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ʑ The facts of the Etruscan civilization eluded historians for millennia. Most of the stories
and tales of their society were either destroyed or were written by Greeks or Romans with a bias
in favor of the author’s city, so much so that it forced the reader to believe the Etruscans were
either a mysterious evil civilization with a penchant for piracy and a luxurious way of life, or an
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ancient race of no significance whatsoever. Because there were so many great ancient
civilizations to study, most people believed the stories of an irrelevant Empire to be true, until
recently, when archeological findings in the 100s led historians and archeologists to turn their
beliefs in a whole different direction. How much the Etruscan people may have directly
influenced western civilization is still a matter of some speculation, but their influences on the
later Roman culture are either directly evidenced or strongly suggested through much of the
Etruscan life style. This influence is not militaristic or political, but found in the arts and in
professional trades such as engineering, architecture and city planning. The Etruscans are now
recognized as “tireless cultivators, founders of cities, bold navigators, deft craftsmen; soldiers,
traders, builders of temples, dykes and forts,” and noteworthy artists.
The Etruscans ruled in Italy from 750 B.C. to 60 B.C., a flourishing Empire prior to the
time of the Roman conquest of the Etruscan cities. The Etruscan Empire had its beginnings
when the Roman culture was little more than a small group of huts that was the start of the
Roman community. Etruria, the region where the Etruscans began their habitation, occupied a
significant part of the northern Italian peninsula and there they built Italy’s first great civilization,
spreading an advanced and cultured society across the land. The ways of the Etruscans were
considered so different that the writings of authors from foreign lands, who included the
Etruscans in their works, considered them to be bizarre and alien. The Etruscans , however, do
not appear to have been aggressive conquers and it is now believed that they did not want to
make contact with other nations for mastery, but instead wanted to open trade, create allies, and
discover new land to found cities. This was perhaps due to the pre-Italian background of the
Etruscans, an obscure history with mysteries that are still unsolved.
The origins of the Etruscans are still a matter of controversy and have been the subject
of speculation from the first historian to chronicle Etruscan life, Herodotus, and later the Roman
historian, Livy. Herodotus’ accounts report that the Etruscans originated from Lydia on the
western coast of Asia Minor, and with them brought order and civilization to the Italian
peninsula’s barbaric environment. Herodotus explains that natives of Lydia, because of a long
famine, decided to divide the population into two groups, one remaining in Lydia with the king
and the other emigrating with the kings son in search of a new homeland. The land that became
Etruria more or less parallels the Italian coast, from the mountains of the Alps to the southern
coast. Livy reports that the Etruscans made their way up the Adriatic Sea and the Etruscans are
also known to have lived on the island of Lemnos, and in other localities on the northeastern
shores of the Aegean Sea. It is unlikely that the Etruscans were indigenous to Italy because
everything the Etruscans brought to Italy was new to that part of the world. Everything about
their culture, technology and architecture, farming methods and mines, crafts and industries,
customs and fashions, religion, language, way of life and military structure was totally different
from anything that had existed in the area before. Though the resemblance of their rituals and
religious practices, the funeral customs, and the similarities of language, the Etruscans are linked
to Lydia and Asia Minor. However, confusion may have been caused because, even with such
great similarities to other distant civilizations, the Etruscans appear to have had an amazing ability
to adapt to many of the Greek cultural customs. Moreover, because the Etruscan cities and
Empire was annihilated by about 00 B.C., what we know of them comes solely from tombs and
excavations, and archeologists searching a extinct civilization have difficulty finding a human
affinity for the Etruscan people. This is strange because the Etruscans left an abundance of
materials evidence so that we know what they looked like, how they lived, and a good deal about
their public and private customs so that we can glimpse into their internal lives. Etruscans have
developed a historical importance because they are mysterious, which intrigues historians, and for
what their culture provided and passed on to other civilizations. While they were the greatest
sailors of their time and ruled the entire Italian coast with such mastery of the sea that they were
feared by all other nations, their naval and military feats were a matter of legends, exciting
episodes and incidents of derring-do, the Etruscan’s legacy is not military, but is found in those
things revealed in artifacts of an advanced society and culture. Archeological findings will
continue to shed light on the beginnings of the civilization, but what has already been discovered
reveals the approach the Etruscans took toward settlement of land was highly successful and, at
the peak of the Etruscan’s rule, they reigned over the whole of Italy.
