The abundance of imported objects in the votive deposits highlights the role of Pyrgi as a gateway to the sea under the control of Caere and its openness to international contacts with the frequentation of the area by foreign merchants.
Pyrgi's development was closely linked to its favourable position along the Tyrrhenian shipping routes, and it became the main port of Caere and hosted its naval fleet.
Caere had three important ports: Punicum ( Santa Marinella), Pyrgi and Alsium. The connection between the great Etruscan city of Caere and the coast was ensured by the Caere-Pyrgi road, an impressive work of engineering, 10 m wide and 12 km long, comparable to that between Athens and Piraeus. The foundation of the settlement was ascribed to the Pelasgi and dates from the end of the 7th century BC. In 2009 a block of ceremonial buildings north of Temple A was found. It is notable for the discovery here of the gold tablets, an exceptional epigraphic document with rare texts in Phoenician and Etruscan languages, and also the exceptional terracotta pediment statues from the temple.Įxcavations by Sapienza University of Rome since 1957 have focussed on the large sacred district, including the Monumental Sanctuary of Uni (Phoenician Astarte) and a Demetriac cult area, the most ancient so far known in Etruria, dedicated to the pair of deities Sur/Suri and Cavatha. Its location is now occupied by the borough of Santa Severa. Pyrgi ( Pyrgus in Etruscan) was originally an ancient Etruscan town and port in Latium, central Italy, to the north-west of Caere.
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