Giuseppa Tanda

Long-lasting ergot lipids as new biomarkers for assessing the presence of cereals and cereal products in archaeological vessels

Cereals were very important in ancient diets, however evidence from archaeological sites of the vessels used for processing or storing cereals is comparatively rare. Micro-organisms, as well as chemical-physical effects can easily degrade cereals during the burial period. This can lead to a complete cereal decay and to serious difficulties in estimating the intensity of use of the cereals by ancient populations. Here, we present a novel biomarker approach entailing the detection of secondary lipid metabolites produced by ergot fungi (genus Claviceps), which are common cereal pests. The aim was to identify the original presence of Gramineae and to indirectly establish if vessels were used for cereal storage/processing. The fatty acid and TAG-estolide profiles of the remains from more than 30 archaeological vessels were investigated by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and high performance liquid chromatography/high resolution mass spectrometry (HPLC/ESI-Q-ToF). The detection of lipids derived from ergot in archaeological and historic contexts rests on its complex chemistry, providing a unique and relatively recalcitrant chemical signature for cereals. This research demonstrated that the combination of our innovative biomarker approach along with environmental and archaeological evidence can provide unprecedented insights into the incidence of cereals and related processing activities in ancient societies.

Una fibula villanoviana dal nuraghe Costa (Burgos-SS): archeologia e prospezioni archeominerarie nel territorio del Goceano

Riassunto: Le pluriennali ricerche sulle modalita insediative pre e protostoriche condotte dal C.I.P.P.M. nell’Alta Valle del Tirso (Goceano), in vari siti tra cui il nuraghe Costa a Foresta Burgos (SS), hanno consentito il ritrovamento di una fibula in bronzo risalente al I Ferro. La scoperta, di estremo interesse per la rarita del tipo di manufatto in Sardegna, consente nuove e circostanziate riflessioni in merito al crogiolo culturale che contrassegna le regioni tirreniche del periodo. Si presentano qui i caratteri peculiari del prodotto metallurgico e se ne fornisce un inquadramento tipologico e cronologico alla luce del clima di contatti e scambi commerciali, e piu in generale culturali, esistenti tra le popolazioni nuragiche del Nord-Sardegna e quelle d’oltre mare durante i primi secoli del I millennio a.C. Si riportano, infine, alcune considerazioni di carattere introduttivo in merito alle ricerche archeo-minerarie avviate nella regione storica del Goceano allo scopo di individuare eventuali tracce di sfruttamento delle locali georisorse metallifere nel periodo protostorico. Abstract: During the long-standing researches carried out by CIPPM on the pre-protohistoric settlements of the Tirso river High Valley (Goceano), a bronze fibula dating to the Iron Age was discovered in the Nuraghe Costa (Foresta Burgos-SS). This find has a great scientific interest because of its rarity in the Sardinian archaeological context. This object allows new considerations about the cultural melting-pot that involved the Tyrrhenian regions during the Iron age. The authors present the typological, chronological and cultural features of the fibula. Finally, they report the first remarks about the archaeological mining survey carried out in the Goceano, to identify traces of metalliferous geomaterials exploitation in protohistoric times.

Le indagini nell’area protostorica e storica di Su Angiu - Mandas (CA)

Riassunto: L’area archeologica ubicata a Sud del Nuraghe Su Angiu a Mandas e stata oggetto di una concessione ministeriale quinquennale che ha visto la conduzione di tre campagne di scavo, svoltesi dal 2007 al 2009. L’imponente nuraghe quadrilobato testimonia l’importante occupazione nuragica del sito, seguita da una fase di frequentazione allogena documentata da ceramica d’importazione. La presenza punica e ben attestata nell’area, ma non associata, al momento, ad alcuna struttura; ad eta romana sembrerebbe invece riferirsi l’impianto di strutture monumentali, poi abbandonate probabilmente in eta alto-medievale. Abstract: The archaeological site located to the south of the Nuraghe Su Angiu near Mandas has been the subject of three excavation campaigns between 2007 and 2009, thanks to a ministerial concession for the period 2007-2012. The impressive quadrilobate nuraghe testifies to the significant nuragic occupation of the site, followed by a phase of allochthonous use documented by imported pottery. The Punic presence is well attested in the area, but not associated to any structures; the erection of monumental structures seems instead to refer to the Roman period; the subsequent abandonment of the settlement probably occurs during the High Middle Age .