The 'Baseball' Siglum on Black Gloss Pottery from Vescovado di Murlo
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54103/2037-4488/21485Keywords:
Vescovado di Murlo, Tinoni tombs, black gloss pottery, non-alphabet sigla, 'baseball' siglumAbstract
Nel 1960, due tombe a camera sono state scoperte durante la costruzione dell’area di Tinoni a Vescovado di Murlo. Vari esempi di ceramica nera lucida sono stati recuperati dalle tombe, 43 dei quali sono graffiti con sigla alfabetici e non. Un siglum si distingue per la frequenza con cui ricorre (12 volte) e per la sua forma unica; assomiglia alla forma di una palla da baseball. In questo articolo indaghiamo il siglum ‘baseball’, discutendo la sua collocazione all’interno della ceramica e descrivendone la variazione nella forma. Data la frequenza e la forma unica del siglum, sospettiamo che avesse una funzione speciale per i membri della famiglia sepolti nelle tombe dei Tinoni.
In 1960, two chamber tombs were discovered during construction in the Tinoni area of Vescovado di Murlo. Many examples of black gloss pottery were recovered from the tombs, 43 of which were scratched with alphabetic and non-alphabetic sigla. One siglum stands out for the frequency with which it occurs (12 times) and for its unique shape; it resembles the form of a baseball. In this paper, we investigate the ‘baseball’ siglum, discussing its placement on the interior of the pottery and describing its variation in form. Given the frequency and the unique form of the siglum, we suspect that it had a special function for family members buried in the Tinoni tombs. We conclude the paper by speculating about this possibility.
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