Terra sigillata in southern Latium. The evidence from the Pontine Region Project, 1987-2014

This contribution is the first of a series of publications by the authors to systematically disclose the wealth of material evidence collected during some 30 years of fieldwork in the Pontine region by the Pontine Region Project. This project has, since its inception in the mid-1980s, investigated more than 36 km2 of terrain across all major geomorphological units of the region, largely by means of systematic surface investigations. During these investigations, close to 200 000 artefacts were collected for further study, including c. 1 660 fragments of (Italian) terra sigillata, the emblematic, shiny red fine table ware of the Early Imperial period. In this article, we present a detailed spatial and contextual analysis of the terra sigillata fragments that have been gathered within the Pontine Region Project and discuss the results in light of economic issues (market integration, economic growth). We then supplement this evidence by published evidence of name stamps from surrounding areas to further expose to what extent, and in what ways, the different parts of southern Latium were embedded in the long-distance economic networks of the period.

Fossilized fashion and social sparkle. Dutch Bronze Age bracelets in context

This contribution deals with the bronze bracelets found in the Netherlands that are datable between the Late Neolithic and the Middle Iron Age (n=176). We study their context (hoards, funerary contexts, settlements and stray finds), and we relate the specifics of their form and decoration to regional and supraregional traditions. First, we study their role as social signifiers (in reconstructions) of prehistoric identities across those scales, discussing how particular Bronze Age ‘costumes’ or ‘ornament sets’ may have been kept from graves and deposited in alternate ways. Then, we study later prehistoric arm-rings for their potential to indicate the scale, orientation and longevity of supraregional contact networks into which the later prehistoric communities of the Netherlands were integrated.

A pilot study on coarse ware ceramic fabrics from the Ayios Vasileios Survey Project (Greece)

In this article, we present the results of our pilot study on coarse ware ceramic fabrics from the Ayios Vasileios Survey Project (Laconia, Greece). The aim of this pilot was to explore the potential of optical fabric analysis on coarse wares on the basis of (mineral) inclusions detectable by eye or under modest magnification. We aimed to answer the following question: can we discern Bronze Age coarse wares from Byzantine/Early Modern coarse wares by means of this technique? We studied 177 ceramic fragments by eye and by means of a stereo microscope. This resulted in the description of 51 different provisional fabrics. Only a few of these fabrics could be assigned to a specific time period with certainty, based on a consistent dating of the sherds by the ceramic specialists, who looked at shape, decoration and fabric. Most of the fabrics seem to consist of sherds stemming from various time periods. A comparison between our provisional fabric groups and those published by other researchers in Laconia shows that possible connections or matches between fabrics made by us should be considered either as tentative or as unreliable beyond the level of argued assumptions. To arrive at more reliable ceramic fabric connections, or the identification of similar fabrics, it will be necessary to publish not only textual descriptions and images of thin sections—as seems to be the common approach—but also series of high-resolution pictures of sherds and their fresh sections, as has been done in this article, together with more detailed descriptions of these sherds.

Radiocarbon-based investigations into the authenticity of Mesoamerican artefacts in museum contexts

In this article, radiocarbon dating has been used as a tool for investigating the authenticity of two Mesoamerican artefacts from the collection of the National Museum of World Cultures (Museum Volkenkunde), Leiden, the Netherlands. The first artefact is a ceremonial Aztec, possibly a tecpatl, knife, and it is presumed to date to 1300–1500 CE. The second object is a decorated Mixtec skull, presumed to date to 1400–1520 CE. The efficacy of radiocarbon dating was thoroughly tested in this study, especially in regard to the tiny quantities that could be sampled from the skull. However, with the newly revamped radiocarbon facility at the University of Groningen, this was an opportune moment to attempt such research. Ultimately, a credible result could not be obtained on the skull; however, the ceremonial knife was dated reliably to the Aztec period. The article also discusses the broader issue of whether radiocarbon results can be used as a definitive proof of authenticity and examines the risk-reward nature of radiocarbon testing.

Tracing the Final Bronze Age–Early Iron Age transition. Groningen Institute of Archaeology settlement excavations in the Sibaritide, 2018-2019

We report here on the first two seasons of excavations by the Groningen Institute of Archaeology (the Netherlands) at two settlement sites in the foothill zone of the Sibaritide coastal plain (northern Calabria, Italy). The work is throwing new light on finds assemblages unique to the transitional period of the Final Bronze Age–Early Iron Age, a poorly understood period in southern Italy, and is helping to resolve methodological questions about the interpretation of non-invasive archaeological and geophysical survey data. The finds so far excavated, supported by radiocarbon dates, form one of the first ‘pure’ FBA–EIA transitional assemblages, and thus contribute to fill a significant typochronological hiatus with wider implications for protohistoric archaeology in the region. It is also becoming clear what long-term effects mechanized ploughing has on slope processes and soil profiles typical for the region, knowledge that will help us understand the results of the wider field surveys and geophysical investigations conducted since 2000 in the Raganello River basin.

In memoriam Harm Tjalling Waterbolk. Archaeologist with a passion for nature and landscape

Obituary of Harm Tjalling Waterbolk, 18 May 1924 – 27 September 2020. With bibliography of Harm Tjalling Waterbolk by The Editorial Staff.

