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Modern Description: Serra di Fagato is a site situated on the top of very high and difficult to access hill overlooking the steep gorges of the Platano river and the Fiumara della Corte. Serra di Fagato is intervisible with some of the other smaller fortified ‘observation’ centres in and around the Platano valley: Guardiola, Toppo Castelluccio and Rippa Della Scala. They all have low intervisibility amongst themselves but together form a strong visual network, controlling access points in and out of the Platano Valley and all report to Raia San Basile which appears to be at the centre, both geographically and defensively, of this network. Serra di Fagato which is situated six kilometres to the south east of Raia San Basile and connected terrestrially by a still visible tratturo. This route leads to Buccino (ancient Volcei) and eventually through the Sele Valley to the coast and Poseidonia. Serra di Fagato is not intervisibile with Raia San Basile, but it is intervisible with nearby Rippa della Scala – situated just over a kilometre away from Raia San Basile. This is important because it enabled Raia San Basile to receive information about movement along the south‐west approaches to the Platano Valley.

Info: Myers Lucania

Brett Andrew Myers, Visual Connectivity and Control in Ancient Lucania, MPhil thesis 2018, Univ. of Sydney

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