Conceptions and Sources
than the sixth century. But whether that is valid or not, the clear indica-
tionsarethattheinscriptionpresentsquiteacomplexLatintextoftheregal
period;itisthusoneofanumberof itemsofevidenceforsomedegreeof
literacyin Latin(asopposedtoEtruscan)inthearchaicperiod.TheRomeof
thatperiodemergesasarelativelyadvancedcommunity,aconclusionwhich
isofsomeimportance,evenif itmakesitallthemorepuzzlingtounder-
standwhytheclosecontactswiththeGreekworldwhichexistedfromthe
beginningtooksolong—untilthethirdcentury..—toengenderaliterary
culture.
.TheinscriptionofSostratusfromGravisca.Anotherstrikinglyimpor-
tant item of evidence for Greek influence in Italy in the archaic period is
represented by the inscription discovered in at Gravisca, the port of
TarquiniainEtruria.^35 Theinscriptionisonastoneanchor,datestoabout
..,andruns‘‘IamofAeginetanApollo.Sostratus(sonof)...hadme
made.’’Itisdifficulttoexaggeratetheimportanceofthediscovery.Firstly,
togetherwiththeotherevidencefromthesanctuaryofHera,itshowsGreeks
solidlyestablishedontheEtruscancoastinthelatesixthcentury.Secondly,
it would be carrying academic caution too far if we declined altogether
to associate this Sostratus with the Sostratus mentioned in a passing aside
in Herodotus (, ) as the man who made the largest trading profit ever
known (among Greeks, as is surely implied).This Sostratus,orat thevery
leastarelative,nowacquiresafirmlocationandapproximatedate(roughly
contemporarywiththefoundationoftheRomanRepublic).Furthermore,a
largenumberofAtticvasesofthisperiodfromEtruriabearthestampΣΟΣ,
whichitissurelynottoorashtoassociatewithSostratus.Inthatcasewehave
animportantindicationofthecharacterofGreeklong-distancetradeinthe
late archaic period.Thevases were manufactured in Athens but carried to
EtruriainsubstantialquantitiesbyanAeginetantrader,whosepersonality
andprofitsweresufficientlywellknowntobealludedtobyHerodotusmore
thanhalfacenturylater.Thecombinationofdifferenttypesofevidence—alit-
eraryreference,adedicationinsitu,andmarksonalargenumberofvases—is
thereforecertainlysufficienttore-openthequestionoflong-distancetrade
in archaic Greece as a significant activity, deliberatelyaimed at producing
profits.Whetheritwouldalsosuggesttheexistenceofaclassoftradersisa
differentandmuchmorecomplexquestion.
.ThegoldleavesfromPyrgi.Pyrgiwasoneoftheportsofthesouthern
. M.Torelli, ‘‘Il santuario di Hera a Gravisca,’’Parola del Passato (): ; F. D.
Harvey,‘‘SostratosofAegina,’’ParoladelPassato():;J.Boardman,TheGreeksOver-
seas^3 (London,),.