Con questo volume si avvia, a distanza di oltre novant’anni, l’edizione sistematica delle ricerch... more Con questo volume si avvia, a distanza di oltre novant’anni, l’edizione sistematica delle ricerche condotte tra il 1929 e il 1931, nell’immediato suburbio settentrionale dell’antica città di Vulci, da Ugo Ferraguti, Regio Ispettore Onorario e finanziatore degli scavi, sotto il controllo e la supervisione di Raniero Mengarelli, funzionario (diremmo oggi) dell’allora Soprintendenza agli Scavi di Roma e Provincia, competente per territorio: una campagna di indagini che, nonostante i risultati notevoli – numerosi complessi funerari databili dall’età orientalizzante a quella ellenistica e i resti di un’area sacra –, non era mai giunta, per diverse ragioni, ad una compiuta edizione.
Dopo un primo capitolo dedicato alla presentazione delle attività svolte a Vulci dai due protagonisti, vengono illustrate le complesse vicende che hanno determinato la mancata pubblicazione delle indagini e riassunti i punti salienti del lavoro di revisione che, in parte ancora in atto per ciò che concerne i complessi funerari, ha consentito di riordinare l’intera documentazione prodotta ai tempi degli scavi o negli anni immediatamente successivi; nel terzo capitolo viene affrontata la presentazione di uno dei
contesti indagati dal “mecenate” e dall’“ingegnere”: l’area sacra di Carraccio dell’Osteria, già oggetto di fondamentali considerazioni da parte di Francesco Buranelli nel volume del 1994 dedicato alla presentazione delle fotografie del “Fondo Ferraguti”. Seguono alcune osservazioni conclusive che si spera possano costituire la base per ulteriori, auspicabili ricerche e approfondimenti.
Prima parte degli atti del ciclo di seminari Chroniques vulciennes, tenutisi alla Sapienza Univer... more Prima parte degli atti del ciclo di seminari Chroniques vulciennes, tenutisi alla Sapienza Università di Roma e all' École française de Rome tra febbraio e maggio 2022.
The project ‘Ritorno a Vulci. Le necropoli orientali dagli scavi italo-francesi
dell’Ottocento a... more The project ‘Ritorno a Vulci. Le necropoli orientali dagli scavi italo-francesi
dell’Ottocento alle attività di tutela della seconda metà del Novecento’
aims to initiate a new season of research focused on studying specific sectors
of the eastern necropolis of Vulci, starting from the investigations conducted
in the 19th century by Italian and French archaeologists, up to the most
recent protective measures implemented by the Superintendency in the early
1990s. The project is the result of a scientific collaboration between the
Settore di Etruscologia e Antichità italiche of the Dipartimento di Scienze
dell’Antichità - Sapienza Università di Roma, the École française de Rome,
the Soprintendenza Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio per la provincia di
Viterbo e per l’Etruria meridionale, the Direzione Regionale Musei Lazio and
the Department of Greece and Rome of the British Museum
Nel giugno del 1931, nel corso delle indagini condotte da Ugo Ferraguti e Raniero Mengarelli nell... more Nel giugno del 1931, nel corso delle indagini condotte da Ugo Ferraguti e Raniero Mengarelli nella necropoli dell’Osteria a Vulci, furono scavate due tombe alla presenza di Filippo, Langravio d’Assia-Kassel e marito della principessa Mafalda di Savoia – figlia di Re Vittorio Emanuele III –, in visita a Vulci con il Marchese Giorgio Guglielmi, Vice-presidente del Senato del Regno e proprietario dei terreni nei quali si svolgevano le indagini. Mentre di una tomba si conservano tutti i materiali, dell’altra non risulta alcun oggetto sugli inventari del Museo di Villa Giulia. Una serie di fotografie conservate presso l’Istituto Luce, realizzate proprio in occasione della visita di quell’importante personaggio, ha consentito tuttavia il parziale recupero del contesto. Entrambe le tombe si datano ai primi del VI sec. a.C. e, con altre indagate nello stesso settore nel corso di quelle fortunate indagini, consentono di offrire alcuni nuovi dati su tipi funerari e cultura materiale di Vulci tra età tardo-orientalizzante e alto arcaica.
