Una tomba collettiva presso la chiesa di Sant’Apollonio sulla Rupe di Canossa (Reggio Emilia)

Following the archaeological and documentary support provided during the excavation of Tomb 1 at Rocca di Canossa (RE), an anthropological analysis was undertaken on the osteological remains found, for which further radiographic and radiocarbon investigations were performed. This approach made it possible to better delineate the depositional dynamics, qualifying the burial under investigation as a special case of handling of human remains. The cut of the pit was found to be coincident with the size of a subadult aged between 5 and 8 years, found in phase with the reduction of another individual of a lower age; in the upper stratigraphic unit, however, skeletal material referable to three other individuals was recovered, including one adult, one young adult and one of undetermined age. The anthropological study highlighted their possible belonging to a lower-middle social class, due to the finding of lesions correlated with degenerative and metabolic pathologies, a symptom of a suboptimal state of health, as well as the presence of enthesopathies, which mark the habit of performing heavy and stressful physical tasks. These findings represent the starting point toward a deeper understanding of the population that inhabited the site in the medieval age.