10.2: Early Etruscans

The Etruscans, an introduction

by Dr. Laurel Taylor

Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): Map of Etruscan civilization, 750-500 BCE. (Image by NormanEinstein, based on a map from The National Geographic Magazine, vol.173, No.6 [June 1988], CC BY-SA 3.0)

Before the small village of Rome became “Rome” with a capital R (to paraphrase D.H. Lawrence), a brilliant civilization once controlled almost the entire peninsula we now call Italy. This was the Etruscan civilization, a vanished culture whose achievements set the stage not only for the development of ancient Roman art and culture but for the Italian Renaissance as well.

Though you may not have heard of them, the Etruscans were the first “superpower” of the Western Mediterranean who, alongside the Greeks, developed the earliest true cities in Europe. They were so successful, in fact, that the most important cities in modern Tuscany (Florence, Pisa, and Siena, to name a few) were first established by the Etruscans and have been continuously inhabited since then.

Yet the labels “mysterious” or “enigmatic” are often attached to the Etruscans since none of their own histories or literature survives. This is particularly ironic as it was the Etruscans who were responsible for teaching the Romans the alphabet and for spreading literacy throughout the Italian peninsula.

​The influence on ancient Rome

Etruscan influence on ancient Roman culture was profound. It was from the Etruscans that the Romans inherited many of their own cultural and artistic traditions, from the spectacle of gladiatorial combat, to hydraulic engineering, temple design, and religious ritual, among many other things. In fact, hundreds of years after the Etruscans had been conquered by the Romans and absorbed into their empire, the Romans still maintained an Etruscan priesthood in Rome (which they thought necessary to consult when under attack from invading “barbarians”).

We even derive our very common word “person’” from the Etruscan mythological figure Phersu—the frightful, masked figure you see in this Early Etruscan tomb painting who would engage his victims in a dreadful “game” of blood letting in order to appease the soul of the deceased (see Figure 10.1.2). This was considered the original gladiatorial games, according to the Romans!

Figure \(\PageIndex{2}\): Phersu and his victim, Tomb of the Augurs, Tarquinia, late 6th century BCE. (Photo via Smarthistory)

Figure \(\PageIndex{3}\): Etruscan hut urn, c. 800 BCE. Impasto, Vatican Museums, Rome, Italy. (Photo via Smarthistory)

​Etruscan art and the afterlife

Early on the Etruscans developed a vibrant artistic and architectural culture, one that was often in dialogue with other Mediterranean civilizations. Trading of the many natural mineral resources found in Tuscany, the center of ancient Etruria, caused them to bump up against Greeks, Phoenicians and Egyptians in the Mediterranean. With these other Mediterranean cultures, they exchanged goods, ideas and, often, a shared artistic vocabulary.

Unlike with the Greeks, however, the majority of our knowledge about Etruscan art comes largely from their burials. (Since most Etruscan cities are still inhabited, they hide their Etruscan art and architecture under Roman, Medieval and Renaissance layers). Fortunately, though, the Etruscans cared very much about equipping their dead with everything necessary for the afterlife—from lively tomb paintings to sculpture to pottery that they could use in the next world.

From their extensive cemeteries, we can look at the “world of the dead” and begin to understand some about the “world of the living.” During the early phases of Etruscan civilization, they conceived of the afterlife in terms of life as they knew it. When someone died, he or she would be cremated and provided with another ‘home’ for the afterlife. ​

This type of hut urn (see Figure 10.1.3), made of an unrefined clay known as impasto, would be used to house the cremated remains of the deceased. Not coincidentally, it shows us in miniature form what a typical Etruscan house would have looked like in Iron Age Etruria (900-750 BCE)—oval with a timber roof and a smoke hole for an internal hearth.

More opulent tombs

Later on, houses for the dead became much more elaborate. During the Orientalizing period (750-575 BCE), when the Etruscans began to trade their natural resources with other Mediterranean cultures and became staggeringly wealthy as a result, their tombs became more and more opulent.

The well-known Regolini-Galassi tomb from the city of Cerveteri [discussed in more detail below] shows how this new wealth transformed the modest hut to an extravagant house for the dead. Built for a woman clearly of high rank, the massive stone tomb contains a long corridor with lateral, oval rooms leading to a main chamber.

​A stroll through the Etruscan rooms in the Vatican museum where the tomb artifacts are now housed presents a mind-boggling view of the enormous wealth of the period. Found near the woman were objects of various precious materials intended for personal adornment in the afterlife—a gold pectoral, gold bracelets, a gold brooch (or fibula) of outsized proportions, among other objects—as well as silver and bronze vessels and numerous other grave goods and furniture.

