Archaeology in the Raetic area
Material culture and archaeological groups in the Raetic area
Prehistory
Within the area of settlement that has yielded Raetic inscription finds, three major parts must be kept apart from an archaeological perspective:
1. the northern East Alpine area, i.e. the Inntal and its tributaries north of the Brenner pass (maybe including the Wipptal down to Franzensfeste),
2. the southern East Alpine area, including the Unterengadin, the Eisack- and Pustertal, Osttirol, and the Adige valley from the river's source down to Rovereto,
3. the Alpine foothills between Trento and the Padan plain.
The local Middle Bronze Age culture of the eastern Alps is the Inneralpine Bronzezeitkultur, an inhomogenous entity formed by the input of various migrant groups in the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age (Sperber 1992: 79) which extends roughly over the Inntal (Nordtirol), the Engadin and the Alpenrheintal (Graubünden) and possibly parts of Südtirol (Sperber 1992: 55; Rageth 1992: 196). In Nordtirol, this culture is succeeded by the Late Bronze Age Nordtiroler Urnenfelderkultur. In Südtirol, the Nordtiroler Urnenfelderkultur triggers the emergence of the Laugen-Melaun culture, extending from the Unterengadin and Münstertal over Süd- and Osttirol and the Trentino to Rovereto. During the Late Bronze Age, the archaeological groups of the Alpine area are unified by the common source of their wealth, their richness in copper. While Laugen-Melaun A reflects the dependence on the northern Urnfield cultures, Laugen-Melaun B and C (Early Iron Age) show a reorientation towards the south-east Este culture (Gleirscher 1992: 119): in the 10th century BC, the mining of copper, and with it the inner-Alpine populations, lost in economic importance with the rise of iron working (Gleirscher 1991: 12). The Venetian Alps and Alpine foothills between the rivers Adige and Brenta in the Late Bronze Age belong with the southern Proto-Villanova culture (Leonardi 1992: 136).
Late Iron Age
A slow convergence of the three areas can be observed from around the turn of the early (Hallstatt C–D) to the late (La Tène) Iron Age, though they never consolidate to form a homogenous Raetic culture. From the late 6th c. BC onward, triggered by the Etruscan and Greek presence in the Padan plain, a new horizon emerges, first manifest in the Southern Alps: the Fritzens-Sanzeno group. By contrast, in the early Iron Age, the north remains more closely associated with the northern Alpine foreland; Marzatico 1992, 224 f. sees a reorientation toward the south indicated by the ceramics already in the middle of the 5th c., but more recently Gamper 2006, 32. 85 argues for a later date at the turn from the early to the middle LT period around 300 BC. In the south, the Venetian Alps and foothills see an increase in settlement in the 6th c., the relations with the Fritzens-Sanzeno culture becom-ing more evident in the course of the 5th c. (Lora & Ruta Serafini 1992, 267). The term Fritzens-Sanzeno was introduced by Frei 1959, 38, using (as in Laugen-Melaun) the names of type sites of ceramic index fossils: Fritzens bowls, bowls with S-shaped profile and Sanzeno bowls, which form (with intermediate and sub-types) an evolutionarily continuous line of pottery types distinguished by an omphalos (Marzatico 2001, 510–512; Gamper 2006, 13–17 and passim). Fig. 18: Fritzens-Sanzeno ceramics (from Marzatico 1992, 217 [fig. 2, 1–6]). 1. Fritzens bowl, 2–4. bowls with S-shaped profile, 5. bowl with Z-shaped profile, 6. Sanzeno bowl. Apart from the typical ceramics, the Fritzens-Sanzeno culture is characterised by a number of features pertaining to dress, buildings, armament and cult. A concise overview of the relevant fibula types can be found in Marzatico 2001, 516–519. The typical structure of the Fritzens-Sanzeno culture is the casa retica, a house characterised by a lowered floor which is protected from the surrounding moisture by drywalls. The interior was reached via an L-shaped entrance corridor with a slope or steps (Sölder 1992, 384 f.). The houses could have two storeys, in which case the living quarters were situated in the upper storey, while the basement was likely used as a stable (Gleirscher 1991, 24; Sölder 1992, 388–394). On weapons in the Fritzens-Sanzeno culture, e.g. the Sanzeno shaft-hole axe and the Helle-bardenaxt, see Egg 1992, 418–430. A number of helmets of the Negau type, sometimes inscribed, were found in the Raetic area (2.8.1.19). The type is of Etruscan origin, but it was locally produced, adapted and used in the Alpine area far longer than its model (Egg 1992, 423–426). Fig. 19: Depictions of the πότνια θηρῶν, one with arms ending in horses’ heads and a bird on the chest, cut out of bronze sheet, found in Sanzeno and Meclo, respectively (from Marzatico 2001, 538 [fig. 62,5 and 7]). Particularly in the cultic sphere, the dependence of the Fritzens-Sanzeno