Bioarchaeological reconstruction of individual identities and mobility dynamics in Middle Iron Age Padua. Osteological, palaeoproteomic, and multi-isotope analyses of human skeletal remains from the CUS-Piovego necropolis (6th – late 5th/early 4th cent. BCE)

The CUS-Piovego necropolis in Padua, northern Italy, provides a unique context for understanding the transformations of the Patavine centre during the Middle Iron Age. As the only so far known funerary area active from the 6th to the late 5th/early 4th century BCE in Padua, the CUS-Piovego necropolis offers valuable insights into Padua’s fully urban phase. Archaeological and epigraphic evidence from the site points to a stratified society, external contacts, and the presence of foreign individuals during this period. The adoption of different burial rites (i.e., cremation and inhumation), with inhumation reserved for a minority within the necropolis, has led to different interpretations regarding the generative factors of this bi-ritualism. The excavations, carried out in 1975-77 and 1988-89 by the former Istituto di Archeologia, Università degli Studi di Padova, yielded 140 cremations, 26 inhumations, 6 horse burials, and the rare co-burial of a human and a horse, in line with the funerary codes of the Iron Age funerary tradition in the Veneto region. Although cremation was the predominant burial rite during the Iron Age, a significant number of inhumations have been documented in the Veneto region since the Early Iron Age. The adoption of inhumation amidst the almost exclusive practice of cremation during the Iron Age has intrigued scholars since the late 19th century. To explain this bi-ritualism, different hypotheses have been proposed, including a different social status or a foreign origin for those reserved for inhumation. Since the 1970s, the Protohistory team of the Dipartimento dei Beni Culturali, Università degli Studi di Padova, led by Giovanni Leonardi and Michele Cupitò, has been engaged in the archaeological study of this context. In this framework, this research addresses the phenomenon of funerary bi-ritualism from a bioarchaeological perspective, using a cutting-edge interdisciplinary approach that integrates osteological, archaeological, taphonomic, palaeoproteomic, and multi-isotope (87Sr/86Sr, δ18O, δ13C, and δ15N) analyses on the human skeletal collection from the CUS-Piovego necropolis, including n = 105 secondary cremations and n = 26 primary inhumations. The study allows the reconstruction of the biological and social identities of the individuals buried in the necropolis, as well as an estimate of individual mobility, geographical origins, and dietary practices. The research confirms the link between burial rites and social status, reinforcing the archaeological hypothesis of a socially stratified society. It also further confirms the presence of foreigners in Padua, identifying their potential areas of origin and exploring possible reasons for their iv movement. This study validates both hypotheses regarding the lower social status and the different origins of the inhumed individuals while offering evidence of elite mobility among the cremated. Furthermore, it offers new elements to understand the interactions between Padua and the surrounding areas starting during the Middle Iron Age. By shedding light on how burial practices intersect with broader social and demographic patterns at the CUS-Piovego necropolis, the research offers new perspectives on the long-standing debate on bi-ritualism in the Veneto region during the Iron Age and enriches our understanding of social and mobility dynamics in Padua between the 6th and the late 5th/early 4th centuries BCE, highlighting the value of an integrated bioarchaeological and archaeological approach to the study of ancient populations.