site of Cave dall’Olio (Bologna) in the context of human peopling of the Italian peninsula during the middle Pleistocene. Th is as-semblage has been the object of recent publications that have allowed it to be located among the most ancient evidence of emergence of Levallois technology in Western Europe. Between 1970s and 1990s this assemblage was attributed to the Clactonian and Protolevallois complex of the Italian peninsula defi ned by A. Palma di Cesnola at the end of 1960s. In this paper we will try to reconstruct the thread that relates the fi rst defi -nitions of this assemblage to its present contextualisation from an historical perspective.Il presente contributo intende fornire un inquadramento dell’insieme litico di Cave dall’Olio (Bologna) nell’ambito del popolamento del Pleistocene medio della penisola. Oggetto di recenti pubblicazio-ni, che ne hanno portato ad una collocazione fra i più antichi siti che attestano l’emergenza della tecnologia Levallois in Europa occidentale, tra gli anni ’70 e ’90 del secolo scorso questo insieme era stato attribuito al fi lone Clactoniano e Protolevallois defi nito da A. Palma di Cesnola alla fi ne degli anni ’60. In questo lavoro si intende ricostruire il fi lo conduttore che lega le prime defi nizioni di questo insieme litico alla sua attuale contestualizzazione, in una prospettiva storica.mixedFederica Fontana; Gabriele NenzioniFontana, Federica; Nenzioni, Gabriel

Depositi paleolitici nell'area bolognese orientale. Nuovi dati e dinamiche interpretative.

Il volume esamina materiali inediti provenienti da depositi di superficie già in gran parte noti da precedenti lavori. L'obiettivo è quello di fornire una rilettura del più antico popolamento dell'area bolognese orientale dalle fasi finali del Pleistocene superiore sino all'età del Rame ed evidenziare il ruolo nevralgico svolto soprattutto dalla fascia collinare per tutto il corso del Paleolitico medio, ad iniziare dalle fasi più arcaiche. Tale obiettivo è perseguito tramite una sintesi di inquadramento dei diversi depositi, inclusiva di una breve descrizione delle collezioni storiche già note in letteratura, seguita da un'analisi di dettaglio dei diversi insiemi litici inediti, sviluppata secondo un approccio tecno-economico. Il volume è introdotto da un excursus storico sulle ricerche paletnologiche e il primo popolamento dell'area bolognese orientale e si conclude con uan serie di considerazioni di sintesi sulle industrie litiche delle diverse aree esaminate (Palesio, Castel San Pietro e Toscanella) e delle catene operative degli insiemi del Paleolitico medio, che rappresentano il corpus più significativo delle collezioni in oggetto

The Sauveterrian of the Emilian Po plain: intra-site spatial organization face to face

The Sauveterrian occupation of the southern Po plain is known thanks to the discovery of five sites. Three of them are located near Bologna (INFS, Casalecchio and Cava Due Portoni), one in the Parma district (Collecchio) and the last one in the area of Piacenza (Le Mose). Although they have been excavated some time ago, between the ’80s and ’90s, the spatial position of the artefacts has been recorded for all of them except from Le Mose site. This has allowed an intra-site spatial analysis to be carried out. For this analysis only open source softwares have been used, namely Quantum GIS and Gvsig. In this paper authors will compare and contrast the spatial organization of the sites highlighting common features and differences. By defining a hierarchy between them the aim of the study is a critical re-examination of the sites in order to better understand their role within the settlement system that characterizes the southern Po plain area during the Early Mesolithic

Early Levallois core technology between Marine Isotope Stage 12 and 9 in Western Europe

