THE CHARACTERIZATION OF WATERLOGGED ARCHAEOLOGICAL WOOD: THE THREE ROMAN SHIPS FOUND IN NAPLES (ITALY)*

Three apparently well‐preserved shipwrecks dating back to Roman times were brought to light near Piazza Municipio in Naples (Italy), during the excavation for the construction of Line 1 of the subway. The shipwrecks were covered by marine sand and silt, below the water table. In order to establish the nature and the extent of wood degradation and, therefore, determine how best to preserve the shipwrecks, a diagnostic investigation was carried out. The study involved the identification of wood species, chemical characterization of the residue component and physical and micro‐morphological characterization.     

Reconnaissance of the Hannibalic Route in the Upper Po Valley,Italy: Correlation with Biostratigraphic Historical Archaeological Evidence in the Upper Guil Valley,France

Controversy over the alpine route taken by the Hannibalic Army from the Rhône Basin into Italia in 218 bc (2168 cal bp ) has raged amongst classicists for over two millennia. Because Hannibal crossed the Alps, the significance for identifying the route taken by the Punic Army lies more in its potential for identifying sites of historical archaeological significance than a resolution of one of history's most enduring questions. While compelling stratigraphic, geochemical and microbiological evidence has been recovered from an alluvial floodplain mire in the upper Guil Valley, located below the Col de la Traversette (about 3000 masl) on the French–Italian border, it potentially identifies the invasion route as the one originally proposed by Sir Gavin de Beer in 1974. The dated layers in several sections, termed the MAD (mass animal deposition) beds based on disrupted/churned bedding and key/specialized biological components strongly supports de Beer's thesis that Hannibal chose the highest transit col into Italia. In addition to other physical evidence, we present here new physical, geomorphological and stratigraphic evidence, all calibrated by radiocarbon dating, that suggests Hannibal's imprint on the landscape exists in coalescing alluvial fans in the upper Po catchment of northern Italy.     

PIGMENTS AND PLASTERS FROM THE ROMAN SETTLEMENT OF THAMUSIDA (RABAT,MOROCCO)

A total of 22 samples were taken both from plasters still in situ and from collapsed material recovered by French, Italian and Moroccan teams at the Roman settlement of Thamusida (Rabat, Morocco). The sample characterization was obtained using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, image analysis and Raman micro‐spectroscopy. Plaster aggregate was made using a mixture of sands and clays that outcrop nearby, while lime was probably produced using the local limestone crust, as was further verified for the mortars. The plasters from the bath complexes (public buildings) and the Temple à trois cellae (sacred building) were very poorly made, while those from areas VII and XX (private buildings) indicated the involvement of more expert masons. The pigments used were cinnabar, red ochre, yellow ochre, Egyptian blue, green earth, chalk white and carbon black. The overall manufacture was of low quality, and hence perfectly comparable to that observed in other Roman Provinces. With respect to Italy and to other Mediterranean Roman sites, Thamusida fits well within an aesthetic and technical koinè that differentiates sites of the Italian peninsula from those in the Provinces.