Giovanni Gozzadini (15 October 1810 – 25 August 1887) was an Italian

archeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscapes ...

. The last male heir of a noble family in Bologna, that had given the city men-at-arms, doctors, and jurists, Giovanni was a highly educated man in other areas such as politics. His excavations in a necropolis on his property at Villanova (Castenaso, eight kilometers south-east of Bologna), lasting from 1853 to 1855, involved 193 tombs, six of which were separated from the rest as if to signify a special social status. The "well tomb" pit graves lined with stones contained funerary urns. Thus were unearthed the first remains of the Villanovan culture, the first Iron Age culture in ancient Italy. The name Villanovan derives from that of the estate owned by Gozzadini. He also undertook the first excavations that brought to light the Etruscan necropolis at

Marzabotto Marzabotto ( Medial Mountain Bolognese: ) is a small town and ''comune'' in Italian region Emilia-Romagna, part of the Metropolitan City of Bologna. It is located south-southwest of Bologna by rail, and lies in the valley of the Reno. The area in ...

, financed by the conti Aria, who were the landowners of the entire Pianura di Misano. He is also known for his ground-breaking study of the medieval

Towers of Bologna The Towers of Bologna are a group of medieval structures in Bologna, Italy. The two most prominent ones remaining, known as the Two Towers, are a landmark of the city. History Between the 12th and the 13th century, Bologna was a city full of ...

. At her death, his only daughter, Gozzadina Gozzadini left the family fortune to the Hospital of Bologna, where the university pediatric clinic carries the family name today, the ''Clinica Pediatrica Universitaria Gozzadini di Bologna''.

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* People from Bologna Italian archaeologists 1810 births 1887 deaths Members of the Senate of the Kingdom of Italy Members of the Senate of the Kingdom of Sardinia Villanovan culture {{italy-archaeologist-stub