Figure \(\PageIndex{4}\): Bronze bed and carriage, Regolini-Galassi Tomb, c. 650 BCE, Cerveteri. Vatican Museums, Rome, Italy. (Photo via Smarthistory)

A bronze bed​

Of course, this important woman might also need her four-wheeled bronze-sheathed carriage in the afterlife (see Figure 10.1.4) as well as an incense burner, jewelry of amber and ivory, and, touchingly, her bronze bed around which thirty-three figurines, all in various gestures of mourning, were arranged.

Though later periods in Etruscan history are not characterized by such wealth, the Etruscans were, nevertheless, extremely powerful and influential and left a lasting imprint on the city of Rome and other parts of Italy.

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The Regolini-Galassi tomb and the Parade Fibula

by Dr. Jeffrey A. Becker

Figure \(\PageIndex{5}\): Three Lions (detail), Large Parade Fibula (rear chamber, Regolini-Galassi Tomb, Cerveteri), 670-650 BCE. Gold, 29.2 cm long. Gregorian Etruscan Museum of the Vatican Museums. (Photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

The interconnectedness of the ancient Mediterranean world

The material culture of the Mediterranean basin in the seventh century BCE affords us a glimpse of a dynamic and increasingly interconnected world. This Proto-Archaic phase of the Mediterranean world (also sometimes still referred to as the “Orientalizing” period) offers evidence of techniques—and possibly even artists and makers themselves—transmitted and transported from one region to another. Funereal architecture and associated material objects deposited in tombs, often referred to as “grave goods,” provide important indications about contemporary customs, materials, and monuments and serve as revealing indicators of the priorities and preferences of a culture.

Figure \(\PageIndex{6}\): Large Parade Fibula, Cerveteri, Regolini-Galassi Tomb, from the main tomb in the lower chamber, 675-650 BCE. Gold: embossed, punched, cut, and granulated. Gregorian Etruscan Museum of the Vatican Museums. (Photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

An Etruscan tomb

In 1836 an Etruscan tomb located in the Sorbo necropolis of ancient Caere (now Cerveteri, Italy) was opened and its contents revealed. The tomb was of the tumulus-type, meaning a tomb covered with a mound of earth, and was of the sort used by the members of the social elite of the Etruscan culture. The seventh-century BCE tomb had remained intact and undisturbed since antiquity (a fortuitous circumstance since such tombs are frequently discovered in a disturbed or looted state).

Figure \(\PageIndex{7}\): Detail, Large Parade Fibula, Cerveteri, Regolini-Galassi Tomb, 675-650 BCE. (Photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

The funereal objects—now in the Gregorian Etruscan Museum of the Vatican Museums—demonstrate how objects and materials can communicate messages about a person’s social or economic status. The the assemblage of objects in the Regolini-Galassi tomb represents a broad geographic range and an aesthetic that indicates the influence of the ancient Near East. This is especially evident in metal-working techniques used to produce objects in the tomb and, in the broader landscape of funereal culture, objects either imported from the Near East or manufactured by Near Eastern craftspeople for elite consumption, such as their use as grave goods. Social elites not only desired to own and display such objects but also used them to reinforce their status and that of their family. The conspicuous deposition of these objects in the tomb would indicate to viewers or onlookers that not only was the deceased an important person but also that her surviving family members were important people in the community. In this way, the objects themselves facilitate a conversation about wealth and status among the Etruscans.

Figure \(\PageIndex{8}\): Corbelled vault, Regolini-Galassi Tomb, Cerveteri, Italy. (Photo via Smarthistory)

The architecture of the tomb and its context

The explorers of the tomb—General Vincenzo Galassi, a military officer, and Alessandro Regolini, the archpriest of Cerveteri—discovered that the tomb’s primary occupant was an adult female and that, judging both by the tomb architecture and the grave goods, she would have numbered among the social elite of ancient Caere.

The tomb is monumental in scale and was partially carved from the tuff bedrock of Caere. The tomb is approached by a short, narrow dromos and is composed of a 37-meter long corridor off of which two side chambers open. A corbelled vault covers the dromos. The exterior of the tomb was covered by an initial mound of earth known as a tumulus that measured some 46 meters in diameter; a second tumulus covered the tomb in the sixth century B.C.E. when additional tombs were added.

Once built, the tomb was stocked with grave goods to accompany the descendants; no fewer than 327 objects have been recorded. Many of these objects were manufactured of precious metals, including a significant quantity of gold. The tomb’s side chambers were used, respectively, for storage and the burial of a cremated male. The closed chamber at the end of the lateral corridor contained the principal burial, that of an elite female, and the majority of the grave goods (no. 1 to 226 in Pareti’s documentation). Some of the grave objects are inscribed mi larthia, meaning “I am the property of Larth.” This suggests that Larth, being a male, is the father of the deceased woman. Additional epigraphic evidence has led to the identification of the woman herself as one Larthia Velthurus. The parade fibula was found associated with this female burial, although precise documentation of the findspot is unclear since the tomb’s opening predates modern archaeology. The conventional date for the tomb and its contents is c. 675 to 650 BCE, although some scholars will move the date forward to the 640s BCE.

