At Coriglia, over the past eight seasons, we have uncovered evidence for occupation of the site dating from the 10th c. BCE all the way to the 16th c. CE (as well as random realia from World War II.) To date, the site’s strongest phases are Hellenistic Etruscan and Roman (Republican, Early Imperial and Late Antique).


This season marks our third year beneath Orvieto, an exploration of a series of Etruscan underground structures that are generally pyramidal in shape and are dated securely to before the 5th century BCE.  Their function is as yet unknown. 


This is the second season for the excavation in Allerona.  Two apsidal structures remain of a 12th century church dedicated to Saint Ansanus (martyred 304 CE) which rest upon earlier Roman and possibly Etruscan foundations.


This year we begin work in Castel Giorgio at an Etruscan necropolis that dates from when the Romans moved the population from Orvieto to Bolsena after their conquest of Velzna in 264 BCE.

 

excavation season

This excavation is supported by the Institute for Mediterranean Archaeology and the generous contributions of Cody and Kelly Barnett.


Under the directorship of Prof. David B. George and Dr. Claudio Bizzarri, students, faculty and alumni from Saint Anselm College as well as volunteers from all over North America and as far off as Australia are digging Italy this May and June. Our excavations are at Coriglia near Castel Viscardo, a town located at the southwest edge of Umbria approximately eight miles northwest of Orvieto, at Allerona just across the Paglia River, a series of pyramidal hypogea beneath the city of Orvieto as well as a survey of Etruscan tombs in Castel Georgio.  


This website follows the 2014 Season, which, with a contingent of over 50 participants and staff, promises to make even greater strides in unearthing the key to unlock the mystery of these sites at Coriglia, Orvieto, Allerona and Castel Giorgio.