Questioning the marginality of mountain areas: the territory of Nursia during the Iron age.

Monti, Dario
(2026) A Blessing and a Curse: Mediterranean mountains between idyll and violence in later Prehistory — Location: University of Cambridge (9.May.2022)

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Until today, mountain areas have been suffering from a marginality that is often more of prejudice than a fact. In the study of the ancient world, the lack of attention on uplands is the result of an almost "evolutionary" perspective that sees in the absence or scarce presence of the urban phenomenon - considered as a key element of a complex society - the signs of cultural backwardness. An increasing number of studies, such as the case study presented here, show instead the adaptability to local geographical contexts, the dynamism and cultural elaboration of mountain communities. The present paper aims to emphasize these latter characteristics in the Sabine Iron Age communities of the so-called “Inner Sabina”, with a special focus on Nursia area, in the light of the new research conducted there. In addition to the study of the available archaeological material, a series of ongoing survey campaigns are in fact significantly increasing our knowledge of the ancient landscape of the area. A landscape that, until a few years ago, was only known through a few discoveries, albeit very important ones. In order to realise the objective of the paper to challenge the traditional picture of the marginality of these areas and to recognise a certain importance to these communities, the anthropic landscape and the material culture will be analysed. It will thus be possible to show the dialectic of adaptation to the geographical context (through a longue durée perspective), and the active involvement of these communities in exchanges and contacts.
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Monti, D. (2026). Questioning the marginality of mountain areas: the territory of Nursia during the Iron age. In Elena Scarsella - Camilla Zeviani (ed.), A Blessing and a Curse: Mediterranean mountains between idyll and violence in later Prehistory, Proceedings of the first Later European Prehistory Group Conference. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/266792