Statues at the discovery site of two dozen well-preserved bronze statues from an ancient Tuscan hot spring in San Casciano dei Bagni, Italy on November 3.
Italian Ministry of Culture
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Statues at the discovery site of two dozen well-preserved bronze statues from an ancient Tuscan hot spring in San Casciano dei Bagni, Italy on November 3.
Italian Ministry of Culture
ROME — Italian archaeologists are hailing a recent discovery as “the most extraordinary” of the past half-century. They believe it could rewrite the history of the relationship between the Etruscan and Roman civilizations.
Over a period of several weeks in September and October, a team of archaeologists unearthed two dozen bronze human statues, more than 2,000 years old and perfectly preserved in the mud and hot water of a lake. ancient, sacred water.
The location is the hot springs of the town of Tuscan San Casciano dei Bagni — San Casciano of the Baths, one of many picturesque hilltop towns that rise above green valleys dotted with majestic cypress trees.
Archaeologists work at the site of an ancient hot spring in San Casciano dei Bagni, Italy, on July 29.
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Archaeologists work at the site of an ancient hot spring in San Casciano dei Bagni, Italy, on July 29.
Italian Ministry of Culture
But in the third century BC, the place had a unique attraction: the ancient Etruscans built a sanctuary at the local hot spring that later gave the town its name.
The Etruscans lived and flourished for 500 years in what is now central Italy – the regions of Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio – before founding the Roman Republic in 509 BC, after its last king. Etruscan Roman rulers were overthrown.
Roman art and culture was heavily influenced by the Etruscan civilization, which was eventually assimilated into the Roman Empire.
The valley just below the town has 42 sources that provide one of the largest hot springs in Europe, says Ludovico Salernoa member of the local archaeological association was involved in the excavation work.
Standing on the edge of the ancient spa excavation site and pointing to the source of water gushing from an underground canal, he said: “This source is strongest in San Casciano. Every day it pumps out hundreds of thousands of gallons of 105-degree water.”
Ludovico Salerno, vice president of the Archaeological Society of San Casciano dei Bagni, at the archaeological site on November 12, “Sick people come to the sanctuary in the hope of being cured and will offer gifts to the gods, ” he said. “It’s a place of suffering, and it’s a place of hope.”
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Ludovico Salerno, vice president of the Archaeological Society of San Casciano dei Bagni, at the archaeological site on November 12, “Sick people come to the sanctuary in the hope of being cured and will offer gifts to the gods, ” he said. “It’s a place of suffering, and it’s a place of hope.”
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Starting in 2020, with funding from the city government of San Casciano dei Bagni, archaeologists excavated a large marble pool of the citadel. Sanctuary. It is decorated with fountains and altars to the gods Apollo, his son Asclepius and Asclepius’ daughter Hygeia – the name is derived from the English word hygiene.
The Etruscans adopted their religion from the Greeks and key elements of the Etruscan religion were later adopted by the Greeks. Roman Senate.
When the Romans later enlarged the sanctuary and made it more luxurious, historians suggest that a regular visitor to be Emperor Augustus.
A group of tourists walk to the archaeological site in San Casciano dei Bagni, located next to a public hot spring, on November 12.
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A group of tourists walk to the archaeological site in San Casciano dei Bagni, located next to a public hot spring, on November 12.
Valerio Muscella for NPR
But the site, Salerno said, is not for entertainment.
“The cistern is a sacred place, only religious custodians can bathe there. The sick come to the sanctuary in the hope of being cured and will offer sacrifices to the gods. It is a place of suffering, and that’s where the hope is.”
The first finds were small coins and votive objects representing body parts in need of healing – ears, feet, torso and the like.
Then, this fall, two years after the excavation began, the team of archaeologists found two dozen bronze statues, some 3 feet tall, perfectly preserved by mud and water. at the bottom of a large lake.
They include a sleeping young man — called deciduous — next to a statue of Hygeia, with a snake wrapped around its arm.
The statues were found at the site of San Casciano dei Bagni in Tuscany, on 3 November.
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The statues were found at the site of San Casciano dei Bagni in Tuscany, on 3 November.
Italian Ministry of Culture
Archaeologist Emanuele MariottiThe field research manager overseeing the excavation site, said finding so many objects in their original site provides a unique historical context.
“This is not just about discovering statues and coins big and small in bronze and… architecture,” says Mariotti. Everything has to be in the right place with the right things around.” “This is the context. Context can tell us the real history and all the history of the place.”
Emanuele Mariotti, archaeologist and field research manager for the city of San Casciano dei Bagni, at the archaeological site on Nov.
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Emanuele Mariotti, archaeologist and field research manager for the city of San Casciano dei Bagni, at the archaeological site on Nov.
Valerio Muscella for NPR
Mariotti and his colleagues believe that in ancient times there was probably a blacksmith on site where those seeking cures from the gods could forge their bronze offerings. And the researchers found Bronze depiction of internal organs — what Mariotti has to say about the first X-ray versions are unique: “Something like an X-ray but in bronze, an image of [insides of the] bronze body.”
When asked if the anatomical details were accurate, Mariotti replied: “To the extent that… really scientifically accurate, really.”
New discoveries also shed light on what the Italian Ministry of Culture describe as a “unique multicultural and multilingual peace haven” between the Etruscans and the Romans at a time when the main rivals were at war.
And scholars, says Mariotti, can rewrite the history of the transition from Etruscan civilization to the Roman Empire.
“We can describe all of life, day in and day out here, over four or five centuries, so this is hard to believe,” he said.
The statues were discovered in San Casciano dei Bagni. Archaeologists have found more than two dozen bronze statues, more than 2,000 years old and perfectly preserved in the hot mud and water of an ancient, sacred lake.
Italian Ministry of Culture
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Italian Ministry of Culture
The statues were discovered in San Casciano dei Bagni. Archaeologists have found more than two dozen bronze statues, more than 2,000 years old and perfectly preserved in the hot mud and water of an ancient, sacred lake.
Italian Ministry of Culture
But for all the new information coming out of the San Casciano dei Bagni reserve, there’s a big mystery: Why didn’t the Christians destroy the site – or turn it into a church – like they did. did with so many pagan temples?
Researchers have determined that around 500 C.E.—about two centuries after Christianity became the official religion of the now decaying Roman Empire—the sanctuary was dismantled piece by piece. . The statues were placed at the bottom of the great lake, covered and sealed with columns and large marble slabs. It was the burial of a civilization, Mariotti said, done with “Pia cake” – Latin word meaning respect and devotion to the family.
Excavation at the reserve will resume in the spring. Statues – currently being studied at rehabilitation institute of the town of Grosseto — will eventually be exhibited in a newly built museum in San Casciano dei Bagni.
A statue discovered in San Casciano dei Bagni.
Italian Ministry of Culture
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