Who were the Etruscans?

— Toscana - the name of this region reminds us even today of the people who lived there in ancient times: the Tusci or Etrusci, as the Romans called the Etruscans. Where did the Etruscans come from? Even scholars in antiquity couldn't agree on the answer.

Were they the native inhabitants of Italy, or immigrants from Asia Minor, from the west coast of modern Turkey? Even modern science has been unable to answer these questions yet. One thing is certain: they lived from the 10th to the 1st century B.C. in central Italy, in the area of modern Toscana, Latium, Umbria and Emilia-Romagna and parts of Campania.

The first Italian advanced culture was thanks to the Etruscans. What we know about them comes from writings of neighbors who weren't always favorably impressed, the Greeks and the Romans. The talk is of women who could hold their drink, fat men and orgies. On the other hand, the Etruscans were reported as powerful, pious and experts in religious matters. Their cultural heritage, such as fascinating wall paintings, monumental mausoleums and magnificent burial objects, enable insight into their diverse everyday culture with its high quality of life.

"… an ancient people, due to their language and customs different from all other peoples."

Dionysios of Halikarnassos I 30

#EtruskerWeltkultur

DE | EN

 
 

 

Etruria and its Cities

— The people of Etruria lived in the early Villanovan Age (9th -8th cent. B.C., Iron Age culture) in smaller settlements. After constant economic growth, these developed by the 6th cent. B.C. into Etruscan cities.

The cities had their own political administration and were economically and militarily independent. For this reason, they are called City States. That means, there was never a single great Etruscan Empire, but rather there were various Etruscan City States with their attendant areas. In the central region of the Etruscans, between the Arno and the Tiber, there was a dense network of such City States which expanded with the expansion of Etruscan influence in the north and south.

Important cities joined to a League of Twelve Cities. This was a syndicate which met at regular intervals in a sanctuary, the famous Fanum Voltumnae in Orvieto and decided definitely on religious, possibly also on political matters.

"These [the Etruscans] were famous earlier for their courage, they acquired a lot of land and founded many attractive cities. In the same way, they were also great in seafaring and ruled the seas for a long time."

Diodor V 40 (Greek historian)

Artworks of World Class and Refinement

— The Etruscan goldsmiths were gifted artists. They mastered the most difficult techniques and produced impressive works of art.

Gold was not available in Etruria as a raw material. The gold probably came from central Europe, from the Iberian Peninsula or from the eastern Mediterranean area. The gold artefacts of the 8th cent. B.C. were relatively simple pieces, like spirals made of gold wire to hold hair-braids or brooches as jewelry and to fasten clothing.

Starting in the middle of the 7th cent. B.C., high-quality goldsmith pieces were made on a grand scale. Probably the Etruscan artisans had learned and perfected new techniques like granulation (soldering of tiny gold beads to an ornamental pattern), filigree work (with gold wire) and gold lamination of objects from the eastern Mediterranean area.

Numerous prestigious objects in the necropolises of Etruria, such as magnificent brooches, necklaces with pendants, bracelets, earrings and vessels attest to the special abilities, creativity and artistic sense of Etruscan goldsmiths.

"The things they produced during the centuries of their wealth (…) breathe a certain fullness of life."

D.H. Lawrence, Etruscan Cities, 1932

The Etruscans as a Global Culture in ancient Italy

— Etruria's position on the Mediterranean was an important prerequisite for exchange with other cultures. The Etruscan City States and especially the harbor cities were the center of intercultural encounters. Often, goods are discovered in the archeological excavations of Etruscan burial grounds which were imported from other regions of the Mediterranean area.

Some of the earliest imports come from the 9th cent. B.C. from Sardinia. With the economic and technical developments, the international contacts also grew, for example with the Greeks, Phoenicians, Punics or the Celts. There was exchange of raw materials, such as bronze or iron, and crafts, such as ceramics or jewelry. On the other hand, there was also a dynamic transfer of knowledge, ideas and persons, for example, craftsmen and merchants.

The Etruscans assimilated the foreign influences and transformed them to their own, very specific identity. A mentality arose which shared global phenomena with other civilizations and made the Etruscan culture to a global culture.

Decorative Etruscan plaques of imported ivory with motifs familiar from the eastern Mediterranean area, from Comeana

Bronze Etruscan tripod from the grave of a Celtic princess in Bad Dürkheim

Pleasure in Etruria: Banquet and Wine

— The banquet pictures in wall paintings of Etruscan graves are festive and merry. Men and women in festive clothing lie on "klinai" (couches) and enjoy wine and food. Acrobats, dancers and musicians provide entertainment.

