GEOARCHAEOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF CLAY AND CERAMIC SAMPLES FROM POGGIO COLLA AND PODERE FUNGHI IN ITALY

In archaeological geology, provenance studies are aimed at discovering the source of the raw materials used in the production of an artifact (Rapp & Hill, 2006). The research being conducted focuses on chemical analysis and comparison of clays and ceramic materials. The purpose is to obtain a possible provenance for the clay used by the Etruscan potters in ceramic production. The analysis is currently being conducted using X-ray fluorescence, X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive spectroscopic analysis (SEM/EDS) devise and petrographic methods. The clay and ceramic samples were collected at the Etruscan archaeological sites of Poggio Colla and Podere Funghi located in the Mugello Valley in Tuscany, Italy. The two sites are approximately one kilometer apart. They are located on the western edge of the northern Apennines Mountain belt on the outer edge or outskirts of the Etruscan territory. The local geological setting is the Mugello Valley or Basin. It is an asymmetrical basin, which is primarily filled with Pliocene-Pleistocene lacustrine and alluvial sediments. Poggio Colla was the site of archaeological excavations in 1968-1972 by an Italian team directed by Dr. Francesco Nicosia; with further excavations conducted by the Mugello Valley Archaeology Project from 1998 to the present. The site is proposed to represent remnants of a regional temple and political center (Warden et al., 2005). The area of study is significant in that it was occupied for the majority of Etruscan history, from approximately the 7th through the 2nd century BC. Podere Funghi was a ceramics production site. Excavations conducted by the Mugello valley Archaeology Project starting in 1998 revealed four pottery kilns, as well as a building and a midden or more accurately a trash site (Warden et al., 2005). This site is noteworthy because, as a pottery production site it represents one of the few sites that provide insights into the lives of ordinary Etruscan people. The provenance research could provide insights into Etruscan trade routes and local and regional economics.