A proposito del rinvenimento dell'Andromeda da Falerii Veteres

The year 1906 saw the inauguration of the railway connection between rome and Civita Castellana.
It proved a great success, and an extension of the line was consequently projected. During work on the stretch Civita Castellana – Fabrica di Roma, in the month of January 1911, the famous statue of Andromeda chained to the rocks was discovered. The aim of this paper is to present an analysis of this context, now possible only thanks to some documents stored in the Archivio Centrale dello Stato and in the Archivio Storico of the Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Villa Giulia in Rome. From these documents we can infer that the investigation was very partial, but we can also deduce that it interested a hitherto unknown suburban sanctuary north of the city. The discovery of the fragments was made in a large circular structure (probably a cistern) with a diameter of 4.83 m, explored to a depth of 5.30 m. Besides the fragments of the Andromeda, some parts of a male bust and leg, a head of an antefix and some votive offerings were also found.