by Angelo Mazzei “Di Poggio”
Hidden among the chestnut forests of western Elba, overlooking the twin horizons of the Tyrrhenian Sea, lie the remains of what may once have been one of the most imposing aristocratic residences of Etruria: the Palazzo Spurinna Corona of Monte Castello di Procchio. For centuries, these ruins were mistaken for a medieval borgo abandoned after the plague of 1348. Only in the late 20th century did systematic investigation begin to reveal that the sprawling structure—measuring roughly 1,800 m² per floor—was, in fact, a monumental Domus Tripartita ad Impluvium, belonging to the noble family of the Spurinna of Tarquinia.
A forgotten palace in the Tyrrhenian
The site, catalogued as a Fortezza d’altura by early archaeologists, occupies one of the most strategic vantage points of the island, about a hundred metres above sea level. From here, both the northern and southern coasts of Elba are visible—a position ideal for controlling maritime routes and the inland valleys of Marciana and Procchio. The German army recognized its strategic potential during World War II, when occupying troops installed a concrete bunker directly in the central atrium, damaging ancient levels and looting part of the assemblage.
Repeated clandestine excavations through the 1960s and 1970s culminated in 1977, when a formal campaign was launched under the direction of Professor Adriano Maggiani, whose findings remain dispersed across several partial publications (Corsica e Populonia; Da Genova ad Ampurias). Important synthetic notes also appear in the works of Corretti, Cambi, and Pagliantini, as well as in Zecchini’s Isola d’Elba. Le Origini. A full publication, however, is still awaited.
Architecture of power: a monumental Domus Tripartita ad Impluvium
The complex belongs to the Italic architectural tradition known as Domus Tripartita ad Impluvium, organized around a central atrium that collected rainwater in a paved impluvium draining into a cistern below. Residential, ceremonial, and service spaces opened inward onto this central court, a design promoting both seclusion and climatic regulation.
In the Elban example, the plan is canonical yet vastly enlarged. The atrium is exceptionally wide; the flanking wings likely hosted private apartments, textile workshops, and storerooms. The ground level alone exceeds six times the area of typical aristocratic houses in southern Etruria, rarely surpassing 300 m². Such monumental scale suggests that this was no mere residence: it was the falathrium Spurinial—a palatial seat of representation and authority.
Archaeological finds reinforce this interpretation. Domestic assemblages include fine black-glazed tableware inscribed with the family name Spurinieš, loom weights, spindle whorls, and fragments of eight enormous dolia for grain storage. The combination of female domestic implements and administrative storage contrasts sharply with a military function, challenging the outdated classification “fortress.” As Maggiani himself observed, “Ramtha Curunas Cretnai, perhaps the lady of the house.” Yet later summaries reduced the complex to a “fortified structure,” disregarding the clearly residential and ceremonial nature revealed by the finds.
The Spurinna dynasty and the politics of the Tyrrhenian
The Spurinna were among the oldest and most influential gentes of Tarquinia, active from the 6th century BCE onward. The Elogia Spurinna—three fragmentary Latin inscriptions from Tarquinia’s forum—record the deeds of Velthur and Aulus Spurinna, both praetores and military leaders of the 4th century BCE. One inscription recounts a victorious overseas campaign, “the first of all Etruscans to lead an army across the sea,” possibly against Syracuse in Sicily. Another tells of Aulus Spurinna, thrice praetor, who expelled a king from Caere and captured nine strongholds of the Latins.
These deeds coincide chronologically with the geopolitical struggles that shook the Tyrrhenian world: the fall of Veii, the rise of Rome, and the wars with Syracuse for control of the metal-rich islands. In this context, Elba—source of iron and crossroads of maritime trade—was a strategic jewel. It is plausible that Aulus Spurinna, or his son Velthur, strengthened familial holdings on the island to secure Etruscan access to these resources.