Figure \(\PageIndex{9}\): Regolini-Galassi Tomb plan. (Photo: Vatican Museums via Smarthistory)

The so-called Parade Fibula and its design

The so-called parade fibula itself measures 31.5 cm high by 24.4 cm thick; the disc ranges in thickness from 0.11 to 0.19 mm. The fibula weighs 173 grams (6.1024 ounces). While a normal-sized fibula would have functioned as a pin to fasten garments together (much like a modern safety pin operates), the functionality of this example, given its size and splendor, has long been debated. It is possible that this example was prepared especially as a grave offering for the deceased female.

Scholars have debated the function of the parade fibula since the tomb’s discovery. Various theories have been proposed, including that the fibula could have been displayed as a sort of headdress (and so not a fibula at all?), including one that imagines it positioned atop the face and forehead of the decedent. Most interpretations pair the fibula with the so-called gold pectoral from the same tomb that similarly demonstrates the influence of Near Eastern metal-working techniques and geometric patterns.

Figure \(\PageIndex{10}\): Profile (left) and front view (right) of the Regolini-Galassi disc fibula by Luigi Canina (1846). (Photo via Smarthistory)

Three elements make up the so-called parade fibula. These are, from bottom to top, an oval-shaped, arched element, a flat semi-circular disc, and a pair of transverse, hollow cylinders that are attached to the other elements by a hinge. A long pin is attached to the back of the fibula.

Decorative techniques

Figure \(\PageIndex{11}\): Detail, Large Parade Fibula, Cerveteri, Regolini-Galassi Tomb, 675-650 BCE. (Photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Figure \(\PageIndex{12}\): Fibula decorated with zigzag lines and incised labyrinths (Proto-Etruscan), c. 825–775 BCE. Gold, 7.4 cm. (© The Trustees of the British Museum via Smarthistory)

The techniques that were used to decorate the surface of the fibula are indicative of artistic trends and technologies originating in the ancient Near East that were overspreading the Mediterranean basin. These techniques—granulation, filigree, and repoussé —all originated in the east, with granulation appearing in tombs at Ur in Mesopotamia by c. 2500 BCE. The granulation technique is attested in Etruria beginning in the middle of the eighth century BCE.

The decorative motifs that reference the afterlife, including the presence of the Egyptian goddess Hathor seem to confirm the fibula’s funeral function. Hathor is visible on the terminus of the lower element of the fibula. Although the Regolini-Galassi parade fibula is unique, it finds comparison with other contemporary disc fibulae such as the one in the collection of The British Museum.

Figure \(\PageIndex{13}\): Five lions (detail), Detail, Large Parade Fibula, Cerveteri, Regolini-Galassi Tomb, 675-650 BCE. (Photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

A group of five lions occupies the center of the semicircular disc of the fibula. These lions were made by the use of stamps and then attached to the disc of the fibula. A border achieved with the granulation technique frames the lions. The surface of the horizontal tubular elements are covered with granulation, while the lower ovoid element includes patterns like a frieze of griffins that indicates the influence of the ancient Near East. The composition of the iconography of the fibula stresses elite themes and status, since an item of foreign manufacture that reinforces royal icons reinforces the status and activities of social elites and the behaviors they used to maintain their position. Ritual themes are important as well and, overall, the group of grave goods represents the outlook of Mediterranean social elites of the Proto-Archaic period.

A world increasingly connected

The iconographic motifs--the griffins and lions--of the parade fibula speaks to the influence of the ancient Near East and possibly even to manufacture by artisans from Syro-Palestine.

Taken as part of the larger assemblage of artifacts, the fibula speaks volumes about the needs of Etruscan elites in the seventh century BCE. These elites felt it necessary to communicate and reinforce their own socio-economic status by accumulating and displaying certain types of objects that matched their apparent status. Not only were many of these objects crafted from intrinsically valuable materials like gold they also had the appeal of being examples of imported and exotic items. Similar items likely were to be found in the homes and tombs of the social peers of the occupants of the Regolini-Galassi tomb, as proto-archaic elites jockeyed for position and used objects and materials acquired by means of long-distance supply chains to signal their primacy and relevance in a world that was increasingly interlinked and moving ever more quickly.

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Global Connections: Geomythology and the Griffin

Repeated rows of gilded griffin silhouettes decorate the ornate Etruscan Regolini-Galassi tomb and the Parade Fibula. The griffin, a mythological creature with the head and wings of an eagle and the back body of a lion (or predatory mammal), is often depicted in Etruscan art. Griffins are believed to have originated in Mesopotamia, but these legendary creatures are also found in Chinese, Scythian (nomadic Siberia people from the first millennium BCE), Greek, Cretian, and of course Etruscan art as well.