culture on influence from the south is manifest in the ornamentation and imagery on situlae and other luxury items (Gleirscher 1991, 51 f.; De Marinis 1999, 648 f.). Of particular importance in this context are the bronze votive figures, cast or cut from bronze sheet, which prominently represent (stylised) horses and female figures (Gleirscher 1986a). While it is likely that these figures, particularly the specimens with arms ending in horse’s or bird’s heads, are representations of a female deity with ties to Mediterranean goddesses, the popular equation with the Venetic Reitia, who was worshipped at the Baratella sanctuary in Este, is tenuous. Finally, the use of script is a central feature which distinguishes the Fritzens-Sanzeno culture from its predecessors (Gleirscher et al. 2002, 202–207). While examples from Mediterranean cultic practice can be adduced to explain the antler piece as an object of cult (ibid., 207), the inscribed “Hirschhornvotiv” is almost exclusive to Fritzens-Sanzeno contexts and the Raetic corpus. Also specific to the Fritzens-Sanzeno culture are perforated “bone points” (2.8.1.5) and bronze batons which come in sets of four (2.8.1.2). They are sometimes marked or even inscribed and assumed to belong in the sphere of lots and divination (ibid., 208). The Mediterranean element is generally attributed to the Etruscan presence in the 6th-c. Padan plain (Marzatico 1992, 233; in detail Gleirscher 1993, 77–95). The Etruscans founded – among other proto-cities and emporia – Marzabotto, Forcello (near Bagnolo San Vito) and the harbour city of Spina, and took control of the Veneto-Greek harbour of Adria between 540 and 525 BC (De Marinis 1999, 624). Direct contacts between the Padan Etruscans and the inhabitants of the Central Eastern Alps, without Venetic or Celtic mediacy, are demonstrated, for example, by objects of Alpine make found in Forcello (De Marinis 1999, 624–626); a list of Etruscan imports found in Fritzens-Sanzeno context – not as many as might be expected, because much was manufactured locally on Etruscan models – can be found in Nothdurfter 1992, 60–62. De Marinis 1999, 628 stresses the im-portance of Forcello for the Etruscan–Raetic connection, which is notable insofar as the route of transit from that settlement into the north would conceivably not have led up the Adige valley, but along the Mincio to the Lago di Garda, via its influent, the Sarca, and over the plateau between the Adige and the Brenta mountains to the Noce and into the Val di Non, then over the Gampen pass to Meran. Particularly Sanzeno’s evident role as a centre of metal working, trade and cult is difficult to reconcile with a main transit route passing it by in the Adige valley (Nothdurfter 1992, 51). That trade also flowed through the Adige valley is demonstrated by Etruscan finds from the Vallagarina and Pfatten (Nothdurfter 1992, 50; Marzoli & Wiel Marin 2013, 26), but, according to Nothdurfter 1979, 105, the valley in antiquity was swampy and “monatelang unpassierbar” after heavy rains. Gleirscher (Gleirscher et al. 2002, 124) hesitates to decide between Mincio and Adige as the main inlets for Etruscan culture into the Central Eastern Alps; he points to ties between the Val di Non and the Golasecca culture in the west. In any case, the major trade routes between Italy and the European mainland are thought to have bypassed the Raetic area entirely, making use of passages in the Golaseccan area (De Marinis 1988, 120; Gleirscher 1991, 13. 20; Schmid-Sikimić 2000, 215–219). The Fritzens-Sanzeno culture appears to have flourished in the 5th–4th c. (Marzatico 2001, 493) – i.e. during its intensive contact with the Etruscan culture. Celtic influence, which can be detected in both the Fritzens-Sanzeno and the Magrè group, largely replaces that of the Etruscans from the 4th c. onward, when the Celtic migration put an end to Etruscan dominance in the Padan plain (Lang 1999, 375–379; Gleirscher 1993, 97–100; Marzatico 2001, 527–537), though Etruscan elements do not disappear completely (Marza-tico 2001, 521 f.). While Celtic enclaves seem to have existed in the Veneto, an actual Celtic presence in the Central Eastern Alps is thought to have been restricted to individual craftsmen (Marzatico 2001, 531 f.). Eventually, Celts from Noricum (the Saevates) took over the Pustertal; the Germanic Cimbri’s march over the Alps around in 103/102 BC may be reflected in the settlement structures of certain valleys (Gleirscher 1991, 21; Gamper 2006, 348 f.). Gradual Romanisation begins to make itself felt around 200 BC (Marzatico 2001, 537–541; Demetz 1992, 631). The Roman expansion marks the end of the indi-genous Iron Age cultures of the Alps, though there are sanctuaries which were active well into Roman and even early Mediaeval times (Gleirscher et al. 2002, 196–199). The trans-ition appears to have happened more peacefully in the southeast than in the militarily sub-dued inner Alpine areas (Marzatico 1992, 225 f.). Maps 1 and 2: Find places of Fritzens-Sanzeno ceramics and sites with case retiche (from Marzatico 2001, 481 [fig. 1] and 504 [fig. 8]). The Fritzens-Sanzeno culture extends over the area of the precursory Laugen-Melaun culture and beyond. Its border in the west lies in the Unterengadin between Scuol and Susch, in the east somewhere along the Puster- or Drautal, probably including Osttirol (Stadler 1992, 560). In the north, the Inntal, despite its clear affinity with the Fritzens-Sanzeno group, retains some distinguishing characteristics (Gleirscher 1999, 259. 