Part 22

IL BOR.--Previous to the investigations of Il Bor by Cavazzocca (B. 355), Dr. Alberti had estimated the number of heads of piles visible on this station at 500, but this number the former considers rather high. The station stretched parallel to the shore, from which its site is now distant about a hundred yards; but it is supposed that the present level of the water stands higher than it was in the days of the lake-dwellers. One reason for this opinion is that a triple row of piles which runs shorewards, and is considered to be the remains of a gangway, was found to terminate suddenly about half-way. The _strato archeologico_ lies under a thin covering of sand and gravel, which Cavazzocca explains to be the débris of the disintegrated morainic coast carried outwards by the boisterous action of the waves.

The principal relics collected by Cavazzocca are as follows, most of which are illustrated in his monograph:--

_Bronze._--Four knife daggers similar to those from Peschiera; three pin-heads, "_capocchie di aghi crinali_" (=Fig. 65=, No. 24), like those from the terremare; one axe-head with wings, like No. 30, =Fig. 63=; one conical button; two chisels (=Fig. 65=, No. 15); four hair-pins; two fragments of spiral tubes (No. 20), and six undetermined objects.

_Pottery_ showed diverse forms, including _anse lunate_, and fragments of vessels, spindle-whorls, etc.

_Stone._--Three fragments of stone moulds, several whetstones, and an arrow, knife, and several chips of flint.

An arrow-point of bronze (No. 16) and a couple of small daggers from Il Bor are in the Museum of Rome.

LAKE FIMON. (B. 83, 110, 132, and 295.)

About four miles to the south of Vicenza, at the southernmost point of an irregularly-shaped valley of rich meadow-land, lies the small lake of Fimon. At the present time it is hardly a couple of miles in circumference, but before the Debba Canal, which carries its surplus water to the river Bacchiglione, was cut, it is known to have been considerably larger, and in prehistoric times it is supposed to have covered the larger part of the valley. In a meadow called Pascalone, near its north end, and close to where the Debba Canal begins, Mr. Lioy detected the tops of piles jutting out of the grass, which he at once concluded to be the remains of a lake-dwelling--a supposition which was completely verified by extensive excavations. The surface of the meadow where these piles were visible was less than 2 feet above the level of the lake, and on making excavations over a selected portion the following facts were ascertained:--

_Piles._--The piles were from 8 to 12 inches in diameter, singly and irregularly placed, but sometimes in groups; some were hard and black (oak), and others soft, but they bore no traces of any cutting implements. In some instances they were surrounded with heaps of stones. They penetrated deeply, and one which was pulled up measured 18 feet in length. No traces of a gangway stretching to the shore could be discovered.

_Relic-bed._--Below a thin covering of vegetable-mould there was a peaty bed about 16 inches thick, and underneath this, lake-marl containing various kinds of fresh-water shells to the extent of 3 feet 4 inches. To this succeeded the _strato archeologico_ with its various contents--decomposed organic matter, broken bones, fragments of pottery, flint implements and other worked stones, bits of straw, reeds, charcoal, clay plaster, burnt faggots, etc. This bed was about 12 inches thick, and its matrix was of a yellowish-black colour, which, when cut into, had a doughy consistency and emitted a strong sulphurous smell.

_Relics._--The rough stone implements were made out of the limestone of the neighbouring hills, very seldom of sandstone, but more frequently of flint from the spurs of the Alps. These flints were in considerable numbers in the form of chips, nuclei, and unfinished implements, very few of which were well formed; a few rudely-formed arrow-points, lance-heads, knives, and saws or scrapers; pebbles of limestone, probably hammer-stones; stone discs, 2 to 4 inches in diameter (only one was perforated); also numerous sling-stones made of sandstone, basalt, and serpentine; one fragment of granite, flattened and polished on all the four sides, but only one small polished stone celt. Many of the bones were worked, and there were tynes of staghorn, sharpened at the top and perforated at the base; also pointers, spear-heads, spatulæ, and splinters of all kinds.

The fragments of pottery were so plentiful that a handful of mud could not be taken up without finding some pieces in it. Amongst some thousands of fragments about 50 vessels in a more or less perfect condition were picked out. They are all of a dark colour, with handles attached, generally below the rim, and flat bases. Some of them have everted lips, and many are ornamented with knobs, depressions, or raised ridges (circular, wavy, or confluent). Some of the handles approach the form known as _anse lunate_, others terminate in a round button (_ansa mono-appendiculata_). One small bowl had two handles. The paste was of two qualities: one fine, and the other mixed with coarse bits of gravel, quartz, and carbonate of lime.

Numerous specimens of spindle-whorls. They are flat circular cakes of clay, like small wheels, perforated and unornamented.