Over the span of the Etruscan Empire’s 500 year existence, it had four ages Gold, Silver,
Bronze and Black Iron. The period which historians call the Golden Age is the time of the
Etruscans greatest rule, a time of growth and expansion and hope that declined over centuries
until the Iron Age when men took the law into their own hands and Rome’s conquest of Etruria
was complete. With each age the Etruscans changed their lifestyle, which has led to the
discovery of many different types, styles and varieties of artifacts which show influences from
many areas surrounding the Mediterranean. Recently discovered artifacts are the key to
unraveling the Etruscan mysteries. The Etruscan artifacts suggest they were a thoughtful people,
and the Greeks seem to have greatly influenced them, especially in Etruscan art where Greek
mythological figures appear frequently. The Etruscans greatest artistic talent was in bronze, not
clay, but many vases have been recovered, a large number of which are covered in painted figures,
and it is from these that a significant part of Etruscan history has been gleaned. Bucchero ware,
the Etruscan’s famous black pottery, was known all throughout the Mediterranean area. Created
only by the City of Caere, Bucchero ware received it’s unique black color by firing the clay so that
the oxygen and iron formed a ferrous oxide bond which looks black. The figures painted on
these vases, frequently have replica paintings of Greek gods and goddesses, and many of these
even include the Greek, not Etruscan, title of the god. Another unique Etruscan pottery is the
Red-Figured vases, found at Caere and which show women, satyrs, and other individuals in a
variety of settings. However, as the Etruscan civilization expanded and their rule grew, the
Etruscans changed their style and technique of artwork. Soon it was only the basic idea that was
contrived from Greek mythology, and the works of art themselves were completely and uniquely
Etruscan. This is shown by art which is more influenced by nature, art which did not show the
gods at all but which depicted humans interacting with nature. From these vases historians have
learned the complex society that blossomed in Etruria and the figures show a variety of sports and
games, social scenes, music and dancing, military engagements, natural and super natural
subjects.
The region that was Etruria had twelve main cities on the Italian peninsula. There is no
authoritative list of the cities, but their names have been deduced to be Arretium (Arezzo), Caere
(Cerveteri), Clusium, Cortona, Perusia (Perugia), Populonia, Rusellae, Tarquinii (Tarquinia), Veii
(Veio), Vetulonia, Volaterrae (Volterra), and Vulci. The three most influential of the cities were
Vulci, Veii, and Caere, near coastal ports where the Etruscan sailors could shelter their merchant
and warships. The artistic differences among cities varied very little but the specialties of
particular cities did vary. Museums today, such as those in Rome, reveal “grand” works of
Etruscan art while others, such as Volterra, two thousand feet up in the hill country of Tuscany,
reveal simple items that show the story of every day life.
In addition to artistic talent, engineering and scientific skills are apparent among the
Etruscans, since the design of cities was along the four points of a compass with the temples lying
on the North and South points. When Etruscans decided the location of a city, ceremonies were
performed to consecrate the spot where the city was going to be built. The first settlements of
the Etruscans in the Tuscany area were in a hilly part of the northern Italian peninsula. This area
was too hilly to encourage purely geometric city schemes, but every city had three gates, each for
a road that converged to the main road leading to the city’s temples. The reason for this road
design was that temples were the focal point of city life and the most beautiful architectural
ornaments of a city. The temple was the most prominent structure in any Etruscan city.
Unfortunately, temples were built out of wood not marble or stone so only the foundation of
temples remain. The Etruscans were masters of masonry construction but decided not to use their
knowledge and skills for the building of their temples for various religious reasons. The design of
an Etruscan temple paralleled that of a Greek temple but with some distinct differences. The
temple itself rested on one tall base. This base was no wider than the cella, or indoor portion of a
temple, and only had steps on the South side leading into a deep porch. The porch was supported
by two rows of four columns each, one nearest the stairs and the other nearest the entrance to the
cella. Alike to the Greeks, the columns were Doric, but the Etruscans never used Ionic or
Corinthian columns, as do the Greeks and Romans. The cella was generally subdivided into three
subsections. The reasons behind the division was that Etruscan religion was dominated by a triad
of gods who were the predecessors to the Roman Juno, Jupiter, and Minerva. Therefore, the
layout for an Etruscans temple was squarish and closely related to domestic architecture of the
Etruscan living.
