Il forno di affinazione di Rondolere (1788-1813) / The Rondolere finery (1788-1813)

Lo stabilimento siderurgico di Rondolere, a 1176 m in val Sessera (Biella), ha funzionato dal 1788 al 1813. Gli scavi archeologici hanno rivelato edifici e impianti per il trattamento del minerale (magnetite locale ed ematite importata), la produzione di ghisa e la sua conversione in acciaio (semilavorati e prodotti fi niti). Informazioni dettagliate sono fornite dai documenti di età napoleonica sulla produzione metallurgica.Il forno di affinazione è un impianto complesso, generalmente poco noto, in quanto raramente studiato dal punto di vista archeologico. La buona conservazione di quello di Rondolere permette di conoscere le caratteristiche tecniche e la posizione dei componenti, la natura dei residui di lavorazione (ghisa, scorie, pulviscoli ferrosi, ritagli di barre e semilavorati in acciaio), il comportamento dei materiali costruttivi impiegati sotto l’azione del calore. L’impianto messo in luce trova precisi raffronti nei manuali tecnici e nelle rappresentazioni di opifici della sua epoca.The Rondolere steelworks, at 1176 m in the Sessera valley (Biella, Italy), was operational since 1788 to 1813. The archaeological excavations revealed buildings and plants for ore treatment (local magnetite and imported hematite), cast iron production and its conversion into steel (semi finished and finished products). Detailed information is provided by the documents of the Napoleonic era concerning the metallurgical production. The finery is a complex, generally not well known installation, being rarely archaeologically investigated. The good conservation of the Rondolere specimen let us know the technical features and the position of the components, the characteristics of the production rejects (cast iron, slag, iron powder, steel bar cuttings and semi finished items), the behaviour of the constituent materials facing the high temperatures. The installation finds precise comparisons in technical handbooks and drawings dating to its age

Les céramiques de la mine préhistorique de Saint-Véran (Hautes-Alpes)

ABSTRACT Within a radius of 350 m, the prehistoric mining site of Saint-Véran consists of a bornite mine (Ancienne Mine de Cuivre des Clausis), a boulder rock-shelter visited by man for ore exploitation (Abri de Pinilière) and a blast-furnace for copper ore treatment (Cabane des Clausis). The paper examines in particular pottery categories from the lower layer of Abri de Pinilière, datable back to the Chalcolithic or Early Bronze Age, which are also found inside the mine and are associated with slags and tuyeres from the blast-furnace. The comparative and technical study of the tuyeres points to north-eastern Italy and to eastern Europe and confirms that mining exploitation at Saint-Véran started in the Chalcolithic or Early Bronze Age.RIASSUNTO II sito minerario preistorico di Saint-Véran consta, in un raggio di 350 m, di una miniera di bornite (Ancienne Mine de Cuivre des Clausis),RÉSUMÉ Le site minier préhistorique de Saint-Véran se compose, dans un rayon de 350 m, d'une mine de bornite (Ancienne Mine de Cuivre des Clausis), d'un bloc-abri fréquenté par l'homme pour l'exploitation de la mine (Abri de Pinilière) et d'un four de fusion pour la réduction du minerai (Cabane des Clausis). On examine ici en détail les catégories céramiques de la couche inférieure de l'Abri de Pinilière, datées du Chalco- lithique/Bronze ancien, qui reviennent aussi à l'intérieur de la mine et sont associées avec les scories et les tuyères provenant du four de fusion. L'étude comparative et technique des tuyères renvoie à l'Italie nord- orientale et à l'Europe orientale, en confirmant la date du Chalcolithique/Bronze ancien pour le début de l'exploitation de la mine de Saint-Véran.Gattiglia Anna, Rossi Maurizio. Les céramiques de la mine préhistorique de Saint-Véran (Hautes-Alpes). In: Bulletin de la Société préhistorique française, tome 92, n°4, 1995. pp. 509-518

Projets p\ue9dagogiques en traduction et interpr\ue9tation : retours d'exp\ue9rience et perspectives innovantes

In the present article, we will describe five teaching experiences carried out by the Department of Modern Languages and Cultures of the University of Genoa as well as by the Department of Linguistic Mediation Sciences and Intercultural Studies of the University of Milan. The common denominator among these five experiences is the introduction of new technologies into translation, interpretation and intercultural mediation learning processes. Our communication aims at highlighting the pedagogical utility observed in the use of such tools applied to translation and interpretation teaching and learning. We will therefore carry out a pedagogical reflection on the potential of these resources, which remain quite unexploited nowadays

I giardini dei padri Garden Archaeology alla Certosa di Calci (Pisa)

