All'origine dei cimiteri cristiani: chiese e sepolture nell'Italia transpadana tra IV e IX secolo

Burials represent one of the most important sources for the study of ancient societies, in particular for the transition period between the classical and medieval eras, which was considered a “dark” era for a long time due to a lack of resources. Important political, economical and social transformations that caused the fall of the Roman empire as well as the formation of the Barbaric kingdoms, the appearance of the new ruling classes and above all the spreading of Christianity provoked radical changes in the way people lived as well as in the way “they died and were buried”. When considering studies carried out in Italy on late antiquity and the high Middle Ages, a topic that is neglected is nevertheless relative to churches and burials. Our research project, with an exclusively archaeological approach, therefore set out to analyse these basic themes in the Padana area in Italy, in an attempt to gather useful elements for resolving principal problems that remain open.