Il contributo presenta i risultati delle indagini in corso da parte del Dipartimento di Scienze d... more Il contributo presenta i risultati delle indagini in corso da parte del Dipartimento di Scienze dell'Antichità lungo la via di collegamento tra la città di Caere e Pyrgi
Archeo.Metalli (Ag, Pb, Cu). Materiali e tecniche di analisi per l'archeologia e la numismatica. Ricerche in corso: strumenti, schede e documenti (Archeologie. Temi, contesti, materiali - SCHEDE E DOCUMENTI), 2023
Aim of the research work is to identify the provenance of the lead employed for some peculiar
art... more Aim of the research work is to identify the provenance of the lead employed for some peculiar artifacts which can be defined as ingots, or cippi, found in Pyrgi, Etruscan harbour and sanctuary located along the coastline of northern Lazio. To achieve this purpose, the isotopic fingerprint of 12 selected lead artifacts has been studied and compared to data available in literature.
The “Public-ceremonial district” of Pyrgi constitutes a hinge sector between the great sanctuary ... more The “Public-ceremonial district” of Pyrgi constitutes a hinge sector between the great sanctuary of Uni and Leucothea and the port settlement. The different phases of the complex are characterized by the presence of numerous clues, both structural and material, that can be attributed to production activities taking place in the site. In advance of the fully published excavation report and the results of the specialist analyses – which are currently in progress – this contribution aims to offer a summary of these clues, based both on previ‐ ously revealed data, and on some new evidence that emerged during the excavation campaign conducted in September 2021.
Ancient authors record the extraordinary wealth of Pyrgi’s sanctuary through the account of the l... more Ancient authors record the extraordinary wealth of Pyrgi’s sanctuary through the account of the looting by Dionysius of Syracuse in 384 BC. The treasure stolen from the sanctuaries of Leucothea and Apollo were claimed to have yeilded 1000 talents (Diod. 15. 14. 3-4) or 500 talents (Polyaen. Stratagem. 5. 2. 21), and special mention is made of the silver trapeza ripped away from the statue of Apollo (Aelian. Var. Hist. 1. 20). The hoard of nine silver Greek coins from the rear of temple A can be considered an indication of the large amount of money that circulated at the site and that was kept in the monumental sanctuary, which functioned as the seat of Caere’s aerarium. On the other hand, the well-known votive deposits from the Southern Sanctuary highlight the hoarding of economic resources closely connected with ctonic/ demetriac cults. This paper provides an overview and analysis of the extraordinary amount of metal (gold, silver, bronze, iron, lead) finds recovered from both of the Pyrgi sanctuaries, as well as the public ceremonial quarter N of temple A. The treatment takes into consideration all categories of objects discovered (ingots, premonetary bronze, inscribed tablets, jewels, weapons, containers and tools, furniture) as well as evidence for the ritual use of melted metal. This paper provides an overview and quantification of the extraordinary amount of metal (gold, silver, bronze, iron, lead) finds recovered from both Pyrgi’s Sanctuaries and the public ceremonial quarter N of temple A, considering all categories of objects (ingots, premonetary bronze, inscribed tablets, jewels, weapons, containers and tools, furniture) and evidence for the ritual use of melted metal.
