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Il Tirreno: Trovata stele etrusca in Mugello: “scoperta straordinaria”

Secondo gli scienziati il testo riportato sulla pietra potrebbe dare un contributo decisivo alla ricostruzione del linguaggio di questo popolo.

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Italian newspaper Il Tirreno in Italy covered SMU sponsored research at Italy’s Poggio Colla site where archaeologists have found what may be rare sacred text in the lost language of the Etruscans. The text is inscribed on a large 6th century BC sandstone slab and could reveal name of the god or goddess that was worshipped at the site.

The article, “Una stele per svelare il linguaggio degli Etruschi,” published March 31.

For more information

gregory warden, stele, poggio colla, etruscans, smu, franklin collegeTo book a live or taped interview with Gregory Warden, call SMU News, 214-768-7654, or email news@smu.edu.

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EXCERPT:

Il Tirreno
FIRENZE. E’ una scoperta che potrebbe dare un contributo decisivo per ricostruire il linguaggio degli Etruschi. Un gruppo di ricercatori del Mugello Valley Archaeological Project ha portato alla luce una stele che riporta una scrittura etrusca. La scoperta è stata fatta nel sito di Poggio Colla in Toscana. La pietra, che pesa 227 chili ed è alta poco più di un metro, faceva parte di un tempio sacro che 2500 anni fa venne demolito per costruirne uno più grande.

La stele si presenta ben conservata. Contiene 70 lettere leggibili e segni di punteggiatura, caratteristiche che la rendono uno dei più lunghi esempi di scrittura etrusca mai rinvenuti finora. Gli scienziati sono convinti che le parole e i concetti sulla stele siano una rarissima testimonianza di questa civiltà, considerando che finora le nostre conoscenze sugli etruschi sono legate unicamente a, necropoli, tombe e oggetti funerari. La traduzione del testo sarà affidata all’Università del Massachusetts di Amherst.

“Le scoperte etrusche in Mugello, che hanno portato poi alla realizzazione del bellissimo Museo comprensoriale di Dicomano, trovano con la stele scavata dal Mugello Archaeological Project un punto di riferimento essenziale”. Lo afferma il presidente del Consiglio regionale Eugenio Giani, in una nota sul ritrovamento nel sito di Poggio Colla.

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Follow SMUResearch.com on twitter at @smuresearch.

SMU is a nationally ranked private university in Dallas founded 100 years ago. Today, SMU enrolls nearly 11,000 students who benefit from the academic opportunities and international reach of seven degree-granting schools. For more information see www.smu.edu.

SMU has an uplink facility located on campus for live TV, radio, or online interviews. To speak with an SMU expert or book an SMU guest in the studio, call SMU News & Communications at 214-768-7650.

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Culture, Society & Family Fossils & Ruins Researcher news SMU In The News Student researchers

Wired.it: Una stele per svelare il linguaggio degli Etruschi

Il ritrovamento di un stele etrusca potrebbe aiutare a ricostruire il linguaggio di questo popolo antico, arricchendo anche lo studio sul funzionamento delle città e della società.

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Italian science reporter Anna Lisa Bonfranceschi with Wired in Italy covered SMU sponsored research at Italy’s Poggio Colla site where archaeologists have found what may be rare sacred text in the lost language of the Etruscans. The text is inscribed on a large 6th century BC sandstone slab and could reveal name of the god or goddess that was worshipped at the site.

The article, “Una stele per svelare il linguaggio degli Etruschi,” published March 30.

For more information

gregory warden, stele, poggio colla, etruscans, smu, franklin collegeTo book a live or taped interview with Gregory Warden, call SMU News, 214-768-7654, or email news@smu.edu.

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By Anna Lisa Bonfranceschi
Wired.it
Alta più di un metro e pesante oltre 200 chili, ricorda la stele di Rosetta. Ma invece di essere egiziana è etrusca e contiene circa 70 lettere e alcuni tratti di punteggiatura – un linguaggio in parte perso – che potrebbe aiutare a capire qualcosa di più sulla cultura degli antichi Etruschi, ricostruita soprattutto grazie alle necropoli e agli oggetti funerari.

