The piles were evidently in their natural position, and the conclusion that the entire island had been a pile-dwelling was irresistible; but the questions when and by what means was the transformation accomplished, were as obscure as before. Mainly for the purpose of clearing this matter, Sig. Ettore Ponti, in September of the following year, gave instructions to have further excavations made in different parts of the island. On this occasion 12 trenches were dug, covering an area of about 230 square yards with an average depth of 3 to 4 feet.
The stratification and composition of the stuff were very similar to those experienced in the former excavations. In this space 440 piles were counted, and Regazzoni calculates that at this rate the original number of piles requisite for the construction of the entire lake-village would be from 35,000 to 40,000. Some horizontal beams were also found among the débris. Among the relics the following are noteworthy:—A tyne of deer's horn, with a flint implement inserted into the end of it (No. 3); a small clay weight shaped like a pear; several objects of worked bone, as needles (Nos. 7 to 9), pointers, chisels (No. 25), handles, etc. A knife (No. 5) and a dagger of bronze (No. 6), and two oblong beads of coloured glass with transverse grooves, were found in the stratum immediately below the surface soil.
Fig. 48—Isola Virginia. No. 25 = 1⁄4, and the rest = 1⁄2 real size.
As a rule, the tops of the piles in these trenches were on a level with the surface of the water, while those in the lake were several feet lower—more or less, according to the depth of water. The cause of this was no doubt the protection given to the former by the accumulation of débris around them. It was observed that the uppermost layer alone had yielded Roman coins, but along with them were objects of both the Stone and Bronze Ages—a juxtaposition which might be accounted for by agricultural and other operations to which the island has been subjected in historical times. The fourth, or that which lay immediately over the ancient lake-sediment, was alone exclusively deposited under water, as it contained some entire dishes, and the associated débris were just the usual contents of lake-dwelling relic-beds, viz. the shells of hazel-nuts, acorns, charred bits of wood, bones of various animals (among others the skull of an enormous wild boar), as well as implements of bone, horn, and flint, pottery, etc. The second and third layers were composed of much the same materials as the fourth, but they appeared to have been the contents of a previously-deposited relic-bed artificially heaped up, as they contained portions of wooden beams which had no definite purpose, but lay in the soil in all directions.
The relics of humanity collected on the Isola Virginia in the course of these various excavations are so numerous that one of the two rooms set apart by Sig. Ponti as an archæological museum for the lacustrine remains of Lake Varese is entirely devoted to their exhibition and preservation, where they have been carefully and neatly arranged under the skilful care of Professor Regazzoni.
Pottery.—As in the other lacustrine stations in this lake, there are two kinds of pottery—one black, and made of fine paste, of which most of the smaller vessels were made; the other is of a greyish colour, but sometimes it has a reddish tinge, and contains a mixture of fine gravel or coarse sand, which gives it a rough appearance. The fragments and entire dishes in the Ponti Museum decidedly testify to considerable skill in the ceramic art. Besides perforated knobs and tubular borings for the insertion of cords (No. 17), there are various forms of handles, as in Nos. 14 and 16, the latter of which is interesting, as it suggests the primary stage of the ansa lunata which is such a prominent characteristic of the pottery in the eastern portion of the Po valley.
The diversity of ornamentation is also worthy of notice—raised dots, nail-marks, perforated rims, lines, corrugated grooves, and cord-markings, forming a variety of combinations (Nos. 13, 15, 22, 23, 26, and 27). One bit shows the impression of plaited reed-work (No. 29). Another, an entire dish made of fine black paste, is a curiosity in its way; it consists of three cups united, and having a communication with each other by a small hole in the dividing septa (No. 24). The coarse pottery indicates vessels of large dimensions. There are also loom-weights, spindle-whorls (No. 21), some conical objects pierced vertically (No. 10), and casts of wicker-work, supposed to be the remains of the cottage walls.
Bone and Horn.—Objects of this class are numerous, as polished daggers, pointers, chisels (No. 25), needles (Nos. 7 to 9); also a few perforated teeth.