Over the last decade, field research has mainly focussed on the Ceremonial Quarter at the interse... more Over the last decade, field research has mainly focussed on the Ceremonial Quarter at the intersection between the urban track of the Caere-Pyrgi road and a pebbled road leading to the oriental port-basin. This area includes public buildings adorned with decorated roofs, that possibly played an important political and economic function in relation to the harbour, even before the foundation of the Monumental Sanctuary. Between 2016-2020 the excavation area was enlarged to a total extension of 1600 square meters, following the GPR survey conducted in 2017 by the Dipartimento di Ingegneria Civile, Edile e Ambientale (Sapienza University of Rome) in collaboration with the company IDS GeoRadar s.r.l. Geophysics indicated the presence of a dense urban grid to the North of the excavation area, which has been ground-truthed to bring to light the corner of a new building complex opposite the so called Edificio in opera quadrata. Excavation in the area of the latter building has revealed the presence of a porch and a courtyard. The courtyard is characterised by the presence of a large open-air circular cistern, that was filled in during the imperial period, as also happened in the case of the water-pit on the opposite side of the pebbled road. In the nearby urban lot, the peculiar furniture and the performance of ritual acts in room A suggest its function as a domestic shrine from the second half of the 5th century onwards. Noteworthy finds form this area include the metal offerings found both inside and outside a gray tuff container, which was located inside a previous precinct and associated with evidence for metallurgic activities. Moreover, the substantial raising of the floor level was marked by the ritual deposition of a red figure Attic cup at the eastern corner of the room, which was sealed by a pile of tuff blocks. As regards the building complex to the South of the pebbled road, fieldwork has increased our understanding of its layout and hydraulic features (drainage channels, pits) throughout its various phases and even further highlighted its ceremonial function. It is noteworthy that ritual acts seem to have been performed to sacralise specific building interventions, such as the exceptional offering of a stone anchor (comparable with cases from the Near-East and Phoenician Sicily) in relation with the central courtyard and the burial of an Etruscan amphora containing animal bones in the porch. A further significant feature in the area occupied by the porch, is the surfacing of mud bricks structures that presently outline a small precinct including a basement, which once again is comparable with examples from the Levant. The chance discovery a new ashlar masonry wall in 2018 led to the resumption of field activity in the Monumental Sanctuary, which focussed on the entrance area and the surroundings of Temple A. The new wall, which runs parallel at a distance of 20 meters from Temple A, is the kerb of a road that departs from the Caere-Pyrgi track, while at the same time providing a delimitation to the Sanctuary on its northern side, where the apparent lack of a témenos wall is thus far problematic. It must be added that the whole of the Monumental Sanctuary, as well as the Ceremonial Quarter, has undergone restoration activities (in collaboration with the Faculty of Architecture of Sapienza University of Rome) and has undergone 3D (both laser scanning and drone flight) documentation.
Con questo volume si avvia, a distanza di oltre novant’anni, l’edizione sistematica delle ricerch... more Con questo volume si avvia, a distanza di oltre novant’anni, l’edizione sistematica delle ricerche condotte tra il 1929 e il 1931, nell’immediato suburbio settentrionale dell’antica città di Vulci, da Ugo Ferraguti, Regio Ispettore Onorario e finanziatore degli scavi, sotto il controllo e la supervisione di Raniero Mengarelli, funzionario (diremmo oggi) dell’allora Soprintendenza agli Scavi di Roma e Provincia, competente per territorio: una campagna di indagini che, nonostante i risultati notevoli – numerosi complessi funerari databili dall’età orientalizzante a quella ellenistica e i resti di un’area sacra –, non era mai giunta, per diverse ragioni, ad una compiuta edizione.
Dopo un primo capitolo dedicato alla presentazione delle attività svolte a Vulci dai due protagonisti, vengono illustrate le complesse vicende che hanno determinato la mancata pubblicazione delle indagini e riassunti i punti salienti del lavoro di revisione che, in parte ancora in atto per ciò che concerne i complessi funerari, ha consentito di riordinare l’intera documentazione prodotta ai tempi degli scavi o negli anni immediatamente successivi; nel terzo capitolo viene affrontata la presentazione di uno dei
contesti indagati dal “mecenate” e dall’“ingegnere”: l’area sacra di Carraccio dell’Osteria, già oggetto di fondamentali considerazioni da parte di Francesco Buranelli nel volume del 1994 dedicato alla presentazione delle fotografie del “Fondo Ferraguti”. Seguono alcune osservazioni conclusive che si spera possano costituire la base per ulteriori, auspicabili ricerche e approfondimenti.
