Ruri rurant. L'Isola d'Elba da paesaggio del ferro a paesaggio agrario nella tarda età repubblicana

The case study described in this paper, that is, the Roman small villa rustica of San Giovanni in the Gulf of Portoferraio (Elba Island, Tuscany), represents a local declination of the type of buildings commonly defined as ‘Cato’s villa’. This research has stimulated a reflection on the type of agriculture described by Cato and the experiences that formed the practical basis for writing this text. In the project at Elba Island we are trying to aggregate historical, archaeological, archaeometric and bioarchaeological researches. Following this approach, one seeks to reconstruct the historical period of the villa's landscape that follows the traditional Cato’s model and precedes for at least half a century the villa perfecta of Varrone.