Societies, Mobility, and Trade in the Central Mediterranean between the Middle Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age (ca. 1700-700 BCE): an archaeological framework

This paper, conceived within the framework of the HERDS Project, provides a synthetic overview of the major historical processes spanning the period between the beginning of the Middle Bronze Age (MBA) and the Early Iron Age (EIA) (ca. 1700/1650-725 BC). This long time span was characterised by profound transformations and a general increase in economic, social, and political complexity, accompanied by significant demographic growth and an intensification of medium- and long-distance exchange networks with the Aegean, the eastern Mediterranean, and central-northern Europe. These networks involved the circulation of raw materials as well as utilitarian and prestige goods, contributing to increasing mobility and the transmission of knowledge and ideas. These developments were underpinned by the consolidation and expansion of subsistence strategies, in which animal husbandry played a pivotal role. Domestic animals provided not only primary food resources but also secondary products (dairy, wool, and osseous materials), as well as essential support for agricultural labour and transport. Within this framework, zooarchaeological evidence, integrated with biomolecular and ancient DNA analyses conducted as part of the HERDS Project, offers critical insights into key research questions, including herding practices, the mobility of domestic animals – closely linked to human mobility – and the potential presence of distinct haplogroups among caprines, cattle, and suids. This contribution synthesises current knowledge of the archaeological record and the economic and social dynamics in the regions investigated within the HERDS Project, including the Po Plain (with particular reference to Emilia- Romagna), central and southern Italy, Sicily, and Sardinia. From a chronological perspective, particular emphasis is placed on the Bronze Age, as most of the analysed contexts are attributable to this period.