The festive banquet illustrates the Etruscan way of life: the representative dinner table is not only an expression of the enjoyment of life, but also of wealth and social prestige. This applies to the here and now as well as possibly to the afterlife. The desire for a happy afterlife is symbolized with an eternal festive banquet in many tomb paintings and images on urns and sarcophagi.

The burial objects and paintings show everyday objects which belong to the extensive banquet service, especially to wine drinking. Mixing vessels for mixing wine and water and seasoning it with pine resin, rosemary or thyme. Pitchers and ladles were essential for serving wine, along with sieves to filter the wine and drinking vessels to savor the fine result.

By the way - according to the most recent knowledge, the Etruscans introduced wine-growing to France. Santé!

"They (the Etruscans) have opulent meals served twice a day and everything else that belongs to excessive revelry; they prepare beds of blossoms and have amassed a great quantity of all kinds of silver goblets and a not-inconsiderable number of domestic servants"

Diodor V 40 (Greek historian)

Etruscan women

— There was never gender equality in antiquity. The political, social and economic life was always and everywhere dominated by men. For the Etruscan culture, however, a particularly high esteem of women is postulated, and a great importance of marriage and family. One sign of this could be images showing married couples in loving embrace. Inscriptions show that the Etruscan could use not only his father's name as identification and proof of lineage, but also his mother's name.

The topic "women" exemplifies the differences in mentality and in social life between Greeks and Etruscans, but also the misunderstandings they engender: The Etruscan women, for example, could participate with the men in festive banquets  - a scandal in the eyes of the Greeks, who considered the Etruscan women not only vain and "beautiful". They also describe them as "able to hold their liquor" and compared them to prostitutes.

"Etruscan women (...) take great care of their bodies and (...) don't eat with their own husbands, but with whomever they happen to be, and drink with whomever they wish. They hold their liquor well and are very beautiful."

Athenaios (Greek author, 2nd-3rd Century a.D.),
Scholars Banquet IV 517d-e

Necropolises and Cult of the Dead

— Anyone travelling through Tuscany these days inevitably passes the World Culture Sites Tarquinia and Cerveteri.  The Monterozzi Necropolis near Tarquinia and the Banditaccia Necropolis near Cerveteri became part of the UNESCO World Culture Heritage in 2004.

In the Villanova Era, the dead were buried in smaller urn and shaft graves. In the days of the princes, there were large, walk-in grave chambers in monumental barrows (tumuli) with valuable burial objects like armor, jewelry or foreign imported goods. The rooms in the grave imitated the living rooms in the houses of the Etruscans. The dead were to be made comfortable and be happy even in the hereafter.

Starting in the 7th century B.C., the walls of the graves were lavishly painted. Often, the scenes were of banquets, but also of athletic competitions, hunting or scenes of the underworld. The Etruscans believed they would live on with their ancestors in the hereafter.

Urn cover of clay with a reclining couple from Volterra

Divine Signs - The Religious Conception of the Etruscan World

—A deeply religious people and especially conscientious in dealing with the gods - that's how ancient authors described the Etruscans.

All events in the world and in human life were, the Etruscans believed, predetermined by the gods. Therefore, it was necessary to discover the divine will, to interpret it and exert as favorable influence as possible on future events. There were several cult rituals and techniques available for establishing contact with the gods. Priests interpreted the appearance of lightning and thunder, the flight of birds, or the appearance of the entrails of sacrificial animals, because divine signs could be read from them. No task was begun, no street constructed, without first making certain the gods approved.

In the exhibit, you can see a bronze sheep's liver that undoubtedly served as a teaching model for interpreting the liver. The names of the gods and their location in the Etruscan heavens are engraved on the model.

The Romans later called the teaching of the interpretation of divine signs the disciplina etrusca and it was taken up in their own cult practice.

The urn lid of the deceased Haruspex Avle Lecu shows the viscera reader in long priestly robes

Bronze model of a sheep's liver (copy) from Piacenza

Bronze statuette of an Augur

Etruscan Writing

The so-called Arringatore (Orator), a statue honoring Aule Meteli

— As a civilized culture, the Etruscans had their own language. It has survived in many short texts. The Etruscans certainly also wrote some longer texts, for example about their religious rituals, but these have not survived.