_Organic Remains._--Fruit of the water-chestnut (_Trapa natans_), kernels of cherries, hazel-nuts, acorns, bramble seeds, etc.

The bones of the stag and wild boar seem to predominate among those of the sheep, ox, roe, badger, etc.; also a large quantity of the broken carapaces of a small fresh-water turtle (_Emys lutaria_).

Some five or six years later (1871) Mr. Lioy made further excavations near the same place, and came upon a relic-bed 8 inches in thickness and only 16 inches below the surface, which he considered to be the remains of a pile-dwelling of a later age. In this relic-bed he found a bronze celt (=Fig. 66=, No. 1) and some flints of a grey-reddish or yellowish colour (different from the blue variety in the earlier dwelling), but no stone implements and no arrow-points. Pottery was not abundant, but it was made of a finer quality and the ornamentation shows a higher style of art. Mr. Lioy also observes that the bones of the domestic animals, such as sheep and oxen, are now in excess of those of wild animals.

As a final report of the _abitazioni lacustri_ of Lake Fimon (B. 295) Mr. Lioy has published a lengthy monograph with numerous plates of illustrations. The work, however, deals more with extraneous and general considerations than specific facts or details bearing on the remains of the palafittes in this lake. I consider the station at Polada, with its remarkable relics, far more typical of the Stone Age lake-dwellings, and I have accordingly selected it as a standard for such remains in the eastern valley of the Po. Moreover, Mr. Lee (B. 119, 2nd ed.) has already presented to English readers an abridgement of Mr. Lioy's work, with no less than nine plates of illustrations; whereas a report of the discoveries at Polada has not yet been published at all. I have, therefore, restricted my illustrations from Lake Fimon to the few objects on =Fig. 66=, which include a bronze flat celt, a large clay ring, and a few specimens of pottery.

ARQUÀ-PETRARCA.

In the neighbourhood of Padua remains of lake-dwellings presenting in many respects similar characteristics to those in Lake Fimon, have recently been discovered in the small lake of Arquà-Petrarca situated in the Euganean hills. It was discovered in the autumn of 1885 by Professor Frederico Cordenons, who, with the aid of funds from the Museums of Padua and Este, made excavations during this and the following summer, the result of which he has just published. (B. 464.) It appears that the lake, though now only covering some dozen acres, was formerly of much greater extent and occupied the whole of the present valley. In the slime of this ancient lake-basin, which is now overlaid with a deposit of peat over 3 feet in thickness, the remains of two stations were found, one on the eastern and the other on the western margin of the present lake. These remains, which consist of piles, portions of transverse beams, and a large assortment of the industrial _débris_ of the inhabitants, are entirely confined to the ancient mud deposit, nothing being found in the peat above it. Mr. Cordenons does not give as minute a description of the relic-bed and its surroundings as could be desired; but as only a fourth of the area occupied by the piles has been excavated (1,000 square yards), the present report may be only a first instalment of the researches.

Among the objects collected, the following will give a general idea of its chronological position with respect to analogous remains in the Po valley:--Several perforated stone axes, half of a perforated hammer-axe of green serpentine beautifully polished, a large hammer-stone, a beautiful flint saw four inches long ("un bellissimo coltello-sega"), portion of a finely-worked laurel-leaf-shaped lance-head of flint, a number of arrow-heads, lance-heads, saws, knives, etc., of flint.

Objects of staghorn were not numerous, and only some perforated rings of this material are recorded.

The pottery is abundant, and with the description of it much of Cordenons's monograph is taken up. The paste in the generality of the vessels is mixed with sand and bits of mica, recognised to be the _débris_ of the surrounding hills. Only one dish (=Fig. 66=, No. 11) showed ornamentation of incised lines, but, on the other hand, raised lines meeting in points, forming triangles, etc., were most common. The handles were of various shapes and showed a complete series of the progressive stages, from the single button-shaped top to the almost perfect _ansa cornuta_.

No metal objects were found, and consequently Mr. Cordenons concludes that the station belonged to the pure Stone Age, a conclusion which, however, Pigorini disputes. (B. 466b.)

The pottery is very similar to that from the adjacent lake-dwellings at Fimon, and by no means dissimilar to that from Polada.

POLADA.

