Imported Attic Ware at the Etruscan Necropolis of San Giuliano in Lazio, Italy: An Analysis of Pottery Sherds from Looted Chamber Tombs

This thesis, entitled “Imported Attic at the Etruscan Necropolis of San Giuliano in Lazio, Italy: An Analysis of Pottery Sherds from Looted Chamber Tombs” serves a dual purpose. First, it seeks to synthesize the socio-political, economic, and technological conditions of the Mediterranean which led to the importation of Greek Attic ware by the Etruscans during the Orientalizing and Archaic periods. Second, it uses material that I examined as part of the San Giuliano Archaeological Research Project as a case study in analyzing the excavated sherds of imported Greek vessels uncovered at the Etruscan Necropolis. The first chapter introduces this thesis, explaining the complexities of analyzing a site that has been heavily looted. The second chapter directly addresses the shifting relationships, technological advances, and economy across the Mediterranean which led to the importation and exportation of pottery between Greece and Etruria. The third chapter is a literary analysis, exploring the development of pottery production and technology across Etruria and Greece, establishing a basis of understanding regarding different pottery wares as well as their production and trade. Next follows a case study in which field reports, data sheets, and context notes of the past six field seasons of the San Giuliano Archaeological Research Project (SGARP) are used to analyze the imported Greek sherds which were excavated. This fourth chapter navigates the complexities of analyzing archaeological material from a looted site. Lastly, the fifth chapter summarizes my discoveries while discussing the complexities of data analysis at a looted site.