ROME (AP) – Italian authorities announced the seizure of an illegal excavation of an Etruscan burial site in the central Umbria region and are investigating two people for suspected theft of urns, sarcophagi and other artefacts worth EUR8 million (USD8.5 million) intended for sale on the black market.
The illegal dig was adjacent to another Etruscan burial site discovered by a farmer tilling his land in 2015, authorities said. They were tipped off by photographs of artefacts and the site that were circulating on the black market that resembled objects found on the farmer’s land.
Using a drone for aerial photography and phone taps, they located the second site on land belonging to a local businessman who had access to earthmoving equipment.
At the new site they found two sarcophagi, believed to be of two Etruscan princesses, one still with the skeleton inside, and a burial trousseau complete with urns with battle and hunting scenes, perfume jars and a comb made from bone.
The Etruscan civilisation existed from about 900 BC to 27 BC in central Italy primarily between the Tiber and Arno rivers, covering parts of present-day Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio.
in Rome, Italy. PHOTO: AP
