2,500-year-old terracotta is loved for Valentine’s Day in Italy
ROME – A pair of terracotta lovers caught in an embrace for 2,500 years are receiving several Valentine’s Day TLCs from Italian cultural officials.
One of the most famous figurines of lovers in the art world, the terracotta reclining couple is being offered high-tech protection from the threat of earthquakes and less concussion from traffic. external communications, officials said Monday when they announced the intended 18 months.
The Sarcophagus of the Spouses, made by an unknown craftsman, is actually an urn built to hold the remains of the deceased. It’s a top attraction at the National Etruscan Museum in Villa Giulia.
Museum director Valentino Nizzo said: “Sarcophagus is threatened every day by the vibrations generated by the Rome-Viterbo tramway and railway.
The 18-month project includes building a seismic foundation for the coffin that will help reduce the vibrations that threaten it.
Sarcophagus, dating to the 6th century BC, was discovered in 1881 in a necropolis at Cerveteri, a former Etruscan settlement near Rome. It was recreated from about 400 pieces of terracotta.