CARSO TRIESTINO: I RAPPORTI FRA SPELEOLOGIA E ARCHEOLOGIA DALL’800 AL PRESENTE

In the hinterland of Trieste the largely prevalent limestone formations are rich in karst phenomena, such as caves, rock shelters, Karrenfeld, pits: the Classical Karst. Two of these phenomena, caves and rock shelters, have long attracted two main categories of researchers: speleologists and archaeologists, in particular prehistorians, who work in basically separate scientific environments. Nevertheless, the analysis of the relationships between these communities, both born and developed since the second half of the 19th century, has revealed that the “barriers” between these two worlds have been more permeable than previously thought, largely thanks to the action of charismatic, open-minded figures present in both fields. We could mention many of these key persons, but they are known essentially within their own discipline, while two are certainly famous also outside: Carlo Marchesetti, archeologist, and Eugenio Boegan, speleologist. The connections between archaeology and speleology have changed through time, due not only to the theoretical, methodological and technical developments in both disciplines, but also to the historical, social and economic transformations of the territory. The combination of all these elements allow to detect the main turning points in the history of the speleo-archaeological research in Karst caves, according to the authors of this reconstruction.