261; Gleirscher et al. 2002, 173). The Montesei di Serso settlement displays intermediate features, suggesting a gradual transition into the peninsular cultures (Gleirscher 1999, 259; Gleirscher et al. 2002, 124 f.): the region south of Trento is considered part of the Raetic area (Marzatico 1999, 503), but kept apart archaeologically, its material culture being designated the Magrè group. Find places in the Valli Giudicarie south-east of Trento (Stenico, Monte San Martino) yield different types of ceramics, some typical for Fritzens-Sanzeno, others for the Breno-Dos dell’Arca group associated with Camunic (De Marinis 1992, 155–161). Burnt-offering sites with altars of stacked stones, female votive figures and antler votives may indicate a cult community within the Fritzens-Sanzeno culture which excludes the Unterengadin, the Inntal and the areas east of Brixen and south of Trento, though the above-mentioned bronze batons commonly interpreted as lot sticks are found throughout the Raetic area (Gleirscher et al. 2002, 184. 213).
Fritzens-Sanzeno and the Raetians
Throughout the developments outlined above, there are no sudden breaks of traditions which would indicate drastic changes in the population (Gleirscher 1991, 58). The Fritzens-Sanzeno culture, identified as the material culture of the Raeti (Marzatico 2001, 483 f.), developed gradually from its precursors: Fritzens-Sanzeno pottery can be shown to be developed from local types, with new inspirations drawn from the south (De Marinis 1988, 117; Lang 1992, 98–100; Marzatico 2001, 511); Marzatico 1992, 232 points to the continuity of the places of worship. The emergence of Fritzens-Sanzeno can hardly be connected with an immigration of the non-IE Raeti into the area; Gleirscher 1993, 95 f. 102 and Marzatico 2001, 485 stress the absence of any indication for Etruscan immigration into the Alpine area during their intensive contacts or at the time of the Celtic invasions. Yet it is also difficult to reconcile the excellent fit between the archaeological Fritzens-Sanzeno group and the distribution of a linguistically homogenous inscription corpus with the fact that Fritzens-Sanzeno is the result of the incremental consolidation of two areas which can be clearly distinguished in the Bronze Age, which leads Gleirscher et al. 2002, 173 to use the term “Koine”. Should we expect the bearers of both the Nordtiroler Urnen-felderkultur and the Laugen-Melaun culture to be speakers of Raetic or did one group impose its language upon the other? Lunz, who is generally inclined to think of cultural expansion in terms of migration (1973, 10; 1974, 124–129), associates the expansion of the Fritzens-Sanzeno culture to the north with population movements (1974, 129; 1981a, 20; 1981b, 38; also De Marinis 1988, 119), but Nothdurfter 1992, 49 (with n. 12) points out that the continuity of burial rites in the Inntal speaks against Lunz’ “südalpine Unter-wanderung”, arguing that the main connective factor was trade. Gleirscher 1991, 20 suggests that the Fritzens-Sanzeno extension into the area of the Magrè group “auf venetischem Substrat” may be connected with immigration from the middle Adige valley (also De Marinis 1988, 119). From an archaeological perspective, speakers of the Raetic language or of Raetic dia-lects must have been settling somewhere between the Inntal and Rovereto since the Bronze Age, or have immigrated so unobtrusively that their presence and ultimate dominance left no clear marks on the material culture of the previous inhabitants. Although it could account for the paucity in onomastic material which can be compared to that of Etruscan (2.6.1.2), a mere shift in language is unlikely, as it is not evident why an indigenous Alpine population should have decided to adopt a Tyrsenian language (i.e. Etruscan or a language related to it). That the inscriptions reflect not the indigenous language(s), but a literary language which was adopted together with the script and cult from the neighbouring Etruscan prestige culture of the 6th c. is hardly possible (Schumacher 1998a, 113 [n. 33]) – see 2.7.4 on the differences between Raetic and Etruscan. The assumption is also unattract-ive in light of the fact that Livy (who was born ca. 59 BC in Padova) specifically refers to the Etruscan sound of the Raetic language.
