Deltas - Geomorphology and palaeoenvironments by Cécile Vittori
Journal of Archaeological Science, 2015
The ancient lagoon of Ostia played a key role in the development of the cultures of central Italy... more The ancient lagoon of Ostia played a key role in the development of the cultures of central Italy and
especially that of Rome. The evolution of its environmental history and its partial transformation into a
saline body of water during Antiquity remain as poorly known to archaeologists and historians as to
geologists and geographers. A high chronostratigraphical resolution palaeoenvironmental study has been
carried out on a sediment core. It is based on multi-proxy analysis and pays particular attention to ostracods,
which are very useful palaeoenvironmental indicators in marginal marine environments. Our
study has unveiled five evolution phases of the landscapes in the countryside of Ostia: (1) between the
6th and the middle of the 2nd millennia BC a lagoon open to the sea was formed; (2) the lagoonwas then
subject to marine and fluvial influences,; (3) between the middle of the 2nd and the beginning of the 1st
millennia BC, a marshland formed, indicating either a period of limited flooding or a shifting of the
branch of the Tiber; (4) during the first part of the 1st millennium BC, the lagoon became again connected
to the sea. In this area, its depth at the time of the founding of Ostia varied between 3.5 m and
4.5 m (below ancient sea level), which suggests that it could have served as a naturally sheltered place on
the coast; (5) from the middle of the 1st millennia BC to the 19th century AD, the lagoon probably
remained connected to the sea and progressively silted, until it disappeared in the 19th century.
Deltas - Harbour by Cécile Vittori
Journal of Archaeological Science, 2014
To the northwest of the ancient city of Ostia, the analysis of cores revealed a stratigraphic seq... more To the northwest of the ancient city of Ostia, the analysis of cores revealed a stratigraphic sequence, which we interpret as the filling of a harbour basin. This basin, located at the west of the so-called "Palazzo Imperiale" presents seven characteristics: (1) The maximum depth is 6 m below the Roman sea level. This depth allowed any type of ship (even heavy tonnage) to access the harbour. (2) A chronostratigraphic gap at À6 m below Roman sea level suggests digging operations in the basin (or subsequent dredging) that have caused the loss of sedimentary archives. The filling consists of dark clays typical of a quiet environment but open to marine and river influences. (4) The dates at the base of this sequence give a range between the 4 th and the 2 nd century BC. (5) In the harbour sequence, a facies change at À2.5 m under the Roman sea level involves a change in the processes of sedimentation and/or operation. (6) No later than the beginning of the 1 st century AD, the thickness of the water column in the basin is less than 50 cm and seems to be caused by a massive siltation following a succession of floods of the Tiber. (7) This basin was thus already abandoned during the start-up of Portus.
Chronique des activités archéologiques de l’École française de Rome, 2012
Papers by Cécile Vittori
The Holocene, 2016
New detailed palynological and ostracodological analyses together with texture data from a sedime... more New detailed palynological and ostracodological analyses together with texture data from a sediment core drilled in Ostia Antica confirm the existence of the ancient Ostia harbour and its location by the Tiber River. Using the different proxies analysed in this work and chronologically framing the sediment record with three AMS radiocarbon dates, four phases have been singled out: pre-harbour, harbour bay under fluvial influence, more protected harbour basin and post-harbour phase. Ostracodology is used to reconstruct the marine versus freshwater influence in the basin. Palynology is used to reconstruct the plant landscape and the surrounding environment. Phases with low pollen concentration and expansions of NPPs suggest soil erosion and are alternated with quieter ones, where human impact was very clear. Deciduous oaks typical of coastal plain forests are the main taxon during the harbour phases. The occurrence of riparian trees increases in periods with low pollen concentration, ...
Marine Micropaleontology, 2019
Round-shaped sieve pores of Cyprideis torosa have negative correlation with salinity and are a us... more Round-shaped sieve pores of Cyprideis torosa have negative correlation with salinity and are a useful proxy for reconstructing paleo-salinity trends, especially for oligohaline to mesohaline waters. However, given its time-consuming character, this method has only been used rarely. A protocol for the automatic detection of sieve pores from Backscattered Electron Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM-BSE) images and ImageJ-FIJI software has been developed. The use of SEM-BSE images has optimized the sieve pore contrasts and extend the observation possibilities of sieve pores on less well-preserved valves. Automatic detection significantly reduces analysis times, by avoiding individual pore measurements and applying batch processes on samples. Rosenfeld and Vesper (1977) proposed an elongation index (length/beam) to discriminate round and elongated shapes, but the identification of irregular shapes only depends on the operator's appreciation. Due to the rapid acquisition of morphometric data with the automatic detection method, it is possible to systematize the use of metrical tools to discriminate sieve pore shapes. Two methods were developed from a repository based on metric variables obtained by manually digitalized 1490 sieve pores: (i) a Functional Discriminant analysis based on 5 variables (Feret's aspect ratio, roundness, aspect ratio and two ratios: A pore/A Minimum Bounding Circle and P pore/P Minimum Bounding Circle) and (ii) an irregularity index (Roundness/(A pore/A Minimum Bounding Circle), as a complement to the elongation index. In addition, a bootstrap on 1774 sieve pores indicates that is useful to analyze over 10 valves per sample in order to estimate the proportions of these sieve pore shapes with an acceptable level of precision.
