Rediscovering the Lost Roman Landscape in the Southern Trieste Karst (North-Eastern Italy): Road Network, Land Divisions, Rural Buildings and New Hints on the <i>Avesica</i> Road Station
An interdisciplinary study of the ancient landscape of the Trieste Karst (north-eastern Italy) is presented in this paper. Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) has been applied to obtain high-resolution topography of the 25 km<sup>2</sup> investigated area in order to identify potential archaeo...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-03-01
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| Series: | Remote Sensing |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/15/6/1506 |
| _version_ | 1797609243559329792 |
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| author | Federico Bernardini |
| author_facet | Federico Bernardini |
| author_sort | Federico Bernardini |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | An interdisciplinary study of the ancient landscape of the Trieste Karst (north-eastern Italy) is presented in this paper. Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) has been applied to obtain high-resolution topography of the 25 km<sup>2</sup> investigated area in order to identify potential archaeological anomalies. The ALS-derived high-resolution Digital Terrain Models have been visualized and managed using QGIS and Relief Visualization Toolbox. Possible archaeological anomalies have been verified through field surveys and interpreted using a multidisciplinary approach mainly based on the collection of associated archaeological materials and geomorphological and stratigraphic evidence. From a methodological perspective, the elaboration and study of ALS-derived images, and in particular the local relief model visualization, combined with the collection of Roman shoe hobnails, have proven to be effective approaches for the certain identification and dating of Roman roads in karst environments. The obtained results have revealed an almost completely unknown Roman landscape: the investigated area was crossed by important public roads, whose layout has been accurately reconstructed for a total length of over 10 km, and occupied by large country estates, sometimes enclosed within boundary walls perfectly fitting the Roman land division grid. One of the identified buildings could correspond to a road station, perhaps the <i>Avesica</i> known from ancient itinerary documents—i.e., the <i>itinerarium Antonini Augusti</i>—due to its position and proximity to a major road junction. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T05:58:46Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f1301e237de14e9ba209509a62e37020 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-4292 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T05:58:46Z |
| publishDate | 2023-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Remote Sensing |
| spelling | doaj.art-f1301e237de14e9ba209509a62e370202023-11-17T13:38:01ZengMDPI AGRemote Sensing2072-42922023-03-01156150610.3390/rs15061506Rediscovering the Lost Roman Landscape in the Southern Trieste Karst (North-Eastern Italy): Road Network, Land Divisions, Rural Buildings and New Hints on the <i>Avesica</i> Road StationFederico Bernardini0Department of Humanistic Studies, Università Ca’ Foscari Venezia, 30123 Venezia, ItalyAn interdisciplinary study of the ancient landscape of the Trieste Karst (north-eastern Italy) is presented in this paper. Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) has been applied to obtain high-resolution topography of the 25 km<sup>2</sup> investigated area in order to identify potential archaeological anomalies. The ALS-derived high-resolution Digital Terrain Models have been visualized and managed using QGIS and Relief Visualization Toolbox. Possible archaeological anomalies have been verified through field surveys and interpreted using a multidisciplinary approach mainly based on the collection of associated archaeological materials and geomorphological and stratigraphic evidence. From a methodological perspective, the elaboration and study of ALS-derived images, and in particular the local relief model visualization, combined with the collection of Roman shoe hobnails, have proven to be effective approaches for the certain identification and dating of Roman roads in karst environments. The obtained results have revealed an almost completely unknown Roman landscape: the investigated area was crossed by important public roads, whose layout has been accurately reconstructed for a total length of over 10 km, and occupied by large country estates, sometimes enclosed within boundary walls perfectly fitting the Roman land division grid. One of the identified buildings could correspond to a road station, perhaps the <i>Avesica</i> known from ancient itinerary documents—i.e., the <i>itinerarium Antonini Augusti</i>—due to its position and proximity to a major road junction.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/15/6/1506north-eastern ItalyTrieste Karstairborne laser scannerarchaeological surveysRoman landscapeshoe hobnails |
| spellingShingle | Federico Bernardini Rediscovering the Lost Roman Landscape in the Southern Trieste Karst (North-Eastern Italy): Road Network, Land Divisions, Rural Buildings and New Hints on the <i>Avesica</i> Road Station Remote Sensing north-eastern Italy Trieste Karst airborne laser scanner archaeological surveys Roman landscape shoe hobnails |
| title | Rediscovering the Lost Roman Landscape in the Southern Trieste Karst (North-Eastern Italy): Road Network, Land Divisions, Rural Buildings and New Hints on the <i>Avesica</i> Road Station |
| title_full | Rediscovering the Lost Roman Landscape in the Southern Trieste Karst (North-Eastern Italy): Road Network, Land Divisions, Rural Buildings and New Hints on the <i>Avesica</i> Road Station |
| title_fullStr | Rediscovering the Lost Roman Landscape in the Southern Trieste Karst (North-Eastern Italy): Road Network, Land Divisions, Rural Buildings and New Hints on the <i>Avesica</i> Road Station |
| title_full_unstemmed | Rediscovering the Lost Roman Landscape in the Southern Trieste Karst (North-Eastern Italy): Road Network, Land Divisions, Rural Buildings and New Hints on the <i>Avesica</i> Road Station |
| title_short | Rediscovering the Lost Roman Landscape in the Southern Trieste Karst (North-Eastern Italy): Road Network, Land Divisions, Rural Buildings and New Hints on the <i>Avesica</i> Road Station |
| title_sort | rediscovering the lost roman landscape in the southern trieste karst north eastern italy road network land divisions rural buildings and new hints on the i avesica i road station |
| topic | north-eastern Italy Trieste Karst airborne laser scanner archaeological surveys Roman landscape shoe hobnails |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/15/6/1506 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT federicobernardini rediscoveringthelostromanlandscapeinthesoutherntriestekarstnortheasternitalyroadnetworklanddivisionsruralbuildingsandnewhintsontheiavesicairoadstation |