Il ruolo del fiume Stella per il commercio di età romana nell’alto Adriatico, tra navigazione endolagunare e costiera

The river Stella was one of the most important water courses of Friuli Venezia Giulia in antiquity. Its importance lies in its role of connecting territories at the base of the Alps with the Adriatic Sea shorelines. This article presents the study of a Roman shipwreck area, focusing on the relationship between the remains of a barge and a spread of archaeological materials extending upstream, North of the hull’s remains, for several meters. This research aims to determine whether all the materials were part of the cargo of the same wreck. The methodology used during the underwater archaeological excavation proved that the area of scattered artefacts has a strong relation with the hull remains and the finds collected on the barge. Tegulae (roof tiles) represent the majority of artefacts both within the cargo and and in the stream of artefacts and the presence of the same producers’ names on the tegulae stamps provides the most solid proof that the spread of archaeological material is linked with the barge. However, it seems unlikely that the tegulae and all the other archaeological material (amphoras, pottery, ecc) recovered so far belonged to the same boat – and some chronological inconsistency raises further questions. On the other side, the barge and the materials prove the prolonged and intense frequentation of the area and a use of the river Stella as a preferred water route