the torso at the waist is unnatural. The Etruscan artist’s interest
focused on the upper half of the figures, especially on the vibrant
faces and gesticulating arms. Gestures are still an important ingredi-
ent of Italian conversation today, and the Cerveteri banqueters and
the Veii Apulu speak to the viewer in a way that Greek statues of sim-
ilar date, with their closed contours and calm demeanor, never do.BANDITACCIA NECROPOLISThe exact findspot of the Cer-
veteri sarcophagus is not known, but the kind of tomb that housed
such sarcophagi is well documented. The typical tomb in Cerveteri’s
Banditaccia necropolis (FIG. 9-6) took the form of a mound, or
tumulus,not unlike the Mycenaean Treasury of Atreus (FIG. 4-20).
But whereas the Mycenaean tholos tomb was constructed of ma-
sonry blocks and then covered by an earthen mound, each Etruscan
tumulus covered one or more subterranean multichambered tombs
cut out of the dark local limestone called tufa. These burial mounds
sometimes reached colossal size, with diameters in excess of 130 feet.
They were arranged in cemeteries in an orderly manner along a net-
work of streets, producing the effect of veritable “cities of the dead”
(the literal meaning of the Greek word necropolis), and were always
located some distance from the cities of the living.
The underground tomb chambers cut into the rock resembled
the houses of the living. In the plan (FIG. 9-7) of the Tomb of the
Shields and Chairs, for example, the central entrance and the smaller
chambers opening onto a large central space mirror the axial se-
quence of rooms in Etruscan dwellings of the time. The effect of a
domestic interior was enhanced by the beds and grand armchairs
with curved backs and footstools (clearly visible on the plan), as well
as the ceiling beams, framed doorways, and even windows that the
sculptors cut out of the rock. The technique recalls that of rock-cut
Egyptian tombs (FIG. 3-19) and highlights the very different values
of the Etruscans and the Greeks. The Etruscans’ temples no longer
stand because they constructed them of wood and mud brick, but
their grand subterranean tombs are as permanent as the bedrock it-
self. The Greeks employed stone for the shrines of their gods but
only rarely built monumental tombs for their dead.228 Chapter 9 THE ETRUSCANS9-6Tumuli in
the Banditaccia
necropolis, Cerveteri,
Italy, seventh to
second centuries bce.
In the Banditaccia
necropolis (city of the
dead) at Cerveteri,
the Etruscans buried
several generations
of families in multi-
chambered rock-cut
underground tombs
covered by great
earthen mounds
(tumuli).9-7Plan of the Tomb of the Shields and Chairs, Cerveteri, Italy,
second half of the sixth century bce.
In plan, the subterranean tombs of Cerveteri resemble the houses of the
living. Sculptors enhanced the effect of a domestic interior by carving
beds, chairs, doors, and ceiling beams out of the bedrock.0 5 10
1 5 feet0 1 2 3 4 meter (^5) s
Chairs
Beds
9-7ATomb of
the Shields
and Chairs,
Cerveteri,
ca. 550–500 BCE.