FLORENCE, ITALY—According to a Live Science report, a 2,500-year-old Etruscan tomb decorated with wall paintings has been uncovered in central Italy’s Tarquinia necropolis. No human remains, grave goods, or inscriptions were recovered from the looted tomb, which was also damaged by the collapse of a tomb situated above it. Several scenes remain on the tomb walls, including images of men and women dancing next to a flutist; a man and a woman with two young men; and a metallurgical workshop. Daniele Federico Maras of the National Archaeological Museum of Florence said that the woman shown in one of the paintings may represent the deceased, and that her family may have been metalworkers. The musical scene may show the funeral, he added. “Around 6,500 tombs have been identified and classified at Tarquinia, and [about] 200 of them had painted decoration,” Maras said. “However, only several tens have figural decoration, with scenes including banqueting, dances, sports, myths, and the underworld,” he elaborated. Next, Maras and his colleagues will examine the paintings with multispectral imaging to look for faded paint colors. To read about the discovery of an Etruscan tomb at Vulci, go to "The Tomb of the Silver Hands."