After moving from hilly Tuscany to flat Rome, Etruscan cities were engineered more
precisely and based on two main intersecting roads creating four subsections in the city, following
which the four sub sections could then be further divided. This form of road organization directly
influenced later engineers and was adopted by the Romans for their city structures. Etruscan
engineers worked in conjunction with religious persons. After consulting the omens, an augurer
would act as surveyor and use instruments and the position of the sun to determine what the
orientation of the city would be. The four points of the two main roads were laid out on the
four cardinal directions with the main temple at the northern point where there was no gate.
Secondary streets were parallel and perpendicular to the two main roads forming a checkerboard
pattern. The Romans adopted many of the concepts of the Etruscan road system; processional
roads and main roads leading up to temples, and road planning throughout the land including
similar concepts for cross country roads connecting cities. If Romans followed the Etruscan
roads between cities is not known, but the Etruscans had a network of road spread out over the
countryside which were the first in western Europe provided a model for the Roman’s great
military highways.
Although many questions about the Etruscans are still unanswered, relatively recent
findings have uncovered previously unknown facts. For instance, Etruscan people were small in
stature. According to paintings found in Etruscan ruins, together with recovered Etruscan
furnishings and clothes, the average height of Etruscan men was about five feet four inches.
Consequently, it is probably that height was a determining factor for the buildings and other
aspects of Etruscan life. Paintings and sculptures depict banquet couches and low foot benches
with men and women reclining and it is likely that the interior spaces of buildings, and the
dimensions of living areas and furnishings would have been designed proportionate to the
Etruscan people.
The advanced nature of the Etruscan culture is shown by their homes. Within the ruins and
remains of Etruria there is evidence of a sophisticated society where even small things, such as
clothing, marking social status. Etruscan wealth was measured in material items of valued
substance, such as gold, ivory and precious stones. During the sixth century B.C., wealthy
aristocratic Etruscans indulged themselves and bought all they could afford in an effort to create
luxurious living conditions. The Etruscans began the use of an atrium-type area, a courtyard
used for formal and informal occasions, and this too was adopted by the Romans. Unfortunately,
Etruscan atriums were generally constructed of soft materials and few are still standing for present
time investigation. For the period, Etruscan houses were of an improved designed and were
built from dried mud bricks with a heavy wooden frame. The usual home of a person from an
aristocratic position was about 100 square feet in a rectangle 0 by 40 feet, which may have
relevance to the average Etruscan’s stature. The house was set upon a foundation of tufa blocks,
which are a porous rock formed as a deposit of springs or streams. The pitched roof was covered
with terra cotta tiles that could range from small pieces to three feet long and eighteen inches
wide. Advanced architectural features are found in the roof, whcih extended far beyond the walls
of the house in order to protect the brick and timber from rain or other harsh weather conditions
and every door and window of an Etruscan home was framed by sturdy wooden posts and lintels.
Depending on the wealth of the homeowner, the gables and eaves of each house were decorated
as elaborately as a temple. The terra cotta reliefs were further decorated with pictures of animals
and monsters, as well as graphic designs.
On the backside of a house, a fenced outdoor courtyard led to the vestibule, or entrance
room. The vestibule was only a few feet wide but was nearly the length of the house itself. It is
this vestibule that evolved in to what was known as the atrium to the Romans. The vestibule
served many purposes to an Etruscan home. It was used for the delivery from merchants, a
passageway for servants to do their bidding, and also the servants living and sleeping quarters.
From the far side of the vestibule were doors with access to the other rooms of the house. These
doors stretched across the length of the vestibule and were side by side to one another so that any
part of the home could be accessed from the vestibule. Curiously, the location where members of
a family slept are still uncertain.