Thus far, researchers have been only able to decipher part of the language. Mainly, we know proper names, such as Laris and Ati. The Etruscans used Greek letters, which they modified somewhat. They wrote from right to left, from left to right, or in changing direction of writing. The Etruscan language does not, however, belong to the Indo-European language group, like Latin and Greek.

Archeologists are still finding Etruscan inscriptions at excavations. Language researchers are trying to come closer to deciphering the Etruscan language. But the key is still hidden, so that the Etruscans are still surrounded by mystery.

A small vessel (Aryballos) bearing a love incantation

Typical Roman?
The Etruscan Heritage

The so-called Tarchon mirror from Tuscania, the etched decoration shows a Haruspex reading the entrails

Fragment of a Roman dinner service of Terra Sigillata with a Haruspex reading a liver

— A lot of what we consider typically Roman is found on closer inspection to be part of the Etruscan heritage.

In the 1st century B.C., the Roman state had occupied all Etruscan cities. But this wasn't the end of the Etruscans, they were assimilated into the Roman Empire and continued to live as Roman citizens.

On their part, the Romans continued with Etruscan culture and tradition, such as the religious rituals of bird and entrail interpretation or the gladiator fights, which may have had their roots in Etruscan funereal games. Even the Roman toga can be traced back to an Etruscan garment, the tebenna. Roman architecture took over the atrium house and the Etruscan style of temple construction. Wearing the Bulla was also copied. These were only for boys among the Romans, but the amulet was also worn by Etruscan girls.

Important Etruscan personalities are part of Roman history. Probably about 600 B.C., the King of Rome, Tarquinius Priscus, had an extensive sewage system built (later expanded into the cloaca maxima). This construction-minded king was, however, not Roman but Etruscan.

5 interesting and curious facts

  1. The word "person" comes from the name of the Etruscan demon Phersu and entered modern European languages via the Latin word  "persona" (mask).
  2. The invention of brass instruments like the trumpet and the horn probably goes back to the Etruscans. The instruments were used in the Italic culture as signal instruments in battle.
  3. The invention of brass instruments like the trumpet and the horn probably goes back to the Etruscans. The instruments were used in the Italic culture as signal instruments in battle.
  4. Gaius Maecenas (* about 70 B.C. in Arezzo, † 8 B.C. in Rome), of Etruscan origin on his mother's side, was an intimate and political advisor to the Roman Emperor Augustus and a patron of culture. His name was the origin of the term "Mäzen", used still in Germany for a wealthy individual who supports art and culture. A bust of Gaius Maecenas is found in the exhibition.
  5. Etruschi F.A. Livorno is the name of an American Football Team from the capital city of the province of Livorno. The team was formed in 1984, when the sport boomed in Italy. Currently, the Etruschi F.A. Livorno is playing in the 3rd Italian league.

An Etruscan shrew, the smallest mammal in the world

Marble portrait of the emperor's advisor Maecenas, who was born to an aristocratic Etruscan family

Shirt and helmet of a football player in the team "Etruschi F.A. Livorno"

I am Etruscan

— In modern times, we still meet up with Etruscans - in sports with the soccer team "Etruschi F.A. Livorno", in films like "Murder in an Etruscan Cemetery” (1982), and also in art. The sculptors Marino Marini and Arturo Martini were the leading figures in the 20th century neo-Etruscan movement. While Marini named the Etruscans as a source of inspiration, Martini confidently stated "Etruscan inspiration? No, I'm not inspired. I am Etruscan!"

Are you Etruscan? In the Exhibition, you can tell us why. Or tell us and others by instagram:

#ichbineinetrusker

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Were they the native inhabitants of Italy, or immigrants from Asia Minor, from the west coast of modern Turkey? Even modern science has been unable to answer these questions yet. One thing is certain: they lived from the 10th to the 1st century B.C. in central Italy, in the area of modern Toscana, Latium, Umbria and Emilia-Romagna and parts of Campania.

 
 

— The people of Etruria lived in the early Villanovan Age (9th -8th cent. B.C., Iron Age culture) in smaller settlements. After constant economic growth, these developed by the 6th cent. B.C. into Etruscan cities.

Some of the earliest imports come from the 9th cent. B.C. from Sardinia. With the economic and technical developments, the international contacts also grew, for example with the Greeks, Phoenicians, Punics or the Celts. There was exchange of raw materials, such as bronze or iron, and crafts, such as ceramics or jewelry. On the other hand, there was also a dynamic transfer of knowledge, ideas and persons, for example, craftsmen and merchants.

