etruscan

• The Etruscan civilization lasted from the 8th century BCE to the 3rd and 2nd centuries BCE
• Located between the Tiber and Arno rivers west and south of the Apennines
• Urban civilization reached its height in the 6th century BCE
• The Etruscans called themselves Rasenna, shortened to Rasna, while the ancient Romans referred to them as Tuci or Etrusci
• Etruscan civilization formerly ruled nearly the whole peninsula known as Italy
• Etruscans were the first "superpower" of the Western Mediterranean, alongside the Greeks
• Important cities in modern Tuscany like Florence, Pisa, and Siena were first established by the Etruscans
• Etruscan society was highly aristocratic, often under monarchs
• Late 6th Century King Lars Porsenna of Clusium posed a great threat to the early Roman Republic
• Etruscan culture influenced the Romans, their successors in power in the peninsula
• Etruscan state government was essentially a theocracy, viewed as a central authority ruling over all tribal and clan organizations
• Etruscan women had rights similar to modern women, with the ability to read, write, raise children, and sit at the same table as their husbands
• Etruscan civilization flourished in modern Tuscany for approximately 900 years, from ca. 1000 to ca. 100 BCE
• Etruscan language, written in a Greek-derived script, is unrelated to the Indo-European linguistic family
• Etruscan religion was revealed by seers Tages and Vegoia
• Etruscan religion was an immanent polytheism, with deities depicted in human form influenced by Greek mythology
• Etruscan architecture created between about 700 BC and 200 BC
• Etruscan architecture reveals a blending of Ancient Greek and Ancient Near Eastern styles, anticipating Roman design
• Etruscans absorbed Greek influence in their architecture, creating a new architectural style
• Etruscan architecture made lasting contributions to the architecture of Italy, which were adopted by the Romans and through them became standard to Western civilization
• Rome itself is a repository of Etruscan architectural features
• Etruscans were the first people in northern and central Italy to build big buildings out of stone
• Etruscan architecture dates back to about B.C. 750 and they were aware of the value of the true or radiating arch for constructive purposes
• Etruscan walls are known for their great solidity of construction and cyclopean masonry, where huge masses of stone are piled up without the use of cement, mortar, or any kind
• "Cloaca Maxima" (B.C. 578), a great drain of Rome, was constructed by the Etruscans to drain the valleys of Rome and features a semicircular arch of 11 feet span
• Etruscan temples had 3 cellas, one for each of the chief gods: Tinia (Zeus/Jupiter), Uni (Hera/Juno), and Menvra (Athena/Minerva)
• Etruscan temples were characterized by an almost square floor plan, with a gallery with columns in the front half and three chambers in the rear half
• Etruscan builders used post-and-lintel structure, gable roofs, and entablatures made of wood or quarried volcanic rock (tufa)
• Etruscan temples had very wide and low double sloping roofs, with considerable lateral projection and the façade was dominated by an open or closed triangular fronton
• Etruscan tombs were built out of stone and designed to resemble their houses, with internal rock-cut chambers and organized cemeteries
• Etruscan tombs were decorated with painted stucco reliefs and scenes of banqueting and outdoor scenes set in a natural environment
• Etruscan tombs had circular burial mounds and interiors similar to those of an Etruscan house, with walls painted with images of domestic animals and utensils
• Etruscan beliefs of an afterlife:

  • Hybrid of Greek and Egyptian beliefs
  • Belief in cremation
  • Tombs as homes for the dead
  • Tombs were mounts called tumuli similar to beehive tombs
• Etruscan Architecture:

  • Ongoing excavation work at funerary sites
  • Ceramic funerary urns made in shape of houses
  • Written descriptions by subsequent Romans, like Architect Vitruvius
  • Etruscan cities often on hills for natural defense
  • Etruscan towns fortified with powerful stone walls
  • Use of true or radiating arch
  • Invention of the Tuscan order of Architecture
• Apollo Temple at Veii:

  • Statue of Apollo with no prostyle, 3 celli, terracotta statue from the top of the temple
  • Etruscan artist influenced by Greek sculpture but not understanding human figure anatomy
  • Looks like acolos figure with buttresses and no contrapposto pose
  • Etruscan contribution to Roman art
• • It retained the power of life and death; in fact, the gorgon, an ancient symbol of that power, appears as a motif in Etruscan decoration.
• How to understand the will of deities and how to behave had been “revealed” to the Etruscans by two “initiators”, Tages, a childlike figure born from tilled land and immediately gifted with prescience, and Vegoia, a female figure. Their “teachings” were kept in a series of sacred books.
• The Etruscans were a monogamous society that emphasized pairing. (Pen + Pineapple)
• • Pilaster - A flat, rectangular, vertical member projecting from a wall of which it forms a part. It usually has a base and a capital and is often fluted. • Terracotta - Hard-baked clay, used for sculpture and as a building material. It may be glazed or painted.