The center room of the home was small, about fifteen feet wide but had many functions.
During the day the owner of the home used this room for business while at night this room could
be transformed into a place of parties, banquets, and a room to sleep when guests were too drunk
to find their way home. Two of the side rooms of the home were used for a kitchen and a room
for storing food, grain, and wine.
Of all aspects of an Etruscan home, one of the most advanced is plumbing and waste
disposal. The Etruscans differed from the Romans and Greeks in that fact that they did not have
to manually empty their houses of waste because of their excellent plumbing lines. Lucius
Tarquinius, the first Etruscan King of Rome is credited with providing sewer service from the city
to the river. Stone-lined drains led from the house to the main ditch to provide discharge
plumbing wastes and waste water. Other terra cotta pipes were made to fit into one another to
bring fresh water from an elevated cisterns. Many houses, to bring water in even more easily, had
their own stone-lined wells within their courtyards.
The dress and social lives of Etruscans also varied in many ways from the Romans and
Greeks of that time, although there were some similarities. In order to keep the Etruscan
aristocrats happy in their luxurious life style, lower class citizens would work on their large farms
to provide for the many requests of the rich and powerful. According to frescoes and wall
paintings left by the Etruscans in the tombs of nobles and the wealthy, these members of highers
society held frequent banquets, perhaps even nightly. Men and women both ate the finest foods
and choice wines. They were entertained by dancers and musicians, who doubled as house
servants at other times. The Etruscans were apparently quite hedonistic and, at these sybaritic
banquets, men and women lounged on long divans and were served by naked young boys while
dancers wore transparent dresses. In many ways the Etruscan family was no different in general
makeup and structure than that of the Romans or Greeks, but, unlike their Oriental and Arab
contemporaries, the Etruscans did not practice polygamy, communal wife sharing, or incest within
families.
Social custom was important in Etruscan cities and is one of the most understood parts of
the culture due to the many vases, paintings and frescoes. Custom was shown in items such as the
clothing worn in Etruria, which eventually influenced the Roman toga. In the summer, men
wore round neck, close fitting robes, which reached down to the ankles. The left arm sleeve went
to the wrist, while the right arm only reached the elbow. The entire robe criss-crossed vertically
and horizontally, seeming as if the robe was tucked. The same type of garment was worn in the
winter, but the fabric was wool, not cotton or silk. Women wore short-sleeved tunics, light
colors, frequently embroidered. The material was pleated and reached the ankles. As did the
men, the women wore cotton or silk in the summer and wool in the winter. However, variety of
dress is also apparent in painting that show such things as flowered dresses, voluminous cloaks,
scarves and ankle high boots. Head wear also marked a person’s home or role in Etrurian society
and apparently could cause some confusion. Women might wear a tutulus, a high cap, and
because the Italian region did so much farming, hats were a very important necessity to everyday
farming life. Depending on what a person did for a living and where a person lived on the
waterways, determined if they wore hats. In the upper Po River valley region, both men and
women wore broad brimmed hats, whereas, in the lower Po valley, only the slaves, who worked
the fields, wore hats. Consequently, there were instances in which a person had to know where in
Etrusia they were to know the proper form of dress. The only other form of hat used by Etrurian
men was a helmet, of the type worn in battle. This helmet, worn by warriors, effected hair styles.
For the extra protection and padding for their helmet, men wore their hair parted down the middle
in braids which were wrapped around their heads. After the braids went out of style, men wore
their hair shorter, more clean cut, like Greek youths and apparently found some other form of
padding for their helmets. Women had more variety in hair styles, depending on the fashion of the
day. Women also wore braided hair under a hat, or one braid over the shoulder drawn up in a
knot and curls often framed the face.
An advanced society and personal riches were the products of Etruscan talents. The
Etruscans were skilled miners who exploited Italy’s natural resources, such as copper, lead, iron
and did extensive metal finish work. Etruscan metal workers were praised highly by the Romans
and Greeks for their work in bronze and precious metals. The Etruscans traded aggressively
with the Greek colonies south of Sicily and Ionia, and with Phoenician ports. Etruria was
founded on the trade of copper and iron, which were both soft metals and in great demand. This
much benefitted the Etruscans because the soil in the mountains of their homelands were iron rich
and easily mined. The iron mines in the Italian mountains were Europe’s first major industry and
it is probable that this ore was their biggest business and the basis of Etruria’s fabulous wealth.
