Lecture: Unearthing the Etruscans: New Insights from the San Giuliano Archaeological Research Project

Archaeologists Davide Zori and Jamie Aprile are coming to the San Antonio Museum of Art on Tuesday, November 19, for a joint lecture on new findings from the San Giuliano Etruscan archaeological project. The talk is sponsored by the Etruscan Foundation and runs alongside The Etruscans: From the Heart of Ancient Italy, which the museum describes as the most comprehensive presentation of Etruscan culture in the United States in recent decades.

That exhibition is a massive undertaking: nearly 200 objects gathered from museums across Italy, Europe, the United States, and Canada. Many of the pieces are being shown in the U.S. for the first time, including works from the Vatican's Gregorian Etruscan Museum and the National Etruscan Museum of Villa Giulia. Together, they cover nearly a millennium of Etruscan history, from the ninth to the second century BCE, and touch on art, religion, funerary traditions, language, trade, and daily life, with a particular focus on the Etruscans' influence on ancient Rome.

Zori and Aprile's lecture fits right into that. While the exhibition looks at the culture as a whole, their talk focuses on the San Giuliano project, giving a closer look at the actual archaeological work and the new insights coming out of it. It's a good way to hear from the people doing the digging while the larger show is still open around you.

The lecture runs from 6 PM to 7 PM CT on Tuesday, November 19. If you want to see the rest of the collection, The Etruscans: From the Heart of Ancient Italy is on view at SAMA from October 31, 2026, through March 14, 2027.