Studies in Early Etruscan Bucchero

Bucchero is a type of Etruscan pottery which is black, both on the surface and in the core. There are many different shades of grey to black which are still considered to be bucchero, but in all cases the core of the pottery must be ‘reduced.’ The process was discovered by the Etruscans, and gave rise to one of the most characteristic products of their culture.Bucchero varies enormously from period to period, from place to place. In this paper the period to be covered is approximately 650–600 B.C., during which the forms ofbucchero sottilewere established and developed in southern Etruria. The origins of these forms will also be sought in earlier periods, chiefly from the late eighth century onwards. Thebucchero pesanteof the sixth century, and later types continuing in the fifth, will not be considered here.