Dr. Alberto De Bonis

Geologist specialised in the mineralogical and petrographic investigation of ancient ceramics and raw materials. In 2016 he has a project “Ceramic production in the plain of Paestum” funded by the FWF Austrian Science Fund (Lise Meitner Programme) at the Institut für Klassische Archäologie, Universität Wien.
Prior to this, he worked at the Department of Earth Sciences, Federico II University of Naples (Italy), focusing on the raw materials procurement for the production of ancient pottery in the Campania region of Italy as well as on the experimental investigation of processing and firing techniques. He has collaborated with several archaeologists for the study of provenance and technology of pottery from Campania, but also from different sites in Asia and Africa.
He has also been involved in studies of other materials (adobe bricks, stones, mortars, plasters, mosaics, wall paintings) concerning the conservation of Cultural Heritage and sustainable building, but also on different topics, such as the investigation of Mediterranean coastal sediments and zeolite minerals.


Academic career and Education

Since 2019
Assistant Professor (Ricercatore – RTDb) at the Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, dell’Ambiente e delle Risorse, Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy

2017
Teaching at the Institut für Klassische Archäologie, Universität Wien. Course "Introduction to ceramic Archaeometry" (090052-1 KU; 2017W)

2016
FWF Lise Meitner Programme (M 1918-G25) “Ceramic production in the plain of Paestum”. Institut für Klassische Archäologie, Universität Wien. Project leader, Dr. Alberto De Bonis. Co-applicant, ao. Univ.-Prof. Dr. Verena Gassner.

2014 – 2016
Teaching at the Accademia di Belle Arti of Naples. Course "Mineralogy for the restoration of cultural heritage".

2015 – 2016
Post-doctoral researcher, Dipartimento di Strutture per l’Ingegneria e l’Architettura, Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II (Italy). “Mineralogical and petrographic characterization of mud bricks (adobe) used in sustainable building”.

2011 – 2013
Post-doctoral researcher, Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, dell’Ambiente e delle Risorse, Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II (Italy). “Mineralogical and petrographic characterization of Clayey Raw Materials from the Campania region of Italy. Use in the production of archaeological ceramics”.

2011
Ph.D. in Petrography and Petrology, Università degli Studi di Catania (Italy). “Minero-petrographic and physical-mechanical characterization of Campanian clays as raw materials for archaeological pottery productions”. Supervisor, Prof. V. Morra

2010
Ph.D. visiting fellowship, Departamento de Mineralogía y Petrología, Universidad de Granada (Spain). Supervisor, Prof. G. Cultrone

2006
Degree in Geology (summa cum laude), Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II (Italy). “Archaeometric characterisation of Late Antique pottery from Caudium (Italy)”. Supervisor, Prof. V. Morra


