New information has been released about the 7th century B.C. sealed Etruscan chamber tomb discovered this summer in the necropolis of San Giuliano near Viterbo in central Italy. A team of archaeologists and students from Baylor University working for the San Giuliano Archaeological Research Project (SGARP)discovered and opened the tomb and has been documenting its contents in situ.
They have found the remains of four individuals on carved stone funerary beds, plus more than 100 grave goods, including ceramic vases, iron weapons, bronze objects and silver hair spools. The state of preservation is exceptional. A total of 74 ceramic vessels were discovered, almost all of them intact and in excellent condition. A bronze fibula found in the chamber still had textile remains attached.
“This completely sealed burial chamber represents a rare find for Etruscan archaeology,” [Excavation leader Dr. Davide] Zori said. “In the internal hilly region of central Italy, where the SGARP team works, a preserved chamber tomb of this age has never before been excavated with modern archaeological techniques. It is a unique opportunity for our project to study the beliefs and burial traditions of this fascinating pre-Roman culture.”
Preliminary analysis of the tomb objects suggests that the buried individuals might be two male-female pairs, but further conclusions await anthropological, isotopic and genetic study of the remains.
“The SGARP team has completed the excavation of the tomb, but the study and analysis of the archaeological data yielded by this incredible discovery is just beginning,” Zori said.
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