Archaeobotany in urban sites: the Middle Age of Modena (Northern Italy)

This contribution refers to the palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of the Modena town (northern Italy) in the Medieval Age. The archaeobotanical study of ten archaeological sites provided useful information to reconstruct palaeoethnobotany, history and plant landscape of the area from the 7th century to the13th century AD. A total amount of 250,000 carpological remains has been isolated (sieved from more than 600 l of soil), corresponding to more than 350 taxa, from the eight study sites (two of them are still under study). The taphonomic diversity of the deposits allowed to obtain information on: - availability of volup- tuary products, as abundant and diversified fruit; - availability of plant products to be a luxury item, and some condiments; - evidence of cultivation traditions typical of the area; - evidence of a wide range of cereal crops; - evidence of plant and care of ornamental species. Paleoecological reconstructions show the presence of wetland environments, peculiar to the area, in fact the medie- val Modena was a “water city” characterized by an extended network of canals, considered as the main vector of commerce. Finally, the floristic list suggests that in the Medieval period the biodiversity was higher than in the modern city; such floristic richness is also supported by the findings of numerous wild species worthy of attention, some of them unknown in earlier sources, others that disappeared during the 20th century and many considered rare.