La lastra in questione risale a 2.500 anni fa, è in arenaria ed è stata ritrovata nel sito di Poggio Colla, in Toscana, nelle fondamenta di un tempio, dove probabilmente veniva esposta come simbolo di autorità, come ha spiegato Gregory Warden del Mugello Valley Archaeological Project, che ha ritrovato la pietra. Pietra che si spera possa aiutare a far luce sul linguaggio degli Etruschi, grazie alla lunghezza del testo rinvenuto e al fatto che, non trattandosi di un testo funerario, probabilmente saranno presenti parole nuove. “Sappiamo già come funziona la grammatica etrusca, quali sono i verbi, gli oggetti, e alcune delle parole”, ha aggiunto Warden: “ma speriamo che l’analisi della lastra ci riveli il nome del dio o della dea che veniva adorata in questo sito”, richiamando il grande peso avuto dalla religione nella civiltà etrusca.

Read the full story.

Follow SMUResearch.com on twitter at @smuresearch.

SMU is a nationally ranked private university in Dallas founded 100 years ago. Today, SMU enrolls nearly 11,000 students who benefit from the academic opportunities and international reach of seven degree-granting schools. For more information see www.smu.edu.

SMU has an uplink facility located on campus for live TV, radio, or online interviews. To speak with an SMU expert or book an SMU guest in the studio, call SMU News & Communications at 214-768-7650.

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Culture, Society & Family Fossils & Ruins Researcher news SMU In The News

Christian Science Monitor: 2,500-year-old slab offers window into ancient Etruscan faith

Archaeologists unearthed a big Etruscan artifact in Italy – a big deal considering how little is known about the ancient civilization’s language and religion.

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Science reporter Story Hinckley with The Christian Science Monitor covered SMU sponsored research at Italy’s Poggio Colla site where archaeologists have found what may be rare sacred text in the lost language of the Etruscans. The text is inscribed on a large 6th century BC sandstone slab and could reveal name of the god or goddess that was worshipped at the site.

The article, “2,500-year-old slab offers window into ancient Etruscan faith,” published March 30.

For more information

gregory warden, stele, poggio colla, etruscans, smu, franklin collegeTo book a live or taped interview with Gregory Warden, call SMU News, 214-768-7654, or email news@smu.edu.

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EXCERPT:

By Story Hinckley
The Christian Science Monitor
A large sandstone slab dating back to the 6th century BC could hold clues about the religious beliefs of ancient Etruscans, if only archaeologists could read it.

Uncovered from an Etruscan temple in Tuscany after being buried for over 2,500 years, researchers believe the stone holds an important religious text. The 500-pound stele (the term that archaeologists use for such slabs) measures four feet tall by two feet wide and holds roughly 70 letters and punctuation marks.

Because of the rarity of Etruscan artifacts, not much is known about the Etruscan language. The little knowledge on the ancient language is limited to specific language written on funerary objects, which make up the majority of Etruscan discoveries. In translating the large stele, archaeologists will establish a broader understanding of Etruscan letters and words.

“We hope to make inroads into the Etruscan language,” archaeologist Gregory Warden, co-director and principle investigator of the Mugello Valley Archaeological Project and professor at Franklin University Switzerland, said in a press release. “Long inscriptions are rare, especially one this long, so there will be new words that we have never seen before, since it is not a funerary text.”

Archaeologists also say the artifact’s language could tell them more about Etruscan religion, and in turn more about the Romans, who were influenced by the Etruscan way of life.

“This is probably going to be a sacred text, and will be remarkable for telling us about the early belief system of a lost culture that is fundamental to western traditions,” added Dr. Warden.

Read the full story.

Follow SMUResearch.com on twitter at @smuresearch.

SMU is a nationally ranked private university in Dallas founded 100 years ago. Today, SMU enrolls nearly 11,000 students who benefit from the academic opportunities and international reach of seven degree-granting schools. For more information see www.smu.edu.

SMU has an uplink facility located on campus for live TV, radio, or online interviews. To speak with an SMU expert or book an SMU guest in the studio, call SMU News & Communications at 214-768-7650.

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Daily Mail: Sacred text found in Italy could unlock the secrets of the Etruscan religion

Rare 6th century BC slab inscribed in a lost language may contain the names of ancient gods

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Science reporter Abigail Beall with The Daily Mail covered SMU sponsored research at Italy’s Poggio Colla site where archaeologists have found what may be rare sacred text in the lost language of the Etruscans. The text is inscribed on a large 6th century BC sandstone slab and could reveal name of the god or goddess that was worshipped at the site.

