The Evolution of Population Distribution on the Iberian Peninsula: A Transnational Approach (1877–2001)

Abstract

Surpassing the national perspective usually adopted, the authors confirmed the existence of a pattern of population distribution common to the whole Iberian Peninsula in the long run. This pattern is clearly associated with geographical factors. These variables seem to have more weight in explaining changes between 1877/78 and 1940 than in the period from 1940 to 2001. The observation of the cross-border region has shown that proximity to the frontier has not generated any distinct pattern of population density on either side of the boundary line. The spatial coherence of the observed phenomena throughout the Peninsula and of its evolution, independent of the border between states, reinforces the importance of geographic factors in their explanation. At the same time, this verification opens up new issues related to the effect of national political and economic policies.     

Late Mesolithic burials at Casa Corona (Villena,Spain): direct radiocarbon and palaeodietary evidence of the last forager populations in Eastern Iberia

Current knowledge about the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition in the Central and Western Mediterranean European regions is deeply limited by the paucity of Late Mesolithic human osteological data and the presence of chronological gaps covering several centuries between the last foragers and the first archaeological evidence of farming peoples. In this work, we present new data to fill these gaps. We provide direct AMS radiocarbon dating and carbon (δ¹³C) and nitrogen (δ¹⁵N) stable isotope analysis were carried out on bone collagen samples of two single burials from the recently discovered open-air Late Mesolithic site of Casa Corona (Villena, Spain). The results shed new light on the chronology and subsistence patterns of the last Mesolithic communities in the Central Mediterranean region of the Iberian Peninsula. Radiocarbon results date the human remains and funerary activity of the site to 6059–5849 cal BC, statistically different from other Late Mesolithic sites and the earliest Neolithic contexts, and bridging the 500 yrs chronological gap of the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition from the area. Isotopic evidence shows that diet was based on terrestrial resources despite the proximity to the site of lagoon and marine ecosystems. This and previous isotope studies from the region suggest a lower reliance upon marine resources than for Atlantic and Cantabrian sites, although intra-regional patterns of neighbouring Mesolithic populations exhibit both fully terrestrial diets and diets with significant amounts of aquatic resources in them. We hypothesize that in the Central Mediterranean region of Spain the Late Mesolithic dietary adaptations imposed structural limits on demographic growth of the last foragers and favoured rapid assimilation by the earliest Neolithic populations.     

Glass and metal analyses of gold leaf tesserae from 1st to 9th century mosaics. A contribution to technological and chronological knowledge

An archaeometric study was carried out on 40 gold leaf tesserae from mosaics in Italy dated 1st to the 9th century AD. Glass layers and gold leaf were both analysed by X-ray microanalysis. The main aim was the identification of the composition of the glass and of the gold leaf, in order to assess the variations in composition and nature of the tesserae in the examined period.     

Holocene land-use evolution and associated soil erosion in the French Prealps inferred from Lake Paladru sediments and archaeological evidences

A source-to-sink multi-proxy approach has been performed within Lake Paladru (492 m a.s.l., French Prealps) catchment and a 6-m long sediment sequence retrieved from the central lacustrine basin. The combination of minerogenic signal, specific organic markers of autochthonous and allochthonous supply and archaeological data allows the reconstruction of a continuous record of past human disturbances. Over the last 10,000 years, the lacustrine sedimentation was dominated by autochthonous carbonates and the watershed was mostly forest-covered. However, seven phases of higher accumulation rate, soil erosion, algal productivity and landscape disturbances have been identified and dated from 8400 to 7900, 6000 to 4800, 4500 to 3200, 2700 to 2050 cal BP as well as AD 350–850, AD 1250–1850 and after AD 1970. Before 5200 cal BP, soil erosion is interpreted as resulting from climatic deterioration phases towards cooler and wetter conditions. During the Mid-Late Holocene period, erosion fluxes and landscape disturbances are always associated with prehistorical and historical human activities and amplified by climatic oscillations. Such changes in human land-used led to increasing minerogenic supply and nutrients loading that affected lacustrine trophic levels, especially during the last 1600 years. In addition, organic and molecular markers document previously unknown human settlements around Lake Paladru during the Bronze and the Iron Ages.     

