In June of 2006 the OU Center for Classical Archaeology & Civilizations accompanied by a small contingent from Saint Anselm College began a new long-term archaeological excavation project of a Roman villa in Italy.  The archaeological project involves the excavation of an extensive villa complex only fifteen minutes to the Northwest of Orvieto.  This villa site is within the comune of Castel Viscardo and is situated immediately beneath the slopes of the neighboring hill-top village of Monterubiaglio.  The villa is several acres in size and has a majestic view of the Paglia River Valley and the Alfina highlands.   Only a few miles away from the villa site the Paglia River empties into the Tiber.

  

In the Etruscan and Roman eras the region around Orvieto and Castel Viscardo was a rich agricultural area, as it is today.   Numerous Etruscan tombs and Roman sites are in the area.  Both the Etruscans and the Romans took advantage of the presence of the many local springs, both fresh water and thermal.  One of the fresh water springs is located immediately on our site and its cool refreshing waters were enjoyed throughout the day by our archaeological team.  In the general vicinity of the villa there passed two important Roman roads, the Cassia Via and the Via Nova Traiana (New Trajan Road), the latter giving its name to our project.   

 

The 2006 Season reopened excavations of a villa site which had been initially discovered in 1996.  Both the 1996 and 2006 excavations have illustrated that the villa location had a long history that extended through the latter Etruscan period, the Roman Republic, into the Roman Imperial era.   The long-term habitation is partly illustrated by the villa’s several building phases, its strategic location, and the environmental benefits that it enjoyed.   Our excavations continued to reveal architecture and artifacts that confirmed the large size, wealth, and sophistication of the villa.     

 

The excavations produced numerous artifacts that support the interpretation of the villa as important and significant.  Our student archaeologists exposed new walls and found many artifacts.  The artifacts included lead water pipes, a ceramic lamp, a bronze fibula, a column base, many small mosaic tesserae of unique colors, coins, numerous fragments of fresco wall painting with “band” designs, a large amount of pottery sherds and roof tiles.  The discovery of a large dolium or earthenware vessel was of special interest because it is of a type frequently associated with a burial or religious rite.   Such a large villa suggests the need for a necropolis and the dolium may be a clue.  In all, the quality and quantity of the artifacts that were found hold the promise for the discovery of many more important cultural features of the site as we excavate over the coming years.