The analysis of nineteenth-century cadastral maps showed that two centuries ago the areas were both set within a rural context (Figs 1 and 2); Rivoli area was characterised by the presence of vineyards (23 per cent), cereal fields (28 per cent) and prairies (10 per cent); Verzuolo area was characterised by vineyards (7 per cent) and alteni (vines with cereals in the inter-rows) (13 per cent), cereal fields (30 per cent) and prairies (17 per cent). Broadleaved woods (chestnut and oaks) were abundant in both areas, with the highest values (38 per cent) in the Rivoli area and lower values in the Verzuolo area (20 per cent), just on the hills. The map shows a clear difference between the left part of the area, which is characterised by hills, and the right one, which is located in the
plain. Urban areas formed 1–2 per cent of the total area in both sites. Landscape changes in the Rivoli area have been mostly determined by urbanisation, which has completely altered the identity of this rural area. Woods maintained their coverage (38 per cent) while vineyards were almost completely transformed in the urban areas that now cover almost one-third of the total surface. In the Verzuolo area, the abandonment of the marginal areas of the hills and the fragmentation of the plain were the main factors responsible for landscape dynamics. In this area, the percentage of wood coverage remained at about 20 per cent, while urban areas increased from 2 to 7 per cent of the total area. Landscape dynamics is documented by the transformation map (Fig. 3) in which the persistence of woods and the development of urban areas on agricultural lands is spatially represented. The calculation of spatial indexes (Table 1) leads to further considerations of landscape dynamics.