Figure \(\PageIndex{14}\): Frieze of griffins (detail), Large Parade Fibula, Cerveteri, Regolini-Galassi Tomb, 675-650 BCE. (Photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) Figures of griffins parade endlessly around this fibula.

Scholars in the field of geomythology have studied depictions of griffins in order to see whether there might be a connection between archaeological remains from dinosaurs and the mythic legends of griffins. Geomythology is a field of study that examines legends and myths in order to try to extract scientific truths. As Timothy John Burbery explains, “geomythology focuses on tales that may record, however dimly, occurrences like volcanic eruptions, tsunamis and earthquakes, as well as their aftereffects, such as the exposures of strange-looking bones. These events appear to have been, in some cases, so traumatic or wonder-inducing that they may have inspired preliterate peoples to ‘explain’ them through fables.” Although geomythology is not a precise science, it is an interdisciplinary fusing of humanities and science in order to help tie myths and legends to grounded geological events. (This approach also includes the study of oral traditions and oral mythologies, as discussed in Chapter 4.)

In her book The First Fossil Hunters: Dinosaurs, Mammoths, and Myth in Greek and Roman Times, historian Adrienne Mayor theorizes that early Scythian gold miners must have unearthed skeletons of Protoceratops and that misattribution of these bones, as well as descriptions of such mythic beasts, must have moved along trade routes verbally and visually. She argues that similar dinosaur skeletons, including the Turanoceratops and Sinoceratops, were also excavated in Central Asia, likely leading to the Chinese interpretation and visual depiction of griffins as well. Mayor asserts that such skeletal remains likely impacted the ways in which different cultures presented the griffin with slightly different physical features: Etruscans and Greeks often presented them with distinct feathers around their necks and elongated ears, likely an interpretation of the Sinoceratops; Chinese artists often depicted them with two large holes in their necks, likely because of the Ceratops neck shields.

Whether or not griffins are the product of early civilizations unearthing dinosaur bones may still be up for historical, archaeological, and geomythical debate. However, what is clear from the repetition of this mythological creature across time and cultures is that the stories, descriptions, and visual depictions of griffins spread on trade routes—along with gold, spices, and other goods—and connected disparate cultures aesthetically.

Temple of Minerva and the sculpture of Apollo (Veii)

by Dr. Laurel Taylor

Forget what you know about Greek and Roman architectural orders—Etruscans had their own unique style.

Etruscan temples have largely vanished

Among the early Etruscans, the worship of the Gods and Goddesses did not take place in or around monumental temples as it did in early Greece or in the Ancient Near East, but rather, in nature. Early Etruscans created ritual spaces in groves and enclosures open to the sky with sacred boundaries carefully marked through ritual ceremony.

Figure \(\PageIndex{15}\): Reconstruction of an Etruscan Temple of the 6th century according to Vitruvius. (Photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Around 600 BCE, however, the desire to create monumental structures for the gods spread throughout Etruria, most likely as a result of Greek influence. While the desire to create temples for the gods may have been inspired by contact with Greek culture, Etruscan religious architecture was markedly different in material and design (see Figure 10.1.15). These colorful and ornate structures typically had stone foundations but their wood, mud-brick and terracotta superstructures suffered far more from exposure to the elements. Greek temples still survive today in parts of Greece and southern Italy since they were constructed of stone and marble but Etruscan temples were built with mostly ephemeral materials and have largely vanished.

How do we know what they looked like?

Despite the comparatively short-lived nature of Etruscan religious structures, Etruscan temple design had a huge impact on Renaissance architecture and one can see echoes of Etruscan, or ‘Tuscan,’ columns (Doric columns with bases) in many buildings of the Renaissance and later in Italy. But if the temples weren’t around during the 15th and 16th centuries, how did Renaissance builders know what they looked like and, for that matter, how do we know what they looked like?

Fortunately, an ancient Roman architect by the name of Vitruvius wrote about Etruscan temples in his book De architectura in the late first century BCE. In his treatise on ancient architecture, Vitruvius described the key elements of Etruscan temples and it was his description that inspired Renaissance architects to return to the roots of Tuscan design and allows archaeologists and art historians today to recreate the appearance of these buildings.

Figure \(\PageIndex{16}\): Typical Etruscan temple plan. (Photo via Smarthistory)

Archaeological evidence for the Temple of Minerva

The archaeological evidence that does remain from many Etruscan temples largely confirms Vitruvius’s description. One of the best explored and known of these is the Portonaccio Temple dedicated to the goddess Minerva (Roman=Minerva/Greek=Athena) at the city of Veii about 18 km north of Rome. The tufa-block foundations of the Portonaccio temple still remain and their nearly square footprint reflects Vitruvius’s description of a floor plan with proportions that are 5:6, just a bit deeper than wide.

