Archaeologists Open 2,600-Year-Old Tomb — and Find 4 People Lost to Time

A sealed tomb in central Italy has given archaeologists the rare kind of discovery they usually hope for but almost never meet intact. At San Giuliano, about 70 km northwest of Rome, a Baylor University-led team uncovered an Etruscan chamber tomb that had remained closed for roughly 2,600 years.

Inside, the silence had protected more than bones. The tomb held four individuals, carved stone beds, and more than 100 grave goods, preserving a scene from the seventh century B.C. that escaped the looting that damaged so many nearby burials.