I am writing from the inside of Badia Pozzeveri near the former altar at a makeshift desk presenting my preliminary observations of the bioarchaeological excavations at this remarkable 11th century church in rural Tuscany. Although having shown years of various renovations and abandonment, the church remains a beautiful structure, both inside and out. Our collaborative field school codirected by Prof. Gino Fornaciari of the University of Pisa and by me with the Ohio State University and terrific staffs from our respective institutions is resulting in some wonderful work. Just in the few days that I have been here excavation of four regions—two on the west end of the church, one on the north side, and one on the east end—have produced some crucially important findings. Mainly, the excavations reveal that indeed there is a considerable presence of human remains, even quite close to surface, indicating an extensive cemetery outside the church. We are now digging the four areas and exposing both disturbed and undisturbed skeletons. The highly motivated field school students are making the project a terrific success, setting the foundation for a productive field season this year and in the future.
Clark Spencer Larsen
Department of Anthropology
The Ohio State University
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