The temple is also roughly divided into two parts—a deep front porch with widely-spaced Tuscan columns and a back portion divided into three separate rooms. Known as a triple cella, this three room configuration seems to reflect a divine triad associated with the temple, perhaps Menrva as well as Tinia (Jupiter/Zeus) and Uni (Juno/Hera).

In addition to their internal organization and materials, what also made Etruscan temples noticeably distinct from Greek ones was a high podium and frontal entrance. Approaching the Parthenon with its low rising stepped entrance and encircling forest of columns would have been a very different experience from approaching an Etruscan temple high off the ground with a single, defined entrance.

Sculpture

Perhaps most interesting about the Portonaccio temple is the abundant terracotta sculpture that still remains, the volume and quality of which is without parallel in Etruria. In addition to many terracotta architectural elements (masks, antefixes, decorative details), a series of over life-size terracotta sculptures have also been discovered in association with the temple. Originally placed on the ridge of temple roof, these figures seem to be Etruscan assimilations of Greek gods, set up as a tableau to enact some mythic event.

Apollo of Veii

Figure \(\PageIndex{17}\): Apulu (Apollo of Veii), from the roof of the Portonaccio Temple, Veii, Italy, c. 510-500 BCE. Painted terracotta, 5' 11" high. Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Villa Giulia, Rome, Italy. (Photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

The most famous and well-preserved of these is the Apulu (Apollo of Veii), a dynamic, striding masterpiece of large scale terracotta sculpture and likely a central figure in the rooftop narrative (see Figure 10.1.17). His counterpart may have been the less well-preserved figure of Hercle (Hercules) with whom he struggled in an epic contest over the Golden Hind, an enormous deer sacred to Apollo’s twin sister Artemis. Other figures discovered with these suggest an audience watching the action. Whatever the myth may have been, it was a completely Etruscan innovation to use sculpture in this way, placed at the peak of the temple roof—creating what must have been an impressive tableau against the backdrop of the sky.

Figure \(\PageIndex{18}\): Detail, Apulu (Apollo of Veii), from the roof of the Portonaccio Temple, Veii, Italy, c. 510-500 BCE. (Photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

An artist by the name of Vulca?

Since Etruscan art is almost entirely anonymous it is impossible to know who may have contributed to such innovative display strategies. We may, however, know the name of the artist associated with the workshop that produced the terracotta sculpture. Centuries after these pieces were created, the Roman writer Pliny recorded that in the late 6th century BCE, an Etruscan artist by the name of Vulca was summoned from Veii to Rome to decorate the most important temple there, the temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus. The technical knowledge required to produce terracotta sculpture at such a large scale was considerable and it may just have been the master sculptor Vulca whose skill at the Portonaccio temple earned him not only a prestigious commission in Rome but a place in the history books as well.

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Sarcophagus of the Spouses (Rome)

by Dr. Jeffrey A. Becker

The intimacy of this clay sculpture is unprecedented in the ancient world. What can it tell us about Etruscan culture?

Figure \(\PageIndex{19}\): Sarcophagus of the Spouses, found in the Banditaccia necropolis, Cerveteri, c. 520 BCE. Painted terracotta, 3' 9.5" x 6' 7." Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Villa Giulia in Rome, Italy. (Photo via Smarthistory)

The Sarcophagus of the Spouses is an anthropoid--meaning it is human-shaped, painted terracotta sarcophagus found in the ancient Etruscan city of Caere, now Cerveteri, Italy. The sarcophagus, which would have originally contained cremated human remains, was discovered during the course of archaeological excavations in the Banditaccia necropolis of ancient Caere during the nineteenth century and is now in Rome. The sarcophagus is quite similar to another terracotta sarcophagus from Caere depicting a man and woman that is presently housed in the Louvre Museum in Paris; these two sarcophagi are contemporary to one another and are perhaps the products of the same artistic workshop (see Figure 10.1.19).

Figure \(\PageIndex{20}\): Upper bodies (detail), Sarcophagus of the Spouses, found in the Banditaccia necropolis, Cerveteri, c. 520 BCE. (Photo via Smarthistory)

An archaic couple

Figure \(\PageIndex{21}\): Feet and shoes (detail), Sarcophagus of the Spouses, found in the Banditaccia necropolis, Cerveteri, c. 520 BCE. (Photo via Smarthistory)

The sarcophagus depicts a reclining man and woman on its lid. The pair rests on highly stylized cushions, just as they would have done at an actual banquet. The body of the sarcophagus is styled so as to resemble a kline (dining couch). Both figures have highly stylized hair, in each case plaited with the stylized braids hanging rather stiffly at the sides of the neck. In the female’s case the plaits are arranged so as to hang down in front of each shoulder. The female wears a soft cap atop her head; she also wears shoes with pointed toes that are characteristically Etruscan. The male’s braids hang neatly at the back, splayed across the upper back and shoulders. The male’s beard and the hair atop his head is quite abstracted without any interior detail. Both figures have elongated proportions that are at home in the archaic period in the Mediterranean.

