Cerveteri, the town north of Rome that was once an important Etruscan settlement, is enjoying a boom in visitors. The crowds have been drawn in thousands over the Christmas holidays to see the famous Crater of Euphonios, a 5th century BC Greek masterpiece, returned to its rightful home. The Crater, one of several surviving bowls used for mixing wine and water that came from the Euphronios workshop, is the most perfectly preserved example. Modelled by the master potter Euxetheos and decorated with mythical scenes by the artist Euphronios, it also bears his signature.
The crater has a turbulent history. Smuggled out of Italy, it was illegally sold to the Metropolitan Museum of New York in 1972. After a thirty-year legal battle, it was finally restored to Italy in 2006 and has been lodged in the Etruscan Museum of Villa Giulia, Rome, ever since.
At the moment, it is on loan to the Museo Nazionale Cerite of Cerveteri, but the town authorities hope that it may stay permanently, due to the interest it has attracted and the fact that the Etruscan Necropolis of Cerveteri is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
By special concession, free guided tours to the Necropolis and the Museum will be available on Sunday 18th January 2015.
Info: Tel. ++39.06.99552637/328.2925237 artemideguide@hotmail.com
