Abstract
Geoarchaeology is a multidisciplinary field that uses the methods and the contents of Earth Sciences for a more complete and detailed investigation of historical sites (Waters 1992; Rapp and Hill 1998; Goldberg and Macphail 2005; Ghilardi and Desruelles 2009). In particular, the geoarchaeologycal investigation of a site focuses on the study of stratigraphic sequences and on the clear understanding of the geomorphological and palaeogeographic setting of the area. One of the main goals is to better recognize the ancient environmental context in which the settlement was established. This approach is rather recent, given that the systematic stratigraphic analysis of excavation sites has been used only since the end of the nineteenth century, while the geomorphological reconstruction of the palaeogeographic environment has been applied only since the 1980s (Ghilardi and Desruelles 2009). Moreover, important information is obtained from the study of environmental changes occurred from the period during which the settlement was established until nowadays. Since the location of a historical place is strictly related to the geographica l condi t ions of the s i t e , the palaeogeographic study is essential to localize the position of a site or to understand its time evolution. In this context, the use of geographical information systems (GIS) technology plays an important role, allowing for the investigation of natural and/or artificial characteristics of the Earth surface (Moore et al. 1991; Nelson et al. 2009; Melelli et al. 2012). The great flexibility of these techniques allows us to compare and integrate data provided by Social Sciences as well as Sciences, thus providing unique indications for Geoarchaeology. Until now the integration of Earth Sciences and Archaeology has been mainly used for archaeological purposes. Indeed, Earth Sciences have been used as a Btool^ for archaeological research, with a few feedbacks or advantages for the geological field. On the contrary, now, new potential connections are emerging, with the development of new branches of the Earth Sciences, including the geological heritage identification and promotion. Geological outcrops and geomorphological features characterized by intrinsic, cultural, economic, scientific and educational values are defined in the scientific literature as Bgeosites^ (Panizza and Piacente 2008). These geological heritages are defined as Bany place, area or territory where you can define a geological and geomorphological interest for conservation^ (Grey 2004); in addition to the abiotic values, they can have a strong historical, archaeological and cultural relevance (Melelli 2014; Pica et al. 2015). In order to promote the geological heritage with cultural added values, some archaeological sites, where the stratigraphic or geomorphological surrounding conditions are relevant, can be defined as Barchaeo–geosite^ (Gregori et al. 2005; Gustavsson et al. 2006; Gungor et al. 2012). Moreover, this new approach for the investigation of an archaeological site allows us to export its value from the academic context to a more wide audience, thus increasing its touristic value, and consequently, the economic value of the area. Accordingly, geotourism (a particular branch of tourism interested in the knowledge of the geological heritage) is the * Laura Melelli laura.melelli@unipg.it
Published Version
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