Journal of Roman Archaeology Supplement, 2017
Journal of Archaeological Science, Jan 1, 2014
"To the northwest of the ancient city of Ostia, the analysis of cores revealed a stratigraphic se... more "To the northwest of the ancient city of Ostia, the analysis of cores revealed a stratigraphic sequence, which we interpret as the filling of a harbour basin. This basin, located at the west of the so-called “Palazzo Imperiale” presents seven characteristics:
(1) The maximum depth is 6 m below the Roman sea level. This depth allowed any type of ship (even heavy tonnage) to access the harbour.
(2) A chronostratigraphic gap at 6 m below Roman sea level suggests digging operations in the basin (or subsequent
dredging) that have caused the loss of sedimentary archives.
(3) The filling consists of dark clays typical of a quiet environment but open to marine and river influences.
(4) The dates at the base of this sequence give a range between the 4th and the 2nd century BC.
(5) In the harbour sequence, a facies change at 2.5 m under the Roman sea level involves a change in the processes of sedimentation and/or operation.
(6) No later than the beginning of the 1st century AD, the thickness of the water column in the basin is less than 50 cm and seems to be caused by a massive siltation following a succession of floods of the Tiber.
(7) This basin was thus already abandoned during the start-up of Portus."
Books by Cécile Vittori
by Tyler Franconi, Brendan Haug, Philippe LEVEAU, Nicholas Purcell, Marlena Whiting, Andrew Wilson, hugo delile, Cécile Vittori, Ilaria Mazzini, Matthieu Giaime, and Brian Campbell
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Deltas - Geomorphology and palaeoenvironments by Cécile Vittori
especially that of Rome. The evolution of its environmental history and its partial transformation into a
saline body of water during Antiquity remain as poorly known to archaeologists and historians as to
geologists and geographers. A high chronostratigraphical resolution palaeoenvironmental study has been
carried out on a sediment core. It is based on multi-proxy analysis and pays particular attention to ostracods,
which are very useful palaeoenvironmental indicators in marginal marine environments. Our
study has unveiled five evolution phases of the landscapes in the countryside of Ostia: (1) between the
6th and the middle of the 2nd millennia BC a lagoon open to the sea was formed; (2) the lagoonwas then
subject to marine and fluvial influences,; (3) between the middle of the 2nd and the beginning of the 1st
millennia BC, a marshland formed, indicating either a period of limited flooding or a shifting of the
branch of the Tiber; (4) during the first part of the 1st millennium BC, the lagoon became again connected
to the sea. In this area, its depth at the time of the founding of Ostia varied between 3.5 m and
4.5 m (below ancient sea level), which suggests that it could have served as a naturally sheltered place on
the coast; (5) from the middle of the 1st millennia BC to the 19th century AD, the lagoon probably
remained connected to the sea and progressively silted, until it disappeared in the 19th century.
Deltas - Harbour by Cécile Vittori
Papers by Cécile Vittori
(1) The maximum depth is 6 m below the Roman sea level. This depth allowed any type of ship (even heavy tonnage) to access the harbour.
(2) A chronostratigraphic gap at 6 m below Roman sea level suggests digging operations in the basin (or subsequent
dredging) that have caused the loss of sedimentary archives.
(3) The filling consists of dark clays typical of a quiet environment but open to marine and river influences.
(4) The dates at the base of this sequence give a range between the 4th and the 2nd century BC.
(5) In the harbour sequence, a facies change at 2.5 m under the Roman sea level involves a change in the processes of sedimentation and/or operation.
(6) No later than the beginning of the 1st century AD, the thickness of the water column in the basin is less than 50 cm and seems to be caused by a massive siltation following a succession of floods of the Tiber.
(7) This basin was thus already abandoned during the start-up of Portus."
Books by Cécile Vittori
especially that of Rome. The evolution of its environmental history and its partial transformation into a
saline body of water during Antiquity remain as poorly known to archaeologists and historians as to
geologists and geographers. A high chronostratigraphical resolution palaeoenvironmental study has been
carried out on a sediment core. It is based on multi-proxy analysis and pays particular attention to ostracods,
which are very useful palaeoenvironmental indicators in marginal marine environments. Our
study has unveiled five evolution phases of the landscapes in the countryside of Ostia: (1) between the
6th and the middle of the 2nd millennia BC a lagoon open to the sea was formed; (2) the lagoonwas then
subject to marine and fluvial influences,; (3) between the middle of the 2nd and the beginning of the 1st
millennia BC, a marshland formed, indicating either a period of limited flooding or a shifting of the
branch of the Tiber; (4) during the first part of the 1st millennium BC, the lagoon became again connected
to the sea. In this area, its depth at the time of the founding of Ostia varied between 3.5 m and
4.5 m (below ancient sea level), which suggests that it could have served as a naturally sheltered place on
the coast; (5) from the middle of the 1st millennia BC to the 19th century AD, the lagoon probably
remained connected to the sea and progressively silted, until it disappeared in the 19th century.
(1) The maximum depth is 6 m below the Roman sea level. This depth allowed any type of ship (even heavy tonnage) to access the harbour.
(2) A chronostratigraphic gap at 6 m below Roman sea level suggests digging operations in the basin (or subsequent
dredging) that have caused the loss of sedimentary archives.
(3) The filling consists of dark clays typical of a quiet environment but open to marine and river influences.
(4) The dates at the base of this sequence give a range between the 4th and the 2nd century BC.
(5) In the harbour sequence, a facies change at 2.5 m under the Roman sea level involves a change in the processes of sedimentation and/or operation.
(6) No later than the beginning of the 1st century AD, the thickness of the water column in the basin is less than 50 cm and seems to be caused by a massive siltation following a succession of floods of the Tiber.
(7) This basin was thus already abandoned during the start-up of Portus."