Gilt Bronzes from Cartoceto di Pergola

The Gilt Bronzes from Cartoceto di Pergola are the only surviving Roman gilt bronze equestrian group. The monumental ensemble was composed of at least two people on horseback, of which only one remains, and two standing women.

The statues were found in 1946 in many pieces, not far from the intersection of the Via Flaminia and the Via Salaria Gallica in the parish of Cartoceto, near Pergola, Marche, in central Italy. This was an isolated location, far from urban centres, and it is thought they were not originally sited there, but moved for some reason.

The statues may represent the family of Germanicus and date to the early 1st century AD, but more likely date from 50–30 BC and depict Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus and his father Lucius (both consuls), although other figures of local importance have also been suggested.

Because of its extraordinary archaeological importance, the group has been at the centre of a long controversy between the Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici delle Marche and the municipality of Pergola over the location where the bronzes would be preserved. The group was on display at the National Archeological Museum of the Marche, in Ancona, until 1972,^[1] when it was moved to the Museo dei Bronzi dorati della città di Pergola, built specifically for this purpose. A compromise solution now moves the original bronzes and replicas between the two sites.