From Safin to Roman: Cultural Change and Hybridization in Central Adriatic Italy

The Central Adriatic Apennines (roughly modern Abruzzo) was occupied in antiquity by Italic populations variously termed ‘Sabelli’, ‘Sabellics’ or ‘Sabellians’. The region in general has received little scholarly attention internationally compared with Tyrrhenian Italy, although the last three decades have been very rich in excavatio

From Safin to Roman investigates the Central Adriatic Apennines (roughly the modern region of Abruzzo), occupied in antiquity by Italic populations variously termed ‘Sabelli’, ‘Sabellics‘ or ‘Sabellians‘. For too long the region has been seen merely as a mountainous and isolated ‘terra di pastori’, sparsely populated with shepherds from prehistory to the late Hellenistic period, thus overestimating the role of the Romans in the organisation and exploitation of the landscape. The region in general has received little scholarly attention internationally compared with Tyrrhenian Italy, although the last three decades have been very rich in excavations and finds. The role of stock-raising itself needs to be reinterpreted, because it changed greatly from period to period and certainly did not exclude other economical resources, already in early periods. The topography of the area and recent finds, show that agriculture was also important for the large sub-Apennine and coastal areas, hilly but certainly not only mountainous, and that other resources were also important for the local economy, such as the exploitation of the forest and metallurgy. The monograph is complemented by appendices presenting the latest research and conclusions from a range of scholars working on the area.

INTRODUCTION Defining the Central Appenines Hellenization and Romanization: problems of interpretation and Hybridization Aims and methodologies of the research THE LAND Chapter 1. Historical Geography Reading the ancient topography through the sources. The infrastructure of ancient communications: road-network, tratturi and ports Chapter 2. The Region: Geology and Landscape Plates 1 - 32 THE MID-ADRIATIC APENNINES BETWEEN THE 6TH AND THE 4TH CENTURIES BC Chapter 3. Ethnographic and Cultural Background between the 6th and 4th centuries BC From the Safin to the Sabelli The political situation Language and script of Archaic Abruzzo The Sabellians between the mid 5th and the mid 4th centuries BC Trade and external contacts Plates 33 - 64 Chapter 4. Settlement Structure Territorial organisation Hillforts Villages Sanctuaries Chapter 5. Funerary Practices Cemeteries Funerary sculpture Conclusions. The mid-Adriatic Apennines in the Archaic and Classical periods Plates 65 - 96 THE CONVENTIONAL PERIOD OF 'ROMANIZATION' Chapter 6. The General Historical Background according to the Sources Chapter 7. Society and Economy The social context Rural settlement and local production Coins and currency Plates 97 - 128 Chapter 8. Settlement Structure Territorrial organization Hillforts Sanctuaries Villages, vici and pagi Colonies Municipia and praefecturae Chapter 9. Art and Architecture Public and private architecture Terracotta votive offerings Votive bronze statuettes Cemeteries and funerary equipment Sculpture and portraits Plates 129 - 160 PRELIMINARY CONCLUSIONS ABBREVIATIONS BIBLIOGRAPHY APPENDICES Appendix 1. Geoarcheologia, cambiamenti climatici e paesaggi archeologici in Abruzzo: un punto della situazione - Silvano Agostini Appendix 2. Un aggiornamento sulle strutture abitative in Abruzzo - Vincenzo d'Ercole e Oliva Menozzi Appendix 3. A diachronic overview of the S. Maria Cardetola necropolis in Crecchio (CH) (seasons 2015-2020, 2022) - Luca Cherstich Appendix 4. Archeologia funeraria in Abruzzo: un aggiornamento - Vincenzo d'Ercole Appendix 5. Preliminary data from the investigations in the municipality of San Giovanni Lipioni (CH): the archaeological areas of Colle Vernone and Il Monte - Eugenio Di Valerio Appendix 6. Economia e organizzazione territoriale tra IV sec. a.C. e I d.C.: il ruolo dei 'centri minori' in area Centro-Adriatica e Appenninica - Maria Cristina Mancini e Oliva Menozzi,

INTRODUCTION

Defining the Central Appenines             

Hellenization and Romanization: problems of interpretation and Hybridization            

Aims and methodologies of the research          

THE LAND

Chapter 1. Historical Geography

Reading the ancient topography through the sources.

The infrastructure of ancient communications: road-network, tratturi and ports           

Chapter 2. The Region: Geology and Landscape

Plates 1 – 32

THE MID-ADRIATIC APENNINES BETWEEN THE 6TH AND THE 4TH CENTURIES BC

Chapter 3. Ethnographic and Cultural Background between the 6th and 4th centuries BC

From the Safin to the Sabelli    

The political situation  

Language and script of Archaic Abruzzo             

The Sabellians between the mid 5th and the mid 4th centuries BC      

Trade and external contacts    

Plates 33 - 64

Chapter 4. Settlement Structure

Territorial organisation

Hillforts              

Villages              

Sanctuaries                    

Chapter 5. Funerary Practices

Cemeteries      

Funerary sculpture

Conclusions. The mid-Adriatic Apennines in the Archaic and Classical periods

Plates 65 – 96

THE CONVENTIONAL PERIOD OF ‘ROMANIZATION’

Chapter 6. The General Historical Background according to the Sources

Chapter 7. Society and Economy

The social context        

Rural settlement and local production

Coins and currency      

Plates 97 - 128

Chapter 8. Settlement Structure

Territorrial organization               

Hillforts              

Sanctuaries     

Villages, vici and pagi   

Colonies            

Municipia and praefecturae     

Chapter 9. Art and Architecture

Public and private architecture              

Terracotta votive offerings         

Votive bronze statuettes            

Cemeteries and funerary equipment   

Sculpture and portraits               

Plates 129 - 160

PRELIMINARY CONCLUSIONS

ABBREVIATIONS

BIBLIOGRAPHY

APPENDICES

Appendix 1. Geoarcheologia, cambiamenti climatici e paesaggi archeologici in Abruzzo: un punto della situazione – Silvano Agostini

Appendix 2. Un aggiornamento sulle strutture abitative in Abruzzo – Vincenzo d’Ercole e Oliva Menozzi

Appendix 3. A diachronic overview of the S. Maria Cardetola necropolis in Crecchio (CH) (seasons 2015-2020, 2022) – Luca Cherstich

Appendix 4. Archeologia funeraria in Abruzzo: un aggiornamento – Vincenzo d’Ercole

Appendix 5. Preliminary data from the investigations in the municipality of San Giovanni Lipioni (CH): the archaeological areas of Colle Vernone and Il Monte – Eugenio Di Valerio

Appendix 6. Economia e organizzazione territoriale tra IV sec. a.C. e I d.C.: il ruolo dei ‘centri minori’ in area Centro-Adriatica e Appenninica – Maria Cristina Mancini e Oliva Menozzi

• By (author) Oliva Menozzi

‘Overall, the book is meticulously researched and Menozzi’s synthesis of archaeological, textual, and epigraphic evidence is thorough. The arguments are presented with academic rigor. The inclusion of high-quality maps, photographs, and illustrative figures greatly enhances the accessibility and clarity of the material, making it a valuable resource for both specialists and graduate students in Roman archaeology and ancient history. The structure is well-organised, with logical progression and thematic cohesion, making the volume an exemplary model of how to synthesise complex archaeological and historical data into a coherent analytical framework.’ - Ludovico Rodolfo Runco (2025): Bryn Mawr Classical Review From Safin to Roman: cultural change and hybridization in central Adriatic Italy – Bryn Mawr Classical Review

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