The Bronze Age site of Roca Vecchia, Lecce (Italy), spelled also Rocavecchia or Roca, is a long-lived coastal settlement pro- tected by a large fortification wall, which was repeatedly de- stroyed, rebuilt and restored over the centuries between the Middle Bronze Age and Final Bronze Age. During the 2nd mil- lennium BC this place probably had its own social, cultural and religious identity probably related to the cave-sanctuary of »Grotta Poesia«, to the impressive fortification wall and to the natural harbour of the Bay of Torre dell’Orso. Extensive archaeological investigations of the Final Bronze Age II (11th century BC) settlement enclosed by the fortification wall on the peninsula of Roca revealed a quite regular arrange- ment of buildings and open spaces which were completely destroyed by a great fire. The best preserved of these struc- tures is the so-called »hut-temple« – an outstanding assem- blage of metal artefacts was found in this context. Among the many bronze and gold items included in the »hoard of gold« and in the »hoard of bronze«, or simply recovered on the floor level of the building, there were two pairs of golden sun discs.
The golden sun discs from Roca (Lecce, Italy): archaeological and cultural context
T. Scarano
;G. Maggiulli
2014-01-01
Abstract
The Bronze Age site of Roca Vecchia, Lecce (Italy), spelled also Rocavecchia or Roca, is a long-lived coastal settlement pro- tected by a large fortification wall, which was repeatedly de- stroyed, rebuilt and restored over the centuries between the Middle Bronze Age and Final Bronze Age. During the 2nd mil- lennium BC this place probably had its own social, cultural and religious identity probably related to the cave-sanctuary of »Grotta Poesia«, to the impressive fortification wall and to the natural harbour of the Bay of Torre dell’Orso. Extensive archaeological investigations of the Final Bronze Age II (11th century BC) settlement enclosed by the fortification wall on the peninsula of Roca revealed a quite regular arrange- ment of buildings and open spaces which were completely destroyed by a great fire. The best preserved of these struc- tures is the so-called »hut-temple« – an outstanding assem- blage of metal artefacts was found in this context. Among the many bronze and gold items included in the »hoard of gold« and in the »hoard of bronze«, or simply recovered on the floor level of the building, there were two pairs of golden sun discs.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
