Nancy
T. de Grummond
Cetamura del Chianti is an ancient hilltop settlement located 9 kilometers north of Gaiole near San Donato in Perano. The site was first discovered in 1964 by Alvaro Tracchi of San Giovanni Valdarno, who made the first maps of the site and discovered a range of pottery that established the basic dates of the site. In 1973, the excavation of the site was undertaken by the Classics Department of Florida State University with a permit from the Soprintendenza Archeologica della Toscana at Florence. The excavations have been directed since 1983 by Dr. Nancy T. de Grummond, Distinguished Research Professor at Florida State University, an expert on the Etruscans with particular interest in their religion and myths.
Cetamura has yielded Paleolithic flint tools of ca. 30,000 years before the present. After that the next evidence of habitation is Etruscan black bucchero pottery dating to the 7th and 6th centuries BCE.
The period of the greatest activity is the Late Etruscan phase of ca. 325-75 BCE, when Cetamura was the site of a sanctuary dedicated to the god Lurs. Discoveries from this time include the stone foundations of a monumental sacred building (Building L), votive pits and altars. Near the sanctuary was an artisans’ zone, with a kiln for making brick and tile, cisterns, and evidence of weaving and metal working. Because the artisans made frequent offerings in the sacred area, it is known as the Sanctuary of the Etruscan Artisans.
Cetamura was next inhabited by Romans, as is shown by Roman baths on the highest zone of the site. Much of the Roman construction was destroyed during the medieval period, when a fortified village or castrum was constructed on the site. Remains of the fortifications from the period have been identified. From the 15th century down to the rediscovery of the site by Tracchi, there is no evidence of activity and it seems that Cetamura was abandoned.
Further information about the excavations at Cetamura del Chianti may be found at http://www.fsu.edu/~classics/cetamura/cetamura2007.html
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Sito ufficiale Pro Loco
Castellina in Chianti,
Gaiole in Chianti e
Radda in Chianti.
Ultimo cambiamento: 15. 09. 2008