Epigraphic material and dating
When talking about the dating of Raetic inscriptions, the usual caveats apply: archaeo-logical dating on the basis of excavation context and typology is sometimes uncertain, and time frames of different extent make it hard to establish a chronology even where datings are available. Particularly in the Raetic corpus, we have a great number of old findings which cannot be dated, because their archaeological context is unknown. When dating an object through context, it must be observed that objects which have a short life span, such as ceramics, are likely to date from about the time which is determined by that context, whereas objects with a longer life span (especially if they are valuable), such as fibulas, may be considerably older (Gamper 2006, 43). Moreover, the time of production or even use of an object does not necessarily determine the time when the inscription was applied. A date for production or widespread use of objects gives a terminus post quem; a date for a grave or deposit gives a terminus ante quem (Schumacher 2004, 246; MLR, 10). The following paragraphs give an overview of the dating of objects with Raetic inscriptions which is strictly based on the archaeological data as presented in the literature. The possibility of dating inscriptions based on palaeography will be addressed in ch. 2.5.2. The oldest objects bearing Raetic inscriptions appear to be two of the more remarkable items in the Raetic corpus: the Situla in Providence and the Paletta di Padova. The situla with the inscription HU-7 is dated to the third quarter of the 6th c. on the basis of typology (Frey 1962, 46) . Unfortunately, the find place of the vessel is unknown, it having emerged from the Italian art market. In the museum’s announcement of the situla in 1934, the Etruscan necropolis at the Certosa di Bologna was given as find place, but the reliabil-ity of this statement was already qualified by Frey 1962, 1. The fact that a similar object – the Situla Certosa – was found there can either support the claim or challenge it (in that it makes the necropolis a plausible find place to make up for a decorated situla). The find place of the ritual spatula which bears the inscription PA-1 is known quite precisely, as it was found during excavations in a courtyard of the Basilica di Sant’Antonio in Padova, but no Bronze- or Iron-Age context came with it. The piece is dated typologically to the 6th– 5th c. (Gambacurta et al. 2002, 186 [no. 20]). The testimonies are similar insofar as the objects are atypical (the situla being the most elaborately decorated one in the Raetic corpus), and come from places to the south(-east) of the Raetic area proper, which have not yielded any other Raetic inscriptions: Bologna was Etruscan, Padova was a Venetic site. The so-called Spada with the inscription VR-3 – definitely not a sword – is dated to the 6th–5th c. by Marinetti 1987, 138 f. (n. 5), following Salzani’s (1984, 793) identification of the object as a skewer of the sort which was used in ritual feasts and his comparison of the piece to similar ones from Padova and Magdalenska gora. Salzani himself, however, gives the early 4th c., to which the Slovenian specimen can be dated by context (Salzani 1984, 181; also Gambacurta et al. 2002, 185 [no. 19]). De Marinis 1988, 121 lists the Spada among inscribed objects dated to the 5th c. The find place is indicated as Ca’ dei Cavri, a fraction of Bussolengo, in the original publication (Rossi 1672, 404 [“Campagna Caudina”]); if this is accurate, VR-3 is the only Raetic inscription find from the right bank of the Adige in the area of Verona. Some of the above-mentioned characteristics are shared by the Lothen belt plaque (inscription PU-1), which can be dated typologically to the 5th c. by its figural decorations – two deer – which are known from the iconographic programme of situlae (Lunz 1981a, 22). No other inscriptions are known from the Burgkofel, but there are finds from the immediate vicinity of St. Lorenzen. The settlement on the Steger hill, whence come three bones (inscriptions PU-5–7) and three potsherds (inscriptions PU-8–10), is dated princip-ally to the 5th–4th c. by Constantini 2002, 41, though individual finds may be younger. The settlement on the Sonnenburger Weinleite, which yielded a stone plaque with inscription PU-4 and a loom weight with marks, is dated to the 5th–3rd c. (ibid., 48); another loom weight comes from the Puenland