A new princely Picene tomb from Corinaldo

 A new princely tomb attributable to the Picene culture , dating back to the 7th century BC, has emerged from the subsoil of Contrada Nevola , in Corinaldo , in the province of Ancona , thanks to an excavation campaign led by the University of Bologna . The work of the archaeologists has brought to light a large quadrangular pit (about 3.80 by 2.20 meters) placed inside a large circular ditch with an original diameter of 30 meters. Inside the pit there were over 150 objects , including a two-wheeled chariot and a prestigious set of bronze artefacts that includes a helmet, a cauldron and several finely decorated containers.

"The set of finds clearly refers to the sphere of the banquet, with a bundle of skewers and an iron axe for treating meat and conspicuous pottery for containing and serving food and drinks, and outlines the celebrated character as a figure of the highest level", explains Federica Boschi , professor at the Department of History Cultures Civilizations of the Alma Mater who is leading the excavation work. "Several objects come from the Etruscan world, with which the Picene aristocracy of the time maintained exchanges and relationships".

The discovery is part of the ArcheoNevola Project , which the University of Bologna started in 2018 in collaboration with the Municipality of Corinaldo and in agreement with the Superintendency of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the provinces of Ancona and Pesaro Urbino , and which had already returned a Picene burial with rich grave goods a few years ago, called "of the Prince of Corinaldo".

Since its inception, the ArcheoNevola project has used non-invasive investigation methods , in particular geophysics and aerial photography, which in addition to having led to the discovery of the site have allowed us to obtain detailed knowledge of the buried archaeological heritage: how extensive it is, how it is structured and what its main characteristics are. In this way, year after year, it was possible to plan the excavation campaigns with a fairly precise idea of what could emerge from the subsoil. And by 2024, scholars knew that the sector of the necropolis in question was very promising .

"The investigations conducted so far have outlined the presence of an extensive necropolis dating from the 7th century BC, then reoccupied in the Roman era up until the 3rd century AD: the oldest funerary nucleus is linked to the apogee of the Picene culture, in the middle of the 7th century BC, with funerary monuments delimited by large annular ditches", says Boschi . "Starting from the 1st-2nd century AD, a vast Roman burial ground developed on the outskirts of the first monumental complex: a continuity that defines the area as a place full of memory and meaning".

The excavation campaigns - organized with the support of the Municipality of Corinaldo and with the contribution of AlmaScavi - take place every year for about a month and involve many archaeology students from the University of Bologna , enrolled in various courses of study: from the three-year degree (in Literature, History, Cultural Heritage) to the master's degree (in Archaeology and Cultures of the Ancient World and in Artistic and Landscape Archaeological Heritage), up to the School of Specialization in Archaeological Heritage and the Research Doctorate.

"The research will continue in the coming months, always with the involvement of students", adds Boschi . "In fact, new territorial investigations are planned with geophysical surveys, drone overflights and surface reconnaissance, as well as dissemination activities for the local community and the public". Over the years, the ArcheoNevola

project has gathered important collaborations inside and outside the Alma Mater . Among these in particular with: the Department of Cultural Heritage and its DNALab, the Single Cycle Degree Course in Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Heritage (Ravenna Campus), the Department of Industrial Engineering, the Flaminia Foundation, the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV), the Laboratory of Anthropology and Forensic Odontology (University of Milan), the Restoration Laboratory of the Civic Archaeological Museum of Castelleone di Suasa, the Geocarta company (France).

https://magazine.unibo.it/archivio/2024/08/08/una-nuova-tomba-principesca-picena-da-corinaldo