In 1864 three rectangular sheets of gold leaf were f
ound in Pyrgi, carefully folded and stored in a safe place. It is likely that they were originally nailed to the jambs or doors of the temple. Two of them bear an \b \cf4 \ATXht15 inscription in Etruscan\b0 \cf0 \ATXht0 (16 lines) and one in a \b \cf4 \ATXht134 Phoenician language\b0 \cf0 \ATXht0 (11 lines). They represent the dedication of a temple to the goddess Uni (the equivalent of the Phoenician \b \cf4 \ATXht1139 Ashtaroth\b0 \cf0 \ATXht0 ) by a lord of Caere, Thefarie Velianas, in the third year
of his reign. The moment in history was probably that of the alliance between Caere and Carthage after the \b \cf4 \ATXht55 battle of Alalia\b0 \cf0 \ATXht0 . The tablets represent the earliest Punic inscription found on the Italian mainland and the ear
liest Etruscan document relating to contemporary history.\par