settlement, dated to the 5th–4th c. (ibid., 22). The oldest document from the Raetic core area between Trento and the Bozen basin appears to be NO-13 on an astragalos from the Ciaslir on the Monte Ozol, the only high-altitude site to yield Raetic inscriptions. The place was in use, originally and probably throughout, as a burnt-offerings site from the late Bronze to the early Iron Age, possibly even into Roman times; highly diverse finds in combination with nearby fundaments of buildings make further interpretation difficult (Gleirscher et al. 2002, 247 [no. 133]). According to Perini 2002, 767, the inscription find comes from a layer dated to Retico A (middle of the 6th–middle of the 5th c.). The material from Sanzeno is difficult to interpret and date. Of the seven find spots, only the northernmost, Casalini, has demonstrably yielded inscribed objects, most im-portantly the bronzes, which were found by chance in a sand pit in the late 1940s. While the other find spots, dated to Retico A, testify to a large settlement (for an overview see Gamper 2006, 334–337 and Marzatico 2001, 496–501), the function of the excavated buildings (case retiche) at Casalini, dated to Retico B–C (LT A–B), is unclear – they are arranged in neat lines, sharing walls, as if planned out (Marzatico 2001, 496). A projected settlement is a possibility, even though a settlement clearly lay just to the south: the Casalini site may have been a replacement. One may also consider an emporion with rows of studios and shops (in light of the numerours iron finds) or, like Gleirscher et al. 2002, 251 (no. 155), a temple district with treasuries (regarding the votive objects). Nothdurfter 2002, 1136 thinks of cult buildings with bothroi in the basement and space for attaching votive gifts to the walls on the upper storey, together with administrative buildings and workshops which produced the votives. See also Marzatico 2001, 494 f. on the question of indoor sanctuaries. The large number of finds, many of them old findings without a precise context, is yet to be systematically reviewed in its entirety. The oldest document from Sanzeno which can be dated independently of its context is SZ-16 on the warrior statuette, dated typologically to the second half of the 5th c. (Walde-Psenner 1983, 108 [no. 85]). The half-plastic votive bronzes, which are typical for the Raetic area and therefore difficult to date through comparison with models from the south (Gleirscher et al. 2002, 207), are still likely to belong in the context of Etruscan-style bronze votives and to be from the same time or not much younger. Gempeler 1976, 51 f. argues for the 4th–3rd c. (specifically for the horse bronzes with SZ-9 and 14, and HU-5 and 6) with regard to Venetic and Etruscan influences (also Dal Rì 1987, 174 f. [no. 722 and 723] and De Marinis 1988, 122). Gleirscher apud Schumacher 2004, 247 (and impicitly in Gleirscher et al. 2002, 207) gives the 5th–4th c. He points to the fact that that the bronze with SZ-14 – the Cavaliere di Sanzeno – features a rider who wears a Negau helmet and to the similarity of the bronze with inscription SZ-3 with the more securely datable Dercolo bronze (see below). The bronze pieces with inscriptions SZ-87 and SZ-96 can also be compared with pieces included in the Dercolo hoard. Following the common dating of situlae, the situlae (SZ-30 situla and SZ-82 cist) and situla handles (with SZ-17, SZ-19 and SZ-31) can be dated typologically to the 5th–4th c. The iron helmet with SZ-73 is datable to LT A/B1 through typology (Nothdurfter 1992, 56). Nothdurfter 1979, 97–103 dates most of the iron material with marks to between the 5th and the end of the 2nd c., the phase which is thought to be the time in which the settlement flourished. The bulk of the pottery appears to belong in the later phase, the prominent Sanzeno bowls being dated to the 3rd–2nd c. (Marzatico 2001, 511, but see Gamper 2006, 13–17 about the issues of bowl chronology). The youngest inscribed object from Sanzeno is a Roman Imperial Age iron knife (in-scription SZ-38; Nothdurfter 1979, Beilage 2). The major sanctuary of Valemporga (Meclo) was in use from the late Bronze to the late Roman Imperial Age, with a bulk of finds from Retico A demonstrating an increased frequency in the early La Tène period. The stratigraphy being destroyed, individual finds can only be dated through typology (Gleirscher et al. 2002, 236). The miniature shield with inscription NO-3 