Starting in the 7th century B.C., the walls of the graves were lavishly painted. Often, the scenes were of banquets, but also of athletic competitions, hunting or scenes of the underworld. The Etruscans believed they would live on with their ancestors in the hereafter.

Typical Roman?
The Etruscan Heritage

The so-called Tarchon mirror from Tuscania, the etched decoration shows a Haruspex reading the entrails

Fragment of a Roman dinner service of Terra Sigillata with a Haruspex reading a liver

— A lot of what we consider typically Roman is found on closer inspection to be part of the Etruscan heritage.

In the 1st century B.C., the Roman state had occupied all Etruscan cities. But this wasn't the end of the Etruscans, they were assimilated into the Roman Empire and continued to live as Roman citizens.

On their part, the Romans continued with Etruscan culture and tradition, such as the religious rituals of bird and entrail interpretation or the gladiator fights, which may have had their roots in Etruscan funereal games. Even the Roman toga can be traced back to an Etruscan garment, the tebenna. Roman architecture took over the atrium house and the Etruscan style of temple construction. Wearing the Bulla was also copied. These were only for boys among the Romans, but the amulet was also worn by Etruscan girls.

Important Etruscan personalities are part of Roman history. Probably about 600 B.C., the King of Rome, Tarquinius Priscus, had an extensive sewage system built (later expanded into the cloaca maxima). This construction-minded king was, however, not Roman but Etruscan.

  1. Etruschi F.A. Livorno is the name of an American Football Team from the capital city of the province of Livorno. The team was formed in 1984, when the sport boomed in Italy. Currently, the Etruschi F.A. Livorno is playing in the 3rd Italian league.

— In modern times, we still meet up with Etruscans - in sports with the soccer team "Etruschi F.A. Livorno", in films like "Murder in an Etruscan Cemetery” (1982), and also in art. The sculptors Marino Marini and Arturo Martini were the leading figures in the 20th century neo-Etruscan movement. While Marini named the Etruscans as a source of inspiration, Martini confidently stated "Etruscan inspiration? No, I'm not inspired. I am Etruscan!"

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Who were the Etruscans?

 

— Toscana - the name of this region reminds us even today of the people who lived there in ancient times: the Tusci or Etrusci, as the Romans called the Etruscans. Where did the Etruscans come from? Even scholars in antiquity couldn't agree on the answer.

Were they the native inhabitants of Italy, or immigrants from Asia Minor, from the west coast of modern Turkey? Even modern science has been unable to answer these questions yet. One thing is certain: they lived from the 10th to the 1st century B.C. in central Italy, in the area of modern Toscana, Latium, Umbria and Emilia-Romagna and parts of Campania.

The first Italian advanced culture was thanks to the Etruscans. What we know about them comes from writings of neighbors who weren't always favorably impressed, the Greeks and the Romans. The talk is of women who could hold their drink, fat men and orgies. On the other hand, the Etruscans were reported as powerful, pious and experts in religious matters. Their cultural heritage, such as fascinating wall paintings, monumental mausoleums and magnificent burial objects, enable insight into their diverse everyday culture with its high quality of life.

— The people of Etruria lived in the early Villanovan Age (9th -8th cent. B.C., Iron Age culture) in smaller settlements. After constant economic growth, these developed by the 6th cent. B.C. into Etruscan cities.

The cities had their own political administration and were economically and militarily independent. For this reason, they are called City States. That means, there was never a single great Etruscan Empire, but rather there were various Etruscan City States with their attendant areas. In the central region of the Etruscans, between the Arno and the Tiber, there was a dense network of such City States which expanded with the expansion of Etruscan influence in the north and south.

Important cities joined to a League of Twelve Cities. This was a syndicate which met at regular intervals in a sanctuary, the famous Fanum Voltumnae in Orvieto and decided definitely on religious, possibly also on political matters.

 

"These [the Etruscans] were famous earlier for their courage, they acquired a lot of land and founded many attractive cities. In the same way, they were also great in seafaring and ruled the seas for a long time."

Diodor V 40 (Greek historian)

Etrurien-Karte mit Fundorten

Artworks of World Class and Refinement

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 

— The Etruscan goldsmiths were gifted artists. They mastered the most difficult techniques and produced impressive works of art.

Gold was not available in Etruria as a raw material. The gold probably came from central Europe, from the Iberian Peninsula or from the eastern Mediterranean area. The gold artefacts of the 8th cent. B.C. were relatively simple pieces, like spirals made of gold wire to hold hair-braids or brooches as jewelry and to fasten clothing.

