Claudia Sciuto’s research while affiliated with University of Pisa and other places

Mountain landscapes are dynamic, layered records-palimpsests, shaped by centuries of humans/non-humans interaction. Though many European mountainous regions now experience socio-economic marginalisation, leading to ecological shifts, these areas were once thriving economic hubs. The material traces of these past activities—whether in the form of pastures, chestnut groves, charcoal kilns, terraced fields, farmsteads or quarries— remain imprinted on the landscape, highlighting how people and environments have changed over time, shaping unique cultural landscapes informed by local socio-economic structures and environmental conditions. However, these traces are slowly fading, with only fragments of them lingering in landscapes and local communities’ collective memory. Analysing these evidence is essential to understanding the role of these activities in marking past and present mountian landscapes. This session invites papers that investigate the economies of mountainous regions. We encourage contributions that explore how highland practices - such as pasturing, agriculture, forest management, extraction industries etc. - contributed to local and regional economies, and how these practices were intertwined with broader socio-economic networks, including those of lowland areas and urban centres. We welcome transdisciplinary studies that promote a deeper understanding of how economic strategies have shaped both landscapes and livelihoods of local communities and whether elements of these processes may still be discernible today. Given the complexity of this topic, which involves a wide array of interconnected aspects, contributions that combine diverse methods and approaches, including methodological experimentations will be most welcome. We welcome contributions from any period or geographical context that address the following themes: -Economic activities and their impact on mountain landscapes; -Theoretical and methodological approaches to studying mountain landscapes and economies; -The relationship between mountain economies and lowland or urban economic systems; -The impact of past economies and their remnants on present-day mountain communities. Through these discussions, we aim to identify the future challenges facing mountain archaeology.

Among the quarries used to manufacture granite shafts used in Mediterranean Antiquity, besides the classic coarse grained grey granite of Mons Claudianus, other similar looking sources have been described: Southern Corsica, Andalucia, Nicotera (Calabria). The way to discriminate among these sources using non destructive techniques is not well established. Here we present a scheme using, besides visual inspection, magnetic susceptibility and trace elements analyses using portable X-ray fluorescence. To confirm our non destructive scheme we also investigate the ability of Sr isotopic ratio to discriminate between Mons Claudianus and Corsica sources. Our survey in various countries (Spain, France, Germany, Italy, Tunisia) confirms that Mons Claudianus usage, at least in the form of shafts, has been mostly restricted to Roma. On the other hand, the Corsican source has been identified in Tarragona, Die, Lyon, Pisa, Rome, Carthage and Uthina. This proves a wider diffusion of this granite than previously thought. Nicotera shaft appears also to have been exported outside of Calabria, in Rome Arrezo and Pisa. Finally, we surmise that the usage of granite shafts from Andalucia remained local.

An ultraportable hyperspectral camera operating in the Vis–NIR range (400–1000 nm) was used in this study for the non-invasive analysis of a selection of Italian maiolica wares and sherds from the Museo Nazionale del Bargello in Florence, Italy. The studied objects included authentic archaeological sherds, nineteenth-century forgeries, and ceramics of uncertain origin. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of hyperspectral imaging (HSI) spectroscopy combined with multivariate analysis for examining highly refractive and three-dimensional glazed ceramic artefacts within the constraints of a museum environment, including imperfect lighting conditions. Two data processing pipelines were tested: one based on principal component analysis (PCA) with score plots and the other on spectral angle mapper (SAM) classification obtained through the ENVI Spectral Hourglass Wizard (ENVI-SHW). The analyses enabled the discrimination between original parts and/or restored parts and additions. Among others, a complex assemblage of original sherds, restored parts, and non-ceramic parts was observed in a Renaissance pastiche vase. Furthermore, the method enabled the identification of the various chromophores providing clues on the artistic colour palette. In particular, the identification of chromium in the blue and green glazes of two objects of uncertain chronology suggested that they were not made before the nineteenth century. The acquisition of a larger and more detailed database of HSI data on maiolica glazes is strongly encouraged to improve the applicability of this method in authenticity, art-historical and archaeological studies.

