BMCR 2009.03.52, Maurizio Buora, Habitus. Identita\ e integrazione

Maurizio Buora, Massimo Lavarone, Stefan Seidel, Habitus. Identita\ e
integrazione nel mondo antico attraverso lo studio delle fibule.
Castello, Udine:  Comune di Udine - Musei Civici, 2007.  Pp. 47, DVD
(pb).  ISBN 9788895752013.

Maurizio Buora, Stefan Seidel (ed.), Fibule antiche del Friuli.
Cataloghi e Monografie Archeologiche dei Musei Civici di Udine 9.
Castello, Udine / Roma:  Comune di Udine - Musei Civici; L'Erma di
Bretschneider, 2008.  Pp. 237, CD-ROM.  ISBN 9788882654641.  EUR 150.00 
(pb).

Reviewed by Jean MacIntosh Turfa, University of Pennsylvania Museum
([email protected])
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http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/bmcr/2009/2009-03-52.html
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The common safety-pin, under the technical title of fibula, is a
mainstay of Classical archaeologists, especially those working in
Italy: its ubiquitous usefulness in antiquity makes it perfect today
for gauging chronology and even the movement of ethnic groups, for
although pots do not equate to peoples, clothing really did announce
identity. One book offers a popular introduction to the phenomenon,
geared to the region of Udine, and the other is a formal, scholarly
catalogue of the museum's permanent collection.

Habitus is a beautiful booklet (with text in artsy red and tan ink)
created to accompany an exhibition at the Castello di Udine, Musei
Civici (January-May 2008) of ancient dress and identity in Friuli,
associated with predominantly local fibulae; it comes with a didactic
DVD, and offers a crash course in fibulae of the Iron Age through
medieval periods, slanted, of course, to the interests of the museum in
the Friuli/Upper Adriatic region. It would be of use--and interest--to
students of Etruscan/Italic and Roman (including Romano-British)
archaeology and art history, and also historians of the early medieval
period, though I fear that scholars will find it very difficult to
obtain these products of micro-publishers from outside Italy.

The humble fibula has been of interest in the history of costume and
the study of chronology ever since scholars of the Renaissance took
note of its varied forms and uses. Research into its typology and
cultural significance was put on a scientific basis by such
19th-century experts as Oscar Almgren, who saw the ethno-cultural
implications of costume, as then popularized through Scottish tartans
and Native American beadwork. In ancient Italy textiles--read
clothing--of which only the hardware survives, were indispensable
features of both funerary and votive ritual.

The Udine collection began in the 18th c. with objects acquired from
Roman Aquileia by the Accademia di Udine; the Musei Civici opened in
1866, growing from donations and local purchases, and adding finds from
regional excavations at sites such as Sevegliano, Planis, Cervignano
del Friuli and Pavia di Udine. The catalogue and booklet begin with
examples from the Iron Age Venetic culture (8th-6th c. BC) found in
burials and the sanctuary of the goddess Reithia at Este. Other fibula
types featured are the Certosa (5th-4th c. Bologna) and several
indigenous types manufactured in the Adriatic and Alpine regions during
the period of Romanization (the Almgren, Alesia, Aucissa, and Celtic
versions). The collection extends into the medieval period, with
distinctive  Zwiebelknopffibeln with knobs on the end of the bow and
crosspieces: fig. 42 illustrates an ivory diptych depicting Stilicho
and his son ostentatiously wearing this fibula on their cloaks, ca. AD
390. (See figs. 52-53 for Aldo Canussio's drawings of the complex
manufacture of such fibulae.) Gothic, Longobard, enameled, and other
medieval fibulae are also presented. All the Iron Age and Roman-period
types are plotted on up-to-date distribution maps, and these, with the
fine illustrations of types and terminology, should prove of use to
scholars attempting to identify museum pieces and excavation finds. All
items illustrated here may be found in the formal museum catalogue
(below).

A section on textiles and techniques of manufacture is rather brief.
The amount of handwork necessary to create the working spring of a
cast-bronze fibula is non-trivial, such that the extra time spent on
ornamentation (inlay, filigree, enamel, etc.) seems a reasonable
labor-increment in comparison. Until the 1st c. AD, most fibulae were
made in bronze in one piece, and few appeared in silver before the 3rd
c. AD, though the practice was more common beyond the Alps. Enameling
in vivid colors begins in the 2nd c. AD, and probably was a specialty
of workshops in Gaul.

Reference is made to the spectacular finds from 7th-century BC burials
at Verucchio, as examples of Iron Age Etruscan or Etruscan-related
costumes and ornate, amber-beaded fibulae from a neighboring region of
the Adriatic. These finds may be unfamiliar to non-Etruscologists, but
although this booklet lacks bibliography, ample sources are listed in
the full catalogue (see especially P. von Eles Masi [ed.], Guerriero e
sacerdote...La Tomba del Trono,  Florence, 2002.) For the full range of
textile use and manufacture in pre-Roman Italy, see now M. Gleba,
Textile Production in Pre-Roman Italy (Oxford, Oxbow, 2008), and be
amazed at how much information is available for the Neolithic to Late
Republican periods.

