Forms and Fabrics of the Terracotta Industry in Southern Etruria in the Third and Second Centuries B.C

Five moulded terracotta votive heads from Tessennano, three terracotta sarcophagi from Tuscania, two terracotta votive heads from Vulci, and three votive heads from Tarquinia were studied. They are included in a larger ongoing research and have been dated to the late 3rd and 2nd centuries BC. Moulds deriving from the same handmade prototype were used on all sculptures. The votive sculptures derive from votive deposits, while the sarcophagi have been found in rupestral chamber tombs near Tuscania. These sites are all located in Southern Etruria (the northern parts of modern Lazio). Microscopic analyses of thin sections were performed. The mineralogy and grain size distributions were determined. It was concluded that the moulded and handmade parts, as well as the raw materials, suggest different workshops for each location. The handmade prototype seems, therefore, largely to have been distributed by mould circulation rather than by a central production or itinerant workshops. 8 refs.