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On a lonely hill just outside the town of Tarquinia in northern Lazio, a dedicated group of people keep watch over one of the most important Pre-Roman archaeological sites in Italy. Here, in a melancholy echo of a distant past, some 6000 graves bear evidence to the existence of a highly advanced civilization dating back hundreds of years before the founding of Rome.

Today there is little trace left of the people known as Etruscans who inhabited an area including parts of Lazio, Tuscany and Umbria from around 900 BC. Italy at the time was divided in regions whose loose borders were occupied and fiercely contested by a variety of ethnic groups. Wars were commonplace and often brutal. The nascent Roman military, which would later go on to enjoy unprecedented success and create the greatest Empire in history, dealt ruthlessly with opponents and things un-Roman. Often not content with killing adversaries, it deliberately set out to eradicate all traces of their culture and identity and it seems to have dealt particularly ferociously with the Etruscans.

Of the diverse groups who populated Italy in that period the Etruscans stand out. They were culturally distinct and far more advanced than any other. It is widely believed that the Etruscans were not indigenous but originated in Asia Minor in an area that is part of modern day Turkey.

From archaeological sites like Tarquinia and Cerveteri, and references by Greek and Roman writers, we know they were technically and culturally advanced but sadly there are no remaining written works, no history or literature, left by the Etruscans themselves to allow us a glimpse of their world from within. The scarcity of reference material has added to the air of mystery surrounding the Etruscans making these sites all the more precious.

Thanks to the Etruscan tradition of wall painting their tombs, the necropolises at Tarquinia and Cerveteri are home to some of the finest examples of Etruscan art in the world today. Perhaps it was for superstitious reasons that the Romans didn’t destroy the artwork of these graves. Whatever their motives they appear to have respected Etruscan burial rites and what insights we do have into Etruscan lifestyle we owe in large part to their cemeteries.

Of the 6000 tombs in Tarquinia, 200 have wall paintings that are considered of major interest. Although some have suffered the effects of aging down through the centuries it is still possible to view and marvel at the splendour of Etruscan art. Delicately crafted and rich in symbolism, these frescoes portray a range of everyday scenes providing a sense of what life was like in ancient Etruria. Typical themes include dancing accompanied by musicians playing instruments like the flute and lyre and sporting scenes depicting athletes, horsemen and wrestlers.

To distinguish the tombs archaeologists have given each one a name. In the Tomb of the Leopards we witness a magnificent banquet with reclining couples enjoying a great feast. One man, probably the deceased, is seen holding up an egg between thumb and forefinger. The egg is thought to represent rebirth or the afterlife.

In the Tomb of Hunting and Fishing which dates to the sixth century BC, beautifully coloured scenes depict a hunter with a slingshot stalking a flock of birds who give flight against a hazy sky while fishermen in a boat below cast their net into a blue-green sea as dolphins leap playfully from the waves. One man dives into the sea from a rock while another is climbing the rock after him. Diving into water is thought to be another symbol of rebirth.

The Necropolis at Cerveteri is astonishingly elaborate. Tombs consisting of chambers connected by corridors, like rooms in houses, are arranged along streets as in any urban development. In their day these rooms would have contained furniture and ornamental decorations, precious metals, utensils and in some cases even pets, anything that might be considered necessary or useful in the after life. It is an eerie experience walking the streets of this city of the dead and one which takes us to the very soul of Etruscan culture.

The sites at Tarquinia and Cerveteri were considered important enough to be assigned World Heritage status by UNESCO in 2004. In assigning this status the artworks in the necropolises of Tarquinia and Cerveteri were deemed ‘masterpieces of creative genius’.

To read more about Etruscan history and see some examples of Etruscan Art visit http://www.EtruscanVilla.com/history . Visit the area to explore the world of the mysterious Etrsucans further. Plenty of useful information including accommodation is available on http://www.EtruscanVilla.com .

This article appears on the authors website at www.EtruscanVilla.com/articles_and_further_reading

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