Una tomba di bambini dalla necropoli orientale di Polizzello

Abstract

The last excavation (2004-2006) in the eastern necropolis of Polizzello (CL) allowed to complete the excavation of this important funerary area and to discover a grave (No 2/2004) containing over 100 dead children. It represents a privileged observatory for the study of childhood in the indigenous world of Sicily. The structure of the tomb, the relative and absolute chronology, the composition of the kit with its symbolic value and the mode of deposition of the buried are analyzed, thanks to the data of the stratigraphic excavation. The hypotheses on causes of deaths are based on anthropological and paleobiological studies conducted on skeletal finds, while some final considerations concern the remarkable funeral visibility given to infants and the special funeral apparatus set up for the tragic event.