Etruscan Art, 500 B.C. - 100 B.C.

The Etruscan people once took claim to most of the peninsula that is know today as Rome. Unfortunately, after the fall of their power, they were practically erased from history. For a while, people describe the Etruscan history as, once forgotten and now being rediscovered. Today, after many new discoveries, more is known about the Etruscans than any other people of pre-Roman Italy. (John Reich, Italy before Rome, 1979. 76) The key, and inspiration to the majority of this ongoing study is the art that is still being found in the soil of Tuscan.(Raymond Bloch, The Etruscans 1956, 19)

Most of the Etruscan art has been discovered by accident, or archeology. It has not been uncommon for the field workers in Rome to actually dig their way into a tomb left by the Etruscan people.(Raymond Bloch, The Etruscans 1956, 20) These Tombs were banks for artists, scientists and historians interested in the Etruscans. Because this is where the bulk of our knowledge of the Etruscan people has been attained, ways of living and government remain somewhat of a mystery to us. We know that at one time they were under the rule of a king, or kings, and later replaced them with aristocratic magistrates. We also believe that the Etruscans were violent by nature, and had week religious values due to bad ideas of the afterlife.(Hause and Maltby, Western Civilization, 2004 102). One thing we do know for sure is that, besides being accomplished farmers and good engineers, these people had great imaginations and excellent skill in crafts. Proof of their skills and creativity have been found all around the Mediterranean Sea, and come in the forms of bronze statues and mirrors, fine gold and stone jewelry, clay pots and statues, tomb paintings and mosaics, and various works with many types of metal.

The main source for findings of Etruscan art would be in tombs of the Etruscan leaders and heros. The Etruscans would have underground tunnels and tombs. Some adding up to over 100,000 square feet. (Sibylle Von Cles-Reden, "The Buried People", 1955, 43)

The tombs were lined in decorations of gold and bronze. Statues of the leader would fill the floors, and clay pots and bronze mirrors would have tales of their life etched into them. Often times the walls would have large frescoes or mosaics on them. These forms of art are valued by historians for the fact that they were usually pictures of festivals and gatherings, or just everyday life. As you could imagine, this would be of great assistance in learning about the Etruscan people. The latest, and arguably the most famous of painted tombs is the Tomba del letto funebre. It is the most carefully executed display of artistic ability and is said to have a feeling of grace that is comparable to Greek art. (Sibylle Von Cles-Reden, "The Buried People",1955, 65)

The architecture of the Etruscan people was not considered to be any less artistic than their metal work. Their buildings were not as sturdy as that of the Romans. None have withheld the test of time, but a few walls and pillars have been found. What we have found mostly consist of eves of city biuldings, pillars and of coarse the walls within the tombs. These pieces are heavily covered in moldings and inscriptions, and in some cases have very large statues protruding from the walls. These moldings often showed someone departing from a group in some way. Most likely symbolic of death. One of the very popular wall designs found is the wall of Volterra. It was a tomb wall that dominated a large portion of the Cecina vally. This wall was excavated from a tomb in 1728 and is part of the Volterra Archeological Museum.( Raymond Bloch, "The Etruscans" 1958, 21)

It is considered to be so popular because its shear mass, and the great amount of illustrations found on the wall. This particular tomb was said to have held over 40 urns containing the remains of Etruscan leaders.

Most of the Etruscan art is thought to be inspired by myths, religious beliefs and respect towards leaders. An excellent example of this would be the Ficoroni coffin. This ancient masterpiece was found in the soil of a Latin-Etruscan city. It is made of bronze, and engravings cover the top and sides. Some of the illustrations found on the coffin are myths of Argonauts, and the ship Argo.( Raymond Bloch, "The Etruscans" 1958, 22)

Another common way to show respect to leaders would be to present them with a mirror. The great craftsmanship found on some of these mirrors is more than remarkable. Most of the time they were made of bronze and often times would have other metals or stone laid into it. They resembled a looking glass in that they were round with a handle. The majority of the craftsmanship is found on the back of the mirror. You wouldn't expect the Etruscans to leave a blank slate would you? They would often inscribe very creative creatures or scenes from a myth. The extent to which some of these mirrors were crafted explains to us that the Etruscan people were intelligen. They were able to imagine tools and put them to use.

The Etruscans are an amazing people. Their tomb art can be found in many museums, and there mirrors and jewelry are a pleasure to gander upon. We can trust that our archeologist will not forget the Etruscans, and we can only hope to continue our education of their people.

Works Cited

Raymond Bloch, "The Etruscans" 1958. 15 west 47^th street. New York 36 N.Y..

John Reich, "Italy before Rome". 1979. Elsevier publishing projects.

Sibylle Von Cles-Reden, translated from German by C.M. Woodhouse. "The Buried People", 1955. 36 Soho Square London.

Steven Hause, William Maltby, " Western Civilization" 2004 International Thomas Publishing Company.