Euganean trachytic grinding stones in the Caput Adriae from Iron Age to Roman time: reassessment of the Protohistoric quarries

A group of Euganean trachytic grinding stones from Slovenia and the available data about the same type of artefacts in the whole Caput Adriae are here presented. The occurrence of Iron Age saddle querns in Karst and Istria is confirmed but our study suggests a likely provenance from Mts. Cero/Murale instead of Mt. Altore/Rocca Pendice, as previously suggested. Este, important Venetic centre, is just south of Mts. Cero/Murale, suggesting its central role in the production and distribution of saddle querns. During the Roman time, Euganean trachytes are still used for rotary millstones but new quarries (Mt. Rosso), relatively close to the ancient Padua, are exploited. Such shift in the position of millstone quarries most probably reflects the changed geopolitical framework.