Decorated prehistoric pottery from Castello di Annone (Piedmont,Italy): archaeometric study and pilot comparison with coeval analogous finds

Prehistoric pottery decorated with incisions or impressions filled with white and seldom coloured inlays is well documented in the archaeological literature, but the related in-depth archaeometric studies are sporadic. 43 decorated ceramic shards, dating from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age, and an Iron Age fibula from the archaeological site of Castello di Annone (Piedmont, North-Western Italy) were analysed with FTIR, Raman and XRPD for characterization of the ornamental pigments forming these inlays. Few white components were used as fillers, namely talc and bone ash (hydroxyapatite – Bone White), often as a mixture and seldom accompanied by other pigments (i.e. kaolinite and presumably secondary calcite). Comparison with freshly-heated biogenic hydroxyapatite proved that ancient Bone White pigment was calcined at about 900 °C. Such a process was kept separate from pottery firing as these white mixtures show absence of talc degradation by-products and sporadic presence of kaolinite, implying these ceramics were decorated only after firing in furnace. Actual presence of fluorapatite in bone ash could allow dating with the Fluorine Method, but lack of fluorine detection with SEM-EDS causes such an attempt to be impracticable so far. A pilot comparative study with a restricted but representative group (11) of coeval finds from other sites of Piedmont suggests that while recurrence of talc prevails in Castello di Annone from the Neolithic throughout the Bronze age, massive use of bone ash (Bone White) becomes widespread in the close Iron Age settlements, possibly consequent to a more efficient handling of its production technology.     

Late Triassic (Carnian) corals from Timor-Leste (East Timor): their identity,setting, and biogeography

Four scleractinian coral taxa are described from limestones within a sandstone-shale séquence correlated with the Late Triassic Babulu Formation, Manatuto township, on the northern coast of Timor-Leste (East Timor). The coral fauna consists of three phaceloid taxa, Paravolzeia tìmorìca gen. et sp. nov., Craspedophyll ramosa sp. nov., Margarosmilia confluens (Münster), and a generically indeterminate solitary taxon attributed to the family Margarophylliidae. Ali four corals are related at various taxonomie levels to Carnian faunas from the Dolomites of northern Italy. Previously, only Norian coral faunas were known from the Triassic of Timor. The fauna exhibits both similarities to and differences from Carnian faunas of the Dolomites and helps confirm palaeogeographic affinities with the western Tethys, although during Late Triassic time Timor lay in the distant southeastern portai of the Tethys. Despite isolation from the western Tethys, the presence of two species foundalso in the Dolomites indicates that larvai dispersai occurred between the two areas.     

A 5th‐Century‐AD Sewn‐Plank River Barge at St Maria in Padovetere (Comacchio‐FE), Italy: an interim report

This article reports on the remains of a 5th‐century‐AD river barge excavated in 2014 and 2015. Most of the flat bottom and one side are preserved. The barge is at least 20 m in length and 2.9 m across the floor, and is constructed using sewn planks, iron nails and mortise‐and‐tenon fasteners. Both flush‐laid and lapstrake planks are recorded. Archaeological, historical, iconographic and ethnographic evidence is used to propose explanations for features, such as the use of lapstrakes, a possible steering system and platform, and the likely position of a pump, while setting the barge in the context of the North Adriatic shipbuilding tradition.     

Biostratigraphic Evidence Relating to the Age‐Old Question of Hannibal's Invasion of Italy,I: History and Geological Reconstruction

Controversy over the alpine route that Hannibal of Carthage followed from the Rhône Basin into Italia has raged amongst classicists and ancient historians for over two millennia. The motivation for identifying the route taken by the Punic Army through the Alps lies in its potential for identifying sites of historical archaeological significance and for the resolution of one of history ' s most enduring quandaries. Here, we present stratigraphic, geochemical and microbiological evidence recovered from an alluvial floodplain mire located below the Col de la Traversette (~3000 m asl—above sea level) on the French/Italian border that potentially identifies the invasion route as the one originally proposed by Sir Gavin de Beer (de Beer 1974 ). The dated layer is termed the MAD bed (mass animal deposition) based on disrupted bedding, greatly increased organic carbon and key/specialized biological components/compounds, the latter reported in Part II of this paper. We propose that the highly abnormal churned up (bioturbated) bed was contaminated by the passage of Hannibal ' s animals, possibly thousands, feeding and watering at the site, during the early stage of Hannibal ' s invasion of Italia (218 bc ).     

PUBLIC CAPITAL, REGIONAL OUTPUT, AND DEVELOPMENT: SOME EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE

ABSTRACT The goal of our paper is to provide direct estimates of the association between public capital and regional output. This is made possible by the construction of a data series which measures public capital at the state level.
The relation between public capital and other productive factors is tested using a translog production function. Our results show that labor and public capital are complementary inputs, and that public capital exhibited diminishing returns. We also consider restrictions on the translog formulation. Linear homogeneity is rejected in all cases, and the Cobb-Douglas specification is rejected for the manufacturing and all sectors categories.     

Shaking Table Tests of a Structure Equipped with Superelastic Dampers

The energy dissipation capacity of the NiTi alloy was evaluated as part of a series of shake table tests. A superelastic damper was developed to take advantage of the hysteretic energy dissipation associated with this type of shape memory alloy. Each device was tested at different intensity levels. A vertical steel cantilever with 600 kg mass on top was subjected to a series of ground motions with different spectral characteristics. The dampers were placed as part of a tie system, restraining the horizontal movement of the top mass. The devices showed stable hysteretic behavior allowing for energy dissipation.