Organic Residue Analysis on Iron Age Ceramic Mugs (5th–1st Century BC) from Valle Camonica—UNESCO Site n. 94, Northern Italy

The paper is dedicated to the study of organic remains in ceramic drinking vessels from protohistoric Northern Italy. These one-handled mugs are a typical item of the prealpine area, dating from the 5th to the 1st century BCE, and possibly carried high cultural value, given their presence in graves...

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Main Authors: Paolo Rondini, Giulia Patrizi, Giuseppe Egidio De Benedetto
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-05-01
Series:Heritage
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/8/6/198
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author Paolo Rondini
Giulia Patrizi
Giuseppe Egidio De Benedetto
author_facet Paolo Rondini
Giulia Patrizi
Giuseppe Egidio De Benedetto
author_sort Paolo Rondini
collection DOAJ
description The paper is dedicated to the study of organic remains in ceramic drinking vessels from protohistoric Northern Italy. These one-handled mugs are a typical item of the prealpine area, dating from the 5th to the 1st century BCE, and possibly carried high cultural value, given their presence in graves and sanctuaries as well as the presence of alphabetic inscriptions on some of them. The sampled items consist of 10 mug bases from the Iron Age sanctuary of Dos dell’Arca (Capo di Ponte, BS) and the coeval settlement of Castello di Castione della Presolana (BG). The analyses included HT-GC-MS and GC-C-IRMS analyses to identify ancient food/beverage products. The results indicate a differentiated use for the two types of mugs (“Breno” and “Dos dell’Arca” types), suggesting a possible shift in cultic habits. While both types were primarily containers for milk consumption, the earliest type was also used for consuming fermented, millet-based beverages, while the latter was covered with some oily vegetal substance before its disposal.
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spelling doaj-art-e2a3c7e3f9ca46e0a99cd6a71bf7a3b92025-08-20T03:26:57ZengMDPI AGHeritage2571-94082025-05-018619810.3390/heritage8060198Organic Residue Analysis on Iron Age Ceramic Mugs (5th–1st Century BC) from Valle Camonica—UNESCO Site n. 94, Northern ItalyPaolo Rondini0Giulia Patrizi1Giuseppe Egidio De Benedetto2Department of Humanities, University of Pavia, 27100 Pavia, ItalyDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Perugia, 06125 Perugia, ItalyLaboratory of Analytic and Isotopic Mass Spectrometry, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, ItalyThe paper is dedicated to the study of organic remains in ceramic drinking vessels from protohistoric Northern Italy. These one-handled mugs are a typical item of the prealpine area, dating from the 5th to the 1st century BCE, and possibly carried high cultural value, given their presence in graves and sanctuaries as well as the presence of alphabetic inscriptions on some of them. The sampled items consist of 10 mug bases from the Iron Age sanctuary of Dos dell’Arca (Capo di Ponte, BS) and the coeval settlement of Castello di Castione della Presolana (BG). The analyses included HT-GC-MS and GC-C-IRMS analyses to identify ancient food/beverage products. The results indicate a differentiated use for the two types of mugs (“Breno” and “Dos dell’Arca” types), suggesting a possible shift in cultic habits. While both types were primarily containers for milk consumption, the earliest type was also used for consuming fermented, millet-based beverages, while the latter was covered with some oily vegetal substance before its disposal.https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/8/6/198organic residue analysisceramic studiesIron AgeValle CamonicaUNESCO Site 94protohistory
spellingShingle Paolo Rondini
Giulia Patrizi
Giuseppe Egidio De Benedetto
Organic Residue Analysis on Iron Age Ceramic Mugs (5th–1st Century BC) from Valle Camonica—UNESCO Site n. 94, Northern Italy
Heritage
organic residue analysis
ceramic studies
Iron Age
Valle Camonica
UNESCO Site 94
protohistory
title Organic Residue Analysis on Iron Age Ceramic Mugs (5th–1st Century BC) from Valle Camonica—UNESCO Site n. 94, Northern Italy
title_full Organic Residue Analysis on Iron Age Ceramic Mugs (5th–1st Century BC) from Valle Camonica—UNESCO Site n. 94, Northern Italy
title_fullStr Organic Residue Analysis on Iron Age Ceramic Mugs (5th–1st Century BC) from Valle Camonica—UNESCO Site n. 94, Northern Italy
title_full_unstemmed Organic Residue Analysis on Iron Age Ceramic Mugs (5th–1st Century BC) from Valle Camonica—UNESCO Site n. 94, Northern Italy
title_short Organic Residue Analysis on Iron Age Ceramic Mugs (5th–1st Century BC) from Valle Camonica—UNESCO Site n. 94, Northern Italy
title_sort organic residue analysis on iron age ceramic mugs 5th 1st century bc from valle camonica unesco site n 94 northern italy
topic organic residue analysis
ceramic studies
Iron Age
Valle Camonica
UNESCO Site 94
protohistory
url https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/8/6/198
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AT giuliapatrizi organicresidueanalysisonironageceramicmugs5th1stcenturybcfromvallecamonicaunescositen94northernitaly
AT giuseppeegidiodebenedetto organicresidueanalysisonironageceramicmugs5th1stcenturybcfromvallecamonicaunescositen94northernitaly