Prehistoric Samnite Hillforts Used for Livestock, Not Human Occupation

For many decades, it has been thought that the Samnites, an ancient Italic people known for their conflicts with the Romans, constructed fortified forts on hills throughout Italy as a precursor to building large, occupied settlements. This activity took place in the mid-first millennium BC and has been seen as a key development on the path to urbanization throughout prehistoric Italy as a whole.

But the results of a recent archaeological study of this activity call this assumption into question. In a paper just published in the journal Antiquity, archaeologists Giacomo Fontana from Texas Tech University and Wieke de Neef from the University of Bamberg in Germany argue that little evidence exists to prove this theory is true. They claim that the ancient Samnite hillforts were more likely related to agricultural activity, and did not represent the beginning of the construction of Italian proto-cities as has been so often assumed.

Re-interpreting Monte Santa Croce-Cognolo

This new study was relatively narrow in scope, focusing on a small Samnite hillfort known as Monte Santa Croce-Cognolo, which is located in central Italy next to the village of Villa Santa Croce. This modest-sized hillfort, which can be found on the Monte Cognolo plateau, is similar to hundreds of forts that have been found at different places in Italy, and as such is representative of a type that has been linked to settlement-building activity.

During their study, Fontana and de Neef used a variety of advanced technologies, including the Lidar (light detection and ranging) aerial scanning system, aerial photogrammetry, and geophysical (magnometry) surveying, to reassess the design of the hillforts. They also examined the site more closely from the ground, to make sure they knew exactly what previous excavations at the site had unearthed.

Magnetometry survey of mostly destroyed wall of Monte Cognolo, plus signs of animal scratching in the earth. (Giancomo Fontana/Wieke de Neef/Antiquity Publications Ltd)

Putting together all the data they collected, the researchers confirmed the presence of a wall with two entrances, with the ancient wall apparently having remained standing on the hill for many centuries before much of it was dismantled and its pieces reused in other construction projects.

What the researchers didn’t find, they assert, is any strong evidence that was consistent with the idea that the hillfort had been occupied by any permanent residents. This might have included houses in the surrounding area, other and more extensive fortifications, or community installations like ovens that are often found at larger settlements.

They also observed a lack of Samnite artifacts specifically linked to small experiments in urbanization, which have been found in other places where settlements were definitely built. While there were a few ceramic pottery shards unearthed during excavations, these were from small drinking cups and other similar vessels that are not unique to regularly occupied sites.

In their A ntiquity article, the study co-authors noted that they had found “little evidence for permanent habitation,” and stated that their findings “instead argue for activities connected with animal husbandry.”

“The alignments of postholes and trenches that are identifiable in the geophysical results are more consistent with timber enclosures that may be related to activities such as animal husbandry,” they explained. “Smaller, parallel limestone terrace walls on the southern slope of Monte Cognolo suggest crop cultivation and/or erosion management; these may relate to later medieval reuse, as indicated by the ceramic materials collected, and coring data from this area.”

Close-up of wall and nearby excavations that produced no signs of human habitation. (Giancomo Fontana and Wieke de Neef/Antiquity Publications Ltd)

The two researchers gathered intriguing information from residents of a nearby village. These individuals claimed that the hill was used year-round for cattle grazing up to around 1950, which is consistent with the idea that the location has been used for agricultural purposes for a long time. If it was ideal for grazing in the 20th century, presumably it would have been just as suitable for this activity in the ancient past.

Getting the Archaeology Right, with the Help of the Local Community

Based on their comprehensive study, the researchers state, there is good reason to believe that a 2,500-year-old fortification built on the sloping hillsides of Monte Santa-Croce-Cognolo was used to help raise livestock, but little reason to believe it was part of a long-term, stable community of permanent residents.

“The results challenge urban-centric interpretations by demonstrating the coexistence of monumental but uninhabited hillforts and urban sites—usually seen across the Mediterranean and Europe,” they concluded.

Thanks to this one fascinating study, archaeologists and historians who study Samnite culture and its ruins will now have to rethink some of their most cherished assumptions. Their framework for interpreting the meaning of the Samnite hillforts was apparently flawed, and based on ideas that hadn’t been investigated thoroughly enough.

One of Fontana and de Neef’s most valuable contributions to the scholarly literature was their inclusion of the input of the local community, which had information to share that supported their ideas. Archaeologists don’t always consider such testimony when analyzing their discoveries, and this may be an oversight the field would be wise to correct in the future.

Top image: Aerial view of Monte Cognolo plateau (foreground) and Santa Croce summit (background).    Source: Giacomo Fontana and Wieke de Neef/ Antiquity Publications Ltd

By Nathan Falde