Contribution of the Sediment Flow Connectivity Index (SfCI) in Landscape Archaeology Investigations: Test Case of a New Interdisciplinary Approach

Marina Zingaro, Giovanni Scicchitano (), Paola Palmentola, Arcangelo Piscitelli, Alberto Refice, Rodolfo Roseto, Giovanni Scardino and Domenico Capolongo
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Marina Zingaro: Department of Earth and GeoEnvironmental Sciences, University of Bari, 70124 Bari, Italy
Giovanni Scicchitano: Department of Earth and GeoEnvironmental Sciences, University of Bari, 70124 Bari, Italy
Paola Palmentola: Department of Humanistic Research and Innovation, University of Bari, 70121 Bari, Italy
Arcangelo Piscitelli: Environmental Surveys Srl, Spin-Off University of Bari, 70124 Bari, Italy
Alberto Refice: Institute for the Electromagnetic Sensing of the Environment-Italian National Research Council (IREA-CNR), 70126 Bari, Italy
Rodolfo Roseto: Department of Earth and GeoEnvironmental Sciences, University of Bari, 70124 Bari, Italy
Giovanni Scardino: Department of Earth and GeoEnvironmental Sciences, University of Bari, 70124 Bari, Italy
Domenico Capolongo: Department of Earth and GeoEnvironmental Sciences, University of Bari, 70124 Bari, Italy

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 20, 1-18

Abstract: The integration of geomorphological analysis in archaeological investigations is essential to describe physical geography and land morphology in order to understand the relationship between the environment and human activities. Recently, the sediment flow connectivity index (SfCI) has been demonstrated to be a powerful geomorphic indicator for defining the most sensitive areas to geomorphological modifications in a catchment. This work presents the experimental application of the SfCI for a landscape archaeological analysis in order to assess the contribution of the index to potentially recognize, monitor, and interpret the historical evidence in the evaluation of landscape evolution. The investigation was performed in the basin of Lama Camaggi in the Apulia region (southern Italy), characterized by precious archaeological evidence found on the surface during field surveys in the years 2001–2002 and 2012–2013. The results show (1) the correlation between high-sediment-connectivity areas and areas with high densities of archaeological sites, and (2) the capacity of the SfCI to identify surface processes that may potentially affect the readability of the archaeological records to support data interpretation. These results confirm the advantage of applying an interdisciplinary approach in archaeology and opens innovative research scenarios.

Keywords: sediment connectivity; heritage vulnerability; geomorphology; landscape archaeology (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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