MuVet – Museo Civico Archeologico Vetulonia Isidoro Falchi

The small local museum of the Vetulonia excavations, which displays numerous finds unearthed at Vetulonia, features some interesting coins. Ultimately, Vetulonia owes its identitification entirely to the coins found there, whose inscription “vatl” referred to the Etruscan city.

Coins from Vetulonia are very rare, so the wide range of different types presented in the museum is remarkable for the interested numismatist, even if they are not gold and silver coins, but bronze coins.

Speaking of gold coins, a highly remarkable forgery from a cultural-historical perspective is also on display. In the 19th century, the scientific community was hoping for gold coins from Vetulonia . Since none were found, an Italian goldsmith stepped in and, based on known evidence, crafted an intriguing forgery. He offered it to the Etruscan collection in Florence. The curator of the collection inquired with the excavator of Vetulonia. The excavator declared the gold coin a fake, as he had found nothing to suggest any Vetulonian coin was made of gold. The coin was therefore not purchased. How it ended up in this museum nonetheless? We don’t know.