A "didactic DVD" (20 mins.) begins with a cavalcade of fibulae morphing
from one type into the next, with color close-ups of several types,
illustrating terminology and major types: Certosa, Alesia, "Aucissa," a
ginocchio, Hrusica, enameled, animal-bow, and medieval varieties,
ending with a mannequin in early medieval costume.

......

Fibule antiche del Friuli is the scholarly catalogue of the over 900
fibulae in the Musei Civici of Udine, with a technical catalogue by
Seidel and Lavarone preceded by a series of short essays by experts on
the different types represented in the collection.

The volume is introduced by Pier Giovanni Guzzo and Werner Jobst (6-7)
who emphasize the archaeological significance and ubiquitous character
of these artifacts. Jobst has published extensively on Roman-period
fibulae and metalwork, especially from excavations that include Roman
military uniform (see bibliography). Guzzo's 1972 Le fibule in Etruria
dal VI al I secolo was the first major typology for 1st-millennium
Etruria to appear since J. Sundwall's landmark (and still cited) 1943
Die aelteren italischen Fibeln (Berlin). These are supplemented by
regional and museum studies such as P. von Eles, Le fibule dell'Italia
settentrionale, Praehistorische Bronzefunde 14.5, Munich, 1986 (cited
here). Add to the bibliography J. Toms (2001) "The arch fibula in Early
Iron Age Italy," in Ancient Italy in Its Mediterranean Setting. Studies
in Honor of Ellen Macnamara,  eds. D. Ridgway, F. R. Serra Ridgway, M.
Pearce, E. Herring, R. D. Whitehouse, and J. B. Wilkins, pp. 91-116
(London, Accordia Specialist Studies on the Mediterranean 4).

See now also Anna Maria Bietti Sestieri and Ellen Macnamara, with
Duncan Hook (2007) Prehistoric metal artefacts from Italy (3500-720 BC)
in the British Museum (British Museum Research Publication 159,
London), which includes fibulae. A study of Iron Age animal-bow fibulae
in the Italian archipelago and their social implications is in progress
by Tamar Hodos (University of Bristol).

Brief essays in chronological order pinpoint the historical
significance and important examples of each type in the catalogue,
beginning with Buora's overview of Roman types ("romane" was omitted
from his title in the table of contents). Seidel comments on the Iron
Age, Italic and related pieces, of which there are relatively few (49
examples); many have appeared in other publications (e.g. von Eles Masi
1986). Most items are of the Roman Imperial and medieval periods, and
will be of interest to excavators of Roman military and other sites,
including Roman Britain. Some citations in essays and catalogue neglect
to pinpoint references, whether Buora 1992a or 1992b, etc.

While it does encompass some excavation finds, this is a museum
collection, so the varieties presented here may not reflect
quantitatively the actual historical frequency of dress and identity
for a given period. All the pieces featured in the exhibition booklet
are catalogued in full here, mostly in the same order. Unlike some
catalogues, this does not offer pat dates within catalogue entries: one
must read the relevant typological discussions to determine cultural
and chronological information. Many items catalogued are extremely
fragmentary, but will be of interest either typologically or for
historically significant provenance: too often museums neglect such
pieces.


Maurizio BUORA, "Lo studio delle fibule romane nell'Italia
nordorientale" 10-13
Stefan SEIDEL, "Le fibule dell'eta\ del ferro" 14-18
Dragan BOZIC, "Fibule del tipo Nova vas" 19-21
Thomas SCHIERL, "Le forme tardo La Te\ne, fibule del tipo Nauheim e
'Schuessel-Fibeln'" 22-26
Stefan DEMETZ, "Fibule di tipo Almgren 65" 27-29
Maurizio BUORA, "Diffusione delle fibule di tipo Aucissa nell 'area
alto adriatica" 30-32
Christian GUGL, "Le 'kraeftig profilierten Fibeln' dal Friuli. Uno
sguardo di insieme" 33-41
Salvatore ORTISI, "Fibule del periodo medio e tardoimperiale. Fibule a
ginocchio, con testa a forma di pelta, 'Scharnierarmfibeln' e
'Buegelknopffibeln'" 42-45
Maurizio BUORA, "Fibule ad arco liscio ('Fibeln mit glattem Buegel') o
'einfache gallische Fibeln'" 46
Maurizio BUORA, "Fibule romboidali" 47-48
Maurizio BUORA, "Fibula con arco a chiave di basso" 49
Maurizio BUORA, "Fibule con decorazione a smalto" 50
Maurizio BUORA, "Fibule a forma di animali" 51
Maurizio BUORA, "Fibule a pinzetta o 'Zangenfibeln'" 54
Anton HOeCK, "Fibule del tipo Hrusica" 55-61
Thomas SCHIERL, "Le 'Zwiebelknopffibeln'" 62-72
Ulrike TRENKMANN, "Fibule di eta\ altomedievale" 73-78
Jan BEMMANN, "Fibula ovale di tipo Seidel" 79-80
S. Seidel and M. Lavarone, "Catalogue" 81-214
Bibliography, concordance, list of provenances with detailed map
216-237