About half-way between Desenzano sul Lago and the village of Lonato, and a little to the south of the direct railway between Milan and Venice, there is, in the midst of a series of morainic hillocks, a small bowl-shaped hollow, scarcely 300 yards in diameter, which at one time formed a stagnant lake called Polada. It appears that at some former period, of which there is now no record, this pool had been partially drained by means of a small tunnel which was pierced through the morainic lip on its north side, and so carried off the water to a lower valley. The result of this was to expose a considerable portion of the lake-bottom, one part of which formed a tongue-like projection or promontory attached to its eastern margin. This continued to be the condition of Polada for many ages, and in course of time the remaining portion of the lake became completely filled up with peat. Some years ago the proprietors of this bog commenced to utilise its contents as fuel, and, to facilitate this operation, the margin of the crater-like cavity was pierced by a second tunnel at a lower level than the former, so as to get rid of the water. It was then found that the promontory of land, which since its original exposure had been cultivated, had been only partially bared by the first drainage, as on its inner side there was a thin covering of peat, which a little farther on suddenly sank to a great depth. In the course of removing this covering of peat from the tip of the promontory, and just on the margin of the cultivated land, some rotten piles and other indications of a prehistoric dwelling were discovered. Dr. Giovanni Rambotti, President of the Liceo Ginnasio at Desenzano, recognised this to be the remains of a lake-dwelling erected on piles, and so greatly did he interest himself in the objects recovered and daily turning up that he arranged with the workmen to preserve all the relics for him. This discovery was made in 1872, and, as the operation of clearing out the peat progressed during the following two or three years, the settlement turned out to be very rich in industrial remains. Now that the turf is entirely removed and all the relics kept together Dr. Rambotti finds himself the possessor of one of the most valuable and instructive collections of lake-dwelling remains in Italy.

From an inspection of the original outlet Dr. Rambotti calculates that before the first tunnel was executed this tongue of land would be covered by eight to ten feet of water, and he thinks that in this depth of water the lake-dwellers must have erected their piles and platform. That portion of the site might have been exposed and destroyed when the first drainage was made, is probable; but at any rate sufficient remained to be able to form some opinion as to its size. When I visited the locality with Dr. Rambotti he gave me the following dimensions, which he derived from a careful study of the locality and disposition of the piles. Its form was that of an oblong parallelogram, 65 yards long and about one-third of this distance in breadth. Its longest diameter ran nearly east and west, and the dwelling thus presented its short side to the nearest shore. Two rows of piles, about two feet apart, stretched to the shore, a distance of about 100 yards, and Dr. Rambotti justly concluded this to be the remains of a gangway. A shallow canoe, 25 feet long and 30 inches wide, having traces of fixtures for oars at three equidistant spots on each side, was found near the site of the lake-dwelling. Portions of a second canoe, apparently of smaller dimensions, were disinterred at the land end of the gangway.

But the valuable feature of this lake-dwelling is the large and unique assortment of industrial remains which it has furnished, all of which are kept together at the private residence of Dr. Rambotti, where they constitute a respectable museum.

_Pottery._--The larger vessels were made of coarse greyish clay, mixed with rough sand or pebbles; but the smaller and more ornamental were composed of a fine black homogeneous paste. Besides a large quantity of fragments, there are in Rambotti's collection about 150 vessels, more or less entire, showing a considerable variety of size and form, according to the uses for which the vessels were intended. Some were large wide-mouthed jars, with two, or sometimes four, handles. The largest of this class measured 15 inches across the mouth and 9 inches in depth. One flat dish was 12 inches in diameter and only 4 deep, while another was flower-pot-shaped and measured 10 inches across at the top, 5 ½ at the base, and 12 in depth. Another dish (=Fig. 68=, No. 37) was perforated all over with small round holes, arranged in upright and equidistant rows, of which there were in all thirty, each row having eight holes. The measurements of this curious percolator are 10½ inches across the mouth, 8 at the base, and 4½ in depth. Some vessels, especially the larger vases, were ornamented with a line of perforations or projecting knobs round the rim; others again had a ridge marked here and there with a knob round its bulging part (=Fig. 67=, No. 6). Few were without handles. In one or two instances there was a hollow protuberance, instead of a handle, sufficiently prominent to be grasped, and the hollow part communicated with the interior of the vessel. The handles were attached generally at the rim, but often below it, and sometimes half-way down the side of the vessel. The largest handle I noticed measured 6 inches from its two points of attachment. Some of the handles were surmounted by a button-shaped prominence (No. 10); others terminated in a bifurcation like a couple of horns, which strongly suggests a rudimentary form of the _ansa lunata_, so characteristic of the terremare (Nos. 13 and 14). Of the finer kind of pottery there are a great variety of dishes, which may be classed as cups, bowls, plates, jugs, etc., some of which were ornamented with simple designs made with dots and lines (Nos. 9, 10, and 11). One handle had the form of a cross punctured on it, having one arm prolonged into a long stem running downwards, just like a modern Christian cross.