Egyptian Blue cakes from the Ayanis fortress (Eastern Anatolia,Turkey): micro-chemical and -structural investigations for the identification of manufacturing process and provenance

The microstructure and chemical composition of blue cakes, found during the archaeological excavation of the Ayanis fortress (Eastern Anatolia, Turkey), have been investigated by means of scanning electron microscopy combined with energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM–EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), micro-Raman (μ-Raman) and optical microscopy (OM) techniques. The analysis of the Ayanis cakes has shown the presence of Egyptian blue (i.e. CuCaOSi₄O₁₀, cuprorivaite), as the major component, intermixed with minor amount of other phases such as partially reacted quartz grains, an adherent glass phase and copper oxides. Since the finding of Egyptian Blue in Turkey has been never reported so far, great attention has been paid to its characterisation. The micro-chemical and micro-structural investigations of the Ayanis cakes have allowed a further insight into the manufacturing process and into the sources of the starting materials. The results of the characterisation have revealed some significant differences with respect to Egyptian blue cakes found in Egypt and Mesopotamia, as for instance the absence of tin excluded the use of bronze scraps or filings in their preparation differently from those produced in Egypt and Mesopotamia. Furthermore, some peculiarities of Egyptian blue found in Ayanis, as the detection of zinc in the cakes, allow to put forward the hypothesis of a local production considering that a large part of the bronze artefacts found at the Ayanis fortress is characterised by the presence of zinc as minor alloying element.     

Residential segregation from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century: evidence from the Netherlands

A case study of three early modern Dutch cities (Alkmaar, Delft, and Amsterdam) using geographical information systems and confronting earlier historical, sociological, and geographical models finds clear patterns of segregation below the level of the city block, thus necessitating block-face mapping. The remarkable continuity in patterns of residential segregation is best explained by the workings of the real-estate market, allowing the well-to-do and middle classes to realize their preferences. In Amsterdam, the merchant elites were able to use their political dominance to plan a scenic and expansive residential environment free from noisy and odorous activities.     

First bryozoan fauna from the middle Miocene of Central Java,Indonesia

Di Martino, E., Taylor, P.D., Fernando, A.G.S., Kase, T. & Yasuhara, M. 3 June 2019, 2019. First bryozoan fauna from the middle Miocene of Central Java, Indonesia. Alcheringa 43, 461–478. ISSN 0311-5518.

Despite the publication of several taxonomic studies during the last few years, our knowledge of bryozoans from the diversity hotspot of the Indo-West Pacific remains seriously deficient. Here we describe 11 bryozoan species, comprising two anascan- and nine ascophoran-grade cheilostomes, from the middle Miocene (Langhian–Serravallian) of Sedan in Central Java, Indonesia. Three ascophoran-grade cheilostomes, Characodoma multiavicularia sp. nov. Di Martino & Taylor, Stenosipora? cribrata sp. nov. Di Martino & Taylor and Lacrimula patriciae sp. nov. Di Martino & Taylor, are described as new species. All of the three extant species have an Indo-Pacific distribution today and two are here reported as fossil for the first time. Four species are left in open nomenclature, either because of the scarcity of available material or the absence of crucial morphological features. Two of these, placed in Cosciniopsis and Actisecos, are likely to be new, while Discoporella sp. represents the easternmost known record for this common free-living genus. A single species, Lacrimula asymmetrica Cook & Lagaaij, was already known from the early Miocene of the same region, although from a site further to the east.

Emanuela Di Martino* [e.di-martino@nhm.ac.uk], Department of Earth Sciences, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK; Paul D. Taylor [p.taylor@nhm.ac.uk], Department of Earth Sciences, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK; Allan Gil S. Fernando [agsfernando@yahoo.com], National Institute of Geological Sciences, The University of Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines; Tomoki Kase [neritopsis@gmail.com], National Museum of Nature and Science, Tsukuba, Japan; Moriaki Yasuhara [yasuhara@hku.hk], School of Biological Sciences, Swire Institute of Marine Science, University of Hong Kong, Kadoorie Biological Sciences Building, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong SAR, PR China     

Comparison of Original and Modern Mortars at the Herculaneum Archaeological Site

ABSTRACT

This paper aims to evaluate mineralogical, elemental, and thermal differences among original Roman joint mortars and those used in twentieth-century restoration campaigns taken from different areas at the Herculaneum archaeological site. The purpose is to improve the compatibility of restoration mortars. Roman and modern mortars were studied with petrography, thermal analysis and x-ray fluorescence investigations. The results indicate significant differences between the Roman and modern mortars which could facilitate the degradation process. Roman mortars, in particular, were composed of a coarser aggregate which was present in a lower ratio with binder in comparison with modern mortars.     

The political culture of the Alleanza nazionale: an analysis of the party's programmatic documents (1995-2002)

The birth of the Alleanza nazionale and its rise to power in Berlusconi's 1994 and 2001 cabinets have attracted great interest. The evolution of the AN's political culture from 1995 to the present has received far less attention. The interest of scholars is dominated by concern over the number of fascist chromosomes inherited by the AN, and the way these influence its policy choices. The weight of history overlays the problems faced by the party in its attempt to establish an original identity. This article investigates the formation of the AN's political culture through an analysis of the official programmatic documents produced thus far by the party, putting each in the Italian political context at the time of its issue. The documents show that the AN is no longer a neofascist, extreme right or populist radical-right party, but its values and beliefs have not found a stable form.