Rethinking Terraces and Dry-Stone Walls in the Alps for Sustainable Development: The Case of Mombarone/Alto Eporediese in Piedmont Region (Italy)

Nowadays, agricultural terraces and dry-stone walls have become protagonists of a territorial “rebirth” through a process of resemantization that recognizes them as a local resource. In relation to this focus, this article deals with a specific case study located in the Mombarone/Alto Eporediese area, in the northern part of the Piedmont Region (Italy), where terraced landscapes represent a unique environmental heritage, which has been partially abandoned. In this article, we illustrate the process carried out by local institutions in the Strategic Plan “Dalla Dora al Mombarone” and by the European Project Interreg Alcotra “Vi.A.- Route of Alpine Vineyards” which have involved many stakeholders of the local communities. In particular, starting from the results obtained by the engagement of social and territorial scientists in the projects mentioned above, we examined how terraces can support the reconstruction of a specific sense of place by the local community and the implementation of a sustainable development model through innovative solutions that go beyond the tradition in a frame of a green, soft and inclusive economy.

Archaeological and Chemical Investigation on Mortars and Bricks from a Necropolis in Braga, Northwest of Portugal

This investigation intends to study and characterize the mortars and bricks from walls and floors used in the funerary nucleus of the archaeological site of Dr. Gonçalo Sampaio Street (Braga, Portugal), associated with the Via XVII necropolis of the Bracara Augusta Roman city. The diversity of the funeral structures and their exceptional state of conservation make this sector of the necropolis an unprecedented case and a reference site in the archaeology of Braga, a determinant for its conservation and musealization. Nineteen mortars samples were analysed by X-ray Fluorescence. The results showed clear chemical composition differences among coating and floor mortars (CFM), masonry mortars (MM) and bricks (B) groups of samples. The chemical affinity between CFM from the V to IV centuries, CFM from the IV to V centuries, MM from brick walls (IV–V centuries), MM from stone walls (V–VII centuries) and B from the IV to V centuries samples were confirmed by statistical analyses. Their composition was distinctly related to the use of different raw materials, according to their chronological context; in mortars, according to their function in the structures; and in some samples, from contamination.

CONTRIBUTION TO THE STUDY OF THE OLD ALGIERS’S WALL AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF ITS CONSTRUCTIVE SYSTEM

The old city of Algiers is located in the area of the youngest structure on the African continent consisting of the folding chain of the Tell Atlas. It is arranged in a triangular amphitheater whose base runs along the Mediterranean Sea and the summit reaches the Qasbah, citadel of Algiers; a disposition that shelters it from attacks and external threats for a long time. This defensive position is reinforced by a very deep ditch located on the sides of the triangle and on the side of which stood high and solid stone walls forming the ramparts of the city. The narrations of travelers, historians and soldiers evoke the splendor and resistance of these works and constitute an undeniable source in the recognition of the defensive system of the old city at that time. This said, the discovery of very interesting archaeological traces during the consolidation of part of the walls of the Qasbah “citadel of Algiers” on the side of the battery 4 is an essential element in the commitment to a reflection on the development of the defensive system of Algiers . As well as the different phases of construction of the wall of the city (at least in the eastern part), based on tangible physical evidence.

Comparative biology of four Rhodanthidium species (Hymenoptera, Megachilidae) that nest in snail shells

