The Fertility Goddess...return to the Underworld

Demetra brought back  to the  light  only  for Christmas time  

A  unique temple  sanctuary dedicated to the goddess of fertility  Demetra  (Vea for the Etruscans)  was discovered in  2006  in the wooded area  known as Macchia della Valle, just outside  the town of  Vetralla, an hour's drive north of Rome.

three flights up to visit Demetra 

 Hidden inside a natural grotto  was a  house-shaped cell complete with its cover. Precise scientific elements  date the sanctuary and  the cult to the 3^rd century BC.

 Along with many terracotta  lamps, proof that night time liturgies were practiced at the sanctuary, archeologists found  ex votos  in the form of uterus and other reproductive organs. 

The goddess Demetra 

These were  probably brought as gifts to the goddess by married women and girls awaiting marriage asking for fertility and health.

votive gifts  found in the sanctuary 

After  2500 years  hidden beneath the earth, Demetra returned to the light when her  magnificent terracotta statue was rescued from the hidden sanctuary.  

Goddess under glass

For  just one week during the Christmas holidays local people and visitors were able to admire her  at the Etruscan Museum in nearby Viterbo.

Rocca Albornoz, Viterbo's Etruscan Museum 

 Like Demetra’s daughter, Persephone,  the statue  will be returned to the “underworld” of the museum’s storage rooms when Christmas is over. According to museum personnel there is no space for a permanent exhibit in the Etruscan Museum,  housed in the gigantic Albornoz fortress.

small exhibit  in Viterbo Museum

The neighboring city of Vetralla, where the discovery took place, has  both a functioning  museum as well as several  protected areas  inside the City Hall (Comune) and city office buildings where the statue could very well be conserved and exhibited.

What is lacking is the will of local politicians and  the understanding of how important this precious object is for the town and for tourism.  

A modern Etruscan  meets the  2,500 year old goddess 

  When  there is a will there is a way: a few years ago  a couple of  Etruscan sarcophaghi  which had been sitting in the  school parking lot for over half a century were brought inside to become the nucleus of a mini-museum. 

Let's hope that Demetra  does not half to wait another 50 years to find her  permanent home. Your concern, suggestions and comments are welcome.

Village Festival and House Museum

A corner of  the Casa Museo  

two apette guard the City Hall 

Villa San Giovanni in Tuscia,  a tiny hamlet of just over  1000 souls, is a mere  spot on the  map of central Italy, well hidden among the green  hills that stretch from  Vetralla to Blera.

making magic  in Villa San Giovanni in Tuscia

Last weekend its  quiet streets came alive with artisans showing off their handicrafts  and  street artists frolicking as the village celebrated  the arrival of spring .   

Dario soaks twigs for  basket making  in  the 1909  fountain

Showing off finished products..with a  new shirt 

The history of the town mingles with its present.  

objects of the past: clock, brush, mirror, battipanni and oil lamp

modern mosaic mirrors by Bruno of Blera 

Many of the  artisans have "escaped" from hectic city life in New York and Rome and found a new home close to nature in which to practice their crafts  and organize  laboratories for children and adults. 

Cristina shows the technique for making pots 

kitchen ware of the past 

and   the present 

Mosaic pavements of a Roman villa were discovered here  a few decades ago when new water pipes were being laid. 

Rita  shows kids T-shirt decoration

More recent is  the discovery  nearby  of an intact sanctuary dedicated to the Etruscan goddess Demetra which pushed the clock back  even further to about 2,000 years ago.  

 Milorad from Montenegro and  Laura, who designs and makes  textile bags 

Its an open door  town, note the keys in the lock 

Time  goes so  slowly  in this area known as  Etruria that those over  50 were surprised  when the House Museum, Casa Museo was set up,  for the  interiors are just  as they remembered their grandparents’ homes.   

essential bedroom furnishings 

madia for bread making next to the fireplace 

Cannoli  with sweet ricotta cheese 

And, like all village festivals, there were plenty of  good things to eat and drink during the day and at evening dinners.   

Villa Chiarini Wulf wines from nearby Vetralla

 a hungry clown, Johnny Biscotto 

olive oil in repro Etruscan flask exported to China

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