THE RESEARCH TEAM ON MARITIME AND UNDERWATER ARCHAEOLOGY

WHO WE ARE

CARLO BELTRAME
Professor
is Associated professor at Ca’ Foscari University and is Affiliated professor at the University of Haifa.
Since 2001 he has been teaching Maritime Archaeology and he has coordinated the first master in Maritime History and Archaeology in Italy. He is specialized mainly in ship construction from Antiquity to modern age and he is interested on methodology in maritime archaeology, on management and valorization of the underwater cultural heritage and in the traffics in Antiquity.
Since 2001 to 2012 he has been directing the training-excavation on the shipwreck of the brick Mercurio sunk off Punta Tagliamento in 1812; he collaborated with a Croatian mission of excavation on Medieval wrecks in the island of Mljet and he has directed a project of documentation and study of cargoes of marble of Roman age in southern and central Italy. He is coordinating two Interreg. Italy-Croatia projects, UNDERWATERMUSE and ARCA ADRIATICA, about the promotion respectively of the underwater archaeological sites and of the traditional nautical heritage of the Adriatic. He is member of the editorial boards of the journals Rivista di Archeologia, L'archeologo subacqueo, Scienze e ricerche, Annals of Archaeology and Journal of Marine Science Research.

ELISA COSTA
Research Fellow
is a research fellow in Methodologies for Archaeological Research at Ca' Foscari University.
In last ten years has dealt mainly with maritime and nautical archaeology, with particular interest in shipbuilding and archaeological survey with 3D digital techniques for the documentation, study, and dissemination of the archaeological heritage.
She has held a PhD in Storia delle Arti, an Interateneum doctorate Ca' Foscari University and Iuav University of Venice, with a thesis on Digital survey techniques for documentation, study and public fruition of wooden shipwreck"; she has graduated with a Master Degree in Archaeology and Conservation of Cultural Heritage and he has attended a Master in "Maritime Archaeology" at Ca 'Foscari University of Venice.
She participated as a Post-doc at two Interreg projects Italy-Croatia ARCA ADRIATICA and UNDERWATERMUSE, for the protection, promotion and touristic valorisation of Adriatic maritime heritage and Immersive Underwater Museum Experience for a wider inclusion.
She currently partecipate at the project PNRR CHANGES Spoke 1 Historical Landscapes, Traditions and Cultural Identities.

ALESSANDRA FORTI
Subject Matter Expert
has been dealing with Archaeobotany for more than 15 years, ranging in different chronological and cultural contexts, from prehistory to the Middle Ages.
Graduated in Pisa, she attended for her thesis the Laboratory of Archaeobotany and Paleoecology of the University of Lecce, directed by Prof. G. Fiorentino. Afterwards she had a scholarship within the Graduiertenkolleg, "Paläoökosystemforschung und Geschichte", at the University of Regensburg, Germany, which allowed her to attend the Laboratory of Palynology, of the University of Padua, directed by Prof. A. Miola and a course of wood anatomy, held by Prof. H.F. Schweingruber, at the Faculty of Biology of the University of Regensburg.
From 2006- 2008 she was an adjunct professor of Archaeobotany at Ca' Foscari University of Venice and later, from 2011 to 2020, an adjunct professor for the Laboratory of Archaeobotany, also at Ca' Foscari.
She recently completed a PhD in an inter-university program with the University of Ca' Foscari, University of Udine, and the University of Trieste, with a project that concern green and sustainability issues referring paleoenvironmental investigations on plant remains from archaeological lagoon contexts.
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CARLOTTA LUCARINI
Subject Matter Expert
graduated in Palaeoethnology at the University of Florence, she specialized in maritime and underwater archaeology through a Master’s degree in Naval and Maritime History and Heritage at the University of Murcia (Spain). She later obtained a second level Master’s degree in Archaeology at the University of Naples “L’Orientale”.
She recently completed a PhD in Archaeology in cotutelle between the University of Murcia and Ca’ Foscari University of Venice. Her dissertation, co-supervised by Prof. Sebastián Ramallo and Prof. Carlo Beltrame, focused on lagoon and wetland landscapes in Antiquity, particularly during the Roman period. The research investigated the processes driving the evolution of littoral environments, the interactions between humans and their surroundings, and the ways ancient communities exploited and inhabited these amphibious areas.
She has been involved in several research projects in the Venetian Lagoon, including excavations and non-invasive surveys, and she specializes in the management and analysis of multi-source data within GIS environments.
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ELISABETTA ROSATTI
PhD Student
is a PhD student in Heritage Science, a national doctoral program coordinated by Sapienza-University of Rome. In this context, she won a scholarship in Global History and Archaeology of the Landscapes led by University of Bari.
After a bachelor’s degree in Classical Literature (2019), she obtained a master’s degree in Ancient Civilisations at Ca’ Foscari University in Venice (2021) with a thesis on Roman fluvial ports.
In the last years, she has taken part in different archaeological excavations and lab activities, enhancing her skills in both desk and field-based work.
For her doctoral research, she currently studies fluvial-maritime ports in the Roman Adriatic region focusing especially on the organisation and functioning of these facilities, together with prof. Giuliano Volpe and Carlo Beltrame as tutors of the project.

CATERINA TOMIZZA
PhD Student
after a bachelor’s degree in Conservation of Cultural Heritage and Performing Arts Management, she proceeded her studies at Ca’Foscari University of Venice attending a master’s degree in Ancient Civilizations with a thesis on the maritime circulation of ceramic building materials in the Central-Western Mediterranean of Roman period. In the last years she had the opportunity to participate in different on-land and underwater excavations in Italy and abroad, where she has been involved in an international exchange program in the Department of Maritime Civilizations of Haifa University. She is currently a PhD student from the doctoral program in Sciences of Antiquity at Ca’Foscari University of Venice and her project, under the supervision of Prof. Carlo Beltrame, concerns the production and the maritime circulation of rooftiles in the Roman Mediterranean, with a particular interest for the archaeometrical studies on these materials, the reconstructive studies of the vessels involved in their distribution and the methodological proposals for the management and systematization of archaeological data.