Archaeobotanical finds from the Brina medieval castle in the lower Magra valley (La Spezia - Italy): first results

This paper presents the results of the first study of the archaeobotanical finds from the medieval settlement of Brina (X-XVI century A.D.) located in a hilly territory in the lower Magra valley near Sarzana (La Spezia - Italy) (Figure 1). These macroremains are mostly represented by a large amount of charred wheat caryopses and broad bean seeds, in addition to a small amount of seeds and / or fruits of wild species. All these macroremains were found in two distinct areas inside the settlement walls and in ground pits in a storage area and from vessels used in a sort of a ‘dry kiln’ used in the XI century AD. What remained belonged to agricultural production of crops that supposedly were not in close proximity to the settlement, given the topographical position of the castle yet in the same territory of jurisdiction of the castle .