Posted on 06/01/2010 8:45:35 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
An ancient Etruscan home dating back more than 2,400 years has been discovered outside Grosseto in central Italy. Hailed as an exceptional find, the luxury home was uncovered at an archeological site at Vetulonia, 200 kilometres north of Rome.
Archeologists say it is rare to find an Etruscan home intact and believe the home was built between the 3rd and 1st century BC.
Using six Roman and Etruscan coins uncovered at the home, archeologists believe the house collapsed in 79 AD during wars unleashed by Roman general and dictator, Lucio Cornelio Silla.
Archeologists have discovered a large quantity of items which have revealed a great deal about life in the home and the construction techniques of the era.
"These are the best ruins that have ever been found in Italy," said Simona Rafanelli, director of the Isidoro Falchi archeological museum in Vetulonia, told journalists.
"They represent something incredibly important from an archeological and historical point of view, because they finally give us an understanding of new techniques linked to Etruscan construction that we did not know until today.
"Here today we are rewriting history. It is a unique case in Italy because with what we have found we will be able to completely reconstruct the entire house."
From the ruins they discovered a basement or cellar in which the family is believed to have stored foodstuffs.
A beautiful earthenware pot was found in the corner of the room and an olive press.
Pieces of vases and plates were also uncovered at the house, while the walls were made of sun-dried clay bricks.
(Excerpt) Read more at adnkronos.com ...
Thanks. I find the Etruscans fascinating because we know so darn little about them.
It looks like the average Italian knows as little about his history and the average American is taught about his.
o they were quite modern weren’t they? lol The only thing missing is Mellancamp’s “Little Pink Houses” playing in the background.
Yes, it’s a little known fact the Etruscans invented the suburb. :-))
I think that tends to be true everywhere. I was talking to a Brit about some royal history--Richard III or Henry VIII or something--and the guy, college educated, admitted he really didn't know much about history.
Things have sure changed. I’m reading some Macauley, who wrote in the mid-nineteenth century. He assumes his reader not only has a basic knowledge of the historic narrative, but also can read Latin, Greek and French. :-))
Yeah, they’re fair game for speculation. ;’)
http://www.google.com/search?q=lemnian+stele+site:freerepublic.com
Thanks Daaave. I didn’t post the pic because I wanted to get to bed, but knew it was only a matter of time before someone found it. :’)
I think Silla was the ancestor to Dora (the Explora).
/rimshot!
and now, back to our thread.
Thanks, btw!
I’ll try to do better. ;’)
Vaudeville will someday be like Horace.
The Etruscans actually treated women equally with men - they would even dine together. Probably why they were ejected from Asia Minor. :-))
Swish! Nothin' but net.
Oh, you're welcome. I guess I'm not alone in needing to see pictures with a story.
(I think it was) Some relative of Napoleon’s was given the concession to pot-hunt some large Etruscan site. His crews found so much like-new pottery in the tombs and graves that he figured he’d flood his monopoly market, and had most of the artifacts smashed.
That one is a lovely piece, and like most Etruscan stuff, comes from a burial. They may have influenced Rome with their preference for cremation, but inhumation was also practiced among the E’s. One of their symbolic acts was the passing of a hen’s egg from one to another, a symbol found in both terracotta works (such as that nice one above that you posted, thanks!) and in paintings and I think their bronzes.
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