It seems greedy to ask for more than the beautifully illustrated and
carefully documented catalogue and expert typological discussions, but
for full comparison to other collections and for technological history,
the next step should be to furnish analyses of the metal composition of
the better preserved pieces, and especially those with clear
archaeological contexts, as has been done, for example, by the British
Museum. See P.T. Craddock (1985) "The metallurgy and compositions of
Etruscan bronze," Studi Etruschi 52: 211-71; and D. Hook, "The
Composition and Technology of Selected Bronze Age and Early Iron Age
Copper Alloy Artefacts from Italy," in Bietti Sestieri and Macnamara
2007:308-323. (For basics on metallurgy in Italy, see Claudio Giardino,
I metalli nel mondo antico. Introduzione all'archeometallurgia,
Roma-Bari, 3rd. ed. 2002.)

Another valuable addition would be a description of the fossil-like
pseudomorphs of textiles often preserved in the corrosion products on
metal ornaments. It is occasionally possible to combine evidence from
multiple fibulae found in burials to reconstruct the layers of garments
and their draping on bodies, based on the evidence of pseudomorphs. See
A. Rast-Eicher, "Die eisenzeitlichen Gewebe im Tessin," in R.C. de
Marinis and S. Biagio Simona (eds.), I Leponti tra mito e realta\.
Raccolta di saggi in occasione della mostra, (Locarno, 2000) 415-419;
and Gleba 2008:86.

It may be that our impression of an Adriatic cultural "koine" in the
1st millennia BC and AD is more in the minds of beholders: the
selection here, pointed up by the commentators, shows perennial
diversity of costume and symbolism, in part due to the unique
geographic position and access to trade routes enjoyed by the Friuli
and environs. A survey of the objects impressed me with the degree of
European influence and interchange that has always applied in this area
of the Upper Adriatic, and how different it can be from nearby,
once-Etruscan, Felsina-Bologna.

For scholars who do not excavate, there is still considerable value in
fibula research, one major effect being to track the invasion of Gauls
into Italy at the beginning of the 4th c. BC and their subsequent
roaming in the peninsula (their final defeat at Talamone in 225 of
course left Celtic settlements still in the peninsula). While some
fibulae of the European Hallstatt culture did reach peninsular Italy,
the first appearance of La Te\ne ornaments is usually read as a
type-fossil of Celtic invaders. Those inventoried here (cat. nos.
39-49) are not the earliest, but reflect important sites such as
Gradisca di Sedegliano and Pavia di Udine (3rd-2nd c. BC). For
cautionary treatment of Celtic ethnics residing in Italy, see J.H.C.
Williams, "Celtic ethnicity in northern Italy: problems ancient and
modern," in Gender and Ethnicity in Ancient Italy, eds. T. Cornell and
K. Lomas (London, Accordia Specialist Studies on the Mediterranean 6,
1997) 69-81.

An interesting variety of the Roman period is the popular "AUCISSA"
fibula (30-32, cat. nos. 163-210), many examples of which were cast
with the maker's name across the end of the bow near the spring (nos.
182-185). Originally made in Italy (Aquileia?) in the Augustan period,
they traveled to the transalpine castra with soldiers, and were picked
up by native warriors in Slovenia. By the Flavian era, however,
military chic had transferred to women, and many female burials have
such pins. A few imitation makers' names are known also (e.g.,
Cartilia, a Dalmatian? at Este); over 1000 examples have been
documented. One piece (no. 174) was donated to the museum in 1928 and
said to have come from Tharros in Sardinia: if the provenance can be
trusted, this would be interesting historical data on the movement of
early imperial troops (especially in view of the spectacular underwater
finds made in 1999 at Olbia, in the north of the island, of a later
Roman naval fleet).

Another large category (228 pieces) are the 4th-5th c. AD
Zweibelknopffibeln (62-72, cat. nos. 557-785), which began as a
military accessory, but soon became widely diffused as a status symbol
(as on the imperial portrait) and linked to the Baltic amber route.

The catalogue comes with a CD with four useful files: a German
translation of all the discussion chapters; 13 distribution maps (some
appear in the Habitus booklet; some have slightly different labels from
chapter titles); 7 lists of specific fibula types with provenances; and
a set of copies in pdf-format of 16 of Buora's articles, as cited in
the bibliography. These are beautifully reproduced, and while some are
in readily accessible journals, several are from local publications
which outsiders would never have been able to find--a real boon to
readers!