During the Middle and Recent Bronze Age, the Po Plain and Northern Italy as a whole were home to the Terramare sites, which were embanked settlements surrounded by a moat.
Magnetic prospection at Fondo Paviani covered an area of 11 hectares and investigated part of the site’s assumed extension. Interpretation of the data indicates small pits and settlement structures in the northwestern and central zones, suggesting slightly elevated habitation cores. Along the southwestern and eastern edges, linear anomalies point to the remains of a surrounding rampart-ditch system.
A prominent circular feature with a diameter of about 90 m, linked to a backfilled ditch up to 2 m wide, stands out in the inner area. The results contribute significantly to understanding the site’s development and support further magnetic surveys, test trenches, and coring to refine the archaeological interpretation.
Figure: Dalla Longa, E., Dal Corso, M., Vicenzutto, D., Nicosia, C., & Cupitò, M. (2019). The Bronze Age settlement of Fondo Paviani (Italy) in its territory. Hydrography, settlement distribution, environment and in-site analysis. J. Archael. Sci. Rep, 28, 102018.