The Archaeological and Anthropological Society of Victoria is a group that promotes the study of archaeology, anthropology, ethno-archaeology and ethno-history in both Australia and further abroad. Lectures, from a range of talented presenters, are held every third Thursday of the month at 6:30pm at the Kathleen Syme Library & Community Centre (251 Faraday St, Carlton), and are also accessible online via Zoom.

Equestrian Connections: Exploring Inter-Regional Contacts in Iron Age Veneto

Presented by Ronak Alburz
PhD Candidate, University of Melbourne

Although the story of post-war manufacturing in Port Melbourne, including Fishermans Bend, is well known, very little has been written about its antecedents. Through a series of vignettes, this presentation explores the waves of industry that washed over this area from the 1850s to the 1950s. It spans factories making ships biscuits, candles, town gas, sugar, coffee and spices, glassware and bottles, starch, chemicals and spirits in the 19^th century and enterprising engineering firms designing innovative milling and factory equipment, winches and excavators, machinery and industrial cranes and aircraft to defend the country during the first half of the 20^th century. The emphasis is on people and place rather than technology. This cultural heritage is significant in the context of the Innovation Precinct and Advanced Manufacturing initiatives envisaged for the Fishermans Bend Renewal District.

While a notable cultural division persisted between Central Europe and the Mediterranean until the Roman era, the similarities in horse culture across the southern and eastern regions of the Pannonian basin, the Southeast Alpine area, and Veneto during the Iron Age suggest the existence of inter-regional contacts. Various hypotheses have been proposed regarding the trade or exchange of horses, particularly between Pannonia and Veneto; however, the precise nature of these contacts and the agents facilitating these cultural exchanges remain elusive.
Given the challenges in portraying the Veneti as merely dealers of Eastern horses, this project explores the development of Venetic horse culture within the diverse socio-cultural landscape of Iron Age Veneto. This landscape includes the establishment of urban centers, the rise of equestrian social hierarchies (the Equites class), and the re-introduction of inhumation rites, which suggest external influences and a diverse ethnic composition in Early Iron Age Veneto. The project investigates whether shared traits in horse-related traditions developed independently or reflect the influence of Pannonian (Vekerzug) horse culture on Veneto, possibly through direct interaction or via Slovene territory. Additionally, the study examines the importance of Caput Adriae and the Balkan branches of the Amber Road as alternative routes for both trade and cultural exchange into Italy.

Biography

Ronak Alburz is a second-year PhD student at the University of Melbourne. She earned her BA in Information Technology from York University (Toronto) in 2013 and worked in the IT industry until 2020. She then transitioned to postgraduate studies in Classics and Archaeology. Ronak is primarily interested in cross-cultural encounters in the Iron Age, focusing on the transmission of knowledge (both ideological and technical), cult practices, and human mobility from the East to the West, particularly to Italy.

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Social Social Complexity and Maritime Connectivity in Nuragic Sardinia: the south Montiferru and the north Campidano

Presented by Laura Pisanu
PhD Candidate, University of Melbourne

From the 16th to the 6th century BC Nuragic groups inhabited Sardinia (Italy). They have generally  been considered to be hierarchically organised and to have played a secondary role in the Mediterranean connectivity. However, archaeological record points towards more complex explanations. Focusing on the Montiferru and Campidano, Nuragic social complexity and maritime connectivity are investigated. Data collected during fieldwork activities and research periods in Italy and Greece have been studied using GIS-based and typological analyses and they are critically reassessed.
In conclusion, new insights on social complexity of Nuragic communities and their role in the panorama of Mediterranean trade are provided.

Biography
Laura Pisanu is an Archaeologist and a PhD Candidate at the University of Melbourne working on Nuragic sites in western Sardinia and interactions between Sardinia and Mediterranean cultures over the Bronze and Early Iron Age. Laura completed the Scuola di Specializzazione in Beni Archeologici (level 8 EQL), master’s and bachelor’s degree in archaeology at the University of Cagliari. She has extensive fieldwork experience including at the UNESCO site of Su Nuraxi in Barumini (Sardinia).

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