A banquet

Figure \(\PageIndex{22}\): Banquet Plaque (detail) from Poggio Civitate, early 6th century BCE. Terracotta. Antiquarium di Poggio Civitate Museo Archeologico, Murlo, Italy. (Photo: sailko, CC BY-SA 3.0)

The Sarcophagus of the Spouses has been interpreted as belonging to a banqueting scene, with the couple reclining together on a single dining couch while eating and drinking. This situates the inspiration for the sarcophagus squarely in the convivial (social) sphere and, as we are often reminded, conviviality was central to Etruscan mortuary rituals. Etruscan funerary art—including painted tombs—often depicts scenes of revelry, perhaps as a reminder of the funeral banquet that would send the deceased off to the afterlife or perhaps to reflect the notion of perpetual conviviality in said afterlife. Whatever the case, banquets provide a great deal of iconographic fodder for Etruscan artists. In the case of the sarcophagus it is also important to note that at Etruscan banquets, men and women reclined and ate together, a circumstance that was quite different from other Mediterranean cultures, especially the Greeks. We see multiple instances of mixed gender banquets across a wide chronological range, leading us to conclude that this was common practice in Etruria. The terracotta plaque from Poggio Civitate, Murlo (above), for instance, that is roughly contemporary to the sarcophagus of the spouses shows a close iconographic parallel for this custom. This cultural custom generated some resentment—even animus—on the part of Greek and Latin authors in antiquity who saw this Etruscan practice not just as different, but took it as offensive behavior. Women enjoyed a different and more privileged status in Etruscan society than did their Greek and Roman counterparts.

Figure \(\PageIndex{23}\): Female’s face (detail), Sarcophagus of the Spouses, found in the Banditaccia necropolis, Cerveteri, c. 520 BCE. (Photo via Smarthistory)

Technical achievement

The Sarcophagus of the Spouses is a masterwork of terracotta sculpture. Painted terracotta sculpture played a key role in the visual culture of archaic Etruria. Terracotta artwork was the standard for decorating the superstructure of Etruscan temples and the coroplastic (terracotta) workshops producing these sculptures often displayed a high level of technical achievement. This is due, in part, to the fact that ready sources of marble were unknown in archaic Italy. Even though contemporary Greeks produced masterworks in marble during the sixth century BCE, terracotta statuary such as this sarcophagus itself counts as a masterwork and would have been an elite commission. Contemporary Greek colonists in Italy also produced high level terracotta statuary, as exemplified by the seated statue of Zeus from Poseidonia--later renamed Paestum--that dates c. 530 BCE.

Figure \(\PageIndex{24}\): Seated statue of Zeus from Poseidonia (Paestum) c. 530 BCE. Terracotta. Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Paestum, Italy. (Photo: Dave & Margie Hill, CC BY-SA 2.0)

Etruscan culture

In the case of the Caeretan sarcophagus, it is an especially challenging commission. Given its size, it would have been fired in multiple pieces. The composition of the reclining figures shows awareness of Mediterranean stylistic norms in that their physiognomy reflects an Ionian influence (Ionia was a region in present-day Turkey, that was a Greek colony)—the rounded, serene faces and the treatment of hairstyles would have fit in with contemporary Greek styles. However, the posing of the figures, the angular joints of the limbs, and their extended fingers and toes reflect local practice in Etruria. In short, the artist and his workshop are aware of global trends while also catering to a local audience. While we cannot identify the original owner of the sarcophagus, it is clear that the person(s) commissioning it would have been a member of the Caeretan elite.

The Sarcophagus of the Spouses as an object conveys a great deal of information about Etruscan culture and its customs. The convivial theme of the sarcophagus reflects the funeral customs of Etruscan society and the elite nature of the object itself provides important information about the ways in which funerary custom could reinforce the identity and standing of aristocrats among the community of the living.

Figure \(\PageIndex{25}\): Male’s face (detail), Sarcophagus of the Spouses, found in the Banditaccia necropolis, Cerveteri, c. 520 BCE. (Photo via Smarthistory)

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Tomb of the Reliefs

by Dr. Jeffrey A. Becker

All signs point to a party: cushions, drinking equipment, and armor hung on the wall … but a party in a tomb?

Figure \(\PageIndex{26}\): Tomb of the Reliefs, Necropolis of Banditaccia, Cerveteri, Italy, late 4th or early 3rd century BCE. (Photo: Roberto Ferrari, CC BY-SA 2.0)

The banquet is over, the dining equipment is stowed, and the warriors sleep on in this Etruscan dining room, yet the evocative signs of a lively scene draw the viewer into the ancient world. These evocations of an Etruscan banquet—from the cushions to the drinking equipment to the armor hung on pegs on the walls—are situated firmly in the funereal sphere, one that is replete with reminders not only of life but also of death. In tomb interiors we find some of our most important and compelling evidence for an understanding of the first millennium BCE world of the Etruscans.