Prima parte degli atti del ciclo di seminari Chroniques vulciennes, tenutisi alla Sapienza Univer... more Prima parte degli atti del ciclo di seminari Chroniques vulciennes, tenutisi alla Sapienza Università di Roma e all' École française de Rome tra febbraio e maggio 2022.
The project ‘Ritorno a Vulci. Le necropoli orientali dagli scavi italo-francesi
dell’Ottocento a... more The project ‘Ritorno a Vulci. Le necropoli orientali dagli scavi italo-francesi
dell’Ottocento alle attività di tutela della seconda metà del Novecento’
aims to initiate a new season of research focused on studying specific sectors
of the eastern necropolis of Vulci, starting from the investigations conducted
in the 19th century by Italian and French archaeologists, up to the most
recent protective measures implemented by the Superintendency in the early
1990s. The project is the result of a scientific collaboration between the
Settore di Etruscologia e Antichità italiche of the Dipartimento di Scienze
dell’Antichità - Sapienza Università di Roma, the École française de Rome,
the Soprintendenza Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio per la provincia di
Viterbo e per l’Etruria meridionale, the Direzione Regionale Musei Lazio and
the Department of Greece and Rome of the British Museum
Nel giugno del 1931, nel corso delle indagini condotte da Ugo Ferraguti e Raniero Mengarelli nell... more Nel giugno del 1931, nel corso delle indagini condotte da Ugo Ferraguti e Raniero Mengarelli nella necropoli dell’Osteria a Vulci, furono scavate due tombe alla presenza di Filippo, Langravio d’Assia-Kassel e marito della principessa Mafalda di Savoia – figlia di Re Vittorio Emanuele III –, in visita a Vulci con il Marchese Giorgio Guglielmi, Vice-presidente del Senato del Regno e proprietario dei terreni nei quali si svolgevano le indagini. Mentre di una tomba si conservano tutti i materiali, dell’altra non risulta alcun oggetto sugli inventari del Museo di Villa Giulia. Una serie di fotografie conservate presso l’Istituto Luce, realizzate proprio in occasione della visita di quell’importante personaggio, ha consentito tuttavia il parziale recupero del contesto. Entrambe le tombe si datano ai primi del VI sec. a.C. e, con altre indagate nello stesso settore nel corso di quelle fortunate indagini, consentono di offrire alcuni nuovi dati su tipi funerari e cultura materiale di Vulci tra età tardo-orientalizzante e alto arcaica.
Il contributo presenta i risultati delle indagini in corso da parte del Dipartimento di Scienze d... more Il contributo presenta i risultati delle indagini in corso da parte del Dipartimento di Scienze dell'Antichità lungo la via di collegamento tra la città di Caere e Pyrgi
Archeo.Metalli (Ag, Pb, Cu). Materiali e tecniche di analisi per l'archeologia e la numismatica. Ricerche in corso: strumenti, schede e documenti (Archeologie. Temi, contesti, materiali - SCHEDE E DOCUMENTI), 2023
Aim of the research work is to identify the provenance of the lead employed for some peculiar
art... more Aim of the research work is to identify the provenance of the lead employed for some peculiar artifacts which can be defined as ingots, or cippi, found in Pyrgi, Etruscan harbour and sanctuary located along the coastline of northern Lazio. To achieve this purpose, the isotopic fingerprint of 12 selected lead artifacts has been studied and compared to data available in literature.
The “Public-ceremonial district” of Pyrgi constitutes a hinge sector between the great sanctuary ... more The “Public-ceremonial district” of Pyrgi constitutes a hinge sector between the great sanctuary of Uni and Leucothea and the port settlement. The different phases of the complex are characterized by the presence of numerous clues, both structural and material, that can be attributed to production activities taking place in the site. In advance of the fully published excavation report and the results of the specialist analyses – which are currently in progress – this contribution aims to offer a summary of these clues, based both on previ‐ ously revealed data, and on some new evidence that emerged during the excavation campaign conducted in September 2021.
