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Prehistoric Times.
500,000
+ yrs ago (Lower
Paleolithic) - Settlements were generally situated in coastal caves, in
shelters at the base of rock walls or near lake shores. Some Sites have been discovered
in:
- Pineta di Isernia (730,000 yrs
ago)
- Quinzano (Verona) (over 400,000
yrs)
- Lazio (Torre in Pietra, Fontana
Liri, Anagni, Arce)
- Abruzzo (Teramano, Maiella)
- Basilicata (Venosa)
- Puglia (Gargano)
- Campania
(Capri and Sant' Angelo a Fasanella)
- Liguria (Balzi Rossi).
120,000 to 36,000 years ago (Middle Paleolithic) - During this time period Neanderthals' lived in the
caves of:
- Circeo (Lazio),
- the terraces of the Tiber Valley (Rome),
- the coast of the Salento (Grotta Romanelli)
- the coast of the Gargano (Puglia),
- Western Liguria (Balzi Rossi and Finalese) and
many other sites.
36,000
to 10,000 years ago (Upper Paleolithic)- This is when Homo sapiens (modern man) emerged. They were
hunters and gatherers. Evidence of their presence includes:
- engravings and graffiti in the
caves of M. Pellegrino and Levanzo in Sicily, in Grotta Romanelli on the Salento Coast and
the Balzi Rossi in Liguria
- statues like the small female
figures from Savignano and Chiozza di Scandiano were found in Emilia
- Venus figurines were found
at the Balzi Rossi in Liguria
- many of these sites were rich in
burials, animal bones, and tools
10,000 to 6, 000 years ago (Mesolithic period)- During
this period inhumations (burials) came into use and small tools were prevalent. Sites from
this period have been found throughout the entire Italian peninsula:
- Balzi Rossi, Arene Candide
- Colli Berici (Covolo della Paina)
- Capri (Grotta delle Felci)
- Positano (Grotta La Porta)
6, 000 B.C. to 2, 800 B.C. (Neolithic period)- The
traditional hunting and gathering economy was replaced by the introduction of agriculture,
stock rearing, weaving and pottery
2,800 to 1,800 B.C. (Copper Age)- Characterized by the use of copper (alongside stone),
introduced into Italy from the Eastern Mediterranean. A pastoral way of life
(semi-permanent winter settlements on lower ground , usually in caves by
water-courses, and summer pastures high in the mountains). This Pastoral way of life
dominated the cultures of people of the Apennine mountains that developed especially in
Central-Southern Italy including Corleto Monforte.
1,800 to 1,400 B.C. (Bronz Age)-During this time period true regional groupings began to
emerge, with highly organized social structures and territorial ranges. The
“Terramare” cultures (Terramaracoli = ‘dark earth’), possibly
coming from the Danube in the north-east, spread over the Po valley in the north.
The Terremare practiced agriculture and stock-raising and lived in huts. This
cultural group also marked the change of rite from inhumation (burials) to cremation
(urnfield cultures).
1,400 – 500 B.C. (Iron Age)- Much of Italy was occupied by people known as Villanovans,
after a site discovered in Villanova, about 5 miles east of Bologna. Scullard (1967)
notes that the Villanovans were not a single cultural group but a label used by
archeologists to describe a large collection of cultural groups living during the
Iron Age. Northern Villanovans were living in the modern provinces of
Bologna, Faenza, Forli, & Ravenna; Etruscans eventually occupied these areas. Evidence
of Villanovan culture is also found in Southern Italy – in
Eturia, Latium and Campania.
For example, at Pontecognano in Campania (about 6 miles south of Salerno and
northwest of Corleto) about 330 tombs dating from 800 – 550 BC were found in 1958
excavations.
REFERENCES
Prehistoric
/ 1000 BC - 0 / 0 - 1000AD / 1000
- 1500AD / 1500-2000AD
Last updated: March 23, 2000
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