Figure \(\PageIndex{27}\): Entrance (dromos),Tomb of the Reliefs, Necropolis of Banditaccia, Cerveteri, Italy, late 4th or early 3rd century BCE. (Sergio D’Afflitto, CC BY-SA 3.0)

The Tomb of the Reliefs (Italian: Tomba dei Rilievi) is a late fourth or early third century BCE rock-cut tomb (hypogeum) located in the Banditaccia necropolis of the ancient Etruscan city-state of Caere in Italy (see Figure 10.1.27). The tomb takes its name from a series of painted stucco reliefs that cover the walls and piers of the tomb chamber itself. Unlike some of its neighbors that are covered mounds of earth (tumulus-type tombs), the Tomb of the Reliefs is of the rock-cut type and was excavated at a considerable depth in the bedrock, approached by a steep dromos (entranceway). This elite tomb once accommodated several dozen burials and is located, likely not by accident, close to an important tumulus-type tomb from the earlier Orientalizing period.

Inside the tomb

The plan of the tomb is roughly quadrangular. The entire tomb and all of its features have been carved from the bedrock (a type of volcanic mudstone known as tufa). The central block of the room, supported by two piers, is flanked by a series of niches for burials that have been styled to resemble the dining couches (klinai) of the ancient world. Decorative pilasters with volute, or scroll-shaped, capitals separate the niches one from the other (see Figure 10.1.28).

The tomb’s bas relief, or low relief, decoration consists of carved bedrock features that have been stuccoed and painted. The decorative schema evokes the interior of an aristocratic house that is prepared to host a banquet or drinking party. The provisions for banqueters include cups and strainers hanging from pegs. The soldiers’ armor—shields, helmets, greaves (protective armor for the lower leg)—has been stowed by hanging it from pegs. The pilasters are also decorated, with the items depicted including a range of tools and implements as well as the depiction of a small carnivore, perhaps a weasel.

Beneath the central niche of the rear wall we find an allusion to the afterlife. There, under the side table we find, in relief, the hellhound Cerberus and an anguiped (serpents for legs) demon—perhaps the Etruscan god Charun who conducted the souls of the departed to the afterlife? This central niche, equipped with footstool, may have been intended for the male and female heads of the family.

The Matunas family is identified as the owner by way of an inscribed cippus (a small pillar). The inscription reads “Vel Metunas, (son) of Laris, who this tomb built.” A locked strongbox included in the relief may be meant to represent the container for storing the records of the family’s deeds (res gestae).

Interpretation

Figure \(\PageIndex{28}\): Detail of central niche on rear wall, Tomb of the Reliefs, Necropolis of Banditaccia, Cerveteri, Italy, late 4th or early 3rd century BCE. (Roberto Ferrari, CC BY-SA 2.0)

The Tomb of the Reliefs is unusual in the corpus of Etruscan tombs, both for its richness and for its decorative scheme. The Matunas family, among the elite of Caere, make a fairly strong statement, by means of funerary display, about their familial status and accomplishments, even at a time when the cultural autonomy of the Etruscans—and of Caere itself—had already begun to wane. The funeral banquet remains an important and vibrant theme for Etruscan funerary art throughout the course of the Etruscan civilization. This convivial and festive rendering demonstrates to us that the funeral banquet not only sent the deceased off to the afterlife but also reinforced ties and status reminders among the community of the living.

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Tomb of the Triclinium

by Dr. Jeffrey A. Becker

Figure \(\PageIndex{29}\): Map of Etruscan civilization, 750-500 BCE. (Image by NormanEinstein, based on a map from The National Geographic Magazine, vol.173, No.6 [June 1988], CC BY-SA 3.0)

Elaborate funerary rituals

Funerary contexts constitute the most abundant archaeological evidence for the Etruscan civilization. The elite members of Etruscan society participated in elaborate funerary rituals that varied and changed according to both geography and time.

The city of Tarquinia (known in antiquity as Tarquinii or Tarch(u)na), one of the most powerful and prominent Etruscan centers, is known for its painted chamber tombs. The Tomb of the Triclinium belongs to this group and its wall paintings reveal important information about not only Etruscan funeral culture but also about the society of the living (see Figures 10.1.30).

An advanced Iron Age culture, the Etruscans amassed wealth based on Italy’s natural resources (particularly metal and mineral ores) that they exchanged through medium- and long-range trade networks.