Ancient authors record the extraordinary wealth of Pyrgi’s sanctuary through the account of the l... more Ancient authors record the extraordinary wealth of Pyrgi’s sanctuary through the account of the looting by Dionysius of Syracuse in 384 BC. The treasure stolen from the sanctuaries of Leucothea and Apollo were claimed to have yeilded 1000 talents (Diod. 15. 14. 3-4) or 500 talents (Polyaen. Stratagem. 5. 2. 21), and special mention is made of the silver trapeza ripped away from the statue of Apollo (Aelian. Var. Hist. 1. 20). The hoard of nine silver Greek coins from the rear of temple A can be considered an indication of the large amount of money that circulated at the site and that was kept in the monumental sanctuary, which functioned as the seat of Caere’s aerarium. On the other hand, the well-known votive deposits from the Southern Sanctuary highlight the hoarding of economic resources closely connected with ctonic/ demetriac cults. This paper provides an overview and analysis of the extraordinary amount of metal (gold, silver, bronze, iron, lead) finds recovered from both of the Pyrgi sanctuaries, as well as the public ceremonial quarter N of temple A. The treatment takes into consideration all categories of objects discovered (ingots, premonetary bronze, inscribed tablets, jewels, weapons, containers and tools, furniture) as well as evidence for the ritual use of melted metal. This paper provides an overview and quantification of the extraordinary amount of metal (gold, silver, bronze, iron, lead) finds recovered from both Pyrgi’s Sanctuaries and the public ceremonial quarter N of temple A, considering all categories of objects (ingots, premonetary bronze, inscribed tablets, jewels, weapons, containers and tools, furniture) and evidence for the ritual use of melted metal.
Over the last decade, field research has mainly focussed on the Ceremonial Quarter at the interse... more Over the last decade, field research has mainly focussed on the Ceremonial Quarter at the intersection between the urban track of the Caere-Pyrgi road and a pebbled road leading to the oriental port-basin. This area includes public buildings adorned with decorated roofs, that possibly played an important political and economic function in relation to the harbour, even before the foundation of the Monumental Sanctuary. Between 2016-2020 the excavation area was enlarged to a total extension of 1600 square meters, following the GPR survey conducted in 2017 by the Dipartimento di Ingegneria Civile, Edile e Ambientale (Sapienza University of Rome) in collaboration with the company IDS GeoRadar s.r.l. Geophysics indicated the presence of a dense urban grid to the North of the excavation area, which has been ground-truthed to bring to light the corner of a new building complex opposite the so called Edificio in opera quadrata. Excavation in the area of the latter building has revealed the presence of a porch and a courtyard. The courtyard is characterised by the presence of a large open-air circular cistern, that was filled in during the imperial period, as also happened in the case of the water-pit on the opposite side of the pebbled road. In the nearby urban lot, the peculiar furniture and the performance of ritual acts in room A suggest its function as a domestic shrine from the second half of the 5th century onwards. Noteworthy finds form this area include the metal offerings found both inside and outside a gray tuff container, which was located inside a previous precinct and associated with evidence for metallurgic activities. Moreover, the substantial raising of the floor level was marked by the ritual deposition of a red figure Attic cup at the eastern corner of the room, which was sealed by a pile of tuff blocks. As regards the building complex to the South of the pebbled road, fieldwork has increased our understanding of its layout and hydraulic features (drainage channels, pits) throughout its various phases and even further highlighted its ceremonial function. It is noteworthy that ritual acts seem to have been performed to sacralise specific building interventions, such as the exceptional offering of a stone anchor (comparable with cases from the Near-East and Phoenician Sicily) in relation with the central courtyard and the burial of an Etruscan amphora containing animal bones in the porch. A further significant feature in the area occupied by the porch, is the surfacing of mud bricks structures that presently outline a small precinct including a basement, which once again is comparable with examples from the Levant. The chance discovery a new ashlar masonry wall in 2018 led to the resumption of field activity in the Monumental Sanctuary, which focussed on the entrance area and the surroundings of Temple A. The new wall, which runs parallel at a distance of 20 meters from Temple A, is the kerb of a road that departs from the Caere-Pyrgi track, while at the same time providing a delimitation to the Sanctuary on its northern side, where the apparent lack of a témenos wall is thus far problematic. It must be added that the whole of the Monumental Sanctuary, as well as the Ceremonial Quarter, has undergone restoration activities (in collaboration with the Faculty of Architecture of Sapienza University of Rome) and has undergone 3D (both laser scanning and drone flight) documentation.