More information on our website : https://www.mappalab.eu/rocky-landscapes/ The interactions between humans and the rocky substrate have generated engraved landscapes across the globe, manifesting in diverse forms and spanning various epochs. The past human activity of digging rock outcrops produced different features, among which two macro-categories stand out: – rock-cut spaces linked to human life and death; – quarries for extracting materials for different purposes. Although these two categories serve different functions, there are conceptual and physical links between the structures carved into the bedrock and quarry areas. Similarities can be identified in the techniques employed for rock carving and, consequently, in the networks for the transmission of knowledge and know-how. Quarries and rock-cut structures often coexist within the same rock formation, or overlap with one another, creating a complex landscape in which the interaction between human communities and the bedrock is enhanced. Over the past decade, an international group of researchers has engaged in discussions regarding the methodological and theoretical complexities of investigating stone quarries and rock-cut sites spanning from Prehistory to the present day. The International ReseArch group on quArries and Rock-cut sites (IRAAR), started as a collaborative effort, originating in France, from two distinct research groups: one working on quarries and construction (Séminaires de recherche Carrières et construction, Laboratoire de Médiévistique Occidentale de Paris, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Université Paris 06) and the other on rock-cut sites (Annual symposium organized in Saint-Martin-le Vieil, Aude). This conference marks the second gathering of the IRAAR network. The first meeting, held online in 2021, focused on techniques and methods for analyzing carvings, extraction processes and traces of tools left on the rock surfaces. In this second event, the theme broadens to encompass a more extensive exploration of the landscapes and environments surrounding rock-cut structures and stone quarries. The specific discussion in this field of research begins with questions of an archaeological nature but expands to transdisciplinary encounters with connections and hybridisations with anthropology, sociology, geography, geology and ecology. The event will be hosted at the IFEA (French Institute for Anatolian Studies) in Istanbul (Turkey) on 23rd and 24th May 2024. Four thematic sessions have been outlined: – The first will focus on the stratigraphic understanding of the landscape through the study of rock-cut structures and stone quarries. This session allows us to reflect on new approaches and conceptions of stone material as a stratified archaeological palympsest. Its integration into a historical landscape is made possible thanks to digital tools and technologies (GIS, relational database, data models). However, a challenge is presented in terms of effectively harmonizing the temporal dimension (stratigraphy) with the spatial one, landscape. – The second will bring together researchers on stone ecology and multi-species interactions in carved landscapes. A particular emphasis will be placed on ecological aspects and the analysis of multiproxy data to gain insight into how the articulation of relationships between humans, rocks, animals and plants has evolved over the centuries. – A third session will address landscape-scale concepts of technical environments and taskscape, bringing 20th century anthropological concepts to current anthropological research directions. This will address the issue of epistemology: the articulation, similarities and differences of notions of space and environment. – A fourth session will focus on cultural sociology and the notion of heritage at different scales. The purpose of this panel is to open the debate on societal issues by involving sociologists, international relations researchers, geographers… Contributions on the themes evoked in the call, and in particular abstracts with transdisciplinary aspects, are welcome. Funding will be available for students and PhD students presenting a contribution in the framework of the conference (more detailed information will soon be available). The abstracts should be in English and no longer than 300 words. Applications should be sent to iraargroup@gmail.com by 18 December 2023.

Dear colleagues, we are pleased to share with you the programme for the conference "𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐊𝐘 𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐒𝐂𝐀𝐏𝐄𝐒, 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐬" This edition will take place in Istanbul and it will be possible to follow the various presentations online. Website of the conference: https://www.mappalab.eu/rocky-landscapes/ International Conference on 𝗠𝗮𝘆 𝟮𝟯, 𝟮𝟰 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝟮𝟱, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰 / 09:00 (Istanbul), in English at 𝗢𝗥𝗜𝗘𝗡𝗧-𝗜𝗡𝗦𝗧𝗜𝗧𝗨𝗧 𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗡𝗕𝗨𝗟L (Galip Dede Cad. No. 65. TR - 34421 Beyoğlu) Registration for in-person participation (deadline is 12/05/2024): https://forms.gle/FwGLW8Gt9Xy5oGc66 For online participation: 23 May – https://zoom.us/.../tJArcO6vrTIrGN376aCE-4Lp3HTIhnAYLVtw 24 May – https://zoom.us/.../tJArceyuqDItHtHCo6QhlVeh4ov2-CHw9VZ1 25 May – https://zoom.us/.../tJElcuGspzgjE9WnEJlCPhdMo1ojGEG-vZLk This conference marks the second gathering of the IRAAR network. The first meeting, held online in 2021, focused on techniques and methods for analyzing carvings, extraction processes, and traces of tools left on the rock surfaces. In this second event, the theme broadens to encompass a more extensive exploration of the landscapes and environments surrounding rock-cut structures and stone quarries. The specific discussion in this field of research begins with questions of archaeological nature but expands to transdisciplinary encounters with connections and hybridization with anthropology, sociology, geography, geology, and ecology. This event is supported by IFEA, Orient-Institut Istanbul, the British Institute at Ankara, French-Italian University, MAPPA Lab, University of Pisa, IPLI foundation, The ASM Lab – Montpellier University Paul-Valéry and the CITERES Lat Lab – Tours University.

