Prehistoric landscapes of the Dolomites: Survey data from the highland territory of Cadore (Belluno Dolomites, Northern Italy)

New data on the first human settlements in western Trentino: The site of Pozza Lavino in the Ledro valley (Trentino, Italy)

“…5.6e7) are comparable to other mountain finds from northeastern Italian sites such as: Bocca Vaiona, Malga Vacil and Monte Baldo in Trentino province (Marzatico, 2007); Mondeval de Sora (Fontana and Pasi, 2002;Visentin et al, 2015), Monte Cernera (Palmieri, 1978;Bagolini and Pedrotti, 1992), Lastoni del Formin and Malga Pradazzo in the Veneto region ; Monte Guglielmo in Val Trompia (Malga Stalletti Alti and Punta Caravina) in the nearby province of Brescia (Biagi, 2002;Biagi and Starnini, 2015).…”

“…Scant evidence of Neolithic presence is known in western Trentino: just Doss Cingol, near the village of Storo, where some pottery fragments were found in 1981 (Dalmeri, 1982). A renewed economic interest in the mountain environment can be detected beginning in the later phases of the Neolithic and during the Copper Age, possibly connected to pastoral activities (Bagolini and Pedrotti, 1992;Mottes and Nicolis, 2002;Marzatico, 2007;Mottes et al, 2009;Visentin et al, 2015). Beyond the regional border, near the Ledro valley, a Neolithic site was discovered in the early 20th century (Cozzaglio, 1934).…”

Going off the beaten path? The Casera Lissandri 17 site and the role of the Cansiglio plateau on human ecology during the Early Sauveterrian in North-eastern Italy

“…In the eastern Alpine region, current data on Sauveterrian mobility demonstrate the existence of distinct territorial entities that employed specific logistic systems in the Adige valley, the Maddalene and Lagorai districts, the overall Dolomitic region, the Piave basin and the Venetian Dolomites (Bagolini et al, 1983;Lanzinger, 1990, 1996;Dalmeri et al, 2001;Kompatscher and Hrozny Kompatscher, 2006;Fontana et al, 2009;Fontana, 2011;Visentin et al, 2015). The hypothesis that Alpine valleys might have served as winter/early spring refugia for larger social units before these groups or part of their components moved to the innermost highlands from late-spring to early autumn for targeted hunting/ambush purposes or similar activities, anyway, is not supported by any direct seasonal data and is currently under review (Fontana, 2011;Wierer et al, 2015).…”

“…The Early Mesolithic colonization of the central-eastern Italian Alpine region left archaeological evidence richer than in any other mountain district of Europe (Biagi, 1992;Broglio, 1992;Dalmeri and Pedrotti, 1992;Angelucci et al, 1995;Dalmeri et al, 2001;Tillet, 2001;Fontana and Pasi, 2002;Kompatscher and Hrozny Kompatscher, 2006;Fontana et al, 2009;Fontana, 2011;Visentin et al, 2015). Intensive fieldwork carried out since the 1970s along the main river basins, and in particular those of the Adige and Piave rivers, has led to the collection of a conspicuous dataset that supported the construction of a settlement system model for the Sauveterrian (Broglio, 1980(Broglio, , 1992Broglio and Lanzinger, 1990;Clark, 2000).…”

Between the Venetian Alps and the Emilian Apennines (Northern Italy): Highland vs. lowland occupation in the early Mesolithic

“…Data on the Mesolithic frequentation of this site comes from rockshelter A (layer 3) where a few elements have been brought to light, including a Sauveterre point (Aimar et al, 1992). Further evidence comes from the Coolon rock-shelter, located on the left slope of the Piave valley (Quero canyon), where some Sauveterrian-like artefacts coming from an almost completely destroyed deposit have been recovered (Peresani, 1996) (Fontana and Pasi, 2002;Cesco-Frare and Mondini, 2005;Visentin et al, 2015bVisentin et al, , 2016. Among the numerous sites identified, only VF1 of Mondeval de Sora has been the object of extensive excavations (Fontana et al, 2009a(Fontana et al, , 2009b (Fig.…”