With wealth also came education and professional trades such as medicine flourished. The
Etruscan doctor was a physician, dentist, oculist and pharmacist all at once and had a complete
stock of remedies to treat patients. Tradesmen produced goods of excellent quality, and good
foods, wines and oils were available.
In the ancient world, religious and social planning were directly related to nature and
natural sciences. Basic natural science was highly developed in Etruria and the Etruscan calendar
was based on the phases of the moon, as was the later Roman calendar. This calendar marked
festivals, the kings activities, and every eighth day, which was market day. The Etruscans loved
nature and went hunting, fishing and swimming often. Also, many people owned and raised
animals and owned or operated farms. Every year the valley areas would flood and, in order to
use this natural occurrence to accomplish two tasks � draining the valley and irrigating the dryer
areas � the Etruscans invented methods for irrigation. Irrigation allows farmers to expand their
growing season and growing areas, and by doing this the Etruscans would have been able to
produce more of the items they needed and would have been less dependent on other nations for
foods. Their ability to be self-sufficient and independent would have allowed them the
opportunity to develop a broad range of talents and Etruscans became miners, farmers, ranchers,
sailors, merchants and, when necessary, warriors.
Societies are often judged by their appreciation of the arts and music was a huge part of
Etruscan life. Every Etruscan youth was taught music, either by rote or by ear, as depicted in
many Etruscan frescos. It is believed that, just as important as the music was to society, so was
the singing and dancing that accompanied the music. The classical Greek and Etruscan style of
music were very similar There were many different forms of dancing, some more casual and one
for every formal occasion such as courting and formal balls. Even funerals developed a specific
style of dance appropriately entitled funereal dancing. In courting, the way the women danced
was called “Round” and the men’s style was “Martial”. The Etruscans did not dance in couples,
but stood facing each other, following their own dance. Interestingly, though the Etruscan lifestyle
included many types of dance, none are said to have been performed with extreme gracefulness.
Nevertheless, the Etruscans were great lovers of music and, with the Etruscan’s love of music
came a number of different instruments.
In Etruscan paintings and reliefs, a flute is often represented and is present in many every
day scenes depicting everything from bakers to thieves. This has caused historians to believe that
the flute or long double pipe, was the national and regional instrument of Etruria. Besides the
flute, the Etruscans had other wind instruments, including the trumpet, which they are credited
with inventing. The Etruscans had two forms of the trumpet. The first one was a straight bronze
tube sometimes curved at on end. The other was twisted like a ram’s horn. Rome adopted both
trumpet styles for their use. In addition, Etruscans has several varieties of stringed instruments
including the lyre, harp and cithara. The Etruscans also had entertainment in the form of plays
and they may have formed orchestras to be used for adding music to their plays. Because
gestures were often used in these plays, rather than dialogue, the Etruscans are also credited with
developing mime. Interestingly, while Rome followed much of the Etruscan lifestyle, unlike the
Greeks and Etruscans, the Romans love for music was never as deep or passionate.
Another difference between Etruscan and Roman societies was the place held by women.
“Women were not only equal members of society with their husbands and fathers, but enjoyed
much of the same status that ladies had in the Age of Chivalry. Their liberated condition, in fact,
was unique in the ancient world.” The massive amount of freedom Etruscan women enjoyed
caused the Romans to look down on the entire Etruscan civilization. Whereas, if a Roman
woman were to be respectable, she must be adapted to enjoying few freedoms, the Etruscan
women were used to being free. The Roman’s reasons for looking down upon Etruscan women
was that, instead of serving the men, the women considered themselves on a par with men and
even dined with the men. Etruscan women went outside a great deal, unlike Greek and Roman
women, who lived in the shadows of their homes. In formal dress, women went to dances,
concerts, and sporting events such a boxing and chariot racing. This made Etruscan women seem
indiscrete to the Romans but, although the Romans looked down upon Etruscan women, many
Romans had Etruscan brides. When the Roman men brought their Etruscan brides home, the men
were disgraced at the ladies lack of manners and soon forced their wives to fit Roman standards.