This article explores the use of the Ferdinandeo-Leopoldino Cadastre to reconstruct the Apuan-Versilian (Stazzema, Italy) landscape in the first half of the 19th century. Through the creation of a Historical GIS, the research team from the MAPPA Lab at the University of Pisa vectorized the road network, buildings, and cadastre parcels, providing a foundation to analyse agrarian and settlement structures. The study area, located above 500 m asl in the Apuan Alps, reflects socio-economic dynamics of the period, highlighting changes due to political-economic strategies. The digitisation of the Ferdinandeo-Leopoldino Cadastre provides insights into property, land use, and agrarian structure. This work is part of a broader study aimed at analysing the processes of “abandonment” that have affected the Versilian slope of the Apuan Alps, at least since the post-World War II period. The vectorization of the Ferdinandeo-Leopoldino Cadastre provides a picture of the landscape in the first half of the 19th century, to be used not only as the oldest informational layer in the development of an Historic Landscape Characterisation but also as a tool to understand, in a diachronic perspective, the ongoing processes of renegotiation between humans and the environment that have led to the formation of the current landscape.

The archaeological investigation of the Versilian side of the Apuan Alps in northwestern Tuscany, coordinated by the MAPPA Lab at the University of Pisa, started in 2020. The study aims at an archeo-anthropological exploration of the "middle mountain," considering it a socially constructed space with a dynamic ecological-relational dimension shaped by human and non-human interactions.The first phase, completed in October 2022, focused on surface surveys within the municipalities of Camaiore, Seravezza, and Stazzema. The methodology involves siteless surveying, documenting archaeological and environmental traces, and collecting oral histories. The ongoing second phase concentrates on the environmental archaeological framing of collected data to understand mountain landscape transformations over the past two centuries. Results reveal 467 topographic units emphasizing the modern and contemporary periods. The discussion explores the interconnectedness of these elements, highlighting the multifaceted landscape of the middle mountain, particularly in the contemporary era. Notable features include high pasture practices, agricultural terraces, charcoal-related activities, and the impact of the Gothic Line during World War II. The archaeological record vividly illustrates human abandonment, subsequent vegetation resurgence, and the rapid transformation of structures over time.

The article aims to show how a transdisciplinary approach can contribute to a better understanding of the composite biography of a precious object. The study focuses on the Cintola del Duomo (Museum of the Opera del Duomo, Pisa), one of the most famous objects in the history of goldsmithing, both for its exceptional manufacturing quality and for its devotional value. For a long time, the Cintola was considered a fragment of a long garland – decorated with precious stones, enamel, and silver plates – that was displayed on the façade of the Cathedral on certain days of the liturgical calendar. Detailed historical studies suggested that the garland was lost in the early 1300s, while the object now in the museum is more likely to be a reconstruction, decorated with ancient and modern gems. In situ diagnostic campaigns were carried out on the garland using portable Raman spectroscopy (i-Raman, B&W Tek) and portable X-Ray fluorescnece (XRF) (Elio, Bruker) to reveal the identity of the gems and enamels preliminarily studied by gemmological analysis. The combination of analytical techniques made it possible to better outline the complex history of the artefacts. The analysis provided information on the identity of the gems, proposing an interesting question about their possible relationship with the crown of Henry VII of Luxembourg (in the same museum). The study includes aspects related to the materiality of the objects, revealing the socio-cultural context in which the object was produced and supporting its recontextualisation in the museum as a symbolic representation of the past.

This article is an introductory contribution to our Special Issue Reconsidering the Chaîne Opératoire: Towards a Multifaceted Approach to the Archaeology of Techniques . The chaîne opératoire is a central and fundamental concept for archaeological studies that has been fully appropriated and repurposed by several generations of researchers. In this paper, we would like to present some of the points discussed and illustrated by the various articles in this special issue. The aim is to highlight theoretical and practical considerations in various fields, with a diachronic focus. From the biographical approach to the study of artefacts to the challenges of interdisciplinarity through cognitive and sensory approaches, the theoretical discussion is rich and innovative, acknowledging that the chaîne opératoire can be used as a tool for deciphering the complex network of artefacts, environments, and societies of the past and present.