Some species of two tribes (Anthidiini and Osmiini) of the bee family Megachilidae utilize empty gastropod shells as nesting cavities. While snail-nesting Osmiini have been more frequently studied and the nesting biology of several species is well-known, much less is known about the habits of snail-nesting Anthidiini. We collected nests of four species of the genus Rhodanthidium (R. septemdentatum, R. sticticum, R. siculum and R. infuscatum) in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Catalonia (Spain) and Sicily (Italy). We dissected these nests in the laboratory and documented their structure, pollen sources and nest associates. The four species usually choose large snail shells. All four species close their nests with a plug made of resin, sand and fragments of snail shells. However, nests of the four species can be distinguished based on the presence (R. septemdentatum, R. sticticum) or absence (R. siculum, R. infuscatum) of mineral and plant debris in the vestibular space, and the presence (R. septemdentatum, R. infuscatum) or absence (R. sticticum, R. siculum) of a resin partition between the vestibular space and the brood cell. Rhodanthidium septemdentatum, R. sticticum and R. siculum usually build a single brood cell per nest, but all R. infuscatum nests studied contained two or more cells. For three of the species (R. siculum, R. septemdentatum and R. sticticum) we confirmed overwintering in the adult stage. Contrary to R. siculum, R. septemdentatum and R. sticticum do not hide their nest shells and usually use shells under the stones or hidden in crevices within stone walls. Nest associates were very infrequent. We only found two R. sticticum nests parasitized by the chrysidid wasp Chrysura refulgens and seven nests infested with pollen mites Chaetodactylus cf. anthidii. Our pollen analyses confirm that Rhodanthidium are polylectic but show a preference for Fabaceae by R. sticticum.

Defensive Walls of Tobolsk Kremlin: a Historical and Architectural Sketch

The article was prepared in connection with the announcement of the year of Semyon Ulyanovich Remezov in the city of Tobolsk in 2021. Information has been collected on the history of the construction and rebuilding of the fortress walls and towers of the Tobolsk Kremlin, which rarely attracted the attention of researchers. A review of the history of the fence construction in the Sofia courtyard is carried out. Particular attention is paid to the stages of the construction of the Kremlin stone walls, the surviving elements of defensive architecture in them. The authors clarify some provisions from the classical works of V. I. Kochedamov, draw on new sources, including photographs from restoration work in the middle of the 20th century from the funds of the Tobolsk Historical and Architectural Museum-Reserve. The results of a comparative architectural analysis of the Kremlin walls of Tobolsk with synchronous and previous monuments of Russian military architecture are presented in the article. It has been established that the walls of the Tobolsk Kremlin were more of a symbolic-decorative than a military char-acter. It was determined that they represented a symbiosis of the Moscow Kremlin architecture of the late 15th century with the architecture of the Smolensk fortress wall, 17th century monastery fences and, possibly, the fence of the Bishops' court in Rostov.

Acoustical modelling of a Swedish 13th century church ruin, and its use for musical production.

Visby is an old hanseatic town on the island of Gotland in Sweden. The town has a large number of old church ruins, one of which goes by the name of St. Lars. The church is believed to be a 13-century orthodox church, and abandoned in the 16 century, all that is left today are the stone walls and parts of the inner ceiling vaults. Through collaboration with the local museum, St.Lars has now been measured and 3D-modelled by the author, Sebastian Holm from Efterklang, who is also a part-time musician. The model has been fitted with what is assumed to be an historically accurate ceiling structure and materials as well as windows, doors, various furnishings and a make-up stage. With acoustical modelling and auralisations made in Odeon, various source and receiver positions has been tested for acoustical qualities, and the impulse responses are now used for musical production for the medieval band known as Patrask. The mixing process uses the impulse response from left and right side of the stage to produce a stereo reverb, and the results are compared to auralisations of the music made with Odeon. The overall process is discussed, with links to the music itself.

Early Australian rabbit-proof fences: paling, slab and stub fences, modified dry stone walls, and wire netting

Fences were critical in the fight against rabbits in colonial Australia. Initially, domestic rabbits were farmed in pens or paddocks fenced with paling fences or walls. Wild-caught rabbits imported from England escaped and became serious pests from the 1850s. As their status changed from protected private property to a major pest, the functions of fences changed to fencing rabbits out. Legislation requiring or specifying rabbit-proof fences lagged several years behind recognition of rabbits as a problem. Most log and brush fences in infested districts were burnt to destroy rabbit harbour. Dry stone walls were modified in many ways; paling, slab, picket and stub fences were all tried, but were unsuccessful, and by 1886 netting was standard. Using examples from the rich agricultural Western District and the considerably poorer Mallee Region of Victoria, this article describes the many forms of rabbit fences used between the 1850s and the mid-1880s. All of the experimentation with different structures was by individual landholders, with colonial governments conspicuous by their lack of involvement until they erected rabbit-proof barrier fences.