Similarly, the Greeks, who were very narrow minded, looked on a woman’s rights as the worst
kind of social misbehavior.
If an Etruscan woman had a high enough rank, she was given a good education and, in
addition to social mixing and informal freedoms, Etruscan women were involved a great deal in
the politics of their cities. Nevertheless, even through women were granted equal rights in many
things, the Etruscan family was a patriarchy and, as far as the formal the order of the family was
designed, women always came second. This is somewhat confusing because in Lydia, the
supposed original Etruscan homeland, the society is matriarchal such that children are called by
their mother’s name not their father’s. Etruscans were paternalistic and used the same authority
of the pater familias the Romans gave to the head of the family.
Complex and sophisticated religion was another sign of the Etruscan’s advanced society.
The Etruscans believed in a great connection between man, nature, celestial, terrestrial and even
the underworld. Everything was integrated in a huge rhythm. The Etruscan’s had a myth that
told the tale of how the basic law of their religion was written. According to the story, a farmer
saw a child rise up from the ground, but the child, Tages, was gifted with the wisdom of the
priests and kings. When the other priests, the Lucumones of the twelve cities of Etruria, heard the
screams of the farmer, the priests came running to see what was wrong. When they arrived, the
child began to speak. As the child spoke, the priests wrote it down. These words became the
religious law for the Etruscans, the Diciplina Etrusca.
One key difference in Roman and Etruscan religion is Romans believed everything
happened because the gods willed it. The Etruscans, on the other hand, weren’t too worried
about gods, except as they might effect a person’s afterlife, and thought many events happened
just as events in the normal course of living. The Etruscans were not as paranoid about the god’s
intervention in everyday events, but were still god fearing people and were as bloody in their
rituals as the Romans. Their luxurious lives were a cause for their religious fervor and
thanksgiving. Also, because of their belief of an afterlife, it was a prime concern of Etruscans to
please the gods and thus to obtain a pleasurable post-death.
Like the Greeks and Romans, the Etruscans believed in a god hierarchy. There were
sixteen deities in the family of gods. Twelve of those sixteen were great gods, and eight of these
twelve had the right to hurl thunderbolts. Each thunderbolt was assigned to a specific god
differentiated by whatever color it was. The Etruscans had the same basic gods as the Greeks
and Romans, but all the groups had different names. Tinia, who is equivalent to the Greek god
Zeus and the Roman god Jupiter, was the head god and sat at the summit of the north. The
Etruscans also believed in an underworld similar to the Greeks. The Etruscan religion even
included a demon, Charun, who ferried dead souls across the River Styx. This demon parallels
the virtually identical Greek demon, Charon. Besides worshiping the main gods, Etruria’s minor
gods were worshiped in individual cults. Though little is know about the actual rituals, the
remains of the open air sanctuaries remain. The only known facts were found on paintings on the
walls of tombs. Religious ceremonies began with a trumpeter who wore clothes of the gods,
purple and gold. This trumpeter carried an ivory scepter crowned with laurel leaves. He was
followed by lectors, priests, prisoners, and the general public. The new custom of a religious
procession for the priests and other noble men was soon taken up as Roman tradition.
To ward off invasion by gods or outside forces, the sacrifices were better if from your
own country, and even better if from your own family. The Etruscans believed this to be true, and
were as hardened to human sacrifice and the sight of human suffering as the Romans, as shown by
ceremonies reproduced on Etruscan urns and frescoes. If “games” seen on frescoes were, in
fact, sacrifices and “the shedding of blood to maintain the flickering life of the dead, the savage
game shown in the fresco, can be understood.” This led to one of the most horrible fortune
telling styles in history in which a haruspices, or soothsayer, was trained to interpret the will of
the gods by examining the internal organs of animal and human sacrifices.
