HUMAN LANDSCAPES IN TYRRHENIAN ITALY

In my PhD I used different GIS applications to analyse the relationship between main centres and minor settlements and their landscape in southern Etruria and western Latium Vetus from the Bronze Age to the beginning of Roman domination. The dramatic changes in settlement patterns and the birth of hierarchical networks of sites were observed by analysing the results of my survey work in the territory of Nepi on the boundary of Etruria and the Faliscan area and comparing the differences and similarities on the other side of the Tiber in the territories of Collatia and Gabii. The questions of state formation and urbanisation were approached by looking at the developments in the area of the whole modern Lazio.

I started from the local level by narrating the life history of Il Pizzo (Nepi, VT). Then, I described the dense dispersed settlement pattern in the Nepi area during the earlier part of the Bronze Age. During and after the Middle Bronze Age I could observe the concentration of the settlement and the beginning of the state module during the Early Iron Age/Orientalising period. These developments could be compared with those around Gabii although the later histories of the centres were different.

I started my studies on central Italy at the University of Bristol where I made a MA dissertation in landscape archaeology. The material used was originally gathered in the southern Ager Faliscus during the original South Etruria survey. The simple research strategy was modelled after Gaffney and Stancic (1991). The observed distributions of the locational attributes of the sites was compared with the expected ones. The significance wais tested with chi-squared test. I could conclude that the known pre-Roman settlement was concentrated to the areas near Narce and that there was a clear relationship between geographical background, different landforms and settlement. The settlement concentrated along roadsides.

THE HOUSE OF THE VESTALS AND THE BUILDING PROGRAM OF EMPEROR TRAJAN

The atrium Vestae

I wrote my dissertation in cultural history at the University of Turku on the position of the house of the Vestals in the building program of emperor Trajan. House of Vestals was a religious building comprising of a collegial residence of the virgins (atrium Vestae) and the temple of Vesta. It accomodated a set of Archaic rituals. My main argument was that the rebuilding of this complex that stood for the eternity of Rome was a logical religious climax of all the policies of a optimus princeps. As the first non-Italic emperor Trajan had to emphasize his Roman cultural roots and this was a powerful tool in propaganda. Some of the results will be published in my contribution to a Finnish book on Roman everyday life.

QUARTZ TECHNOLOGY

For my MA thesis in archaeology at the University of Turku I was studying quartz technology at Kotirinne (a late Neolithic site of Kiukais culture in southwestern Finland). Quartz as a raw material is a little studied topic, although the mineral was much used in the areas depriving flint. My aim was to study technology by classifying artifacts according to technical attributes. The stages of a cognitive decision making process were formulated.

Firstly, quartz cobbles were collected from natural gravel deposits; in Finland as in Scandinavia quartz material was not quarried anymore. Then, one platform was prepared and flakes were struck with a stone on a rock. Bipolaric technique was also used. Retusch on tools was one-sided and uneven. Intended or unintended modification was a usual result of hafting. Importantly, struck or retuched tools (31.2 %) made up a high proportion of all artifacts. Tools were usually scrapers, points and gravers. Thus, agricultural practises of the site were not reflected in the assemblage, but hunting and crafts aspects of mixed economy were present.

A scraper from Kotirinne

See my publications

Tyrrhenian Italy

The house of the Vestals

Quartz

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