Understanding Ancient Landscapes in the Venetian Plain through an Integrated Geoarchaeological and Geophysical Approach

Alice Vacilotto,Paolo Mozzi,Rita Deiana

doi:10.3390/rs12182973

Alice Vacilotto, Paolo Mozzi + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/rs12182973

Copy DOI

Journal: Remote sensing	Publication Date: Sep 12, 2020
Citations: 7	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: University of Padua

Abstract

This paper reports the results of the multidisciplinary study carried out in the SE area of Ceggia, in the eastern part of the Venetian Plain. The area has been characterized, since ancient times, by numerous morphological transformation, due to the presence of lagoon and marshes, and interested by repeated reclamation. Aerial and satellite images have identified many natural and anthropogenic traces. From a geophysical point of view, electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) combined with frequency-domain electromagnetic measurements (FDEM) can help to discriminate the spatial distribution of different buried structures in conductive systems. The electrical conductivity is, in fact, directly related to the soil moisture content. The multidisciplinary approach adopted in this context, with the results obtained thanks to the contribution of aerial and satellite images, historical cartography, archaeological survey, geophysical measurements, geomorphological characterization, and 14C dating, allow us to suggest a possible interpretation of the different traces highlighted in the studied area. This approach suggests a potentially useful and replicable methodology to study similar evidence, such as along the North Adriatic coast and in broad sectors of the Po Valley. The key issue, in this kind of system, lies, in fact, in the possibility to date and compare traces visible on the surface by remote sensing, establishing their interest from an archaeological and geomorphological point of view using an integration of field measurements. At the end of this research, the classification of the different anomalies found in this hydraulic variable context, thanks to the multidisciplinary approach here adopted, suggest new hypotheses for reading the complex history of this understudied area.

Highlights

The study area (Figures 1 and 2) lies in the fine-grained, low-gradient alluvial plain of the Piave River [1,2], which is part of the Piave megafan that has been forming between the Last Glacial Maximum and the Late Holocene [3]
This paper reports the results of the multidisciplinary study carried out in the SE area of Ceggia, in the eastern part of the Venetian Plain
The multidisciplinary approach adopted in this context, with the results obtained thanks to the contribution of aerial and satellite images, historical cartography, archaeological survey, geophysical measurements, geomorphological characterization, and 14C dating, allow us to suggest a possible interpretation of the different traces highlighted in the studied area

Summary

Introduction

The study area (Figures 1 and 2) lies in the fine-grained, low-gradient alluvial plain of the Piave River [1,2], which is part of the Piave megafan that has been forming between the Last Glacial Maximum and the Late Holocene [3]. Fluvial activity by the Piave River (a major Alpine river with a catchment in the Dolomites) and the Livenza River (a minor Prealpine river) ended here before the Roman Age [4], so in this time, the area corresponded to a stable alluvial plain. Due to relative sea-level rise in the Middle Ages, the area became part of an extensive system of coastal wetlands that was completely reclaimed only between the 19th and the 20th century. VTihaeAVnianiAa ncnroiasscerodssthede tthereritteorrryitocroyncnoenctninecgtitnhgetRheomRoamn acnencteenrsteorsf AofltAinlutimnuamndanIudliIaulCiaonCcoonrdcoiarduipa utop AtoquAilqeuiail.eDiai.ffDerieffnetreanrcthaarecholaoegoilcoaglifcianldfiinngdsindgusridnugritnhge ttihmeetsiminesthine athreeaa(rFeiagu(Frieg2ubr)et2ebst)iftyesttoifiytstoRoitms aRnomocacnupoactciuonpa[t8i–o1n0][.8N–1o0]d. eNtaoilsdaebtaoiulst athbeouptopthuelaptioopnuolarttihoenloaryothuet olafytohuetseoflatnhdessecalpanesdsacraepreesgiasrteerreedg.isTthereeodn. lTyhienfoonrlmyaitniofonrmavaatiiloanblaeviasilraeblaleteids rteolathteedsoto-ctahlelesdos-ctraelalemd Pstiraevaomn-PCiaanvaolna-tCtahnaatlfaltotwhsatinflotwhiss isnetchtoisr,seacntdorp, aronbdapbrlyobraebplryesreepnrtiensgenftrionmg faronmcieanntctiiemntestimonees oonf ethoef rthoue treosuotefscoofmcommumniucantiicoantioanndancdomcommemrceerc[e11[1,112,1] 2b]ebtweteweenenOOpipteitregriguimum, t,htheelalaggoooonn, ,aannddtthhee RRoommaann hhaarrbboorr ttoo tthhee sseeaa,, tthhee ssoo--ccaalllleedd PPoorrttuuss LLiiqquueennttiiaaee ((FFiigguurree 22aa))

Methods

Discussion

Conclusion