While human sacrifice may have seen barbaric, the Etruscans were known for their
elaborate and highly excessive tombs and funeral ceremonies. In order to accompany the
aristocratic lifestyle of the Etruscans, a “City of the Dead” was built. This city included streets and
plazas as would exist in a city of the living. Etruscan tombs differed houses because the tomb
replica homes were mainly carved out of solid rock. The tomb itself was approximately the
same size as an Etruscan hut but was highly more decorated in the amount of frescoes found on
the walls of the tombs. The beliefs that the Etruscans had was that the tomb was home for the
body and soul, so that the tomb must closely represent the life of the living as possible. Etruscans
tombs were carved out of soft stone in a round or rectangular shape. The shaping and building of
a tomb was taken more seriously by the Etruscans, as would a temple, because the Etruscans
believed if the dead was served well in the afterlife then they would not come back to haunt the
living. The actual sarcophagus for the dead was lavishly sculpted to show the deceased in a party
like atmosphere. The coffin was designed to resemble the deceased within. It was full length in
the shape of a divan with the dead lying on top as if they were about to banquet. Unlike most
Etruscans sculptures, coffins were most likely carved out of stone such as terra cotta instead of
bronze. Couples were usually buried together within the same tomb and even in the same
sarcophagus. To help the deceased, the tomb would often times be filled, like the Egyptians, with
the dead’s most valuable possessions, weapons, and food to provide for the afterlife. Each of the
items found in tombs, with the exception of food, included an engraving of some sort either to
show the decease’s power or the insignia of the family.
Another artistic aspect of the sophisticated society enjoyed by the Etruscans was visual
arts. Advanced engineering and elaborate art appear in temple structures. Though the
appearance of the size of the temples seemed to be large, they were squat, squarish shapes that
left room for few statues to be placed inside. The dividing of the temple into three regions would
have left the Etruscans with no place to arrange statues on the floor, and it is unlikely that the
wooden walls were strong enough to support the massive weight of a bronze statue. The
Etruscans were then forced to find another way of decorating their temples. Terra cotta plaques
covered the achitrave in the pediment, below the gable, above the porch. In one bold attempt to
add more artwork to the Temple to Apollo at Veii, the Etruscans adorned the temple roofs with
terra-cotta figures and constructed a monumental statue that stood on top of the gable ,at its
peak, in front of the stairs. Also on the two sides ridges of the temple and the top ridge four life
size statues stood. These statues added a very dramatic effect to this particular temple, but the
idea must have been a poorly received by the citizens because this technique of decorating a
temple was never used again.
The most important area of Etruscan art is tombs and the frescoes and other art works
found on Etruscan tomb walls. The frescoes are life size and cover whole walls from floor to
ceiling. The images depicted on the frescoes in the tombs are of dancers in the springtime. The
dancers are usually women in thin brightly colored dresses dancing in a woodland area to the
music of young boys. The reasoning for the gaiety of the artwork was the same as that for the
coffin, that is, the tomb represented the life of a party then the afterlife of the dead would be like a
party as well. Also, if the dead were content and entertained in the afterlife they would not have
the time to haunt the living who buried them. Along with the images of the living world every
tomb included a painting of the Etruscan god of the dead.
It is noteworthy that, just as other aspects of Etruscan living changed with their decline
over the centuries, so did the idea of burying the dead. During the decline, the Etruscans began to
cremate their dead and pour the ashes into urns. These urns were usually in the shape of a hut or
the head of a man. Then small holes were dug in a side of a hill were the urns were buried. If one
was rich or powerful enough to have a tomb built they were not filled with, as before, with joyous
paintings of dancers but with relief art. The images found on the reliefs was of fearful demons
from a most un-welcoming afterlife. One of the most feared of the demons was known as the
“Demon of Death.” The “Demon of Death” was said to take the life away from a person and
drag in down to the afterlife. The colors found on such tombs were not as bright but just as
bold as their predecessors. To create such bright and bold colors the Etruscans used a mixture of
water and plaster to paint the walls and ceiling of tombs. This combination seeped into the soft
stone walls preserving the artwork in excellent condition. Most of the information found about
Etruscan living was discovered within the wall of the tombs.
