A great civilization once ruled the entire peninsula practically; we now name Italy before the little settlement of Rome became “Rome.” This was the Etruscan civilization, a lost civilization whose accomplishments paved the way for the Italian Renaissance and the growth of ancient Roman art and culture.
The Etruscan Legacy: Exploring the Influence of Etruscan Art and Culture on Modern Society
The Etruscan civilization was an ancient civilization that flourished in central Italy between the 8th and 3rd centuries B.C.E. The Etruscans were highly advanced people skilled in art, architecture, engineering, and metallurgy. They were also known for their writing system, which needs to be fully understood.
Despite their impressive achievements, the Etruscans remain something of a mystery. Very little is known about their origins, language, or religion. The Etruscan language has only been partially deciphered, and much of what is known about their faith comes from Greek and Roman sources.
One theory about the origins of the Etruscans is that they were indigenous to the region, while another theory suggests that they migrated from Asia Minor. The Etruscans were also known for their unique burial practices involving elaborate tombs and caskets. These tombs often contained intricate frescoes depicting scenes from Etruscan life.
The Etruscans, who may not be well-known to you, were the first “superpower” of the Western Mediterranean and co-founded with the Greeks the first real cities in Europe. The most significant towns in contemporary Tuscany, including Florence, Pisa, and Siena, were founded by the Etruscans and have been inhabited ever since. This is because they were so prosperous.
Yet, as there is no remaining Etruscan literature or history, the terms “mysterious” or “enigmatic” are frequently applied to them. This is especially ironic because the Etruscans were the ones who introduced literacy to the Italian peninsula and taught the Romans the alphabet.
Source: Wikimedia Commons
The Influence On Ancient Rome
The Etruscan civilization significantly influenced Roman culture in the past. Many of the Romans’ cultural and creative practices, including the spectacle of gladiatorial fighting, hydraulic engineering, temple architecture, and religious ritual, were passed down from the Etruscans.
In truth, the Romans kept an Etruscan priesthood in Rome for hundreds of years after they had conquered the Etruscans and incorporated them into their empire because they felt it was important to consult them when they were under attack from “barbarians.”
The terrifying, masked figure in the Early Etruscan tomb painting, Phersu would force his victims to participate in a horrific “game” of bloodletting to appease the soul of the deceased (the original gladiatorial games, according to the Romans! ), and we even derive our prevalent word “person” from him.
Source: World History Encyclopedia
The Afterlife And Etruscan Art
Early on, the Etruscans created a thriving creative and architectural culture that frequently conversed with other Mediterranean cultures. They came into contact with the Greeks, Phoenicians, and Egyptians in the Mediterranean due to trading the numerous natural mineral riches in Tuscany, the epicenter of ancient Etruria. They interacted with these other Mediterranean cultures by trading goods, concepts, and frequently a common aesthetic lexicon.
But unlike the Greeks, most of what we know about Etruscan art comes from their graves. Because most Etruscan cities are still inhabited, they bury their Etruscan art and architecture under Roman, Medieval, and Renaissance layers. Fortunately, the Etruscans took great care to provide their dead with everything they would need hereafter, including vibrant tomb paintings, sculptures, and ceramics they might use there.
We can examine the “world of the dead” and learn a little about the “world of the living” from their vast cemeteries. The Etruscans imagined the afterlife as a continuation of life as they had known it throughout their early stages of civilization. When someone passed away, they were cremated and given a new “home” in the afterlife.
The deceased’s cremated remains would be kept in an urn constructed of impasto clay that has not been polished. It also serves as a tiny representation of what an Iron Age Etruscan house would have looked like about 900 to 750 B.C.E., with its oval shape, wooden roof, and smoke hole for an internal hearth.
Source: Wikimedia Commons
More Lavish Tombs
Houses for the deceased increased in complexity over time. The Etruscans traded their natural resources with other Mediterranean nations throughout the Orientalizing period (750–575 B.C.E.), becoming astronomically wealthy, and their tombs grew increasingly lavish.
The well-known Regolini-Galassi tomb from Cerveteri city demonstrates how this new affluence changed the simple hut into a magnificent abode for the dead. The enormous stone tomb, undoubtedly constructed for a woman of high rank, has a long corridor leading to a central chamber flanked by oval side rooms.
The burial artifacts are now housed in the Etruscan rooms of the Vatican museum, which offers a mind-blowing view of the great wealth of the time. A gold pectoral, gold bracelets, and a gold brooch (or fibula) of enormous proportions, among other items, were discovered close to the woman. There were also countless additional grave goods and furnishings, silver and bronze pots, and other artifacts designed for personal decoration in the afterlife.
The Etruscan culture started to fall when the Romans began to enlarge their realm in the fourth century B.C.E. As the Etruscans were eventually incorporated into the Roman Empire, nothing was known about their civilization. The numerous monuments and artifacts uncovered throughout central Italy are a living testament to the Etruscan civilization’s past.
The Etruscans continue to intrigue academics and the general public despite their obscurity. Their civilization is an outstanding example of human culture and a tribute to the resourcefulness and inventiveness of the human spirit.
