9 September 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Extraordinary Discovery of a Unique Painted Tomb in Tarquinia’s Etruscan Necropolis

Exceptional discovery in the necropolis of Tarquinia, located near the western coast in central Italy, north of Rome (a UNESCO site): a new chamber tomb painted with dance and workshop scenes brings the extraordinary funerary art of the Etruscans back into the limelight after centuries of oblivion.

The first discovery dates back to the last days of 2022, when the Soprintendenza staff inspected some cavities that had opened up in farmland near Tarquinia, in the heart of the Etruscan necropolis of Monterozzi. With the help of archaeo-speleologists, the exploration confirmed that these were Etruscan chamber tombs that had already been visited in the past by clandestine excavators.

One of the tombs, however, had a surprise in store: part of the left wall had collapsed, revealing access to a deeper chamber tomb, partially filled with earth and debris. Beautifully colored painted scenes decorated the walls, as a sign of the memory of ancient Etruscan civilization.

To protect the site from potential threats posed by grave robbers and careless visitors, the Superintendency conducted the excavation operations under strict confidentiality. Thanks to a significant grant from the Ministry of Culture, archaeologists were able to carry out a thorough intervention to secure the tomb and maintain its delicate balance. Consequently, the announcement of the discovery was delayed for two years to allow for further study of the findings.

Tomb at the time of discovery - left wall. Credit: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti e Paesaggio
Tomb at the time of discovery – left wall. Credit: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti e Paesaggio

Daniele F. Maras, the archaeological officer in charge of the discovery and now the director of the National Archaeological Museum in Florence, explained that after they restored access to the burial chamber and installed a metal door, the archaeological excavation revealed some interesting findings. He noted that the materials they collected did not belong to the trousseau of the painted tomb, which dates back to the mid-5th century B.C. Instead, these materials had collapsed from an older tomb, which is more than a century older and dates from the end of the Orientalizing period.

The archaeological investigation has uncovered a unique and complex situation at the site, revealing that the painted tomb was excavated deep beneath a pre-existing burial. In ancient times, grave robbers had breached the tomb by piercing the closing slab, looting the original grave goods. Subsequently, the collapse of the upper chamber brought debris and objects that mixed with the remains of the lower tomb. Today, only a few fragments of Attic red-figure pottery remain from what once constituted the grave goods of the painted tomb, highlighting the value of the objects originally laid with the deceased. However, the true treasure of this discovery lies in the stunning frescoes that adorn the walls of the burial chamber.

Restored tile of the left wall. Credit: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti e Paesaggio
Restored tile of the left wall. Credit: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti e Paesaggio

The wall paintings, currently undergoing restoration, provide a unique insight into Etruscan culture. The left wall features a dynamic scene of a frenetic dance, where men and women are depicted moving in a circle around an elegant flute player, reflecting the vitality and celebratory spirit characteristic of the Etruscan people.

In contrast, the back wall reveals the figures of a woman—possibly the deceased—and two young men; however, a portion of the decoration has been irretrievably lost due to structural collapse. The right wall presents an even more enigmatic depiction of a working metal workshop. Scholars speculate that this may represent the mythical workshop of the god Sethlans, the Etruscan equivalent of Hephaestus, or a royal workshop associated with the family of the interred individual.

Credit: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti e Paesaggio
Credit: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti e Paesaggio

Restoration work on the site is ongoing and demands extreme precision. Superintendent Margita Eichberg expressed satisfaction with the progress, noting that “the extraordinary level of the paintings” is already evident in the initial restoration efforts conducted by Adele Cecchini and Mariangela Santella, which have highlighted the refinement of the details in the figures of the flutist and one of the dancers. Daniele Maras added that this discovery marks the first new painted tomb with a figured frieze to be found in Tarquinia in decades, emphasizing its intriguing potential due to its historical significance, artistic quality, and the uniqueness of some of the depicted scenes.

Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti e Paesaggio

Cover Image Credit: Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti e Paesaggio

Related Articles

New Evidence could Change the Date People First Arrived in North America

2 June 2021

2 June 2021

While investigating the origins of agriculture, researchers made an unexpected discovery. According to an unexpected finding made by an Iowa...

Ancient shipwreck dating back to the 2nd century BC was discovered off the coast of Croatia

14 September 2021

14 September 2021

A shipwreck dating to the 2nd century BC has been discovered in the shallow waters of the Adriatic Sea near...

Native American artifacts from 1100 AD found in North America’s First City

20 June 2024

20 June 2024

Cahokia is the largest and most significant urban settlement of the Mississippian culture, known for creating massive earthen platform mounds...

Unveiling the Secrets of the “Air-Dried Chaplain”: A Unique Mummification Method Discovered in Austria

4 May 2025

4 May 2025

Researchers investigating a remarkably well-preserved mummy discovered in the church crypt of St. Thomas am Blasenstein, a small village in...

Medieval Weapon Chest Found on Sunken Medieval Flagship Gribshunden

20 April 2024

20 April 2024

An extensive exploration of the wreck of the royal flagship Gribshunden has unearthed a trove of new findings: new insights...

A cemetery belonging to 54 children was found during the excavation in the old quarry in Diyarbakır, Türkiye

4 January 2024

4 January 2024

During the archaeological excavation carried out in the area considered to be an old quarry in the Kulp district of...

Only Those on the Righteous Path May Enter Here”: New Mosaics Unearthed in Antalya’s Olympos

19 June 2025

19 June 2025

A newly discovered mosaic inscription at the entrance of a church and elaborately decorated floor mosaics have come to light...

A Unique Structure Discovered in the City of David Ancient Jerusalem – The Only One of Its Kind

14 January 2025

14 January 2025

A unique structure was discovered on the eastern slope of the City of David, within the Walls of the Jerusalem...

8,500-year-old buildings discovered on Abu Dhabi’s Ghagha island

17 February 2022

17 February 2022

Archaeologists in Abu Dhabi have discovered startling new evidence of the Emirates’ first known structures, which date back more than...

Cyprus’ Lost Terracotta Warriors: Unearthing a 2,500-Year-Old Army at Agia Eirini

23 May 2025

23 May 2025

Hidden beneath the sands of time in the tranquil Morphou Bay lies Agia Eirini (Turkish: Akdeniz), a seemingly quiet village...

One of the Oldest Tin-Bronze Knife in the Eurasian Steppe Discovered in a Unique Bronze Age Cemetery in Uygur ­Autonomous Region

29 January 2025

29 January 2025

Chinese archaeologists have recently uncovered a large and uniquely structured cemetery dating back to 2800-2600 BC, located about two kilometers...

Radiocarbon dating makes it possible for the first time to check the extent to which archaeological findings match historical events from written sources

17 November 2023

17 November 2023

Researchers from the Austrian Academy of Sciences have published a new radiocarbon dataset for Tel Gezer, one of the most...

Hellenic and Roman statue heads unearthed in Knidos

9 December 2021

9 December 2021

Hellenic and Roman sculpture heads were unearthed in the ancient Carian settlement Knidos, located in the Datça district of Muğla...

Hungarian Archaeology Student Discovers Rare Bronze Figurines at Roman-Era Brigetio Site

31 July 2025

31 July 2025

A remarkable archaeological discovery emerged this July at the ancient Roman site of Brigetio in Komárom, Hungary. First-year archaeology student...

A 2600-year-old Clay Pot was Repurposed As Trash Bin in An Iranian Museum

13 November 2023

13 November 2023

A clay pot dating back to the 2600-year-old Medes period is now serving as a trash bin in a museum...