Starting in the middle of the 7th cent. B.C., high-quality goldsmith pieces were made on a grand scale. Probably the Etruscan artisans had learned and perfected new techniques like granulation (soldering of tiny gold beads to an ornamental pattern), filigree work (with gold wire) and gold lamination of objects from the eastern Mediterranean area.

Numerous prestigious objects in the necropolises of Etruria, such as magnificent brooches, necklaces with pendants, bracelets, earrings and vessels attest to the special abilities, creativity and artistic sense of Etruscan goldsmiths.

 

"The things they produced during
the centuries of their wealth (…)
breathe a certain fullness of life."

D.H. Lawrence, Etruscan Cities, 1932

The Etruscans as a Global Culture in ancient Italy

 

— Etruria's position on the Mediterranean was an important prerequisite for exchange with other cultures. The Etruscan City States and especially the harbor cities were the center of intercultural encounters. Often, goods are discovered in the archeological excavations of Etruscan burial grounds which were imported from other regions of the Mediterranean area.

Some of the earliest imports come from the 9th cent. B.C. from Sardinia. With the economic and technical developments, the international contacts also grew, for example with the Greeks, Phoenicians, Punics or the Celts. There was exchange of raw materials, such as bronze or iron, and crafts, such as ceramics or jewelry. On the other hand, there was also a dynamic transfer of knowledge, ideas and persons, for example, craftsmen and merchants.

The Etruscans assimilated the foreign influences and transformed them to their own, very specific identity. A mentality arose which shared global phenomena with other civilizations and made the Etruscan culture to a global culture.

Pleasure in Etruria: Banquet and Wine

— The banquet pictures in wall paintings of Etruscan graves are festive and merry. Men and women in festive clothing lie on "klinai" (couches) and enjoy wine and food. Acrobats, dancers and musicians provide entertainment.

The festive banquet illustrates the Etruscan way of life: the representative dinner table is not only an expression of the enjoyment of life, but also of wealth and social prestige. This applies to the here and now as well as possibly to the afterlife. The desire for a happy afterlife is symbolized with an eternal festive banquet in many tomb paintings and images on urns and sarcophagi.

The burial objects and paintings show everyday objects which belong to the extensive banquet service, especially to wine drinking. Mixing vessels for mixing wine and water and seasoning it with pine resin, rosemary or thyme. Pitchers and ladles were essential for serving wine, along with sieves to filter the wine and drinking vessels to savor the fine result.

By the way - according to the most recent knowledge, the Etruscans introduced wine-growing to France. Santé!

Etruscan women

 

— There was never gender equality in antiquity. The political, social and economic life was always and everywhere dominated by men. For the Etruscan culture, however, a particularly high esteem of women is postulated, and a great importance of marriage and family. One sign of this could be images showing married couples in loving embrace. Inscriptions show that the Etruscan could use not only his father's name as identification and proof of lineage, but also his mother's name.

The topic "women" exemplifies the differences in mentality and in social life between Greeks and Etruscans, but also the misunderstandings they engender: The Etruscan women, for example, could participate with the men in festive banquets - a scandal in the eyes of the Greeks, who considered the Etruscan women not only vain and "beautiful". They also describe them as "able to hold their liquor" and compared them to prostitutes.

"Etruscan women (...) take great care of their bodies and (...) don't eat with their own husbands, but with whomever they happen to be, and drink with whomever they wish. They hold their liquor well and are very beautiful."

Athenaios (Greek author, 2nd-3rd Century a.D.),
Scholars Banquet IV 517d-e

Necropolises and
Cult of the Dead

 

— Anyone travelling through Tuscany these days inevitably passes the World Culture Sites Tarquinia and Cerveteri.  The Monterozzi Necropolis near Tarquinia and the Banditaccia Necropolis near Cerveteri became part of the UNESCO World Culture Heritage in 2004.

In the Villanova Era, the dead were buried in smaller urn and shaft graves. In the days of the princes, there were large, walk-in grave chambers in monumental barrows (tumuli) with valuable burial objects like armor, jewelry or foreign imported goods. The rooms in the grave imitated the living rooms in the houses of the Etruscans. The dead were to be made comfortable and be happy even in the hereafter.

Starting in the 7th century B.C., the walls of the graves were lavishly painted. Often, the scenes were of banquets, but also of athletic competitions, hunting or scenes of the underworld. The Etruscans believed they would live on with their ancestors in the hereafter.

