Lithic Technology and Social Agency in Late Neolithic Northern Italy
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LITHIC TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIAL AGENCY IN LATE NEOLITHIC NORTHERN ITALY. KNAPPING FLINT AT ROCCA DI RIVOLI (VERONA, ITALY) BY MARTINA DALLA RIVA A thesis submitted to the University of Birmingham for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Dept. of Classics, Ancient History and Archaeology School or Art and Law University of Birmingham October 2015 University of Birmingham Research Archive e-theses repository This unpublished thesis/dissertation is copyright of the author and/or third parties. The intellectual property rights of the author or third parties in respect of this work are as defined by The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 or as modified by any successor legislation. Any use made of information contained in this thesis/dissertation must be in accordance with that legislation and must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the permission of the copyright holder. LITHIC TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIAL AGENCY IN LATE NEOLITHIC NORTHERN ITALY. KNAPPING FLINT AT ROCCA DI RIVOLI (VERONA, ITALY) BY MARTINA DALLA RIVA ABSTRACT The thesis explores the relationship between late Neolithic knappers and flint resources at the settlement of Rocca di Rivoli (Verona, Italy), a key site for the understanding of the late Neolithic in northern Italy and in particular for the production and circulation of flint artefacts. Approximately 8000 flint artefacts were recorded by means of an attribute-based relational database and subsequently analysed for the present work. The use of the chaîne opératoire method, combined with a social agency and social-anthropological theoretical approach, provided a useful framework within which to study the lithic assemblage and discuss topics such as lithic tradition, style and specialization in the context of the late Neolithic of northern Italy. A series of characteristics peculiar to the site challenged the potential retrieval of data and subsequent interpretation. Firstly, the intrinsic nature of the site characterised by contexts of secondary deposition (i.e. pits) meant the identification of fragmented chaînes opératoires. Secondly, the poor conservation of the finds and bias in the accessibility procedures to the collection limited the choice of analytical methods to be employed. Nonetheless, significant results were obtained, which contribute to the discussion and the understanding of flint knapping during the late Neolithic. At Rocca di Rivoli there were clear preferences in terms of raw material: flint coming from the Maiolica outcrops was by far the preferred variety to be working with. It is suggested that raw material procurement possibly took place in different ways, but that a more precise identification in terms of its organization is not possible at this stage. Rocca di Rivoli finds itself in a privileged location with good-to-excellent flint resources located at a distance between 1 and 6 km. A total of 16 chaînes opératoires were identified at Rocca di Rivoli which represent basic frameworks allowing for endless variations and additions taking place during the unfolding of flint knapping activity. It is argued throughout the present work that knapping was undertaken by both expert and non-expert knappers, including apprentices. Some aspects characterizing the practice of flint knapping changed throughout occupation of the site (flake/blade ratio, debitage type, retouch mode, mistake rate) possibly pointing at changes in social dynamics affecting the community of Rocca di Rivoli. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am indebted to many friends and colleagues who helped in so many different and significant ways throughout the entire, seemingly endless PhD experience. It was the enthusiastic response from Lawrence Barfield, Paul Garwood and Laura Longo that prompted the idea of a PhD in 2005; they have been not only precious and solid points of reference for my research, but have supported me throughout the entire PhD period with their encouragement, expertise and punctual advice (from methodological to political matters). Lawrence Barfield in particular, went to great lengths to supply adequate training and background research input in the way only he could do: patiently, painstakingly, and with passionate and constructive criticism. I am forever indebted to his teaching and to his enthusiasm, which never failed to be present, even in the very last months of his illness. I am most grateful to Marylane Barfield, who has always made me feel at home in Blenheim Road. Her friendship, love and hospitality have been instrumental to my finishing this work. Heartfelt thanks to Marylane, Abigail and Sebastian for allowing me to share their time with their husband and