Daunia

Daunian (now the province of Foggia) in Puglia, in particular the Gargano, was inhabited by the Daunians. This people was related to Illyrian descent and with the Messapians and Peuketiern. In antiquity, the area was called Calabria.

As early as the Paleolithic ( 1000000-35000 BC) man in the whole territory of the Gargano left its mark. Here he found an ideal habitat with a mild climate, potable spring water, fertile soil rich in fruits and wild and rich fishing grounds along the coast. The main inhabited areas were Vallecoppe, Campi, Costella, Puntalunga, Macchione, Passo dell'Arciprete, Sfinalicchio. The residents worked throughout the area occurring flint, to make it into tools for crafts, hunting and defense. Not too long ago, a great plant for stone tool production in the area of Defensola about 3 km north of Vieste was discovered. This is one of the largest flint mines in Europe.

In the Neolithic period the fertile plains of this flat land was already populated densely by hundreds of villages, all of which were surrounded by a moat. The settlement by the Daunians took place before 1000 BC, the same time the area was colonized by Greeks but since the 13th century BC. From when we can speak of the culture and the people of the Daunians in this region is not occupied. Prove Extensive excavations in the region that it BC, came to the influx of Illyrian peoples such as the Messapern and Peuketiern from 11.is 10th century from the area of the eastern Adriatic. Fassbar the Daunian culture until it rises to the 3rd century in the 4th from about the 9th century BC in the Greco- Roman culture. Of particular note is their pronounced, set in stone burial culture with abundant grave goods. Their dead were buried in a lateral position, with legs drawn up ( squatting position ) in a north-south orientation with their faces to the east.

The Daunians first settled on the coast in simple villages and lived from trade and piracy. Later they spread out in the hinterland, where they mixed with the indigenous population and some cities founded in Greek style. The first contacts with the Aegean world date back to the Bronze Age and Daunian was called by the Greeks as the earth by Diomedes, because he was the founder of many cities. These cities also knew a discrete prestige, they even minted their own coins. Trade contacts with the other side of the Adriatic Sea are occupied, with wheat exports and metal products were purchased. The Daunians were first conquered by the Samnites and later by the Romans.

Culture and writing

In the Museo Civico, which can be found in the historic center of Vieste, archaeological discoveries are from the pre-Roman period. Among the fragments of a stela with a messapic with letters cut epigraphic inscription, which is referred to as " the most outstanding linguistic document old Daunia ". These and other stelae that were found throughout Daunian, are valuable sources about the everyday life of Daunians and provide information about their rites, war or hunting, because in the Daunian art figural representations are missing. In Ascoli there is a Daunian Archaeological Park and extensive private collections on the subject.