Archeologia del ferro nelle Alpi Orobie Valtellinesi tra età medievale e moderna

A survey of the mining sites in the Alpine areas of the municipalities of Piateda and Fusine, with a special focus on the Valtellina area of the Bergamasque Alps, has been carried out as part of the project Le Radici di una identità – Temi, strumenti e itinerari per la (ri)scoperta del mandamento di Sondrio tra Preistoria e Medioevo (The Roots of an identity – Themes, instruments and paths for the (re)discovery of the district of Sondrio between Prehistory and the Middle Ages). It marks the first phase of a joint initiative between the Department of History of the University of Turin and the territory of the province of Sondrio–district of Sondrio. The research project is coordinated by the Mountain Community of Valtellina and Sondrio involving four Italian universities (Polytechnic of Milan, Universities of Turin, Bergamo and Bologna) and is aimed at investigating, promoting and enhancing the whole territory. The analysis of the features of surviving productive structures, with the identification of the respective chronologies and functions, has transformed them from being a strategic resource for the local economy – as they once were – to being distinctive cultural heritage sites that create new ties between the community and the landscape. The collaboration between various institutions will lead to new solutions for embarking on original strategies to enhance this heritage and, at the same time, will help the communities involved to promote knowledge about it and therefore to make a major contribution to the development of culture and tourism in the Valtellina area of the Bergamasque Alps.