10 September 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Was the mystery of Noceto Vasca Votiva the water ritual?

The Noceto Vasca Votiva is a one-of-a-kind wood building discovered in 2005 on a tiny hill in northern Italy. The in-ground building, constructed mostly of wood and somewhat larger than a home swimming pool, has remained a mystery, as has the date of its creation.

Italian researchers estimated its origins go back to the late Middle Bronze Age, sometime between 1600 and 1300 BCE.

The Cornell Tree-Ring Laboratory near Ithica, New York, has identified an old wooden water tank known as the Noceto Vasca Votiva as a relic from the mid-15th century BC using their own patented methods. This suggests that the in-ground reservoir was constructed around 3,500 years ago by ancient residents of a productive agricultural valley near the contemporary town of Noceto in the province of Parma.

A Cornell University team led by Sturt Manning, Distinguished Professor of Arts and Sciences in Classics and director of the Tree-Ring Laboratory, used dendrochronology and a form of radiocarbon dating called ‘wiggle matching to pinpoint, with 95% probability, the years.  Within that timeframe, they were able to date the construction of the lower and upper tanks of the Noceto Vasca Votiva to the years 1444 BC and 1432 BC respectively. The ‘wiggle-matching’ method developed at the Cornell Tree-Ring Laboratory is impressively accurate, and in this instance the margin of error for these specific dates is just four years.

Some of the Bronze Age vessels and wooden items, deposited in the upper tank at Noceto (in situ). ( PLoS ONE )

There has been debate regarding who built the Noceto Vasca Votiva and why since it was found 17 years ago. Now that experts know when it was built, they are closer to addressing these issues than ever before, and their findings have recently been published in the journal PLOS One.

Why Was the Noceto Vasca Votiva Built? A Possible Explanation

The basin was constructed at a time when prehistoric Italy was going through a period of rapid societal and cultural change.

Populations were expanding and living in a more concentrated fashion. As the material needs of settlements grew, trade networks were beginning to form across longer distances. The world of prehistoric Italy was becoming more urbanized in its scale and outlook.

“You’ve had one way of life in operation for hundreds of years, and then you seem to have a switch to fewer, larger settlements, more international trade, more specialization, such as textile manufacture, and a change in burial practices,” Sturt Manning told the Cornell Chronicle .

He believes these changes may have had something to do with why Noceto Vasca Votiva was constructed.

“There is something of a pattern all around the world,” he explained. “Nearly every time there’s a major change in social organization, there tends often to be an episode of building what might be described as unnecessary monuments … Stonehenge marks a major change in southern England. Noceto is not the scale of Stonehenge, but it has some similarities – an act of major place-making.”

During turbulent times, when conventional methods are being uprooted, the populace may feel a strong need to cling to something solid and timeless. Something spiritual in nature that can bring individuals together throughout generations regardless of lifestyle changes. A power capable of bestowing favor and ensuring good fortune during a tough transition period.

The characteristics of Noceto Vasca Votiva support the assertion that it was used for ritual rather than practical purposes. It was too far from the center of the local settlement to have been used as a source of drinking or bathing water. It had no channels or outlets for irrigation, at a time when irrigation systems were being built everywhere.

Most revealing of all, many of the artifacts found at the site, including many ceramic pottery pieces, organic food remains, figurines, and small personal items made from stone or wood were found inside the large water tank. This shows they were deliberately put there, presumably by individuals seeking blessings from a higher power.

“It’s tempting to think it was about creating a reflective surface that you can see into, and where you put some offerings, but you’re also looking at the sky above and the linking of land, sky and water (rain),” Manning said.

At that time, the climate in Italy had become increasingly arid. In response, people in the region had built extensive irrigation and water management systems to keep their crops growing and prevent their culture from collapsing. In these circumstances, divine assistance from the powerful spirits of nature would have been most welcome, the blessings of the spirits of the water would have been especially coveted.

Related Articles

Unique work of Minoan art, the Pylos Combat Agate must be the David of the Prehistoric era

21 November 2021

21 November 2021

Found in a Greek tomb dating back 3,500 years, the artifact is so well designed that it looks as lively...

Archaeologists found gold coins from the time of Justinian the Great in Northern Bulgaria

3 September 2024

3 September 2024

Archaeologists have discovered five gold coins dating from the reign of Justinian the Great (483-565) in Debnevo, the largest village...

A unique gold brooch talisman with inscriptions in Latin and Hebrew was found in the UK

19 February 2022

19 February 2022

A Medieval gold annular brooch with prayerful inscriptions has been discovered in the parish of Manningford in Wiltshire, in the...

World’s Oldest Arrow Poison Discovered in South Africa, Dating Back 7,000 Years

27 January 2025

27 January 2025 1

In a groundbreaking discovery, archaeologists excavating Kruger Cave in South Africa have identified what may be the oldest confirmed multi-component...

Ancient DNA Reveals Missing Link in the Origins of Indo-European Languages Spoken by 40% of the World

6 February 2025

6 February 2025

A study published in the journal Nature has genetically identified the origins of the Indo-European language family, which includes over...

Rare Astrolabe Discovered in Verona Sheds Light On Islamic, Jewish, and Christian Scientific Exchange

6 March 2024

6 March 2024

An eleventh-century rare astrolabe bearing Arabic and Hebrew inscriptions was recently discovered in a museum in Verona, Italy. It dates...

New discoveries at the Sanxingdui Ruins demonstrate ancient China’s creative ability

9 September 2021

9 September 2021

Chinese archaeologists revealed fresh important finds at the Sanxingdui Ruins site in southwest China’s Sichuan Province on Thursday, from pits...

The researchers may have cracked the mystery of da Vinci’s DNA

7 July 2021

7 July 2021

A recent study of Leonardo da Vinci’s family tree indicates that the renowned Renaissance artist, inventor, and anatomist had 14...

Anatolia’s first company was founded 4000 years ago with 15 kilos of gold!

26 May 2024

26 May 2024

A 4,000-year-old tablet found in Kültepe shows that the first company in Anatolia was established by 12 people with 15...

The ashes of 8,000 victims were found in two mass graves near the Soldau concentration camp in Poland

14 July 2022

14 July 2022

Polish authorities said they had unearthed two mass graves near the former Nazi concentration camp Soldau containing the ashes of...

Croatian Team Finds a Way to Effectively and Permanently Preserve Stuka Aircraft Wreck Under the Sea

11 December 2024

11 December 2024

 The ICUA Zadar team of conservators and archaeologists carried out in situ underwater conservation of the wreckage of the Junkers...

Archaeologists have made a shocking discovery after a re-examination of a mummified teen mom who died in childbirth

29 December 2023

29 December 2023

Archaeologists have made a shocking discovery after re-examining the mummified remains of a teen mom aged just 14-17 who died...

Newly discovered inscribed brick may reveal Elamite water supply system in Western Iran

15 January 2024

15 January 2024

Archaeologists discovered a brick inscribed with Akkadian script, marking the Elamite water supply system, alongside some intricately patterned bricks in...

Tanzania’s mysterious footprints were made by early humans, not bears

6 December 2021

6 December 2021

The prehistoric footprints discovered by archaeologists caused confusion because scientists looked at them again to determine whether they were left...

Archaeologists in Peru discover a mummy tied with 800-year-old ropes

28 November 2021

28 November 2021

On Peru’s central coast, archaeologists discovered a mummy estimated to be at least 800 years old. The mummy’s body was...