Sale, lana e Dei: il culto di Ercole lungo le vie della transumanza nell'area picena / Salt, wool and the Gods: Heraclean cult along the transhumance paths in the Picenum

This contribution aims to identify the traces left by the cult of Hercules along the transhumance routes in the Picene area between the 6th and 1st centuries BC. Particular attention is devoted to the findspots of the votive bronze figurines attributed to the deity, in order to investigate how the associated cult places were integrated into the road network and whether they also functioned as points of exchange, grazing, and control. The study also seeks to define the geomorphological and ecological characteristics shared by these devotional areas. These elements, brought into dialogue within a GIS environment through the use of the integrated R software, enabled the application of logistic regression analysis which, by intersecting the results of environmental predictors (slope, terrain elevation, presence of rivers) and anthropic predictors (the Roman road system), made it possible to identify areas of potential archaeological interest related to transhumant and ritual activities throughout the study area.