Nuovi dati dall’entroterra savonese tra Bronzo finale ed età del Ferro

New data from the Savona hinterland between the Late Bronze Age and the Iron Age - In the last fifteen years the hinterland of the province of Savona, especially the area of the upper Val Bormida, yielded new prehistoric finds dating to the Bronze and Iron Ages that make this area, previously almost unknown from the archaeological point of view, one of the richest in new information for these periods in Liguria. Here we intend to give a brief account of the most recent achievements and some particularly significant discoveries. The new data are mostly related to the discovery of indigenous (Ligures/Λίγυες) cremation necropolis and several metal objects, coupled with some test excavations in a few sites. Some of the newly discovered sites are probably linked to the production of metal objects, most probably arm rings and personal ornaments, and the control of ancient routes connecting the Ligurian coast to the Po Valley. During the late Iron Age then, in relation to the Romanization of the coast, the existence of small indigenous necropolis in mountain areas would indicate the presence of possible Ligures’ garrisons to control mountain pass as an alternative route to the main road network. Finally, the presence in the grave goods of several metal objects, even fragmentary, of older chronology than that of the burial context could be explained as the re-use with a monetary value of metal objects and their fragments by the indigenous peoples, perhaps the result of looting ancient necropolis.