- Jean Gran-Aymerich –
that accelerated in the seventh century and attained its apogee in the fi rst half of the
sixth century in the Mediterranean and in the latter half of the sixth century and the
beginning of the fi fth in the Celtic hinterland. This general paradigm has been accepted
since the end of the nineteenth century ad, since the discovery of Etruscan bronzes in
temperate Europe, notably Schnabelkannen-type oinochoai, and the fi rst discoveries of
bucchero vases in Marseille, Sicily, and Carthage. In the middle of the twentieth century
ad the panorama was considerably enriched, especially by the identifi cation of Etruscan
transport amphorae on several shipwrecks and amongst the settlements of southern
France (le Midi) and Catalonia. If today the three most trustworthy indicators of the
long-range diffusion of Etruscan objects remain the Schnabelkannen, bucchero kantharoi
and transport amphorae, then the history of exchange is in reality very rich, dense and
complex (see Chapter 19) (Fig. 17.1).
THE NORTH-WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN:
MARSEILLE AND GAULThe sailing routes of the central Mediterranean that reach the littoral of the Gaulish
isthmus, between Provence and Catalonia, extend into the mainland via the Rhône and
through Aquitaine, before rounding the gulf of Lyon and heading for the Iberian littoral.
This is the region outside of Italy that has furnished the largest number and the greatest
range of Etruscan objects. The discoveries include over one hundred deposits, primarily
from habitations, but also from tombs, ritual areas and shipwrecks.
The phenomenon which we have dubbed the “French exception” refers to the fact that
certain mercantile goods distributed via the maritime network in the south of France
were introduced to the interior via the Rhône-Saône, where these goods were joined, at
certain sites in the hinterland, by other exports which followed the land routes crossing
the Alps.^3 The study of Etruscan and Italic imports, both in the Mediterranean world
and the European hinterland, is as indispensable for research into the protohistory of
the local populations of the river regions and the interior as it is regarding Etruscan and
Italic history.^4
Marseille-Massalia-MataliaMarseille is without a doubt the critical point in envisioning the “Etruscans as seen by
the Gauls.”^5 One must recall that it is the fi rst site in the north-western Mediterranean
where, in the twentieth century ad, bucchero vases were identifi ed.^6 In spite of the many
excavations carried out, it is still diffi cult to evaluate the respective place of Greeks,
Etruscans, and local populations in Marseille since the city’s earliest history in the
late seventh-early sixth centuries. Such a situation is shared amongst other emerging
port sites in the western Mediterranean, where multiple maritime operators crossed
paths.^7 The recent reports – archaeological and historical – have reinforced not only the
interpretation of the Greek colony at Marseille, but also her many regional contacts,
especially concerning the region of the Rhône.^8 The statistical study of imports and of
the earliest local ceramics produced in Marseille has been especially fruitful.^9 Despite the
precocious identifi cation of bucchero vases at Marseille, the extensive excavations at the
habitation site of Saint-Blaise revealed far more numerous Etruscan goods.^10 However,
the recent excavations conducted at Marseille have considerably augmented the Etruscan