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Modern Description: Raia San Basile is the name given to a large area that commences near a fortified hill overlooking the ‘Fiumara di Muro’ at the junction of the ‘Fiumara di Bella’. When the site of Raia San Basile is referred to, it is generally assumed to refer to the collective area of three separate sites: Colle Torrana, Valle degli Orti and Raia San Basile itself. For the purposes of this study, this configuration will be used. The extant polygonal wall line surrounding the bottom of the low hill at the bottom of Raia San Basile consists of large rough‐hewn boulders and at some section stands to height of over 2 metres. This is also the area where the Oscan inscription (using Greek letterforms) was found: Maius Arrius in his term as Meddix. Raia San Basile is intervisibile with a large number of surrounding fortified sites but does not seem to be part of a control network. Rather, Raia San Basile itself seems to be the focus of attention. It is ringed by several other smaller fortified ‘observation’ centres in and around the Platano valley: Guardiola, Toppo Castelluccio, Monte Nuovo and Monte Giano. They all have low intervisibility amongst themselves but together form a strong visual network controlling access points in and out of the valley and all report to Raia San Basile which appears to be at the centre, both geographically and defensively, of this network. The other observational link is provided by Serra di Fagato ‐ six kilometres to the south east ‐ and connected terrestrially by a still visible tratturo. Serra di Fagato controls access along the steep gorges of the Platano. This route leads to Buccino (Volcei) and eventually through the Sele valley to the coast and Poseidonia. Raia San Basile itself is not intervisibile with Serra di Fagato, but it is intervisible with nearby Ripa della Scala. This is important because receiveing information about approaching danger from Serra di Fagato was vital. Especially given the topography around the area which would seem to funnel all traffic travelling towards Raia San Basile from the south and west past the region observed by Serra di Fagato. It also demonstrates the importance of Ripa della Scala which was vital in this system of relaying information to Raia San Basile. In fact, given its close physical proximity to Raia San Basile, Rippa della Scala may even be thought of as one of the entities (along with Colle Torrana and Valle degli Orti) that made up the Raia San Basile complex.

Info: Myers Lucania

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

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