Necropolis vestina di Fossa

Fossa - The Necropolis vestina di Fossa was discovered in 1992, over the years about 600 tombs have been excavated, it has been used for about 1000 years. In 1992, work began in this area to build an industrial warehouse, during the excavations the first archaeological remains were found. The necropolis is probably linked to the town of Colle Restoppia.

The necropolis is divided into two historical phases: the first dates back to the period between the end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age, the tombs show wealth and power, they are burial tombs (not burned as happened in the past ) and often have an ornamental outfit in iron and not in bronze as happens in other necropolises; the second phase, which dates back to the 7th century, is characterized by chamber tombs with bone funerary beds, often with figures referring to Roman and Greek mythology with the main character Hercules. The Menhirs that we find near the tombs are unsmoothed obelisks that were used since the Neolithic, are the subject of great discussions; according to some the Menhirs are arranged near the tombs from the smallest to the largest in order to represent the story of the life of the deceased; others think that the Menhirs represent a group of warriors who pay homage to the deceased, in fact they are present only near the graves of men. At the foot of the deceased, whether man or woman, there is always a jug for wine and a cup, a habit that remained even in the following centuries, where the cup, however, was more precious and worked, almost personalized. A part of the finds in the tombs is exhibited in various convents and in the Museum of Chieti, but most of it is closed in warehouses, instead all this deserves an archaeological park that becomes a point of reference; in fact it is thought to create a museum in the shed that was expropriated at the beginning of the excavations.