I GUERRIERI DELL'ETA' DEL FERRO

Rroom dedicated to the Iron age warriors in Lunigiana, 1 st millennium b.C.

The room is dedicated to the Iron Age in Lunigiana and to the ancient Ligurian people, fearless warriors who fought fiercely but unsuccessfully against the Roman conquest. Both the stelae – statues dating back to the 6 th century and the later sepulchres made of lithic cist (dating from a period between the end of the 4 th century and the full Romanization) are evidence for the continuity of the Ligurian ethnos and for the richness of warriors' panoply: axes, javelin – often paired- swords, spears and helmets of Celtic influence are depicted on the stelae–statues and present among the objects found in tombs. The chronic need for land urged the Romans to the difficult conquest of eastern Liguria during the 2 nd century b.C. About how the conquerors saw the Ligurians, Diodoro Siculo writes: “Due to ongoing labour and food scarcity, their bodies appear fit and strong… Women are strong and vigorous as men, who are themselves like beasts. They are courageous and noble not only while fighting but also in those circumstances of life where some sort of danger is involved.”

SIMONE BARBIERI

Simone Barbieri was born in La Spezia in 1981. Since 2000 he attends the course of Scienze della Comunicazione (Communication Sciences) at the University of Turin. He approached photography in 1996, focusing on architecture and urban space. He also deals with studies on political communication.
barbierisimone@libero.it

Game-War, Photographic print, 2003

BASI ONORARIE

Commemorative bases from Luni, Bardiglio marble, imperial age

The Bardiglio marble bases coming from Luni bear commemorative inscriptions on their front. The majority of them are inscriptions dating from the 1 st century A.D. addressed to local magistrates. Other inscriptions, dating from the 3 rd -4 th century, addressed to emperors, are engraved on four sides, an exception in Italy. They have been erased as a consequence of the damnatio memoriae , a practice aimed at blanking out the memory of some emperors by effacing their names. Probably the bases were turned and re-used for new epigraphs, especially in the periods when local marble extraction diminished or in phases of economical and political crisis. The unaesthetic reuse of those bases allowed to save marble, not only from supports but also from the statues themselves, where new portrays were carved, turning the body in the direction of the new epigraph.

MATTEO BERTOCCHI

Matteo Bertocchi was born in La Spezia in 1978. Since 1995 he applies himself to video shooting and and montage, participating in national festivals, such as Bellaria and Arcipelago. Since 1999 he attends the Academy of Fine Arts in Carrara, where he attends the Multimedia Arts course. He works as a cameraman
bermats@yahoo.it

Virtual project for photographic installations , installation, translucid paper sheets, neon tubes, cm 200x60, 2003

STATUE STELE

Stelae-statues from Lunigiana on display in the museum, sandstone,
Copper Age – Bronze Age

The stelae-statues coming from Lunigiana have been know since the 19 th century, when they were discovered and the first theories were put forward. Today they are still to the fore, not only because of the ongoing findings – there are more than 70 specimen – but also because of the great number ofscientific studies devoted to them that have been following one another. One of the causes for the interest they arise is the difficulty in interpreting the reason that urged an ancient people of the 4 th -3 rd century b.C. to engrave stone slabs and stick them into the ground. These stelae often depict men with weapons, women characterised by breasts and children with no symbols. Since often both the original contest and systematic excavations in the sites are lacking, the hypothesis that have been formulated tend to assimilate the Lunigiana stelae-statues to the coeval European lithic production. The most accepted theory links these statues to religion, more specifically to a cult of heroes-forefathers. Sticking the stelae in the ground meant marking off the land while protecting it and making it sacred.

FRANCESCO MENCONI

Francesco Menconi was born in Viareggio in 1978. Since 1999 he attends the Academy of Fine Arts in Carrara, where he is specializing in Video-art and Video-theatre. In 2002 he took part in the international workshop Knowing and Painting Cyprus in Larnaka. He works as a lighting and audio-engineer for the theatre and carries on his artistic research in the multimedia and interactive field.
fragroove@virgilio.it

Stelae-composition in RGB Component, video-installation, processed wood, video image, 2 square metres, August 2003