Cores and trenches drilled or dug in religious and secular buildings in the hilltop town of Bergamo (northern Italy) were investigated by means of micro/macrobotanical and pedochemical analysis to unravel the cultural vegetation history of the area during ca. seven centuries across the Bronze—Iron Ages. We explore the predictive power of biological proxies, nutrients, and coupled ¹⁴C datings to reveal early phases of human settlement and activity in a modern urban context with low visibility and difficult accessibility. Our records suggest that a farming centre was active on the Bergamo hilltop as early as the 15th century bc. Crop and animal husbandry reached a high point between the 11th-8th century bc. Plant and biogeochemical proxies predict extensive and diversified cereal cropping, flax and grapevine cultivation, as well as herd stalling at a watering pond, free range livestock growing in woodlands, and pastoralism, shown by hay making and overgrazing evidence. The suggestive hypothesis of carding wool is mentioned but is currently untenable. Furthermore, we identified a possible phase of abandonment starting from the 8th century bc, to be further investigated, and in agreement with archaeological data suggesting settlement decline in the 8th-6th century bc. Our research highlights the dedication to pastoralism of the Bergamo hill since prehistoric times. The settlement position was strategic for pastoralists to exploit biological and water resources in space, season and elevation, i.e. from the plain to higher Alpine pastures. Ethnographic examples and Middle Age written sources strongly support this picture.

在山顶小镇贝加莫（意大利北部）的宗教和世俗建筑中钻孔或挖掘的岩心和沟渠通过微/大型植物学和土壤化学分析进行了调查，以揭示该地区约 横跨青铜器——铁器时代的七个世纪。我们探索了生物替代物、营养物质和耦合¹⁴ C 年代测定的预测能力，以揭示在能见度低且难以进入的现代城市环境中人类定居和活动的早期阶段。我们的记录表明，早在公元前 15 世纪，贝加莫山顶就有一个农业中心。农作物和畜牧业在公元前11 世纪至 8 世纪之间达到了一个高峰. 植物和生物地球化学代理预测了广泛和多样化的谷物种植、亚麻和葡萄种植，以及在浇水池中的畜群停滞、在林地中生长的自由放养牲畜和畜牧业，这从干草制作和过度放牧的证据中可以看出。提到了梳理羊毛的暗示性假设，但目前是站不住脚的。此外，我们确定了从公元前8 世纪开始的一个可能的废弃阶段，有待进一步调查，并且与表明在公元前 8 世纪至 6 世纪定居下降的考古数据一致. 我们的研究突出了贝加莫山自史前时代以来对畜牧业的奉献精神。定居点对牧民在空间、季节和海拔（即从平原到高山牧场）开发生物和水资源具有战略意义。民族志的例子和中世纪的书面资料强烈支持这幅画。