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Dopo un primo capitolo dedicato alla presentazione delle attività svolte a Vulci dai due protagonisti, vengono illustrate le complesse vicende che hanno determinato la mancata pubblicazione delle indagini e riassunti i punti salienti del lavoro di revisione che, in parte ancora in atto per ciò che concerne i complessi funerari, ha consentito di riordinare l’intera documentazione prodotta ai tempi degli scavi o negli anni immediatamente successivi; nel terzo capitolo viene affrontata la presentazione di uno dei
contesti indagati dal “mecenate” e dall’“ingegnere”: l’area sacra di Carraccio dell’Osteria, già oggetto di fondamentali considerazioni da parte di Francesco Buranelli nel volume del 1994 dedicato alla presentazione delle fotografie del “Fondo Ferraguti”. Seguono alcune osservazioni conclusive che si spera possano costituire la base per ulteriori, auspicabili ricerche e approfondimenti.
dell’Ottocento alle attività di tutela della seconda metà del Novecento’
aims to initiate a new season of research focused on studying specific sectors
of the eastern necropolis of Vulci, starting from the investigations conducted
in the 19th century by Italian and French archaeologists, up to the most
recent protective measures implemented by the Superintendency in the early
1990s. The project is the result of a scientific collaboration between the
Settore di Etruscologia e Antichità italiche of the Dipartimento di Scienze
dell’Antichità - Sapienza Università di Roma, the École française de Rome,
the Soprintendenza Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio per la provincia di
Viterbo e per l’Etruria meridionale, the Direzione Regionale Musei Lazio and
the Department of Greece and Rome of the British Museum
artifacts which can be defined as ingots, or cippi, found in Pyrgi, Etruscan harbour and sanctuary located along the coastline of northern Lazio. To achieve this purpose, the isotopic fingerprint of 12
selected lead artifacts has been studied and compared to data available in literature.
Leucothea and the port settlement. The different phases of the complex are characterized by the presence of
numerous clues, both structural and material, that can be attributed to production activities taking place in
the site. In advance of the fully published excavation report and the results of the specialist analyses – which
are currently in progress – this contribution aims to offer a summary of these clues, based both on previ‐
ously revealed data, and on some new evidence that emerged during the excavation campaign conducted in
September 2021.
This paper provides an overview and analysis of the extraordinary amount of metal (gold, silver, bronze, iron, lead) finds recovered from both of the Pyrgi sanctuaries, as well as the public ceremonial quarter N of temple A. The treatment takes into consideration all categories of objects discovered (ingots, premonetary bronze, inscribed tablets, jewels, weapons, containers and tools, furniture) as well as evidence for the ritual use of melted metal.
This paper provides an overview and quantification of the extraordinary amount of metal (gold, silver, bronze, iron, lead) finds recovered from both Pyrgi’s Sanctuaries and the public ceremonial quarter N of temple A, considering all categories of objects (ingots, premonetary bronze, inscribed tablets, jewels, weapons, containers and tools, furniture) and evidence for the ritual use of melted metal.
