Muvit, the most important Wine Museum in Italy, in Torgiano, is narrated as “gift from gods”

From a cauldron containing the remains of a grape cluster, whose laboratory analyses suggest that the vine was an “ancestor” of Sangiovese, confirming the deep roots of this variety in central Italy to an amphora with traces of wine that draws particular attention for its inscription “I (belong) to Velχa Felusna”, a sort of primordial “label” indicating the ownership of the cellar or at least that batch of wine. These are just some of the previously unseen “treasures” among the 60 archaeological artifacts from Tomb 58 of the Osteria Necropolis in Vulci, showcased for the very first time at Muvit, the Wine Museum of the Lungarotti Foundation in Torgiano, the most important of its kind in Italy (whose pioneering project was featured in a WineNews video), which, among the masterpieces of its collection - over 3,000 works spanning 5,000 years of history - exhibits this vast and precious assemblage that illustrates the ritual of the Etruscan funerary banquet and the fundamental role of wine in libations and sacrifices offered to the gods, as well as its function as a viaticum for the afterlife, symbolizing continuity between the living and the dead and serving as a medium between the two dimensions (on display from today until July 5th, 2026).
“We are proud to have contributed to the restoration and enhancement of these important archaeological finds from Vulci - underlines Teresa Severini, head of the Lungarotti Foundation - but above all, we are delighted to present them in an exclusive preview at the Wine Museum. These artifacts are naturally tied to the soul of the Museum and offer further insights into Etruscan civilization, wine, and the symposium. A heartfelt thank-you to everyone who made this significant project possible”. The exhibition is part of the Foundation’s “TraMusei” initiative, which fosters collaboration and synergy among different museum institutions, with support from the Directorate General for Libraries and Cultural Institutes of the Ministry of Culture. “Following the case of the Tomb of the Silver Hands - explains Simona Carosi of the Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape Superintendency for the Province of Viterbo and Southern Etruria - thanks to the Lungarotti Foundation, we are once again showcasing the entire process, from archaeological discovery to research, analysis, and the promotion of our heritage, in an active collaboration between public and private sectors, between past and present”.
The discovery of Tomb 58 took place during the excavation campaign by the Vulci Foundation under the supervision of the Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape Superintendency for the Province of Viterbo and Southern Etruria. The opening of the burial chamber in October 2023 revealed a treasure untouched for over 2,600 years, consisting of amphorae, ollae and impasto pithoi, bucchero and Etrusco-Corinthian ceramic tableware, cups, iron objects, and bronze artifacts. The tomb, belonging to a male individual, dates to the late 7th century Bce and reflects a high social status, offering further historical insights into Etruscan aristocracy and the meaning attributed to the symposium as an affirmation of status and power, even in the afterlife. The centrality of wine in elite symposia in Etruria, where, unlike in Greece, women also participated, is highlighted by the paintings found on tomb walls, which, together with the refined funerary assemblages, become key sources of knowledge. A gift from the gods, wine bridges worlds, civilizations, myths, and cultures, preserving its divine character.