The Certosa of Calci is a monumental monastery founded in 1366 by Carthusian monks and located near the city of Pisa (Italy). During its long life, the Charterhouse has experienced various transformations until its abandonment in the 1970s; nowadays, it hosts the Natural History Museum of the University of Pisa, a popular touristic attraction. Since 2018, the MAPPA Laboratory of the University of Pisa has been conducting archaeological research on the complex as part of a project finalised for its restoration. The main objective was the investigation of the gardens of the monks to determine modifications in their design, changes in the plant typologies, and their relationships over time. The investigations focused on three different monks’ cell gardens (the Prior’s, the Apothecary’s and the Master’s), and stratigraphic excavations were combined with archaeobotanical and archaeozoological analyses. The most representative is Prior’s meditation garden, where the excavation explored the phases prior to the construction of the building (14th century), the 18th-century renovation in its current form, and the abandonment of the garden at the end of the 20th century. Pollen analysis has enabled us to reconstruct a rich group of herbal essences characterising an ever-blooming garden, with flowers and ornamental plants, such as roses, lilac and water lilies, as well as vegetables and medicinal plants. According to charcoal and fruit-remain analyses, the Charterhouse exploited local hilly woods, satisfying its fuel requirements with maquis and thermophilous de-ciduous forest. Agrarian practices included the cultivation of fruit trees, such as chestnut, olive, almond, and vine

The Fathers' cell gardens of the Charterhouse of Calci-Pisa in Tuscany (Central Italy): pollen and multidisciplinary reconstruction

The archaeological investigation of the Charterhouse of Calci-Pisa (Central Italy) is a research project launched in 2018 by a multidisciplinary team of the University of Pisa. Three different monks’ gardens (the Prior’s, the Apothecary’s, and the Master’s garden) have been investigated. The study focused not only on their structural transformations, evidenced by flowerbeds, pools, and fountains, but also paid special attention to pedological variations, plants diversity (114 pollen taxa), and the presence of root systems, animals, and microorganisms, to detail changes in use, such as the succession of crops and fertilisation practices. Palynological and archaeobotanical results allowed us to reconstruct the succession of seasons in the gardens, with colourful and fragrant flowers, ornamental, aromatic, medicinal herbs, and fruit trees. The gardens seem to have a functional space organisation strictly related to the monks' peculiar kind of life, their personalities and feelings, and their relationship with nature and divinity

Palynology of Gardens and Archaeobotany for the Environmental Reconstruction of the Charterhouse of Calci-Pisa in Tuscany (Central Italy)

In central Italy, the Charterhouse of Calci hosts the Natural History Museum of the University of Pisa. This monumental monastery was founded in 1366 by Carthusian monks. The Charterhouse has experienced various transformations over the centuries, until its abandonment in the 1970s. Since 2018, interdisciplinary archaeological research focused on the monks’ gardens (and particularly: the Prior’s, the Apothecary’s, and the Master’s garden) and the green spaces outside the cloister walls, consisting of courtyards and orchards, to determine the individual (gardens) and collective (green spaces and surrounding woods) practices adopted by Carthusians. Palynology and archaeobotany have allowed to reconstruct the plant biodiversity, with flowers and ornamental, aromatic, and medicinal herbs that grew in the gardens, as well as the management of local hilly woods and agricultural practices, including the cultivation of fruit trees, such as chestnut, olive tree, almond tree, and grapevine. Our research has been based on a solid theoretical approach, interpreting archaeological and archaeobotanical data in relation to the intricate network of human and non-human connections. Gardens are seen as a co-creation made together by human and non-human agencies, and their diachronic transformation is read as an expression of personalities of the monks, feelings, and connections with nature and divinity

Les métaux précieux en Méditerranée médiévale

Cet ouvrage rassemble les actes d’un colloque international tenu à la Maison Méditerranéenne des Sciences de l’Homme d’Aix-en-Provence les 6, 7 et 8 octobre 2016. Organisée par le Laboratoire d’Archéologie Médiévale et Moderne en Méditerranée (CNRS, Aix-Marseille Université) et par le Dipartimento di Scienze Storiche e dei Beni Culturali de l’Université de Sienne, cette rencontre a réuni près de cinquante spécialistes du Moyen Âge – archéologues, historiens, géochimistes – autour des métaux précieux en Méditerranée. Ce livre entend examiner un long processus qui s’étend de l’extraction des minerais jusqu’à la diffusion des métaux, en articulant les techniques aux sociétés et aux pouvoirs. Le panorama des principaux lieux de la production, ici présenté sous forme de synthèses régionales, côtoie des études qui suivent les différentes phases de ce processus, de façon à confronter les sources, les approches et à faciliter les comparaisons. L’enquête se focalise enfin sur les circulations des métaux, en mettant en évidence les problèmes de sources et de méthodes que cela induit, tout en proposant des relectures historiographiques fondées sur les résultats de travaux récents. Pour la première fois, la Méditerranée médiévale fournit le cadre géographique d’une réflexion collective consacrée aux productions et circulations des métaux précieux. Au-delà du simple bilan de connaissances, ce livre entend finalement proposer quelques jalons pour une histoire comparée et connectée : l’approfondissement, puis la confrontation d’enquêtes monographiques et régionales offrent dans cette optique de fécondes perspectives pour les années à venir