The Post Medieval Gravellona Toce Boat: an inland watercraft from north-west Italy assembled using locked dowels

International audienceDiscovered in 1955, not far from the Roman necropolis of Pedemonte, the Gravellona Toce boat has long been considered evidence of Roman era riverine navigation in northern Italy. This initial interpretation, which was not supported by direct dating evidence, has been recently reconsidered on the basis of radiocarbon dating and analysis of the timbers retrieved. In this paper, the authors present the results of the recent analysis of the surviving remains of the boat which allow it to be interpreted as a post-medieval boat built using the traditional bottom-based construction techniques of the Po Valley region