Selected publications

In journals

  • De Bonis, A., Cultrone, G., Grifa, C., Langella, A., Leone, A.P., Mercurio, M., Morra, V. (2017). Different shades of red: the complexity of mineralogical and physico-chemical factors influencing the colour of ceramics. Ceramics international, 43, 8065-8074. DOI: 10.1016/j.ceramint.2017.03.127
  • De Bonis, A., D'Angelo, M., Guarino, V., Massa, S., Saiedi Anaraki, F., Genito, B., Morra, V. (2017). Unglazed pottery from the masjed-i jom’e of Isfahan (Iran): technology and provenance. Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences, 9, 617-635. DOI: 10.1007/s12520-016-0407-z
  • Balassone, G., Aiello, G., Barra, D., Cappelletti, P., De Bonis, A., Donadio, C., Guida, M., Melluso, L., et al. (2016). Effects of anthropogenic activities in a Mediterranean coastland: the case study of the Falerno-Domitio littoral in Campania, Tyrrhenian Sea (southern Italy). Marine Pollution Bulletin, 112, 271-290. DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2016.08.004
  • de Gennaro, B., Mercurio, M., Cappelletti, P., Catalanotti, L., Dakovic, A., De Bonis, A., Grifa, C., Izzo, F., et al. (2016). Use of surface modified natural zeolite (SMNZ) in pharmaceutical preparations part 2. A new approach for a fast functionalization of zeolite-rich carriers. Microporous and Mesoporous Materials, 235, 42-49. DOI: 10.1016/j.micromeso.2016.07.043
  • Grifa, C., Cavassa, L., De Bonis, A., Germinario, C., Guarino, V., Izzo, F., Kakoulli, I., Langella, A., et al. (2016). Beyond Vitruvius: New Insight in the Technology of Egyptian Blue and Green Frits. Journal of the American Ceramic Society, 99, 3467-3475. DOI: 10.1111/jace.14370
  • Izzo, F., Arizzi, A., Cappelletti, P., Cultrone, G., De Bonis, A., Germinario, C., Graziano, S.F., Grifa, C., et al. (2016). The art of building in the Roman period (89 B.C. - 79 A.D.): Mortars, plasters and mosaic floors from ancient Stabiae (Naples, Italy). Construction and Building Materials, 117, 129-143. DOI: 10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2016.04.101
  • Balassone, G., Toscano, M., Cavazzini, G., De Bonis, A., D'Orazio, L., Joachimski, M., Weihe, H., Prochaska, W., et al. (2014). The history of the “Virgin with Child” sculpture (Ottaviano, Naples, southern Italy): Hypotheses from archaeometric multi-technique investigations. Journal of Cultural Heritage, 15, 414-423. DOI: 10.1016/j.culher.2013.09.002
  • De Bonis, A., Cultrone, G., Grifa, C., Langella, A., Morra, V. (2014). Clays from the Bay of Naples (Italy): New insight on ancient and traditional ceramics. Journal of the European Ceramic Society, 34, 3229-3244. DOI: 10.1016/j.jeurceramsoc.2014.04.014
  • De Bonis, A., Grifa, C., Cultrone, G., De Vita, P., Langella, A., Morra, V. (2013). Raw Materials for Archaeological Pottery from the Campania Region of Italy: A Petrophysical Characterization. Geoarchaeology, 28, 478-503. DOI: 10.1002/gea.21450
  • Grifa, C., De Bonis, A., Langella, A., Mercurio, M., Soricelli, G., Morra, V. (2013). A Late Roman ceramic production from Pompeii. Journal of Archaeological Science, 40, 810-826. DOI: 10.1016/j.jas.2012.08.043
  • Morra, V., De Bonis, A., Grifa, C., Langella, A., Cavassa, L., Piovesan, R. (2013). Minero-petrographic study of cooking ware and Pompeian Red ware (Rosso Pompeiano) from Cuma (Southern Italy). Archaeometry, 55, 852-879. DOI: 10.1111/j.1475-4754.2012.00710.x
  • Grifa, C., Cultrone, G., Langella, A., Mercurio, M., De Bonis, A., Sebastián, E., Morra, V. (2009). Ceramic replicas of archaeological artefacts in Benevento area (Italy): Petrophysical changes induced by different proportions of clays and temper. Applied Clay Science, 46, 231-240. DOI: 10.1016/j.clay.2009.08.007


In books and proceedings

  • Grifa C., Germinario C., Langella A., De Bonis A, Guarino V., Morra V. (2017). Dati preliminari dagli studi archeometrici su materiali ceramici da Pontecagnano e confronti con Fratte e Paestum. In: A. Serritella (ed.), Fingere ex argilla. Le produzioni ceramiche a vernice nera del Golfo di Salerno. Salerno, 1 marzo 2013. Ergasteria, 5, Paestum, Pandemos, pp. 47-54
  • De Bonis, A., Germinario, C., Grifa, C., Guarino, V., Langella, A., Morra, V., Ferrara, B., Munzi, P., Serritella, A. (2017). The black-glaze production in the Tyrrhenian coast of southern Italy: a review of the archaeometric data, In: M. Ugarković, A. De Bonis (eds.), Identifying black-glazed pottery productions in the central Mediterranean: an interdisciplinary approach. International Workshop, Institute of Classical Archaeology, University of Vienna, 10 march 2017. Forum Archaeologiae 83/VI/2017 (http://farch.net).
  • Ferrara, B., Guarino, V., De Bonis, A., Morra, V., Grifa, C., Langella, A. (2014). The sanctuary of Hera at the mouth of the Sele River: archaeometric analyses for the reconstruction of black glaze ware production at Paestum. In: G. Greco, L. Cicala (eds.), Archaeometry. Comparing experiences. Quaderni del Centro Studi Magna Grecia, 19, Naus, Pozzuoli, pp. 165-189.   
  • Greco, G., Tomeo, A., Ferrara, B., Guarino, V., De Bonis, A., Morra, V. (2014). Cumae, the Forum: typological and archaeometric analysis of some pottery classes from sondages inside the Temple with Portico. In: G. Greco, L. Cicala (eds.), Archaeometry. Comparing experiences. Quaderni del Centro Studi Magna Grecia, 19, Naus, Pozzuoli, pp. 37-68.
  • Munzi, P., Guarino, V., De Bonis, A., Grifa, C., Langella, A., Morra, V. (2012). Le ceramiche ellenistiche del santuario periurbano settentrionale di Cuma. In: FACEM (version 06/12/2012). Vienna, 4-5 May 2012, Universität Wien, http://www.facem.at/project‐papers.php
  • De Bonis, A., Cavassa, L., Grifa, C., Langella, A., Morra, V. (2009). Le ceramiche comuni di Cuma. In: Les céramiques communes d'Italie et de Narbonnaise. Centre Jean Bérard (CNRS), pp. 309-330.


Find more publications on Scopus, ORCID, ResearcherID, ResearchGate, and Academia.

Alberto.De.Bonis@univie.ac.at  

alberto.debonis@unina.it

(3. 1. 2019)