\f1 \fs22 On an eminence overlooking the Bay of Porto Baratti to the north of Piombino stood the import
ant Etruscan metropolis of Populonia. Stretches of the ancient city's mighty walls can still be seen, while the \b \cf1 \ATXht14 necropolis\b0 \cf0 \ATXht0 provides evidence for the uninterrupted occupation of the site from the ninth to the third centur
y. Its great burial mounds with vaulted and domed cells are characteristic. Populonia was one of the most important centers for the working of iron in the ancient world; in fact the oldest tombs have been found underneath enormous heaps of iron slag crea
ted by the smelting of the ore that was extracted in the Etruscan and Roman eras from the mines on the island of Elba and worked at Populonia. The best-preserved furnaces include that of the <<Poggio della Porcareccia>> and those of <<Val Fucinaia>> at t