About 140 spindle-whorls of terra-cotta, some of which are variously ornamented (=Fig. 68=, Nos. 28, 29, and 36). A considerable number of perforated clay weights, of which five are flat, with the hole in the centre (=Fig. 67=, Nos. 19 and 20). The most novel objects were a few oblong cakes of terra-cotta ornamented with repeating lines of small circular depressions (=Fig. 68=, Nos. 22 to 24).

_Stone Objects._-A large sandstone polisher, together with a number of smaller ones. About 40 hammer-stones of quartz, serpentine, etc., some having finger-depressions. A few perforated stones, used as sinkers or hammers. Six round stones about the size of an egg, found in the canoe. Of polished celts there were only six of the usual type (=Fig. 67=, Nos. 15 and 16). One of the most remarkable features of the collection is the number of arrow-points, which exceed 300, presenting in this respect a remarkable contrast to Lagozza. As will be seen from the illustrations (=Fig. 68=, Nos. 1 to 19) these arrow and lance-heads are varied in form and exceedingly well made. Eight are of a rhomboidal shape, and a similar number have only one barb (No. 7). Three rectangular plates of polished stone, perforated at the corners, were probably used to protect the wrist of the archer (Nos. 34 and 35). Flint saws to the extent of nearly 100, of which a few are unique. One has slanting teeth as shown in No. 20, which represents both sides of the flint. A few were still in their handles when found. One is very remarkable (=Fig. 67=, No. 12) as being formed of four separate flints fixed in a wooden casing by means of a groove and asphalt. This casing or handle has a grasping portion at each end--in short, it is a double-handed saw. The illustration represents this implement lying flat, and the horn-like ending projects upwards at an angle of about 40°, so that when placed in working position with the flints downwards, the horn-like projection would be directed to the left. Hence Dr. Rambotti thought the lake-dwellers were left-handed men. There were two other wooden casings, precisely similar, but minus the flints.

_Horn und Bone._--About 40 daggers and pointers of bone, of which 12 are made from split leg-bones and beautifully polished like those from Laibach and other places. A number of small pointed objects of bone, chisels, pins, etc. (=Fig. 68=, Nos. 25 to 27). Seven perforated axe hammer-heads of staghorn (=Fig. 67=, No. 17), also similar to those from Laibach.

_Bronze._--A bronze dagger (No. 1) with a neatly-worked bone handle terminating in a button-shaped capsule. The blade was attached to a semilunar capsule of thin bronze by rivets. Portions of worked bone similar to the handle of this weapon were supposed to belong to other analogous weapons. Three flat celts of the terramara type (Nos. 2 and 3).

_Ornaments._--Eight bone rings, one of which is ornamented with small circles (=Fig. 68=, No. 33). Three perforated buttons or spindle-whorls of marble (No. 30). Several other forms of buttons in stone or marble (Nos. 21 and 32). Several perforated teeth of dog, wolf, bear (No. 31), and wild boar; also one perforated shell.

_Wood._--Several articles of wood are preserved, as handles of implements, a portion of an oar, fragments of the casings for flint saws. A stool with six legs cut out of the solid. These are now mostly shrivelled up and scarcely recognisable.

_Osseous Remains._--Upper part of a human skull. Also numerous bones of the following animals:--the urus and some other breeds of cattle, horse, sheep, goat, dog, cat (one skull), wild boar, pig, stag, and roe.

Dr. Rambotti thinks that there was satisfactory evidence to conclude that the settlement had been destroyed by fire.

No report of this remarkable lake-dwelling has yet been published in Italy, but the principal objects were exhibited at a Congress of Art and Archæology held at Brescia in the autumn of 1875. On this occasion no less than fourteen pages of the published catalogue of the exhibition are devoted to the enumeration of Dr. Rambotti's collection from Polada.

CASCINA, ETC.

The Torbiera di Cascina, situated between Castelnuovo and San Georgio, in Salice, has from time to time yielded objects which, there can be no doubt, belonged to ancient pile-dwellers. The station was first recognised by Martinati (_Adige_, 1874, No. 23), who found flint arrow-points, a laurel-leaf-shaped lance-head, some stone implements, bits of staghorn, etc. In 1878 Pigorini gives a further account (B. 328d') of some of the objects since discovered, including 18 flint pieces--arrow-points of various forms, including one of the so-called rhomboidal type (_selce romboidale_), a magnificent lance-head, a fine saw, and one small triangular chisel. In the Museo Kircheriano at Rome there are also preserved a bronze axe of the flat type (=Fig. 51=, No. 9) and a curious knife of bronze (No. 12), similar to those from the lake-dwelling at Peschiera, which were found in this place.

Martinati (B. 279, p. 179) also describes another small torbiera in the vicinity of Lazise, in which three rows of piles were encountered, and associated with them were fragments of black pottery. It was also reported that in past years entire vessels of the same kind were found in the locality.

TERREMARE.