Early Levallois core technology is usually dated in Europe to the end of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 9 and particularly from the beginning of MIS 8 to MIS 6. This technology is considered as one of the markers of the transition from lower to Middle Paleolithic or from Mode 2 to Mode 3. Recent discoveries show that some lithic innovations actually appeared earlier in western Europe, from MIS 12 to MIS 9, contemporaneous with changes in subsistence strategies and the first appearance of early Neanderthal anatomical features. Among these discoveries, there is the iconic Levallois core technology. A selection of well-dated assemblages in the United Kingdom, France, and Italy dated from MIS 12 to 9, which include both cores and flakes with Levallois features, has been described and compared with the aim of characterizing this technology. The conclusion supports the interpretation that several technical features may be attributed to a Levallois technology similar to those observed in younger Middle Paleolithic sites, distinct from the main associated core technologies in each level. Some features in the sample of sites suggest a gradual transformation of existing core technologies. The small evidence of Levallois could indicate occasional local innovations from different technological backgrounds and would explain the diversity of Levallois methods that is observed from MIS 12. The technological roots of Levallois technology in the Middle Pleistocene would suggest a multiregional origin and diffusion in Europe and early evidence of regionalization of local traditions through Europe from MIS 12 to 9. The relationships of Levallois technology with new needs and behaviors are discussed, such as flake preference, functional reasons related to hunting and hafting, an increase in the use of mental templates in European populations, and changes in the structure of hominin groups adapting to climatic and environmental changes

Early Levallois core technology between Marine Isotope Stage 12 and 9 in Western Europe

Early Levallois core technology is usually dated in Europe to the end of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 9 and particularly from the beginning of MIS 8 to MIS 6. This technology is considered as one of the markers of the transition from lower to Middle Paleolithic or from Mode 2 to Mode 3. Recent discoveries show that some lithic innovations actually appeared earlier in western Europe, from MIS 12 to MIS 9, contemporaneous with changes in subsistence strategies and the first appearance of early Neanderthal anatomical features. Among these discoveries, there is the iconic Levallois core technology. A selection of well-dated assemblages in the United Kingdom, France, and Italy dated from MIS 12 to 9, which include both cores and flakes with Levallois features, has been described and compared with the aim of characterizing this technology. The conclusion supports the interpretation that several technical features may be attributed to a Levallois technology similar to those observed in younger Middle Paleolithic sites, distinct from the main associated core technologies in each level. Some features in the sample of sites suggest a gradual transformation of existing core technologies. The small evidence of Levallois could indicate occasional local innovations from different technological backgrounds and would explain the diversity of Levallois methods that is observed from MIS 12. The technological roots of Levallois technology in the Middle Pleistocene would suggest a multiregional origin and diffusion in Europe and early evidence of regionalization of local traditions through Europe from MIS 12 to 9. The relationships of Levallois technology with new needs and behaviors are discussed, such as flake preference, functional reasons related to hunting and hafting, an increase in the use of mental templates in European populations, and changes in the structure of hominin groups adapting to climatic and environmental changes

Population Dynamics in Italian Canids between the Late Pleistocene and Bronze Age

open16siDog domestication is still largely unresolved due to time-gaps in the sampling of regions. Ancient Italian canids are particularly understudied, currently represented by only a few specimens. In the present study, we sampled 27 canid remains from Northern Italy dated between the Late Pleistocene and Bronze Age to assess their genetic variability, and thus add context to dog domestication dynamics. They were targeted at four DNA fragments of the hypervariable region 1 of mitochondrial DNA. A total of 11 samples had good DNA preservation and were used for phylogenetic analyses. The dog samples were assigned to dog haplogroups A, C and D, and a Late Pleistocene wolf was set into wolf haplogroup 2. We present our data in the landscape of ancient and modern dog genetic variability, with a particular focus on the ancient Italian samples published thus far. Our results suggest there is high genetic variability within ancient Italian canids, where close relationships were evident between both a ~24,700 years old Italian canid, and Iberian and Bulgarian ancient dogs. These findings emphasize that disentangling dog domestication dynamics benefits from the analysis of specimens from Southern European regions.openKoupadi, Kyriaki; Fontani, Francesco; Ciucani, Marta Maria; Maini, Elena; De Fanti, Sara; Cattani, Maurizio; Curci, Antonio; Nenzioni, Gabriele; Reggiani, Paolo; Andrews, Adam J; Sarno, Stefania; Bini, Carla; Pelotti, Susi; Caniglia, Romolo; Luiselli, Donata; Cilli, ElisabettaKoupadi, Kyriaki; Fontani, Francesco; Ciucani, Marta Maria; Maini, Elena; De Fanti, Sara; Cattani, Maurizio; Curci, Antonio; Nenzioni, Gabriele; Reggiani, Paolo; Andrews, Adam J; Sarno, Stefania; Bini, Carla; Pelotti, Susi; Caniglia, Romolo; Luiselli, Donata; Cilli, Elisabett