12 December 2024 The Future is the Product of the Past

3,000-Year-Old Iron Age Statuette Discovered in Italian Lake, With Fingerprints of Maker

During work in Lake Bolsena, a volcanic lake in central Italy, at the submerged archaeological site of Gran Carro, a  3,000-year-old terracotta female figure has been discovered. Remarkably, after 3000 years of submersion, the figure still bears the fingerprints of its maker.

This discovery was made as part of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), which includes the creation of an underwater path for visitors to explore the site in a unique way.

The unfinished clay figure of a woman, dating from between the 10th and 9th centuries BC, looks more like a first draft than a ready-made piece of art. However, the fact that the clay worker did not fully finish the figure does not prevent the discovery from being considered exceptional and unique, and from shedding light on little-known aspects of daily life in the early Iron Age in southern Etruria.

The statuette subtle feminine features, was made of poorly fired clay. A surprising detail is that it still bears the fingerprints of its creator, as well as the impression of a fabric pattern under the chest, implying that the figure was “dressed” in some sort of garment. Measuring six inches tall, the figurine was likely used in prayer rituals.

Researchers believe that the sculpture was likely a votive figure used in domestic rituals. This idea has been supported by researchers’ discovery of other examples of similar figurines from subsequent periods, pointing to a long-held tradition of votive figurine creation in the area.

Photo: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti Paesaggio Etruria Meridionale/ Facebook

“This important archaeological context that is giving us aspects of daily life from the first Iron Age (late 10th-century B.C.E – early 9th-century B.C.E), [of which] still little is known in southern Etruria,” researchers said.

The underwater restorers of CSR Restauro Beni Culturali made the discovery, and then the staff of the Underwater Archaeology Service handled the recovery and initial conservation treatment. These experts’ painstaking work has been essential in keeping the piece in its original condition and enabling a thorough analysis of it.

The area’s rich history, which is still little known, has been enhanced by the discovery of thousands of Iron Age artifacts since the 1960s. The archaeological site of Gran Carro di Bolsena is famous for the Aiola complex, a partially explored monumental structure that archaeologists still don’t understand. This stony heap, devoid of any structural connectors, has an elliptical base and a truncated conical shape. Beneath its stony exterior is a heap of earth.

There have been recent suggestions that Aiola is not the only structure of its kind in the lake, as it is intimately associated with the presence of thermal springs that have temperatures between thirty and forty degrees Celsius.

Photo: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti Paesaggio Etruria Meridionale/ Facebook

The region’s rich Iron Age past was unknown to researchers until 1991 when they uncovered a group of buried stones that they now think are the remains of a sizable building that was erected close to a hot spring. 2020: When archaeologists examined the soil beneath these stones, they discovered early Iron Age ceramics and other artifacts.

During this period, the city of Aiola was home to a village that left behind thousands of artifacts, such as pottery, jewelry, and this goddess figurine. Although these artifacts have been discovered by researchers since the 1960s, it has only been recently that Aiola’s rich Iron Age past has been thoroughly investigated and studied.

The discovery of coins from the fourth-century CE Roman emperor Constantine the Great attests to the area’s continued habitation until the final days of the Roman Empire. The village was then submerged by seismic activity from the Vulsini volcano.

Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti Paesaggio Etruria Meridionale

Cover Image: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti Paesaggio Etruria Meridionale/ Facebook

Related Articles

The earliest known depiction of biblical heroines Jael and Deborah was discovered at a Jewish synagogue in Israel

8 August 2022

8 August 2022

The earliest known depiction of biblical heroines Jael and Deborah was discovered at a Jewish synagogue at Huqoq in Israel,...

350,000-Year-Old Human Settlement have been Discovered on the Arabian Peninsula

17 May 2021

17 May 2021

One of the world’s oldest Acheulean sites was found in the northern region of Hail in Saudi Arabia. Al Nasim...

Medieval Love badge with the written “Love conquers all” discovered in Poland

18 February 2024

18 February 2024

Polish archaeologists have discovered a late medieval badge: a piece of tin shaped into a turtle dover and with the...

Archaeologists find Viking Age shipyard in Swedish island

15 June 2022

15 June 2022

Archaeologists from Stockholm University have discovered a Viking Age shipyard at Birka on the island of Björkö in Lake Mälaren,...

1000-year-old Cats and Babies mummies of Turkey’s

30 March 2022

30 March 2022

Cat, baby, and adult mummies in Aksaray, which took its place in history as Cappadocia’s gateway to the west on...

‘Holy Grail of shipwrecks’ worth $20 billion in treasure to be raised from seabed

10 November 2023

10 November 2023

A treasure ship described as the “holy grail of shipwrecks” will reportedly be lifted from the sea floor where it...

Incredibly Rare Tyrian Purple Discovered at Carlisle Roman bathhouse

5 May 2024

5 May 2024

A rare archaeological object – thought to be the only one of its type in the former Roman Empire –...

Hidden Treasure from WWII: 500,000 Phantom Ceramic Coins Found

8 November 2024

8 November 2024

About 500,000 Maboroshi (phantom) ceramic coins manufactured due to metal shortages during World War II were discovered in a warehouse...

Papal bull discovered in a former cemetery dated to the 14th century

10 May 2023

10 May 2023

A medieval bull found in 2021 in Budzistów village (Kołobrzeg district), Poland has been restored and placed on display in...

The secret of the mummy in the Crystal coffin found in a garage in San Francisco

30 March 2023

30 March 2023

Mysterious mummies are a symbol of ancient lost times, which we often associate with Egypt and other ancient civilizations. Therefore,...

1,400-year-old temple from the time of the East Anglian Kings discovered at Suffolk royal settlement

21 November 2023

21 November 2023

Archaeologists have uncovered a possibly pre-Christian temple from the time of the East Anglian Kings at Rendlesham, near Sutton Hoo...

Gladiators’ ancient hygiene tools on exhibit in Izmir

22 July 2021

22 July 2021

Turkey’s Izmir Archaeological Museum is hosting a different exhibition this month. A bronze strigil is the museum’s guest this month...

Egypt opens King Djoser’s 4,500-year-old tomb after a 15-year restoration

15 September 2021

15 September 2021

Egypt on Tuesday showcased an ancient tomb structure belonging to the cemetery complex of King Djoser, a pharaoh who lived more than 4,500...

Statue Head of Goddess Tyche Discovered in Bulgaria

8 December 2024

8 December 2024

A remarkably crafted head of a large statue of the Greek goddess Tyche was recently unearthed during the excavations of...

One-of-a-kind 1000- years-old gold earring found in Denmark

13 December 2021

13 December 2021

A metal detectorist in Denmark uncovered a one-of-a-kind piece of 11th-century gold jewelry that had never been seen in Scandinavia...