Affresco con scena storica della necropoli dell'esquilino

The Esquiline Necropolis (Italian - ''Necropoli dell'Esquilino'') was a prehistoric necropolis on the

Esquiline Hill The Esquiline Hill (; la, Collis Esquilinus; it, Esquilino ) is one of the Seven Hills of Rome. Its southernmost cusp is the ''Oppius'' (Oppian Hill). Etymology The origin of the name ''Esquiline'' is still under much debate. One view is ...

in Rome, in use until the end of the 1st century AD. It came into use when the Forum necropolis fell into disuse in the mid 8th century BC (other than for child burials, which continued there until the end of the 7th century BC), and testifies to Rome's expansion towards the

Velian Hill The Velia — or Velian Hill or Velian Ridge — is a saddle or spur stretching out from the middle of the north side of the Palatine Hill towards the Oppian Hill (itself a spur of the Esquiline Hill) in Rome. In later times, the Velia was cal ...

. Its burials have richer grave goods and are better supplied with weapons, typical of a now aristocratic warrior-class, as already existed in other areas along the Tyrrhenian seaboard such as Etruria and Campania. As regards the

protohistoric Protohistory is a period between prehistory and history during which a culture or civilization has not yet developed writing, but other cultures have already noted the existence of those pre-literate groups in their own writings. For example, in ...

period, the burials are of the advanced "second phase" and, more typically, the "third phase", characterized by more compressed-form (rather than globular-form) pots, with more elongated handles towards the top and more "costolature" than moulded or carved decoration.

Bibliography

*Ranuccio Bianchi Bandinelli e Mario Torelli, L'arte dell'antichità classica, Etruria-Roma, Utet, Torino 1976. {{coord, 41.8957, N, 12.5022, E, source:wikidata, display=title Ancient Roman tombs and cemeteries in Rome