Between 2016-2020 the excavation area was enlarged to a total extension of 1600 square meters, following the GPR survey conducted in 2017 by the Dipartimento di Ingegneria Civile, Edile e Ambientale (Sapienza University of Rome) in collaboration with the company IDS GeoRadar s.r.l. Geophysics indicated the presence of a dense urban grid to the North of the excavation area, which has been ground-truthed to bring to light the corner of a new building complex opposite the so called Edificio in opera quadrata. Excavation in the area of the latter building has revealed the presence of a porch and a courtyard. The courtyard is characterised by the presence of a large open-air circular cistern, that was filled in during the imperial period, as also happened in the case of the water-pit on the opposite side of the pebbled road.
In the nearby urban lot, the peculiar furniture and the performance of ritual acts in room A suggest its function as a domestic shrine from the second half of the 5th century onwards. Noteworthy finds form this area
include the metal offerings found both inside and outside a gray tuff container, which was located inside a previous precinct and associated with evidence for metallurgic activities. Moreover, the substantial raising
of the floor level was marked by the ritual deposition of a red figure Attic cup at the eastern corner of the room, which was sealed by a pile of tuff blocks.
As regards the building complex to the South of the pebbled road, fieldwork has increased our understanding of its layout and hydraulic features (drainage channels, pits) throughout its various phases and even further highlighted its ceremonial function. It is noteworthy that ritual acts seem to have been performed to sacralise specific building interventions, such as the exceptional offering of a stone anchor (comparable with cases from the Near-East and Phoenician Sicily) in relation with the central courtyard and the burial of an Etruscan amphora containing animal bones in the porch. A further significant feature in the area occupied by the porch, is the surfacing of mud bricks structures that presently outline a small precinct including a basement, which once again is comparable with examples from the Levant.
The chance discovery a new ashlar masonry wall in 2018 led to the resumption of field activity in the Monumental Sanctuary, which focussed on the entrance area and the surroundings of Temple A. The new wall,
which runs parallel at a distance of 20 meters from Temple A, is the kerb of a road that departs from the Caere-Pyrgi track, while at the same time providing a delimitation to the Sanctuary on its northern side,
where the apparent lack of a témenos wall is thus far problematic.
It must be added that the whole of the Monumental Sanctuary, as well as the Ceremonial Quarter, has undergone restoration activities (in collaboration with the Faculty of Architecture of Sapienza University of
Rome) and has undergone 3D (both laser scanning and drone flight) documentation.
Dopo un primo capitolo dedicato alla presentazione delle attività svolte a Vulci dai due protagonisti, vengono illustrate le complesse vicende che hanno determinato la mancata pubblicazione delle indagini e riassunti i punti salienti del lavoro di revisione che, in parte ancora in atto per ciò che concerne i complessi funerari, ha consentito di riordinare l’intera documentazione prodotta ai tempi degli scavi o negli anni immediatamente successivi; nel terzo capitolo viene affrontata la presentazione di uno dei
contesti indagati dal “mecenate” e dall’“ingegnere”: l’area sacra di Carraccio dell’Osteria, già oggetto di fondamentali considerazioni da parte di Francesco Buranelli nel volume del 1994 dedicato alla presentazione delle fotografie del “Fondo Ferraguti”. Seguono alcune osservazioni conclusive che si spera possano costituire la base per ulteriori, auspicabili ricerche e approfondimenti.
dell’Ottocento alle attività di tutela della seconda metà del Novecento’
aims to initiate a new season of research focused on studying specific sectors
of the eastern necropolis of Vulci, starting from the investigations conducted
in the 19th century by Italian and French archaeologists, up to the most
recent protective measures implemented by the Superintendency in the early
1990s. The project is the result of a scientific collaboration between the
Settore di Etruscologia e Antichità italiche of the Dipartimento di Scienze
dell’Antichità - Sapienza Università di Roma, the École française de Rome,
the Soprintendenza Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio per la provincia di
Viterbo e per l’Etruria meridionale, the Direzione Regionale Musei Lazio and
the Department of Greece and Rome of the British Museum
artifacts which can be defined as ingots, or cippi, found in Pyrgi, Etruscan harbour and sanctuary located along the coastline of northern Lazio. To achieve this purpose, the isotopic fingerprint of 12
selected lead artifacts has been studied and compared to data available in literature.
