Archaeology

Write about archaeology in Acitrezza is difficult because it does not exist a museum,nor any sure reference, or important discover. However, thanks to Father De Maria, priest of Acitrezza from 1884 to 1928, we can try to say the zones where some discovers have been done. We have got an only testimony, it is about the existence of the human in this territory.
Anyway, Acitrezza was probably founded and populated in 1672, when the prince of Campo Fiorito bought it.
There are some documents of father De Maria to follow:

"LA TRUVATURA DELLA PANTOLLA"
We have not got any certainty about this discover but it would be happened about in 1914. De Maria wrote that digging at North-West of the Central Square of Acitrezza, (Via Pantolla), it was found out some marble bricks making part of a pavement, some of them have got a hole.

DISCOVERS DONE NEXT TO THE "BASTIONELLO"
On July of 1924, De Maria wrote another document about a fisherman who wants to get his house bigger finding out at 1.50 m depth a marble pavement.
He still wrote that building a palace were found some byzantine moneys and marble bricks.
All this discovers were done close to the "Bastionello" and at the depth of 1 - 1,50 m. De Maria thought that the bricks would have a roman origin while the "bastionello" a byzantine one.

(father De Maria: "Acitrezza e il suo parroco tra 800' e 900'"
Cacciola-Coco 1996)

AN UNPUBLISHED WORK
The 20th June 1933 Father De Maria gave to the "Zelantea" his archaeological collection. An unpublished document of the priest was written about the places where De Maria did the discovers (an important document for the archaeological studies of Acitrezza).

• THE CIARAMITARO

It is the area situated beetween "la Cornera" (northern part of Lachea island) and Capomulini.

In that area was found the most part of the discovers.

De Maria:« ….ancora ricco di antichi vasi….», « il nome greco della località farebbe pensare essere greci i vasi ivi sepolti…..».

• LACHEA ISLAND

There are some studies done about the discovers of two "sicula" period tombs on the Lachea island, Mr. Mantovani found a green stone axe made probably about the Stone Age. The priest got byzantine moneys, old nails, etc. from the digs made on the island to build a research centre.

• MOUNT FANO

It is the hill that hangs over Acitrezza but nobody remembers this name, just only old people. However, the priest De Maria said that the mount was important in the past because, perhaps, there was an old temple.

• THE WARD S. MARIA LA NOVA

It is situated at the north of the town around the aedicule dedicated to the "Madonna della Buona Novella"

• AEDICULE "S. MARIA DELLA PROVVIDENZA"

That aedicule is on "via dietro chiesa" near to the "bastioncello"

• CHURCH S. JOHN BAPTIST

De Maria talks about a weird thing. He wrote that the church of Saint John The Baptist was built up to really old buildings.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL COLLECTION:

• COLLECTION OF MEDALS

Substantially, the collection is made up of more than one thousand bronze medals. They are byzantine, greek, roman, bourbon and papal.

• VARIOUS PIECES

1)of white marble: part of lion's leg, part of cow's head, piece of column, part of the base of a column.

2)small mosaic pieces collected on the Mount Fano.

3)various romboidal tiles, probably byzantine, of 5 cm per side (collected close to the "bastioncello").

4)stick with written on it: MININCHIATOR.

5)a small basin with greek bass-relief at the bottom.

6)old buffalo teeth found out during the dig to build a home close to the church of Acitrezza.