Saturday, 15 July 2006
132-8

Properties of Buried Soils at the Somma Vesuviana Ruins of Ancient Rome, Italy.

Yudzuru Inoue1, Jamsranjav Baasansuren1, Makiko Watanabe1, and Hiroyuki Kamei2. (1) Interdisciplinary Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Tokyo Institue of Technology, 4259, Nagatsuta, Midori-ku, Yokohama, 226-8502, Japan, (2) Graduate School of Information Science and Engineering, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1, O-okayama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, 152-8552, Japan

A Japanese-Italian joint archeological team consisted of various research groups are engaged in the excavation project of Somma Vesuviana ruin of ancient Rome, in Italy. The ruins are located in an alluvial fan of the northern piedmont of Vesuvius volcano, which were completely buried in a volcanic mud flow. A buried soil composed of humic material and ancient constructed wastes such as stucco and bricks underlies beneath the pumice layer of AD 472 eruption of Vesuvius volcano in the ruin. This study aims to clarify the properties of this buried soil material and to interpret the fertility and the past surrounding environment. In addition, we would like to discuss whether this soil could be recognized as buried ancient anthropedogenic soils. The soil performed reactions to both active aluminum test and hydrochloric acid test in the field. Physico-chemical properties, phytolith composition, mineral composition, heavy metals concentration of this buried soil were examined with comparing the soil properties of the adjacent walnut field and the natural soils underlying beneath the pumice layer of AD 472 eruption of Vesuvius volcano.

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