2. Room 1 - The Oldest Evidence

Audioguide by eArs 2. Room 1 - The Oldest Evidence Upon entering the second-floor rooms, after passing the first two display cases on your right—containing artifacts dating back to the 4th millennium BCE and the 10th century BCE—you reach Room 1, which houses items uncovered by De Nino during excavations in the necropolises. All the grave goods on display come from tombs carved into gravel deposits or pit graves, dating between the 4th and 1st centuries BCE, and are organized by their function: weapons in display case 3, jewelry and toiletry accessories in display cases 4 and 5.Among the artifacts, three are particularly noteworthy: a bronze jar with a female head motif, of Etruscan origin, displayed in showcase 6; a bronze casket with a peacock-shaped knob, used either as an inkwell or a cosmetic container, in showcase 7; and an askòs—a flask-shaped vessel displayed in showcase 9—retrieved from an infant’s tomb and regarded as a precursor to the modern baby bottle.Finally, display case 10 features a reconstructed female tomb, based on De Nino's descriptions. This is a typical Pelignian burial; the stone epitaph bears the name of the deceased, Saluta Scaifia, along with her social status: Anaceta Cerri, or priestess of Ceres, the goddess of the harvest.