Antropizzazione e attività vulcanica in alcuni siti archeologici di Torre del Greco (NA)

Abstract The geoarchaeological studies carried out in the site of Contrada Sora, ubicates on the Torre del Greco (Naples) coast between cemetery and Torre Bassano, and the discovery of 5th- 4th century B.C. mausoleum in Via Tripoli of the same town, destroyed by earthquake (perhaps connected to the effects of «Pollena» vesuvian eruption), have permitted to detect, during the same excavation campaign of two roman-aged marittime buildings, an important sedimentary and volcanic stratigraphical successions, chronologically longed from the prehistory to modern age. In fact, we have also recognized in that stratigraphic records, besides roman ruins, evident tracks of anthropic occupation of these sites extended from Roman to Modern age. This fact clearly testify that the sites investigated have a long been (for about 2.000 years) anthropized in spite of the volcanic vesuvian eruptions and the hydrogeological phenomena that have characterized the history of this sector of vesuvian coast. These natural catastrophic events have locally caused important topographic modifications and have interacted with anthropic settlements causing, sometime for long periods, their abandonment. The products of vesuvian volcanic eruptions and the alluvial sediments are well recognizable in the local stratigraphic sections in association with roman (first century B.C. - 79 A.D.), late roman (2th - 4th century A.C.), high-medieval (5th - 6th century A.D.), low-medioeval (12th- 15th century A.D.) and modern (17th- 19th century A.D.) aged building ruins, necropolis and handmade fragments. In particular, we have noted and dated with radiocarbon method, for the first time, the scoriaceous lapilli-fall of an unknown vesuvian strombolian eruption (herein informally called «the eruptive layer of Villa Sora») occurred during the end of 6th century or the early of 7th century.

Riassunto Una serie di indagini geoarcheologiche sono state eseguite per alcuni anni a Torre del Greco mettendo alla luce importanti stratigrafie e sovrapposte rioccupazioni antropiche sia di età romana che tarda. Gli scavi e le osservazioni scientifiche interdisciplinari effettuate permettono di documentare, precisare e scandire i tempi e i modi dell'attività umana nell’area e di datare con precisione alcuni fatti sismici e eventi eruttivi tardo-antichi e altomedioevali.