In this book, Amy Richardson sets out to examine the development of Samnite or, rather, ‘proto-Samnite’ identities through the evidence of personal adornments such as fibulae, bracelets, necklaces and pendants from selected published necropolis sites in Central-Southern Italy in the period 750–350 b.c. The discussed sites are mainly located in the modern regions of Campania and Molise, with one in Abruzzo, and, importantly, include the Greek emporia of Pithecusae and Cumae. The sites discussed in detail are Alfedena, Alife, Cairano, Calatia, Cales, Carife, Cumae, Gildone, Nola, Pithecusae and San Vincenzo al Volturno.
Through a quantifying approach to the adornments recovered at these sites, R. studies ‘the potential information that can be derived from the analysis of personal adornments, in order to shed light on broader issues of regionality, cultural diversity and exchange across a region that has been treated (by the ancient historical sources at least) as a single, homogeneous entity’ (20). R. frames her argument as being in two ways different from, or even oppositional to, previous views on the matter of Samnite identity. Firstly, R. argues against any broad cultural homogeneity that would coincide with ethnic sentiments in the area. Second, R. aims to counterbalance the stereotypical image of the Samnite as ‘warrior’ (so carefully staged by the Samnites themselves, and emphasized in ancient and modern studies), by looking at personal adornments such as bracelets, fibulae etc. rather than weapons.
The first point is set out in the introductory chs 1–3 on previous ‘constructions’ of Samnite unity, and on theoretical approaches to ethnicity and identity. It is preliminarily concluded that the area was ‘not a single cohesive region, but rather a divided landscape responding to external threats and uniting for mutually beneficial political purposes’ (15) only later in history. This notion of fragmentation and local diversity remains a theme running through the whole book.
The main body of the study is formed by chs 5–7, on the typology, distribution and technology of personal adornments: especially the fibulae, for their number, distribution and articulation prove to be valuable to R.'s analysis, yet the inclusion of other, if less omnipresent, adornment types is important for the overall image and for visualizing potential trade-offs. Usually the dates and interpretation given by the original publications are followed. The typology discussion is well illustrated with line drawings, and the database is available on a website; yet no comprehensive catalogue of all material with images is provided, which makes it less useful as a reference work. The real strength of the work is to be found in the quantifying analysis, with abundant distribution maps and graphs that form the basis for R.'s analysis of regional and local patterning in the deposition of personal adornments in funerary contexts.
These analyses allow R. to detect, on the basis of the fibulae, strongly localized differentiation in the eighth century, with an increasing cohesion in the entire Tyrrhenic area over the seventh century, which is probably to be linked to the growing influence of the Greek settlements in Italic exchange networks. The greatest changes are documented in the fifth century, when a drop in the number of fibulae was accompanied by a significant standardization of forms. In ch. 8 this analysis of regional patterning, and developments over time in this patterning, is further elaborated. Among the many stimulating observations presented here, one of the most inescapable ones is that geographical proximity is not a decisive factor in the distribution of different material types. Almost all of these analyses are surrounded with careful caveats about the quality of the dataset, and different possible perspectives or explanations.
R. then sets out on a more slippery path: the comparison of her networks of material culture exchange with historical evidence for the existence of a regional Samnite identity, as transmitted by Greek and Roman authors, or other cultural zones that have been distinguished in the archaeological literature (culture delle tombe a fossa, medioadriatiche etc.). As acknowledged by R., the latter comparison naturally risks circular reasoning, as these cultures have in part been defined on the basis of the same findings. R.'s conclusion is that it is ‘not possible to define a “Samnite” ethnos’ (128) in the material culture under consideration, and that the archaeological reality is ‘more complex, diverse and fragmented than previously conceived’ (139); nor does it map directly onto what may be inferred from the literary sources. Few scholars will disagree with this conclusion nowadays, particularly when contrasted with the neat ethnic maps presented by older generations of scholars. The connection with the recent scholarly debate on the matter of Samnite socio-political organization is, however, less strongly developed. This becomes especially clear in the concluding chapter (ch. 9), where the discussion on the ‘deconstruction of the monolithic Samnites’ fails to include any engagement with the essential works on the topic by Cesare Letta, Tim Cornell, Felice Senatore or Lukas Grossmann on deconstructing Samnite cohesion and unified models of socio-political and ethnic organization.
In a way, focusing the book, by way of its introduction and conclusion, so strongly on the expression/existence or not of a coherent Samnite ethnic identity does not do justice to the richness and originality of the study as such. The strength of the work is to be found precisely in the core of the research: on the differential and dynamic networks connecting Campanian and inland sites, and especially on the rôle of the Greek colonies in these Italic networks. Most importantly, R. has clearly demonstrated that the personal adornments buried with the dead are a powerful indicator of local diversity and differential interconnectedness of the communities involved.
