Canegrate culture

Archaeological finds of Canegrate culture found at the Santa Colomba, Canegrate, in 1953. They are preserved at the Museo civico Guido Sutermeister in Legnano

The necropolis found in Canegrate is very similar to those realized in the same period in the north of Alps.[1] It represents the first migratory wave of the Urnfield[9] population from the northwest part of the Alps that, through the Alpine passes, had already penetrated and settled in the western Po valley between Lake Maggiore and Lake Como (Scamozzina culture). They brought a new funerary practice—cremation—which supplanted inhumation.[10]

The facies of Canegrate introduces a new decorative style in ceramics that marks an almost total break with the previous Scamozzina culture; this style is linked to that of the north-western alpine area in the oldest phase of the culture of urn fields.[11] The uniform and isolated Canegrate finds[12] do not show any trace of the preceding Polada culture, nor do they provide evidence for a gradual Canegrate insertion into the area.[13]

The bearers of the Canegrate culture maintained its homogeneity for only a century, after which it melded with the Ligurian aboriginal populations and with this union gave rise to a new phase called the Golasecca culture.[14][15]

The origins of the Orobii, a population localized by classical writers in these areas and which founded the town of Como, have been linked to the Canegrate culture.

Diffusion of Canegrate culture

Since ancient times, the inhabitants of Olona Valley lived mainly away from the river, on higher ground that certainly would not have been affected by seasonal floods.[16] The most significant archaeological finds, from prehistory until Roman rule, have been discovered along the edges of the Olona Valley, and the necropolis connected to the culture of Canegrate was not an exception.[17][18]

The necropolis of Canegrate was brought to light in 1926 near the church of Santa Colomba.[3][1][19] The fact that the finds did not belong to any other proto-historic culture was identified later.[1] In 1953, other finds were found on the same land during the construction of a house; in 1956 the findings took place within the perimeter of the "Giuseppe Gajo" kindergarten, which is seven hundred meters south of the church of Santa Colomba.[3][1][19] The first archaeological activities were directed by Guido Sutermeister, while those carried out in the 1950s were supervised by Ferrante Rittatore Vonwiller.[1] The excavations were systematic between the spring of 1953 and the autumn of 1956.[20]

The tombs found are of the simple pit type or covered with stone or stone slabs.[6][21] Most of the urns do not have a lid. Some are closed by a small stone slab, while others are turned upside down in the ground.[21] The urns often also contain the ashes of several people.[21] The bronze furnishings deposited with the ashes (collars, pins and rings[6]) are not gifts to the deceased, but objects belonging to the same.[21] The finds, in fact, have been transformed by the heat of the fire during the cremation.[21] Not many weapons have been found. In the entire necropolis of Canegrate, only four swords have been discovered.[6] The study of the findings revealed that about 30% of the graves received ashes from adolescents or children.[6]

Clay bowl decorated with ribs found at the Santa Colomba, Canegrate, in 1952. It is preserved at the Museo civico Guido Sutermeister in Legnano

It is estimated that the necropolis should originally contain about 200 tombs, 165 of which were brought to light.[6] The burials that were not brought to light were destroyed during the aforementioned building works.[6] These works were stopped after verifying the importance of the finds, and this allowed the patrol of the entire area.[22]

Given the abundance of findings, it was possible to identify the general cultural and social aspects of the populations that belonged to this prehistoric civilization.[6] From the findings discovered in Canegrate, it can be inferred that the populations that lived there led a rather harsh existence and had a decidedly short average life.[6] Furthermore, the rate of infant deaths was decidedly high.[6] A certain respect for the dead can also be deduced from the rich funerary outfit.[6] Most likely the village where the community that built the two necropolises lived was not far from the find.[23] The presence of two rather close necropolises and the discovery of similar discoveries in the area, could suggest the presence of several villages at a relatively short distance.[24] Remains of dwellings of populations belonging to the culture the Canegrates were discovered in Gabinella in Legnano. During the excavations, which took place in the mid-eighties of the twentieth century, furnishings from the late Bronze Age (mostly vessel fragments) were also brought to light.[25]

Olla ovoide in clay with embossed decoration found at the Santa Colomba, Canegrate, in 1926. It is preserved at the Museo civico Guido Sutermeister in Legnano

Small necropolises belonging to the Canegrate culture have also been discovered in Appiano Gentile, Ligurno, Canton Ticino (Gudo, Rovio, Locarno, Giubiasco and Bellinzona), in the Novarese (Novara, Vicolungo and Castelletto sopra Ticino) and in Verbano (Premeno).[6]

The most novelty element is precisely the ceramics which, although it has some point of contact with the previous Scamozzina culture, on the whole is clearly differentiated by connecting directly with the culture of the urn fields and, in particular, to the groups of the Rhine-Switzerland-Eastern France area.[11] The contribution of the culture of the urn fields is particularly emphasized by the shape and decorations of the urns, as well as by the composition of the alloy in the bronzes of the funeral objects.

• Canegrate
• Scamozzina culture
• Polada culture
• Villanovan culture
• Golasecca culture
• Este culture
• Ancient peoples of Italy

• Corbella, Roberto: Celti: itinerari storici e turistici tra Lombardia, Piemonte, Svizzera, Macchione, Varese 2000; ISBN 88-8340-030-5
• Corbella, Roberto: Magia e mistero nella terra dei Celti: Como, Varesotto, Ossola; Macchione, Varese 2004; ISBN 88-8340-186-7
• D'Aversa, Arnaldo: La Valle Padana tra Etruschi, Celti e Romani, Paideia, Brescia 1986ISBN 88-394-0381-7
• De Marinis, Raffaele (1991). "I Celti Golasecchiani". In Multiple Authors, I Celti, Bompiani.
• De Marinis, Raffaele (1990). Liguri e Celto-Liguri, Officine grafiche Garzanti Milano, Garzanti-Scheiwiller
• Giorgio D'Ilario, Egidio Gianazza, Augusto Marinoni, Marco Turri, Profilo storico della città di Legnano, Edizioni Landoni, 1984
• Grassi, Maria Teresa: I Celti in Italia, Longanesi, Milan 1991 ISBN 88-304-1012-8
• Kruta, Venceslas: I celti e il Mediterraneo, Jaca Book, 2004, ISBN 88-16-43628-X, ISBN 978-88-16-43628-2
• Kruta, Venceslas: La grande storia dei celti. La nascita, l'affermazione e la decadenza, Newton & Compton, 2003, ISBN 88-8289-851-2, ISBN 978-88-8289-851-9
• Kruta, Venceslas and Valerio Massimo Manfredi: I celti d'Italia, Mondadori, 2000, ISBN 88-04-47710-5, ISBN 9788804477105
• Violante, Antonio: I Celti a sud delle Alpi, Silvana, Milan, 1993 ISBN 88-366-0442-0

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