Tradition, preserved in local memory, calls Velthur “the last king of Tarquinia,” and his consort Ramessa Corona Cretani (identified epigraphically as Ramθa Curunas Cretnai) “the princess of Tuscania.” Their palace at Procchio thus stands as a symbolic outpost of the final Etruscan monarchy—what local writers have called “the last royal couple of Elba.”
Inscriptions and interpretation
Two inscriptions from the site link the complex explicitly to the Spurinna and Corona families. On a high-quality ceramic plate, the painted mark SPURINIEŠ identifies ownership; on one of the dolia, an inscription reads CURUNAS CRETNAI, followed by traces possibly restored as [RAM]ΘA. Earlier interpretations took this as a female personal name—Ramtha Curunas Cretnai—but doubts remain. The order of the words (in sinistroverse script) is unusual: Curunas Cretnai [—]tha. A reassessment suggests Curunas could relate not to a gentilicium but to the contents (curun = grain ?), with Cretnai indicating provenance (“from Crete”). The reading remains open; whatever its meaning, it testifies to the site’s economic and cultural connections across the Tyrrhenian.
Between domesticity and cult
The discovery of female quarters with looms, spindles, and textile weights evokes the domestic role of women in elite Etruscan households, where weaving carried both economic and ritual significance. Alongside these were found votive terracotta fragments, including a refined female head in classical style, comparable to those recently uncovered at Kainua (Marzabotto). Such offerings attest to a cultic dimension within the residence—a private sanctuary integrated into the domestic complex, consistent with Etruscan religious practice.
From discovery to neglect
Despite its significance, the Palazzo Spurinna Corona remains largely unprotected and unrecognized. Situated adjacent to the Grande Traversata Elbana, one of the island’s most frequented hiking trails, the site is devoid of signage. Visitors unknowingly pass within metres of the walls of what may be the largest Etruscan residence ever found west of the mainland.
Following the 1970s excavations, part of the material was stored and only a fraction displayed—split between the Museo Archeologico di Marciana and the Museo Archeologico di Portoferraio. In storage, the great dolium of the Domus Spurinna lies shattered in hundreds of fragments, awaiting restoration.
Toward a reevaluation
The architectural and historical weight of Monte Castello demands a new phase of scholarly and civic attention. The author of Groviglio News rightly observes that calling the site a “fortress” imposes a modern and gendered concept foreign to antiquity. The plan and finds correspond instead to a domus—a house of power where politics, ritual, and domestic life converged. Its very terminology, falathrium Spurinial, may derive from the Etruscan falathra (“palace”), reinforcing its status as a princely seat.
The need is urgent: a renewed excavation, comprehensive publication of the stratigraphy and materials, coherent musealization of the finds in a single local space, protective measures, and interpretive panels. Without such intervention, the last royal palace of Etruria risks disappearing beneath vegetation and time.
The legacy of the Spurinna
Beyond the walls of Monte Castello, the Spurinna continued to shape Roman memory. Plutarch recounts that a descendant, the haruspex Spurinna, warned Julius Caesar to beware the Ides of March—an echo of ancestral prophetic authority from Tarquinia. The line that once governed the western seas thus extended, through legend and lineage, into Rome’s own mythology of fate.
The Elban palace, forgotten and unnamed for centuries, stands as their final monument: a witness to the twilight of Etruscan sovereignty, when noble families of Tarquinia sought refuge and continuity on the islands of the Tyrrhenian. Here, at Procchio, the story of Velthur Spurinna and Ramessa Corona Cretani joins the fabric of both history and myth—an enduring testament to the resilience of Etruscan identity at the edge of the ancient world.
References
- A. Maggiani, Corsica e Populonia; Da Genova ad Ampurias.
- M. Zecchini, Isola d’Elba. Le Origini.
- M. Torelli, Gli Spurinas (pp. 106–108).
- Corretti, Cambi, Pagliantini, various studies on Elban archaeology.
- Articles in Groviglio.News (2024): “S6 E4 – Palazzo Etrusco di Procchio” and “Una enorme domus etrusca all’Isola d’Elba.”
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