Culto e memoria nel sito peuceta di Jazzo Fornasiello (Gravina in Puglia, BA)

Abstract

Jazzo Fornasiello is a rich hamlet in the inner part of the pre-roman Peucetia, located not so far from Botromagno,
ancient Silbion. The archaeological excavations carried out by the Università degli Studi di Milano has focused on two
different main areas: the “Saggio S” and the “Saggio W”. In the latter, a complex of stone buildings (called “Complesso
Alfa”), all disposed around an open space and probably used as a square, has been discovered in the north-western part
of the settlement. The “Complesso Alfa”, built during the 4th century B.C. and used until the beginning of the 3rd century
B.C., didn’t have a domestic character, but was a community complex related to a clan. Several proofs, scattered
around the area occupied by “Complesso Alfa”, testify that the past had an important role to strengthen the identity of
the clan. Probably, the common character of the complex was inherited from a previous phase, as proved by some stone
structures dating to 6th century B.C. and partly re-used during the following phases of occupation. In this paper a special
attention will be devoted to the room H, an open space surrounded by a stone fence, in which has been discovered a
tomb signaled by the presence of a fragmentary crater has been discovered. The particular disposition designates the
room H as a place used for the cult of an ancestor, underlining how, in the same area, the remembrance of the past was
an important aspect not only during the last phase of occupation but also during the Archaic age.