Fifty Years On: Revisiting the Terracotta Gorgon Antefixes of Poggio Civitate (Murlo)

This article provides an update to the 1976 article by J. Neils about the Archaic terracotta gorgon face (or Gorgoneion) antefixes of Poggio Civitate (Murlo), an Etruscan settlement near Siena, Italy. It first considers the origins of the gorgon figure, and her subsequent transition into the ancient Mediterranean architectural canon, especially in ancient Italy. Next, Neils’s original conclusions are revisited and expanded upon where possible. The positioning of the gorgon antefixes on the north wing of the Archaic Phase building’s exterior is examined in light of its apotropaic symbolism and in the larger context of the building’s destruction. Lastly, the role of the gorgon and the gorgon’s relationship to the potnia theron (mistress of the animals) at Poggio Civitate is briefly explored.