and the fragment of a bronze-plaque figure with inscription NO-19, both from the sanctuary, are the only two inscribed specimens of the typical bronze plaque votives which belong in the context of situla art and are dated to LT A–B1 (Tschurtschen-thaler & Wein 1998, 243; Gleirscher et al. 2002, 205 f.; Marzatico 2012, 320–324), though a later date cannot be excluded (Gehring 1976, 161). The fragment of a situla with inscript-ion/mark NO-8 may be assumed to belong in the same time frame. The neighbouring site of the Campi Neri south of Cles, also a sanctuary with an even longer duration (Gleirscher et al. 2002, 236 [no. 81]), yielded a number of bronze objects, none of which can be securely dated. The bronze baton with inscription NO-15 can be compared with similar objects from the Dercolo hoard; the horse bronze with inscription NO-16, which was found together with the baton in a pit, can only contingently be compared to the Sanzeno bronzes, as it is worked in full-plastic (cf. the horse statuette with SZ-71), yet rather crudely made. The strainer with inscription NO-2 dates to around the birth of Christ (Gleirscher apud Schumacher 2004, 248). The slab from Tavòn with inscription NO-10, a stray find, cannot be dated. Most of the find places of inscriptions in the Val di Non are situated in the northern part of the valley. The only outlier is the more southerly Dercolo, where a hoard find of unclear function (Schindler 1998, 222–224. 232 f.) contained the horse-headed bronze with inscription NO-11. The hoard was deposited around 400 (Lunz 1974, 83; Schindler 1998, 231); seeing that the objects deposited in the situla appear to have been comparatively new (Schindler 1998, 231), the bronze may be dated to the late 5th c. Two unassociated Sanzeno bowls are younger (LT C–D; Schindler 1998, 224). The Fritzens bowl sherd with the marks NO-14, an old finding from somewhere in the Val di Non, dates from the 5th–3rd c. based on typology. The valley of the Adige between Salurn and Meran and the immediately adjoining mountainous areas have yielded a fair number of inscribed objects. While many finds come from well researched archaeological contexts, no homogenous group finds of inscriptions like the Sanzeno bronzes have so far been made in the area. The oldest settlement complex in the area was situated on the east side of the Mitterberg, facing the Adige, southeast of modern Pfatten in the Unterland. It yielded the oldest object in the corpus, a bronze Hallstatt-age axe from a hoard found above the grave field (Lunz 1974, 211 f.), dated to the 7th or early 6th c. (Marzatico 1997, 453). Like many of its kind, the bronze axe bears marks, but these are not Raetic characters; the testimony of BZ-17 has no bearing upon the chronology of Raetic script. The associated grave field of Stadlhof dates from the Hallstatt to the early La Tène period; the fragment of a cist with inscription BZ-11 from grave XVIII (Ghislanzoni 1939, 514 f.) and the slab with inscription BZ-10.1 from grave A (Franz 1951, 130) must therefore be dated to LT A or B. For the bronze key with inscription BZ-12, possibly from the potential bothros near the Leuchtenburg (Gleirscher et al. 2002, 261 [no. 198]), no dating is available. The potsherd with inscription BZ-13 from the settlement of Laimburg may be younger (3rd–2nd c.; Schumacher 2004, 211). Finally, the precise find spot of the fragmentary miniature vessel with inscription BZ-25, a museum find, is unknown, but the votive situlae belong typologically with the miniature shields and bronze plaque figures, and are, like these, well represented in the Meclo sanctuary. Four inscribed objects come from Überetsch. The only sporadically excavated site on the Putzer Gschleier west of St. Pauls near Eppan yielded three finds (none from the casa retica), which cannot be dated. The inscribed slab from Maderneid (Eppan) with inscript-ion BZ-24 can be dated to the Late Roman Republican period by the style of its decoration (Stefan Demetz p.c.). The area in the Bozen basin between the Bozen district of Moritzing and Siebeneich in the west is called the “sacred corner” (Heiliger Winkel/Sacro angolo) for the numerous find spots (see Tecchiati 2002); unfortunately, it has not so far been systematically ex-cavated. Four finds from the Moritzing grave field come not from excavated contexts, but from chance finds in the 19th c. Two – a situla handle with inscription BZ-9 and a fragment of a bronze vessel