Archeology

 

 

 

Several archaeological excavations have been carried out in recent years, for example at Plan de Frea and on Sotciastel. The finds, certifying human presence, are to be dated to the Mesolithic and the Bronze Age. The researches have been carried out in collaboration with universities and led by the Provincial Department for the Preservation of Historical and Artistic Monuments.

The collection of these archaeological proofs are particularly important for the activity of the Institute, because some of the finds contribute to the consolidation of the Ladin identity.
The settlement Sotciastel is located at 1 404 metres asl in San Leonardo, a hamlet of the municipality of Badia (Province of Bolzano), on a plain on the top of a hill, which on three sides falls steeply to the Rio Gadera.
Up to now there have not been any written documents found, which prove a stable human presence in the Ladin valleys of the Dolomites in the first millennium AD, archaeology plays an even more important role being the only possible evidence. Given the importance of this sector, the Institute for Ladin Culture will try to promote new researches in the field of archaeology also in the future.
The plain on the top of the hill of Sotciastel.
Some finds of the Bronze Age discovered on Sotciastel.
 

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