An Integrated and Open Digital Approach to the Archaeological Topography of Centuriation
The In.Res.Agri project, directed by R. Brancato, aims to optimize and integrate knowledge about Roman agrarian landscapes in ancient Italy by examining their resilience through the systematic collection of topographical, archaeological, environmental, and textual data. Agrarian landscapes are studied in relation to various topographical aspects, such as centuriation, road networks, and settlement systems. The project combines traditional and innovative research methods, integrating Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence techniques for the automatic detection of centuriated fields, spatial analysis of archaeo-topographical data, and the extraction of information from digitally annotated epigraphic and literary sources. The collected data will be organized into an Open Data IT platform called Digital_Groma, composed of three main modules: a digital archive, a WebGIS, and a repository.
The research unit of the University of Naples Federico II has focused on reconstructing the topography of the agrarian landscape of Atella (Case Study 1), located between Naples and Capua. The Atellan territory extended across the lowest sector of the Campanian Plain, south of the course of the Clanio River, known in antiquity for its flooding. The integration of legacy data from bibliography and archives (the Carta Archeologica di Atella project, developed in agreement with SABAP CE-BN and SABAP NA-MET), together with data from field surveys (authorized by SABAP CE-BN), all incorporated into a GIS platform (designed according to GNA-ICA standards), now makes it possible to access new data on the topographical layout of the city and its agricultural district. The result is a geodatabase consisting of 285 archaeological sites (69% from archival data), representing an approximately 548% increase compared to the initial state of knowledge. For the analysis, case studies from Campania—specifically the territory of Atella (CS1) and Irpinia (CS2)—and from Apulia—the Tavoliere area (CS3)—will be examined, and their data will contribute to feeding the digital infrastructure. The goal is to explore the relationships between the contemporary landscape, the agroecosystem of Roman centuriation, and geomorphology, in order to achieve a deeper and more articulated understanding of the resilience of ancient agrarian landscapes.
The multilayer integration of data now allows hypotheses about centuriation to be tested, the relationships between city and territory to be clarified, and georeferenced, multiscale predictive models to be produced for future field verification. At the end of the project, all data will be published in an open and connected format (LoD) through Digital_Groma and viewable via GNA, ensuring transparency, reproducibility, and a digital legacy that will support future research.
Research Units
Research Unit of the University of Naples Federico II: R. Brancato; M. Pacciarelli; E. Russo Ermolli
Research Unit of CNR-ISPC: I. Rossi, PI; P. Moscati; I. Ditaranto; P. Merola
Research Unit of the University of Salento: V. Ferrari, PI; A. Valchera
Events
27th March 2025, intermediate workshop. Download the poster
20-21th November 2025, final conference. Download the poster
Research products
R. Brancato, P.M. Barone, G. Scardozzi, Non-invasive archaeological research in Atella (Sant’Arpino-Campania, Italy). Preliminary results from the 2023 campaign, in CronA, 42, 2003, pp. 397-417.
R. Brancato, V. Ferrari, I. Ditaranto, P. Merola, I. Rossi, Investigating resilient Roman agricultural landscapes in southern Italy. An integrated and open IT approach to modeling centuriation, in R. Brancato, J. Bogdani, V. Vitale (eds.), Linking Pasts and Sharing Knowledge. Mapping Archaeological Heritage, Legacy Data Integration and Web Technologies for Modelling Historical Landscapes (Naples, 13th-14th November 2023), in ACalc, 35.2, 2024, pp. 387-400 [https://doi.org/10.19282/ac.35.2.2024.41].
R. Brancato, S. Kay, Legacy GIS data integration and non-invasive survey for the study of the archaeological landscape of Atella (Caserta, Campania, Italy), in GROMA: Documenting Archaeology, 9(1), pp. 31–56 [https://doi.org/10.32028/Groma-Issue-9-2024-3237].
R. Brancato, P.M. Barone, C. Lamanna, I. Matarese, G. Scardozzi, Atella (Sant’Arpino, Caserta). Risultati preliminari delle indagini non invasive 2023, in G. Bardelli (a cura di), Come Federico opera sul campo 2023, Scavi e ricerche archeologiche dell’Università di Napoli Federico II, Roma, pp. 117-132.
R. Brancato, A. Bottone, G. Luongo, T. Tescione, Legacy Data Gis integration and surface survey for the archaeology of the Atellan landscape (Campania, Italy), in ACalc 36.2, 2025, in press
T. Tescione, The resilience of ancient landscapes through the analysis of ceramic assemblages: the Campanian plain as a case study, ACalc 36.2, 2025, in press
Conference partecipations
19th October 2024
R. Brancato, T. Tescione, A. Bottone, G. Luongo, M. Tosolini (poster), Digitalizzazione e valorizzazione dei legacy data dell’archeologia preventiva: il settore centrale della Piana Campana come caso di studio del progetto IN.RES.AGRI (PRIN 2022), “Archeologia preventiva. Convegno Nazionale di studi”, Soriano nel Cimino, 18-19 Ottobre 2024.
28th November 2024
R. Brancato, A. Bottone, E. Canciello, A. Esposito, G. Luongo, F. Perugino, A.U. Rizzo, T. Tescione, Indagini archeologiche nel territorio di Sant’Arpino (CE): campagna 2024, “Come Federico opera sul campo, Scavi e ricerche archeologiche dell’Università di Napoli Federico II”, Napoli, 28-29 Novembre 2024.
18th February 2025
R. Brancato, Innovazione tecnologica per l’archeologia dei paesaggi della Piana Campana, Workshop “Incontro tra DSU e DIARC sulle Digital Humanities”, Napoli, 18 Febbraio 2025.
16th April 2025
T. Tescione, Reconstructing invisible landscapes in alluvial plains through material culture: case studies from Italy and Sicily (1st millennium CE) (poster), Convegno “Landscape 6. Emptyscapes, marginal landscapes, and revealed landscapes”, Siena, 14-16 Aprile 2025.
16th May 2025
T. Tescione, A. Bottone, E. Canciello, G. Luongo, Atella: dinamiche insediative e trasformazioni paesaggistiche tra età romana e medievale (poster), Convegno “AMPAH 2025 – Annual Meeting of Postgraduates in Ancient History Crossing Cultures. Encounters, Clashes and their Reception in Antiquity”, Campobasso, 15-16 Maggio 2025.
20th May 2025
R. Brancato, I. Ditaranto, F. Di Palma, G. Luongo, P. Merola, Indagini aerotopografiche ad Atella (Sant’Arpino-CE). Un approccio integrato tra tradizione e innovazione, IV Convegno Internazionale di Archeologia Aerea “L’eredità Di Bradford (1975-2025)”. Immagini aeree e paesaggi antichi, Roma, 20-23 maggio 2025.
23th September 2025
R. Brancato, Atella: il progetto di carta archeologica per la topografia di una città invisibile, Workshop PRIN 2022 HiLL – Hidden landscape of Latium “Indagini non invasive multidisciplinari per la conoscenza della topografia antica di centri urbani e del territorio”, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche – Roma, 22-23 Settembre 2025.