with inscription BZ-4 – are from a grave context dated to the second half of the 5th–first half of the 4th c. (Steiner 2002, 258) ; two cists with marks come from a context dated to the 4th–early 3rd c. (ibid., 254). On the dating of the helmet hoard found on the Kosman property (Jenesien; inscriptions BZ-26 to BZ-29) see below. The handle of a cist with inscription BZ-5, found during one of the minor excavations on the Greifen-steiner Hang, can be dated typologically to the 5th–3rd c. through typology (Lunz 1985, 145); the handle of a simpulum with inscription BZ-3, an old finding from the area of the Großkarnell property, is dated by typology to the 5th–4rd c. Further up the Adige valley, the bronze axe with inscription BZ-2, a stray find from the vicinity of the church St. Christoph near Tisens, is dated typologically to the 5th c. (Zemmer-Plank et al. 1985, 165 [no. 34]). The three potsherds with marks from the settle-ment of St. Hippolyt near Tisens and the iron sickle from the hilltop can not be securely dated, but the ceramics partly bear resemblance to material from the nearby sanctuary on the Hochbichl near Meran, which appears to be no younger than LT A–B (Lunz 1974, 193). A single antler piece with inscription VN-1 comes from the Tartscher Bichl near the place where the Münstertal meets the Adige valley. The major settlement appears to have been most important during the early and middle La Tène period, but must be expected to have been in use until LT C2, when it was essentially replaced by the Ganglegg settlement (Gamper 2006, 290 f.). The latter site, situated somewhat to the south on the northern flank of the valley, had already been settled in Ha D/LT A, and appears to have been constructed within a rather short time at the end of the 2nd c. and abandoned again just as suddenly at the end of LT D (ibid., 254). Among numerous perforated bones and bone needles of un-clear (original) function which were found on the floors of houses and apparently deposit-ed there during the ritual abandonment are numerous pieces with marks and some with inscriptions (VN-2–19). No inscription finds come from the Münstertal, and only one from the Engadin: the potsherd with inscription EN-1 from Suotchastè near Ardez is dated to LT A–B through context and typology (Caduff 2007, 16). The ceramics from the sanctuary on the Pillerhöhe near Fliess, of which three pieces bear inscriptions or script-like marks (IT-8–10), date to the early La Tène period (Tschurtschenthaler & Wein 1998, 247). To my knowledge, no datings are available for the settlement on the Hörtenberg near Pfaffenhofen. The Demlfeld sanctuary, part of a larger complex around Ampass, was in use throughout the younger Iron Age, but no precise dating is known for the bronze plaque with inscription IT-5. The settlement on the Himmelreich near Volders in the Inntal yields a great number of pot-sherds bearing marks (including IT-2) which are dated to the middle and late La Tène period (Gamper 2006, 265 f.). The carved antler with inscription IT-4 comes from house 2 of the Pirchboden settlement near Fritzens; the house was destroyed by fire in the late Iron Age, possibly in the course of the Roman Alpine campaign (Tomedi 2001, 32). A stray old finding in the form of a bronze handle with inscription WE-1 comes from Matrei am Brenner – being the handle of a situla, the object can be dated to the the early La Tène period. The ceramics from the settlement on the Kronbichl near Sterzing, which yielded a potsherd with marks (WE-2), is dated to the early Iron Age by Lunz 1974, 167, but Gamper 2006, 316 also mentions a middle and late La Tène period find group. From the large settlement of Stufels near Brixen come an isolated and undated antler piece with inscription WE-3 and a potsherd with inscription WE-4; the latter is dated to the 4th c. through both context and typology (Tecchiati et al. 2011, 50). No secure datings are avail-able for the potsherds from the Melaun grave field (marks WE-5–8) and the burnt-offer-ings site on the Rungger Egg (marks SI-1 and 2), and for the finds from the settlement on the Piperbühel (inscriptions RN-1–3). The find complex of the settlement near Tesero in the Val di Fiemme is dated mainly to the early La Tène period (Marzatico 2001, 498), but younger finds make a later dating for the antler handle possible (Gamper 2006, 329) – Dal Rì 1987, 176 suggests the 4th–3rd c. The Situla Giovanelli (CE-1), an isolated