Sea lands: coastal landscapes between the Timavo river (Trieste, Italy) and Piran (Slovenia)

The paper aims to describe the significant results of the Interreg Italy–Slovenia Project “AltoAdriatico”. The project was conceived on a relatively new approach to the research, preservation, evaluation and fruition of archaeological sites, based on the landscape or global archaeology or, better, the geoarcheology (“an integrated way of understanding humans in dynamic landscapes’’, Barker and Bintcliff, 1999).The project concerned coastal landscapes (italians and slovenians) today separate, with the purpose to restore their common identity. Such approach and objectives are in compliance with UNESCO’s Convention on the conservation of underwater cultural heritage and guidelines of the Interreg program (cooperation in the sphere of culture, in research and strengthening of interinstitutional contacts). The initial agreement was signed by Dipartimento di Scienze dell'Antichità of Trieste University, Maritime Museum "Sergej Mašera"-Piran and ENEA Rome with the project "Global climate", later joined by other institutions The main objective was to analyse modes, patterns and phases of the ancient settlement system along the Trieste and Slovene coasts with a systematic research of the pre-Roman, Roman and mediaeval structures, which are partially or completely submerged, and archaeological sites situated on the coast between the mouth of the Timavo river (Trieste, Italy) and Piran (Slovenia). Furthermore, besides their historical values (chronology, function, tipology, building techniques, etc.), these structures are excellent markers of the relative sea-level changes. The measurements of their depth and the interpretation of the “functional height” have brought quantitative data on the relative rise of the sea (1.6 m since Roman times) and have enabled us to assess the threat status of the area in the future.