Divine Signs - The Religious Conception of the Etruscan World

 

— A deeply religious people and especially conscientious in dealing with the gods - that's how ancient authors described the Etruscans.

All events in the world and in human life were, the Etruscans believed, predetermined by the gods. Therefore, it was necessary to discover the divine will, to interpret it and exert as favorable influence as possible on future events. There were several cult rituals and techniques available for establishing contact with the gods. Priests interpreted the appearance of lightning and thunder, the flight of birds, or the appearance of the entrails of sacrificial animals, because divine signs could be read from them. No task was begun, no street constructed, without first making certain the gods approved.

In the exhibit, you can see a bronze sheep's liver that undoubtedly served as a teaching model for interpreting the liver. The names of the gods and their location in the Etruscan heavens are engraved on the model.

The Romans later called the teaching of the interpretation of divine signs the disciplina etrusca and it was taken up in their own cult practice.

Etruscan Writing

 

— As a civilized culture, the Etruscans had their own language. It has survived in many short texts. The Etruscans certainly also wrote some longer texts, for example about their religious rituals, but these have not survived.

Thus far, researchers have been only able to decipher part of the language. Mainly, we know proper names, such as Laris and Ati. The Etruscans used Greek letters, which they modified somewhat. They wrote from right to left, from left to right, or in changing direction of writing. The Etruscan language does not, however, belong to the Indo-European language group, like Latin and Greek.

Archeologists are still finding Etruscan inscriptions at excavations. Language researchers are trying to come closer to deciphering the Etruscan language. But the key is still hidden, so that the Etruscans are still surrounded by mystery.

Typical Roman?
The Etruscan Heritage

 

— A lot of what we consider typically Roman is found on closer inspection to be part of the Etruscan heritage.

In the 1st century B.C., the Roman state had occupied all Etruscan cities. But this wasn't the end of the Etruscans, they were assimilated into the Roman Empire and continued to live as Roman citizens.

On their part, the Romans continued with Etruscan culture and tradition, such as the religious rituals of bird and entrail interpretation or the gladiator fights, which may have had their roots in Etruscan funereal games. Even the Roman toga can be traced back to an Etruscan garment, the tebenna. Roman architecture took over the atrium house and the Etruscan style of temple construction. Wearing the Bulla was also copied. These were only for boys among the Romans, but the amulet was also worn by Etruscan girls.

Important Etruscan personalities are part of Roman history. Probably about 600 B.C., the King of Rome, Tarquinius Priscus, had an extensive sewage system built (later expanded into the cloaca maxima). This construction-minded king was, however, not Roman but Etruscan.

5 interesting
and curious facts

  1. The smallest mammal in the world is named after the Etruscans. The Etruscan shrew (Suncus etruscus), which is common in the Mediterranean area, has a maximum length of  4.8 cm, eats double its body weight daily and has a heart rate of 1,300 beats per minute!
  2. The word "person" comes from the name of the Etruscan demon Phersu and entered modern European languages via the Latin word  "persona" (mask).
  3. The invention of brass instruments like the trumpet and the horn probably goes back to the Etruscans. The instruments were used in the Italic culture as signal instruments in battle.
  4. Gaius Maecenas (* about 70 B.C. in Arezzo, † 8 B.C. in Rome), of Etruscan origin on his mother's side, was an intimate and political advisor to the Roman Emperor Augustus and a patron of culture. His name was the origin of the term "Mäzen", used still in Germany for a wealthy individual who supports art and culture. A bust of Gaius Maecenas is found in the exhibition.
  5. Etruschi F.A. Livorno is the name of an American Football Team from the capital city of the province of Livorno. The team was formed in 1984, when the sport boomed in Italy. Currently, the Etruschi F.A. Livorno is playing in the 3rd Italian league.

Ich bin ein Etrusker

— In modern times, we still meet up with Etruscans - in sports with the soccer team "Etruschi F.A. Livorno", in films like "Murder in an Etruscan Cemetery” (1982), and also in art. The sculptors Marino Marini and Arturo Martini were the leading figures in the 20th century neo-Etruscan movement. While Marini named the Etruscans as a source of inspiration, Martini confidently stated "Etruscan inspiration? No, I'm not inspired. I am Etruscan!"

Are you Etruscan? In the Exhibition, you can tell us why. Or tell us and others by instagram:

#ichbineinetrusker

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