find from Caslir – arguably a burnt-offerings site – in the Val di Cembra, is dated to the 4th c. (Marzatico 2001, 512; Oberosler 2004, 646). From the meeting point of Valsugana and Valle dei Mòcheni come twelve pieces of antler (inscriptions SR-1–10, 12 and 13) and three other objects bearing marks, found scattered in house 2 of the settlement on the Montesei di Serso (Perini 1965, 35 [fig. 2]). The excavation report (Perini 1965) lists eight of the ten antler pieces as found in the two older layers C"' and C" in the north-western corner of house 2, while two more (unidenti-fied, I believe) were found in the eastern part in the layer C' (58). According to Marzatico 2001, 505, the settlement dates to the 5th–4th c., with only house 3 yielding younger finds (3rd–2nd c.). Thus, the dating given by Gleirscher apud Schumacher 2004, 247 (5th–4th c.) is to be preferred to that of Dal Rì 1987, 176, who, for reasons not evident, gives the 3rd c. for the antler pieces (but cf. Gamper 2006, 332). De Marinis 1988, 121 gives the 5th c. The settlement of Bostel near Rotzo in the western Altopiano di Asiago, above the Adige valley, has been yielding inscribed objects, mostly pottery, since the 1880s. All but one of the finds from before 1920 (AS-1–13) are currently untraceable and probably destroyed. The more recent finds (AS-15–23), which were found during systematic ex-cavations, fit in well with the descriptions of the older material. The settlement, and with it the finds, is dated to the 4th–2nd c.; the most recent ceramic finds with inscriptions AS-15–23, retrieved from structures C1 and 2, can be dated more specifically to the end of the 4th–3rd c. (De Guio 2011, 176). No dating is availably for the isolated potsherd from Piovene Rocchette with inscription AS-14. The bothros of the burnt-offerings site of Magrè near Schio contained one of the most important Raetic inscription finds, the twenty-three antler pieces with inscriptions MA-1–23. The site was in use throughout the late Iron Age (Ruta Serafini 2002a, 258). Pellegrini 1918, 175 f. dates the complex to Este IV (LT B–D); his specification of 4th c. is based on palaeography (206), as is that of De Marinis 1988, 121 (5th c.). The dating given by Gambacurta 2002b, 122 (3rd–2nd c.) requires substantiation – cf. Markey 2006, 147, who assumes that the antler pieces date from different phases of the sanctuary’s existence. Four bones with inscriptions TR-1–4, among about thirty uninscribed ones, were found in a large (cult?) building in the settlement of the Colle di Castello (Trissino), the only find place in the Agno valley. The site was inhabited from the middle of the 5th c. to Roman times, but the bones are dated to the end of the 2nd–beginning of 1st c. through context (Ruta Serafini 2002b, 259). From the cult building at Casaletti near San Giorgio di Valpolicella come two bronze objects of unknown function (inscriptions VR-10 and 11) and a number of bone objects (inscriptions VR-12–17). Associated with the building’s second phase, the material can be dated to the 2nd–beginning of 1st c. (Salzani 2003, 96–100; Marinetti 2004a, 412). The isolated bone with inscription VR-4 from Castelrotto is dated to the 1st c. via context (Marinetti 1991, 42). The four inscribed objects (inscriptions VR-6–9) from a settlement near Montorio Veronese can be dated by context to the 4th–3rd c. (Marinetti 2004a, 409). The site near San Briccio di Lavagno has yielded two antler pieces (inscriptions VR-1 and 2), datable by context to the 5th–4th c. (Gambacurta 2002b, 122 [n. 22]). No dating is avail-able for the opisthograph with inscriptions TV-1.1 (Raetic) and TV-1.2 (Latin), which was found built into the outer wall of the Chiesa di San Martino di Castelcies near Cavaso di Tomba. Negau helmets can be dated typologically: the Slovenian type, variant Vače, of which both the Vače (inscription SL-1) helmet and the Negau helmet A (inscriptions SL-2.1–2.4) are specimens, was in use between the second half of the 5th and the early 4th c. (Egg 1986, 82. 129); however, the presence of two younger helmets indicates that the helmet-only depot in which Negau A was found was laid down at the end of the 2nd c. at the earliest (Egg 1976, 302). The Kosman hoard from Jenesien can be dated to the first half of the 1st c. through the included coins (Lunz & Morandi 2003, 344). The Vače helmet, a stray find, lacks a datable context.
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