Figure \(\PageIndex{30}\): Tomb of the Triclinium, Tarquinia, Italy, c. 470 BCE. (Photo: Sailko, CC BY-SA 3.0)

Tomb of the Triclinium

The Tomb of the Triclinium (Italian: Tomba del Triclinio) is the name given to an Etruscan chamber tomb dating c. 470 BCE and located in the Monterozzi necropolis of Tarquinia, Italy. Chamber tombs are subterranean rock-cut chambers accessed by an approach way (dromos) in many cases. The tombs are intended to contain not only the remains of the deceased but also various grave goods or offerings deposited along with the deceased. The Tomb of the Triclinium is composed of a single chamber with wall decorations painted in fresco. Discovered in 1830, the tomb takes its name from the three-couch dining room of the ancient Greco-Roman Mediterranean, known as the triclinium.

Figure \(\PageIndex{31}\): Tomb of the Triclinium, Tarquinia, Italy, c. 470 BCE. (Photo via Smarthistory)

A banquet

The rear wall of the tomb carries the main scene, one of banqueters enjoying a dinner party (see Figure 10.1.31). It is possible to draw stylistic comparisons between this painted scene that includes figures reclining on dining couches (klinai) and the contemporary fifth century BCE Attic pottery that the Etruscans imported from Greece. The original fresco is only partially preserved; although it is likely that there were originally three couches, each hosting a pair of reclining diners, one male and one female. Two attendants—one male, one female—attend to the needs of the diners. The diners are dressed in bright and sumptuous robes, befitting their presumed elite status. Beneath the couches we can observe a large cat, as well as a large rooster and another bird.

Music and dancing

Figure \(\PageIndex{32}\): Barbiton player on the left wall (detail), Tomb of the Triclinium, Tarquinia, Italy, c. 470 BCE. (Photo via Smarthistory)

Scenes of dancers occupy the flanking left and right walls. The left wall scene contains four dancers—three female and one male—and a male musician playing the barbiton, an ancient stringed instrument similar to the lyre (see Figures 10.1.32 and 10.1.33).

Common painterly conventions of gender typing are employed—the skin of females is light in color while male skin is tinted a darker tone of orange-brown. The dancers and musicians, together with the feasting, suggest the overall convivial tone of the Etruscan funeral. In keeping with ancient Mediterranean customs, funerals were often accompanied by games, as famously represented by the funeral games of the Trojan Anchises as described in book 5 of Virgil’s epic poem, the Aeneid. In the Tomb of the Triclinium we may have an allusion to games as the walls flanking the tomb’s entrance bear scenes of youths dismounting horses, variously described as being either apobates, meaning participants in an equestrian combat sport, or the Dioscuri--mythological twins.

Figure \(\PageIndex{33}\): Two dancers on the right wall (detail), Tomb of the Triclinium, Tarquinia, Italy, c. 470 BCE. (Photo via Smarthistory)

The tomb’s ceiling is painted in a checkered scheme of alternating colors, perhaps meant to evoke the temporary fabric tents that were erected near the tomb for the actual celebration of the funeral banquet.

The actual paintings were removed from the tomb in 1949 and are conserved in the Museo Nazionale in Tarquinia. As their state of preservation has deteriorated, watercolors made at the time of discovery have proven very important for the study of the tomb.

Interpretation

The convivial theme of the Tomb of the Triclinium might seem surprising in a funereal context, but it is important to note that the Etruscan funeral rites were not somber but festive, with the aim of sharing a final meal with the deceased as the latter transitioned to the afterlife. This ritual feasting served several purposes in social terms. At its most basic level the funeral banquet marked the transition of the deceased from the world of the living to that of the dead; the banquet that accompanied the burial marked this transition and ritually included the spirit of the deceased, as a portion of the meal, along with the appropriate dishes and utensils for eating and drinking, would then be deposited in the tomb. Another purpose of the funeral meal, games, and other activities was to reinforce the socio-economic position of the deceased person and his/her family: a way to remind the community of the living of the importance and standing of these people and thus tangibly reinforce their position in contemporary society. This would include, where appropriate, visual reminders of socio-political status, including indications of wealth and civic achievements, notably public offices held by the deceased.

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Articles in this section:

• Dr. Laurel Taylor, "The Etruscans, an introduction," in Smarthistory, August 8, 2015. (CC BY-NC-SA)
• Dr. Jeffrey A. Becker, "The Regolini-Galassi tomb and the Parade Fibula," in Smarthistory, June 7, 2021. (CC BY-NC-SA)
• Dr. Laurel Taylor, "Temple of Minerva and the sculpture of Apollo (Veii)," in Smarthistory, August 8, 2015. (CC BY-NC-SA)
• Dr. Jeffrey A. Becker, "Sarcophagus of the Spouses (Rome)," in Smarthistory, August 8, 2015. (CC BY-NC-SA)
• Dr. Jeffrey A. Becker, "Tomb of the Triclinium," in Smarthistory, August 8, 2015. (CC BY-NC-SA)