Leucothea and the port settlement. The different phases of the complex are characterized by the presence of
numerous clues, both structural and material, that can be attributed to production activities taking place in
the site. In advance of the fully published excavation report and the results of the specialist analyses – which
are currently in progress – this contribution aims to offer a summary of these clues, based both on previ‐
ously revealed data, and on some new evidence that emerged during the excavation campaign conducted in
September 2021.
This paper provides an overview and analysis of the extraordinary amount of metal (gold, silver, bronze, iron, lead) finds recovered from both of the Pyrgi sanctuaries, as well as the public ceremonial quarter N of temple A. The treatment takes into consideration all categories of objects discovered (ingots, premonetary bronze, inscribed tablets, jewels, weapons, containers and tools, furniture) as well as evidence for the ritual use of melted metal.
This paper provides an overview and quantification of the extraordinary amount of metal (gold, silver, bronze, iron, lead) finds recovered from both Pyrgi’s Sanctuaries and the public ceremonial quarter N of temple A, considering all categories of objects (ingots, premonetary bronze, inscribed tablets, jewels, weapons, containers and tools, furniture) and evidence for the ritual use of melted metal.
Between 2016-2020 the excavation area was enlarged to a total extension of 1600 square meters, following the GPR survey conducted in 2017 by the Dipartimento di Ingegneria Civile, Edile e Ambientale (Sapienza University of Rome) in collaboration with the company IDS GeoRadar s.r.l. Geophysics indicated the presence of a dense urban grid to the North of the excavation area, which has been ground-truthed to bring to light the corner of a new building complex opposite the so called Edificio in opera quadrata. Excavation in the area of the latter building has revealed the presence of a porch and a courtyard. The courtyard is characterised by the presence of a large open-air circular cistern, that was filled in during the imperial period, as also happened in the case of the water-pit on the opposite side of the pebbled road.
In the nearby urban lot, the peculiar furniture and the performance of ritual acts in room A suggest its function as a domestic shrine from the second half of the 5th century onwards. Noteworthy finds form this area
include the metal offerings found both inside and outside a gray tuff container, which was located inside a previous precinct and associated with evidence for metallurgic activities. Moreover, the substantial raising
of the floor level was marked by the ritual deposition of a red figure Attic cup at the eastern corner of the room, which was sealed by a pile of tuff blocks.
As regards the building complex to the South of the pebbled road, fieldwork has increased our understanding of its layout and hydraulic features (drainage channels, pits) throughout its various phases and even further highlighted its ceremonial function. It is noteworthy that ritual acts seem to have been performed to sacralise specific building interventions, such as the exceptional offering of a stone anchor (comparable with cases from the Near-East and Phoenician Sicily) in relation with the central courtyard and the burial of an Etruscan amphora containing animal bones in the porch. A further significant feature in the area occupied by the porch, is the surfacing of mud bricks structures that presently outline a small precinct including a basement, which once again is comparable with examples from the Levant.
The chance discovery a new ashlar masonry wall in 2018 led to the resumption of field activity in the Monumental Sanctuary, which focussed on the entrance area and the surroundings of Temple A. The new wall,
which runs parallel at a distance of 20 meters from Temple A, is the kerb of a road that departs from the Caere-Pyrgi track, while at the same time providing a delimitation to the Sanctuary on its northern side,
where the apparent lack of a témenos wall is thus far problematic.
It must be added that the whole of the Monumental Sanctuary, as well as the Ceremonial Quarter, has undergone restoration activities (in collaboration with the Faculty of Architecture of Sapienza University of
Rome) and has undergone 3D (both laser scanning and drone flight) documentation.