This study of birth-rates, death-rates and demography in Medieval Italy challenges many traditional assumptions based on documentary evidence. Giovannini looks instead at archaeological evidence from the 6th to 14th century and reaches a number of interesting conclusions - the death-rate for 0-5 year olds is not as high as previously thought; a small percentage of the population lived beyond the age of 50. Like many other parts of Europe, factors such as famine and disease do not seem to have been prevalent until the later medieval period. Text in Italian with English and French abstracts.