Projects / Programmes
At the contact between the Alps and the Mediterranean - continuity and turning points
| Code |
Science |
Field |
Subfield |
| 6.02.00 |
Humanities |
Archaeology |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| H340 |
Humanities |
Archaeology |
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| 6.01 |
Humanities |
History and Archaeology |
Archaeology, South-eastern Alps, Iron Age, Roman period, Late Antiquity, Early Middle Ages, settlement study, transit routes, material culture
Researchers (8)
Organisations (2)
Abstract
Settlement studies increasingly become at the forefront of archaeological research. The upper Posočje area at the contact zone of the Mediterranean and the Alpine regions and with numerous archaeological sites has a great potential for the research of the interactions between man and nature over time. It is also an exceptional testing ground for the implementation of modern methods of settlement studies (lidar, GIS analyses) due to its specific (frequently extreme) natural conditions (large differences in altitude between lowland and highland sites, difficult terrain, vast wooded areas).
Some archaeological sites in Posočje have already been the subject of extensive scientific studies that have resulted in new knowledge within the local and broader contexts. However, several assemblages of finds have not yet been analysed and published, which represent a desideratum of the study of earlier periods of human history in the the south-eastern Alps. Also awaiting is a comprehensive analysis of the relationship between archaeological sites, their development over time, as well as their dependence on environmental factors.
The more concentrated settlement is noticed in the smaller basins at the junctions of the valleys (Most na Soči, Tolmin, Kobarid and Bovec). On the other hand, especially in the turbulent times, the inhabitants withdraw on the higher locations. A special phenomenon is also the exploitation of the highlands, which has been documented since the Mesolithic period onwards.
One of the aim of the proposed research is a study of the development, social structure and specifics of the Early Iron Age community in the Posočje region on the basis of analyses of the representative cemetery at Most na Soči and in connection with other known sites from this era in area.
The purpose is also to highlight the significance of the Kobarid area and to analyse the cult place on Gradič with the thoroughly study of chronology and continuity of the settlement, the significance of the sanctuary, the nature of the cult and the development of the ritual. It will be checked the assumption about local significance of cult at the end of the Early Iron Age, which obtained a supra-regional character in the 1st century BC, and later, in the Imperial period, it was transformed again into local cult.
The research will also be focused on the settlement pattern change at the beginning of the Late Antiquity and on the surroundings of the central settlement at Tonovcov grad near Kobarid. The aim is to detect the remains of craft-work activities in the extra muros area and to discover the associated necropolis, unknown yet. The relationship between Tonovcov grad and peripheral settlements will also be studied. We also want to investigate the traces from the Early Middle Ages and to outline the post-Roman settlement of the region.
A special attention will be paid on the high-mountain sites, the economic reasons for the human presence there and the adaptation of man on the extreme living conditions. High-mountain sites from the Bronze Age onwards indicate the first appearance of transhumance; however, the transition to the shepherd economy is unclear. We also want to define the role of mining in paleoeconomy.
To discover new archaeological sites and traces of the past use of space, the methods of remote sensing and geophysics will be used. Spatial analyses will be carried out with GIS tools. Acquired data will enrich the online and open accessible databases of archaeological sites. Included into the project will be student training for field research. With publication a scientific monograph about the cult place at Gradič near Kobarid and several thematic papers we want to reduce the gap in publishing the results of archaeological investigation and contributed to a better recognition of this region in the wider scientific sphere.
Significance for science
The research is of fundamental importance for the knowledge of settlement processes and cultural connections between South-eastern Alps and northern Adriatic regions in the time-span from the Early Iron Age up to the Middle Ages. The area that is selected as a case study is upper Posočje region with the geographic position at the contact of different regions. Diverse archaeological sites and natural conditions present a great potential for diachronic study of settlement processes and changes in the area. The research will contribute a better insight into the continuity of individual settlement cores, cultural and chronological turning points, and into the social structure of the then inhabitants. It will open new views on economic basis and subsistence strategies. New data obtained by using modern methods of archaeological topography (lidar, geophysical measurements, GIS analysis) will supplement the understanding of the use of space and past landscape. The planned publications (the scientific monograph on the cult place at Gradič near Kobarid, the findings of research in highlands and other thematic studies) will reduce the lag in the publication of archaeological research in this region and enrich the understanding of the role of the Posočje region and its connections with Mediterranean and Central European cultures, and also significance of transit routes. New and improved archaeological data will be include into open accessible web databases and available for further research. Findings and practical trainings will also be incorporated in educational contents.
Significance for the country
The research is of fundamental importance for the knowledge of settlement processes and cultural connections between South-eastern Alps and northern Adriatic regions in the time-span from the Early Iron Age up to the Middle Ages. The area that is selected as a case study is upper Posočje region with the geographic position at the contact of different regions. Diverse archaeological sites and natural conditions present a great potential for diachronic study of settlement processes and changes in the area. The research will contribute a better insight into the continuity of individual settlement cores, cultural and chronological turning points, and into the social structure of the then inhabitants. It will open new views on economic basis and subsistence strategies. New data obtained by using modern methods of archaeological topography (lidar, geophysical measurements, GIS analysis) will supplement the understanding of the use of space and past landscape. The planned publications (the scientific monograph on the cult place at Gradič near Kobarid, the findings of research in highlands and other thematic studies) will reduce the lag in the publication of archaeological research in this region and enrich the understanding of the role of the Posočje region and its connections with Mediterranean and Central European cultures, and also significance of transit routes. New and improved archaeological data will be include into open accessible web databases and available for further research. Findings and practical trainings will also be incorporated in educational contents.
Most important scientific results
Interim report
Most important socioeconomically and culturally relevant results
