5 m depth
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Riparo di Grotti Rock Art (Italy)
Riparo di Grotti (photo by Tommaso Mattioli)
Riparo di Grotti is a limestone rock shelter decorated with black-colored paintings, representing a remarkable example of Italian rock shelter art within the broader context of rock art Italy. The site was discovered by archaeologist Dr. Tommaso Mattioli in March 2003. The decorated rock shelter is accessible via the 'Via dei Monti' hiking trail, which connects the village of Grotti to the sanctuary of the Madonna dei Balzi. In 1953, the Italian archaeologist Antonio Maria Radmilli (1922-1998) surveyed the area and collected pottery fragments described by the author as 'di fattura preistorica ma di datazione imprecisata' (lit. prehistoric-type sherds of uncertain dating - personal translation).
Riparo di Grotti viewshed GIS analysis according to modified Higuchi index (from Mattioli 2007)
Riparo di Grotti stands out within the framework of prehistoric rock paintings Lazio for its for its strategic visual dominance over the Salto River valley. A GIS Viewshed analysis conducted in 2008 indicated that the site affords optimal visual control over the middle-distance landscape, particularly the valley floor where human or animal movement would have occurred. At the same time, the steep approach and the elevated position render the shelter partially concealed from below, suggesting a deliberate choice that balances visibility and concealment. This dual characteristic implies that Grotti may have been selected not only for symbolic or artistic purposes, but also for its perceptual and potentially defensive advantages within the prehistoric landscape.
View of the Salto River valley from the Riparo di Grotti, January 2022 (photo by Tommaso Mattioli)
Container used to collect water seeping from the rock beside the statue of the Madonna dei Balzi
(from lemiepasseggiate.it)
In 1972, the archaeologist Lucio Valerio Mandarini reported the discovery of Early Neolithic impasto sherds in the nearby village of Calcariola. In addition, Early Bronze Age pottery fragments have been identified in the vicinity of the Sanctuary of the Madonna dei Balzi. More recently, in 2018, a Mousterian lithic industry - attributed to the Middle Paleolithic and associated with Neanderthal occupation - was discovered not far from the rock art site, providing important evidence for prehistoric human presence in the area. The current Marian devotion in the Madonna dei Balzi sanctuary includes votive offerings, devotional objects, and containers used to collect dripping water from the cave walls, indicating a strong association with water symbolism. The site is still the destination of an annual pilgrimage.
The Rock Art Figures
Riparo di Grotti - one of the anthropomorph of the right niche in 2022
(photo by T. Mattioli)
The rock art of Riparo di Grotti consists of 17 figures in black colour (anthropomorphs, tree-shaped figures, lines), representing one of the most significant examples of rock art Italy in a central Apennine context. These figures contribute to the broader corpus of Italian rock shelter art, showing stylistic parallels with other prehistoric sites across the peninsula. The most interesting figure is a big masculine anthropomorph (approx. 12 cm in height) with a “T-shaped” head, shown frontally, the trunk decorated with ‘globules’ motifs. This figure, possibly holding a small animal in the right hand and a curved object (crook?) in the left, is located in the small niche on the right side of the shelter. This iconography is very similar to that of the anthropomorphs of Riparo di Caprara rock art site (Civitella Messer Raimondo, Chieti). In recent years, the local association Terre delle Grotte has installed information panels to enhance the site featuring the rock paintings.
Within the wider panorama of prehistoric rock paintings Lazio, Riparo di Grotti represents a key site for understanding symbolic expression and landscape use in central Italy during prehistory. Its combination of artistic evidence and strategic location makes it a unique case study in the study of rock art Italy.
References
2019
In: Preistoria e protostoria in ambiente montano: scoperte e ricerca territoriale, tutela e valorizzazione, vol. 7, pp. 107-109, 2019.
2008
Landscape analysis of a sample of rock-Art sites in Central Italy Book Chapter
In: Posluschny, Axel G.; Lambers, K; Herzog, I (Ed.): Proceedings of the 35th International Conference on Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology (CAA), pp. 342-343, Rudolf Habelt, Bonn, 2008, ISBN: ISBN 978-3-7749-3556-3.
2007
L'arte rupestre in Italia centrale : Umbria, Lazio, Abruzzo Book
Ali&no, Perugia, 2007, ISBN: 9788887594997.
2006
L'arte rupestre del riparo sottoroccia di Grotti (Cittaducale, Rieti) Journal Article
In: Quaderni di Protostoria, vol. 3, pp. 1-17, 2006.
1985
Panorama archeologico Sabino alla luce di recenti acquisizioni Journal Article
In: Atti del Convegno di Studio "Preistoria storia e civilta dei Sabini" (Rieti, Ottobre 1982) (a cura di Riposati, Benedetto), pp. 99-124, 1985.
1953
Esplorazioni paletnologiche nel territorio di Rieti Journal Article
In: Bullettino di Paletnologia Italiana, vol. VIII, pp. 17-24, 1953.
Gallery
by Tommaso Mattioli
by Tommaso Mattioli
from Mattioli 2006
by Tommaso Mattioli
by Tommaso Mattioli
by Tommaso Mattioli
by Tommaso Mattioli
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