Throughout the long period of painting tomb walls the art and technique used to paint
them changes dramatically. In late tombs and burial chambers a tendency to create a realistic
style of painting and sculpture instead of the surreal artwork found in earlier works of Etruscan
art. Besides just paintings and frescoes the reliefs also are depicted in very real styling. Etruscan
artists took great pride in creating art that would represent the portrayed as similar to the way
they actually looked. During the fifth and sixth century the Etruscan art style was very closely
related to the paintings found in Ionia. The curved mouths, almond shaped eyes, long fingers, and
long slender feet to show off their shoes, which they were very proud of. Also the artwork
portrayed the fashion of that period. These works showed many different scenes including funeral
scenes, banquets, athletic games, and dances. In the Fourth Century B.C. the Etruscans were
not prepared for their demise and their art reflected that idea. From Etruscan art being filled with
happy scenes of banquets and dancing they were filled with pictures of bloody fierce battle scenes.
The scenes including mythological battles as well as battles they were fighting in reality. Charun,
the Etruscan demon of the dead who ferried the dead across the river Styx, replaced youths
playing wind and stringed instruments in the sunny outdoors. The depressing expression of the
art was caused by three main reasons.
The worst of Etruria’s two problems was their declining business. The volume of trade
shrunk immensely. Etruia was no longer trading with as many countries as they were at the height
of their rule. The second main problem was the political powers in Eturia’s were very weak as
class conflicts grew. Lastly, the cities military was extremely venerable to attacks. Etruria was
never at one time under one strong leader. They may have spoken the same language, shared the
same religion and culture, but Eturia remained a small groups of city states much alike to those of
Greece. This allowed them to be successful in the early stages of the Empire, but proved to be
their downfall as the centuries passed. Although it is reasonable to assume that individual cities
sent colonists to neighbouring regions and would have entered into diplomatic alliances with each
other and foreign states, it is probable that each Etruscan city resolved problems in a manner that
was most beneficial to its own survival, most likely without regard for the interests of its allies or
neighbors. The independence of the city-states has been shown by archeological finds and it is
believed that these autonomous cities were bound together only by religion and common
language.
Initially, the Etruscans were a greatly feared sea fearing people. These are reports of other
groups of people running in fear of the alleged pirates of the Tyrrhenian. The early Etruscans
were just as powerful on land a they were on sea. Tactical warfare gave the Etruscans a huge
advantage against their enemies. The Etruscans used phalanxes, like the Greeks did, but it is a
societal advancement that is credited for much of their success. The one weapon that was
acclaimed to be their “secret weapon” was not a fighting machine, but their strong leather shoes
that wrapped above their ankles. These shoes were said to have led the Etruscans to victory more
than their armor or weapons.
It is part of the Etruscan’s success that led to their downfall. The three principal causes of
the end of the Empire were economic collapse, disunity among the city-states and the one-time
lore and mystique of the Bronze Age Etruscans was overcome by the aggressiveness and might of
the Iron Age Romans. In time, the Etruscan society led to its own breakdown and the politics of
rulers and ruling classes, together with the pursuit of pleasure, led to lack of concern over military
matters, fragmentation of their society, and easy Roman conquest. In one instance, the leaders of
the City of Volsinii, apparently incapable of handing their own affairs, appealed to the Romans for
help in subduing a slave uprising, leading the Roman conquest and destruction of the city. In
most other instances, the Etruscans refused to unite to fight the common enemy and were
overcome one at a time, until the entire Etruscan civilization ceased to exist.
What remains is art. ʑBIBLIOGRAPHY
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University of California Press, 174.
Hamblin, Dora Jane. The Etruscans. New York Time Inc, 175.
Hempl, George. Mediterranean Studies. New York AMS Publisher, Inc, 167.
Heurgon, Jacques. Daily Life of the Etruscans. New York The Macmillan Company, 164.
Janson, H.W. The History of Art. New York Harry N. Abrams Inc, 177.
Keller, Werner. The Etruscans. New York Alfred A. Knopf Inc, 174.
Mayani, Zacharie. The Etruscans Begin to Speak. New York Souvenir Press, LTD, 16.
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