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The archaeologists found the vault, chiselled
into the rock and dating back to the fourth century B.C., within
a large Roman necropolis containing thousands of tombs in Aleria,
in the east of the French Mediterranean island.
The Etruscans originated in Tuscany during the Bronze Age in
around 900 B.C. and left little written trace of their culture.
Their decline was gradual and the last Etruscan cities were
absorbed by Rome around 100 B.C.
The discovery, announced this week, could yield new details on
the existence of a stable Etruscan population in Corsica and
help archaeologists understand the slow demise of the Etruscan
civilization.
"It's the missing link which will allow us to piece together
Etruscan funerary rites, but it also reinforces the hypothesis
that before the Roman conquest (in -259 B.C), Aleria was a
transit point in the Tyrrhenian Sea, blending Etruscan,
Carthaginian and Phocaean interests", head curator Franck
Leandri said.
The grave appears to belong to a high-ranking official, holding
"about 15 ceramic vases similar to Etruscan pieces and what
appears to be a mirror or the lid of a casing", anthropologist
Catherine Rigeade said at the site.
"We have some knowledge of Etruscan objects, but we know very
little about Etruscan subjects; here we have both", Rigeade
added.
Close to the tomb, archaeologists discovered a gold signet ring
bearing almost no trace of time. On it, a feminine face,
possibly depicting the goddess Aphrodite, can be made out.
The researchers will now focus on accessing the skeleton, which
is covered with collapsed furniture apart from its skull. They
plan to call in forensic scientists to help reveal the secrets
of the remains.
(Writing by Julie Carriat; Editing by Richard Lough and Frances
Kerry)
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