The present-day village of Vetulonia, located at about 340 m above sea level, dominates the Grosseto plain which in Etruscan times was occupied by Lake Prile, a large lagoon that allowed access to the sea, and overlooking the city of Roselle. The archaeological area is divided into different sectors, including portions of settlements (Costa Murata, Costia de’ Lippi and Excavations city-Poggerello Renzetti) and monumental tombs (Pietrera, Diavolino II and Belvedere). The itinerary can start from Excavations city, a large part of the Etruscan settlement dating back to the 3rd and the first half of the 1st century BC, and continue to Costia de’ Lippi, with terracing walls related to a Hellenistic residential district. Then you can access Via Case di Siena where you find the entrance to the Costa Murata area, a site frequented from the end of the 7th century BC until the late Republican period. Initially, it was probably intended as a sacred area, as suggested by the discovery of a votive pit rich in Greek ceramics from the 6th and 5th centuries BC, exhibited at the Archaeological Museum of Vetulonia, while today it offers Hellenistic-Roman period dwellings along with a breathtaking view. Leaving behind the village of Vetulonia and descending on the road of the Tombs, you will encounter the arched chamber tomb of Belvedere, and further on the two monumental tumuli from the 7th century BC, known as the tombs of Diavolino II and Pietrera.