father respectively, allowing archaeological discussion till the very end of his days in this world. I am indebted to Stephen Litherland, Kirsty Nichols, Alie Creighton and Martin Weaver, and the Hunts (Sally, Andy, Evan and Molly) for their friendship and support over the years. I thank Vittorio Rioda, Giorgio Chelidonio and Claudio Isotta for having greatly contributed with their advice on sourcing and identifying raw materials. The experimental archaeology training provided by Nicola Dal Santo, and his familiarity with Neolithic lithics of northern Italy, have been pivotal in understanding key issues of my research. My gratitude goes to Anna Angelini and Natasha De Bruin for their advice on lithic analysis; to Fabio Candura and Eamonn Baldwin (fieldwork GIS), Alessandro Gloder (photos), Paolo Giunti (drawings), Emanuele Ferri and Marco Predicatori (database) for their expert advice. Patti Rucidlo and Martino Traxler were extremely patient in helping with editing part of this work. Thank you to Paul Garwood for commenting on earlier versions of this thesis and to Giorgia Castro for help with the formatting; I could not have done it without them. I am thankful to the University of Aix-en-Provence, in particular to Maxence Bailly who provided me with a wonderful opportunity to attend a two-week seminar in 2008 on prehistoric technology. This experience greatly contributed to my training and research, not only in terms of teaching and bibliographical resources, but also by providing an important occasion to receive feedback from Maxence and colleagues in the department (in particular H. Plisson). I am grateful to Mirco Campagnari, former mayor of Rivoli Veronese, his partner Stefania Testi and the staff there, for believing in this work from the start, and for helping secure funding for research and outreach projects in the area, which contributed towards building a strong relationship with Rivoli Veronese and its archaeology. I should also mention Alessandra Aspes (former director of the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale of Verona) and Luciano Salzani (formerly responsible for the Nucleo Operativo, Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici in Verona); their lack of support for my work and refusal to allow me to access the material objects of my research for two years helped me develop important life skills such as diplomacy and patience, and to perfect the art of formal letter writing. Submission after all these years and obstacles makes it even more worthwhile. Finally, to my family: Alfonso, Davide, Elena, Leonardo and … thank you for putting up with me working silly hours and often being stressed about ‘some stones’. It is finally done and this is for you. All that is written here is my work and arguments, with the exception of where they are acknowledged. I am therefore solely responsible for what is written in the following pages, including mistakes. This work amounts to 78,200 words. Martina Dalla Riva Rome, 28th Oct. 2015 Contents List of Figures XI List of Tables XX List of Abbreviations XXII Chapter 1 / Introduction 1 Rocca di Rivoli 3 Geography & Geology 3 History of research 6 Culture and Chronology 8 The Italian Neolithic 9 The early Neolithic in northern Italy 14 The middle and late Neolithic in northern Italy 15 VBQ I 16 VBQ II & III 17 The world of VBQ lithics 20 The role of lithics in Italian late prehistoric studies 24 Research aims 27 Thesis organization 28 Chapter 2 / Theoretical approaches to the study of lithics 29 Introduction 29 Current approaches to technology 30 The standard view of technology 31 French anthropology and agency theory: back to a social approach 32 The chaîne opératoire: a theoretical and methodological framework 35 Lithic studies: procurement, production, use and discard 36 Procurement 37 Production and use 39 Discard and depositional practices 43 Theoretical approaches to lithics in Italian archaeology 45 The present approach 46 Chapter 3 / Rocca di Rivoli: the archaeological evidence 51 The site and its investigation 51 Pits 53 Stone levels & post-holes 61 The interrupted ditch 61 Index / XI Hearths 65 Rocca di Rivoli flint artefacts 66 Sampling 71 Conclusions 73 Chapter 4 / The chaîne opératoire: from theory to methodology 75 Introduction 75 Artefact classes 76 Cores 76 Debitage 77 Debris 78 Retouched artefacts 78 Fragmentation 79 Chaîne opératoire transformational stages 81 Raw material procurement strategies 84 Test flaking and core preparation 85 Core reduction 87 Core maintenance 92 Core abandonment 93 Retouched artefacts 94 Blank selection 95 Rough-out and final modification 95 Artefact use and maintenance 96 Artefact discard 96 Recording technological information 97 General attributes 98 Cortex & Cortex Position 99 Parent material 100 Raw material 100 Edge condition 100 Thermal alteration 102 Colour and Colour Characteristics 103 Weight 104 Excavation