The article, “Sacred text found in Italy could unlock the secrets of the Etruscan religion,” published March 29.

For more information

gregory warden, stele, poggio colla, etruscans, smu, franklin collegeTo book a live or taped interview with Gregory Warden, call SMU News, 214-768-7654, or email news@smu.edu.

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EXCERPT:

By Abigail Beall
The Daily Mail
The Etruscans were a mysterious civilisation from ancient Italy, and although a number of artefacts from their time have been found, little is known about the group’s belief system.

Researchers recently uncovered a 2,500-year-old sandstone tablet believed to date back to the time of the Etruscans, inscribed in a lost language.

And now archaeologists believe this slab could reveal more about the group’s religion and may even give away the name of a god or goddess.

The lengthy text is inscribed on a large 6th century BC sandstone slab, uncovered from an Etruscan temple.

The civilisation lived in ancient Italy from the 8th century BC to the 2nd century BC.

‘This is probably going to be a sacred text, and will be remarkable for telling us about the early belief system of a lost culture that is fundamental to western traditions,’ said archaeologist Professor Gregory Warden, principal investigator of the Mugello Valley Archaeological Project, which made the discovery.

Finding a new religious artefact like this is rare, the researchers said.

Most Etruscan discoveries are typically grave and funeral objects, for example.

The slab weighs around 500lbs (227 kg) and it is nearly 4 feet (1.2 metres) tall by more than 2 feet (0.6 metres) wide.

It has at least 70 legible letters and punctuation marks, said Professor Warden, main sponsor of the project.

It is likely to contain words in the lost language that have never been seen before.
The slab was discovered in the foundations of a monumental temple where it had been buried for more than 2,500 years.

Read the full story.

Follow SMUResearch.com on twitter at @smuresearch.

SMU is a nationally ranked private university in Dallas founded 100 years ago. Today, SMU enrolls nearly 11,000 students who benefit from the academic opportunities and international reach of seven degree-granting schools. For more information see www.smu.edu.

SMU has an uplink facility located on campus for live TV, radio, or online interviews. To speak with an SMU expert or book an SMU guest in the studio, call SMU News & Communications at 214-768-7650.

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Archaeology: Inscribed Etruscan Stele Unearthed in Italy

For more information

gregory warden, stele, poggio colla, etruscans, smu, franklin collegeTo book a live or taped interview with Gregory Warden, call SMU News, 214-768-7654, or email news@smu.edu.

Related links

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Archaeology, the publication of the Archaeological Institute of America, covered the SMU sponsored research of the Mugello Valley Project in Italy, where a rare religious Etruscan artifact has been discovered.

The article, “Inscribed Etruscan Stele Unearthed in Italy,” published March 29, 2016.

See the story here.

EXCERPT:

Archaeology
DALLAS, TEXAS — The excavation of a temple at the Poggio Colla site in Tuscany has yielded a four-foot-tall stele inscribed in the Etruscan language. But the stone is heavily abraded and chipped, and will have to be cleaned before scholars can read it.

“This is probably going to be a sacred text, and will be remarkable for telling us about the early belief system of a lost culture that is fundamental to western traditions,” archaeologist Gregory Warden of the Mugello Valley Archaeological Project said in a press release.

The inscription, which dates to the sixth century B.C., may contain new words, and even the name of a god or goddess. The stone was reused in the foundation of a monumental temple some 2,500 years ago.

“This stone stele is evidence of a permanent religious cult with monumental dedications, at least as early as the Late Archaic Period, from about 525 to 480 B.C. Its re-use in the foundations of a slightly later sanctuary structure points to deep changes in the town and its social structure,” explained Etruscan scholar Jean MacIntosh Turfa of the University of Pennsylvania Museum.

See the story here.

Follow SMUResearch.com on twitter at @smuresearch.

SMU is a nationally ranked private university in Dallas founded 100 years ago. Today, SMU enrolls nearly 11,000 students who benefit from the academic opportunities and international reach of seven degree-granting schools. For more information see www.smu.edu.

SMU has an uplink facility located on campus for live TV, radio, or online interviews. To speak with an SMU expert or book an SMU guest in the studio, call SMU News & Communications at 214-768-7650.