1,721,016 research outputs found
Archeologia del Paesaggio
No full textIntervista rilasciata alla trasmissione RAI Community, Puntata 27 del 10 Novembre 2015 (minuti 27:00-33:00
GIS and remote sensing for a preliminary assessment of the archaeological landscape in the Eblaite chora (Syria)
Get PDFThe paper focuses on the preliminary assessment of the archaeological landscape around Tell Mardikh-Ebla (Syria). The ERC funded Ebla Chora Project allowed to conduct a systematic collection of findings from the site and its surrounding neighbors. The information from previous surveys was combined with the data from spatial datasets (topographical maps, aerial photos, satellite images, DEMs) in order to provide a first inventory of sites of the Eblaite chora. A preliminary interpretation of the development of settlement pattern and territory exploitation is now possible, especially for the Early Bronze Age (3rd millennium BC) when Ebla was the capital of a vast kingdom. Many potential sites were also detected, however their validation requires a field inspection which is currently suspended because of the civil war
Cisterns as markers of ancient human settlement: investigation methods and field survey strategies from Pantelleria Island (Italy)
No full textBecause of its volcanic origin, Pantelleria is a waterless island in the middle of the Sicily channel. Climate
and environmental features make the island inhospitable for human life. Since the earliest Punic occupation, the
inhabitants solved the problem of water supply with cisterns. #is article deals with the methods used and the
results obtained from an extensive survey carried out across the island within the frame of the Archaeological Map
of Pantelleria Island Project. After a short introduction to the research context, the paper focuses on the method used
during the "eld survey with particular attention to the problems connected to the identi"cation of underground
cisterns in relation to their preservation. Cisterns are used as marker of ancient settlements and they, combined with
other archaeological data available from Pantelleria (surveys and excavations at the Acropolis, Scauri Scalo and
Lago di Venere) made possible the reconstruction of the major historical settlements of the island
Preface: Boris V. Andrianov and the Archaeology of Irrigation
No full textAncient Irrigation Systems in the Aral Sea Area is the English translation of Boris Vasilevich Andrianov’s work, Drevnie orositelnye sistemy priaralya, concerning the study of ancient irrigation systems and the settlement pattern in the historical region of Khorezm, around the southern Aral Sea (today northern Uzbekistan and western Kazakhstan). This work holds a special place in the Soviet archaeological school because of the results obtained through a multidisciplinary approach
combining aerial archaeological surveys, fieldwork and excavations with disciplines such as geography, botany and geology. This translation has been enriched by the addition of introductions written by several eminent scholars from the region regarding the importance of the Khorezm Archaeological-Ethnographic Expedition, the figure of Boris V. Andrianov and his landmark study almost 50 years after the original publication
A city and its landscape across time: Samarkand in the ancient Sogdiana (Uzbekistan)
Get PDFLocated in the heartland of Central Asia, Samarkand has always been an economic, cultural, ethnic, linguistic and religious hub along the ancient Silk Road. A regional approach, based on a GIS remote sensing assessment followed by field validation, was used here to reconstruct the urban evolution of Samarkand in connection with its hinterland. The basic archaeological features in the landscape (anthropic mounds, canals and burials) allowed us to reconstruct the main forms of land use and resource exploitation according to site distribution and chronology. If Samarkand was established as early as the Achaemenid period (late 6th century BCE), the evidence dated to that time from its hinterland is scarce. A first significant increase occurred during the post-Hellenistic centuries (3rd-1st centuries BCE), and reached the peak at the time of the most intense trade along the Silk Road just before the major changes following the Arab conquest of the early 8th century CE. Data also demonstrated how the development of Samarkand must be closely linked with a proper exploitation of its territory. A massive and complex irrigation system in the floodplain ensured the supply of water necessary to develop extensive farming and daily-life activities, while rain-fed foothills were used as pastures
Methods and Perspectives for Ancient Settlement Studies in the Middle Zeravshan Valley
No full textThe article deals with the methods and the first results of the Archaeological Map of the Middle Zeravshan Valley within the Uzbek-Italian Archaeological Expedition in Samarkand
Ancient Irrigation Systems of the Aral Sea Area. The History, Origin, and Development of Irrigated Agriculture.
No full textAncient Irrigation Systems in the Aral Sea Area is the English translation of Boris Vasilevich Andrianov’s work, Drevnie orositelnye sistemy priaralya, concerning the
study of ancient irrigation systems and the settlement pattern in the historical region of Khorezm, around the southern Aral Sea (today northern Uzbekistan and
western Kazakhstan). This work holds a special place in the Soviet archaeological school because of the results obtained through a multidisciplinary approach
combining aerial archaeological surveys, fieldwork and excavations with disciplines such as geography, botany and geology. This translation has been enriched
by the addition of introductions written by several eminent scholars from the region regarding the importance of the Khorezm Archaeological-Ethnographic
Expedition, the figure of Boris V. Andrianov and his landmark study almost 50 years after the original publication
Le château de Kafyr-kala du haut Moyen Âge à l’époque islamique
No full textThe article deals with the research at nthe Sogdian-Early Islamic complex of Kafir Kala where the Uzbek-Italian Archaeological Expedition discovered the remains of an impressive administrative archive destroyed during the Arab conquest of 712 CE and later settled for residential purposes
The Archaeological and Historical Heritage of Samarkand: an Overview from the Uzbek-Italian Expedition 2001-2016
No full textThe article deals with the activities and the results of the Uzbek-Italian Archaeological Project "Samarkand and Its Territory", working in Samarkand oasis since 2001. Scientific programs and field activities concern archaeological and geo-archaeological surveys and excavations; finds study; GIS data management; remote sensing and cartography analyses
The Cultural Heritage of Samarkand: field surveys, archive data and GIS data management
No full textThe Samarkand Region is one of the most important areas in Central Asia in terms of quality and quantity of archaeological sites and historical monuments. Since 1999 the activities of the Uzbek-Italian Archaeological Project Samarkand and Its Territory were devoted to the recovery of traces of ancient human activities in the southern part of the region, in order to reconstruct the major settlement phases and the territorial transformations occurred in the area.
The Archaeological Map of the Middle Zeravshan Valley was therefore planned for a double purpose. On the one hand, the assessment of all the archaeological sites and the historical monuments was aimed at the preservation, conservation, and valorization of the huge cultural heritage of Samarkand; on the other hand, the analysis of the data collected allow the interpretation of the historical development of the city and its neighbors in connection with the main landscape transformation and territory exploitation.
The investigation concerned the main administrative districts around the city of Samarkand: Samarkand City itself, Samarkand Selski, Urgut, Taylak, Pasdargom, and Nurabad. A key-role in the research was played by an approach combining the field investigation with the preliminary detection of the archaeological sites on spatial datasets that differ in scale and age. The historical topographical maps of the Soviet period (1940-50’s) at 10,000, 25,000, and 100,000 scale were useful to identify the sites, even those destroyed after the agricultural policy of the last decades that turned a large part of Samarkand’s territory into cultivable surface, especially for cotton and grape. The satellite images from US CORONA program (late 1960’s) and Soviet aerial photos (early 1970’s) were particularly suitable to detect both the sites and the anthropogenic features in the ground such as canals and other hydraulic structures. Finally, the Google EarthTM satellite image provide the most updated situation of the territory under exploration, thus representing an essential tool during the field activities.
The investigation (still in progress in Pasdargom district) resulted in ca. 1500 archaeological sites. Although around the 40% of sites has been destroyed because of agricultural expansion and urbanization, such a number of sites testifies the major role played by Samarkand and its territory along the ancient Silk Road and within the history of Central Asia
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