Isolated and backward Westerwolde (Groningen, the Netherlands)? A confrontation of archaeological and historical data from the Middle Ages in a wider geographical context

The aim of this paper is to question the supposed isolated and backward position of the region of Westerwolde, in the north-eastern part of the Netherlands. Westerwolde’s geographically rather isolated position has traditionally been brought forward to explain its backward image. Progressive peat growth ever since the Bronze Age occupation had transformed Westerwolde into an island. It was abandoned in the Late Iron Age, only to be recolonized in the early Middle Ages. During the 19th century, romantics were still admiring Westerwolde’s arcadian scenery and cultural traditions. In contrast, from the mid-19th century until well into the 20th century, protagonists of modern agriculture criticized its backward farming methods and standard of living, as well as its poor infrastructure. The central issues we address here is whether critics were justified in describing it as backward in the 19th century and whether concrete indications for this assumed backwardness are to be found in previous centuries. To jump from early medieval times to the 19th century is too big a leap, but combining archaeological and ecological data with a renewed and more critical study of written sources against the background of huge landscape transformations has brought a nuanced understanding of how Westerwolde evolved. We present new insights for the period starting with the conquest of Frisia and Saxony by the Carolingians and the introduction of Christianity, when missionaries and newly founded monasteries acquired agricultural assets and rights in the conquered region, up to the late Middle Ages. We therefore analyze church foundations, livelihoods or economic conditions of existence in connection with occupation structures, infrastructure and exchange of consumer goods interdisciplinarily. Conservatism appears easily confused with backwardness, and an aversion to innovation, with indifference, as underlying external factors often forced the inhabitants to adopt a wait-and-see attitude. Westerwolde is viewed continuously in connection with the adjacent regions of Drenthe and Lower Saxon Emsland.

In memoriam Piet Kooi

Obituary of Piet Kooi, 24 January 1943 – 13 September 2020 by W.A.B van der Sanden. Bibliography of Piet Kooi by Kirsten van der Ploeg

Super interesting black hole? The micromorphology of organic materials in a Mesolithic hearth pit feature from the site of Soest-Staringlaan (the Netherlands)

A series of thin sections from a Mesolithic hearth pit from the site of Soest-Staringlaan (the Netherlands) were studied to assess the variability of the charred and non-charred organic remains inside them. Non-charred remains included plant roots; fungal fruiting bodies and hyphae; mesofauna coprolites; and podzolization-related polymorphic humus and monomorphic humus coatings. Charred remains included charcoal of coniferous wood, charred non-woody plant material and fragments of wood. However, a large proportion of the charred material consists of fine, powdery fragments. This may at least partly be due to trampling and/or eluviation of disintegrating charcoal. Most of the micromorphological features in the Soest pit are similar to those found in pits from previously investigated Mesolithic sites. Common features include the presence of large fragments of charcoal in the lower parts of hearth pits, tar, charred humus and evidence for charcoal disintegration and eluviation. The combined results first and foremost demonstrate the strong variability between samples within the same feature. This implies that multiple samples from a pit are necessary in order to at least attempt to try to capture this variability. It is also clear from the results that sampling should include layers or deposits that macroscopically seem to be outside the feature proper. These may contain parts of the phenomenon studied that are difficult to recognize with the naked eye. These observations add to the notion that Mesolithic hearth pits are generally formed by the same human activities, formation processes and taphonomy. However, they make clear that intense sampling is needed for any research to better understand the formation of these pits and that supplemental chemical analyses may be needed to better interpret the observed features and get a better idea of the potential use of these common Mesolithic features.

Grave goods from Sveta Lucija (Slovenia) in Groningen (the Netherlands). Contextualising old study collections

This paper discusses six tombs from Sveta Lucija (Slovenia) that were bought in 1923 from Prof. Rudolf Much (Vienna) by Prof. Albert Egges van Giffen (Rijksuniversiteit Groningen) for the collection of what is now the Groningen Institute of Archaeology. These tombs, excavated in 1890, form part of one of the largest Hallstatt cemeteries known archaeologically, consisting of thousands of tombs. Walking 40 km north from Sveta Lucija, one can reach the Triglav, at 2864 m the highest mountain of the Julian Alps. The site itself is located in a valley, in a strategic location at the confluence of two rivers emerging in these Alps. During the Iron Age, Sveta Lucija functioned as a transitional site between Italy, the Balkans and Austria. This frontier character is reflected in its entire history, starting in the 8th century BC, when it emerged as a settlement centre. The article provides a biography of old study collections since c. 1850 and discusses the role of some influential archaeologists in the history of the excavations at Sveta Lucija since the 1880s. The article then contextualizes the artefacts held at Groningen, concentrating on the 7th to early 5th century BC. The numerous excavations in the burial grounds and settlement for more than a century, make Sveta Lucija one of the more thoroughly investigated European Iron Age settlement centres with a couple of hundred inhabitants. Finally, the article introduces the still-enigmatic development of the site from an Iron Age centre to a Roman village, addressing the decline of its archaeological visibility during the intervening centuries and its correlation with Celtic groups.