ON THE TRAIL OF SHEPHERDS AND SALT FROM THE COAST TO THE MOUNTAINS AND VICE VERSA IN NE ITALY

Archaeology of pastoralism and archaeology of salt share research methods based on direct and indirect indicators: geomorphological and environmental characters, sedimentology and soil micromorphology, archaeozoology, ethnography, ethnohistory and material culture. The possibility of investigating only one or more of these elements is conditioned mainly by the results of past field explorations/studies and by the present-day research team (interdisciplinary or not) and available facilities. On these premises we have compared the multidimensional character of pastoralism in Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia (NE Italy). Sedimentology and soil micromorphology have been fundamental to identifying some Karst caves as stables. The revisions of associated artefacts in the sites supported the hypotheses on the (dis)continuity of use, while faunal remains were less indicative. The presence of a relatively high number of exotic materials - whose non-local origin, first proposed on traditional, typological-comparative studies has been confirmed by recent archaeometric analyses - may be related to transhumant pastoralism, but marine salt might have been the main attractiveness. From prehistory to Roman times, and in a different context, a similar integration of methodologies resulted successful once again. Moreover, soil chemistry is giving good results also off-site, as demonstrated by the recent study of the Bronze Age embankment road devoted to the passage of herd localized in the Po lowland. This case study shows that ancient paths and roads and pastoral movements can be overlapping: in the reconstruction of both, physiographic features - particularly in mountain regions - play an undeniable role together with historical and ethnographic data. Our studies used regional ethno-historical data, combined with field ethnographic and ethno-archaeological research: though what is ‘traditional’ is not inevitably ‘ancient’, our experiences indicate that data derived from the studied area - rather than from contemporary primitive societies - are useful to identify general trends and recognize sites and structures.