- chapter 19: Etruscan goods in the Mediterranean world –
amongst the panoplies from the tombs of Aléria, from the remnants of the shipwrecks
at Sète, Agde and Gava in the Llobregat delta south of Barcelona, and other examples
identifi ed in the settlements of the Catalan-Languedoc littoral.^11
Deposits of Etruscan shields of Villanovan type are attested in several Panhellenic
sanctuaries, especially Olympia and the Samian Heraion, Dodona and (probably) Delphi.^12
Other than the examples from the tombs of Aléria, shields decorated with bosses in
Catalonia have been interpreted as evidence of Etruscan infl uence.^13 The introduction
into the western Mediterranean of disc-cuirasses and greaves amongst high-status
warriors is partially attributable to the Etruscans. So much is the case for the prehistoric
populations of the Catalan littoral, at the sites of Mas de Mussol and La Oriola – close
to the mouth of the Ebro River – and north up to Cayla de Mailhac and the necropolis
of Corno-Lauzo in Languedoc.^14 The statue of a warrior from Lattes has decorated discs
taken from prototypes in the Etrusco-Italic world and which have parallels in Iberia.^15
From Olympia is known a wonderful fi gured fl at bronze strip (possibly the handle of a
shield) (Fig. 19.3) and in North Africa the amazing bronze triple-disc cuirass from Ksour
es Saaf (Tunisia), of the Hellenistic period.^16 Finally, the recent restoration of the parade
panoplies from Aléria has revealed high quality incised mythological scenes upon a pair
of Etruscan greaves.^17
Thrones and chariot paraphernaliaThe numerous fragments of repoussé bronze sheet from Olympia have been shown to
belong not only to shields but also to Etruscan thrones.^18 In the Celtic hinterland, the
bench or triple throne of Hochdorf refl ects models known in Etruria.^19 In the palatial
context of the Tartessos hinterland in the southern Iberian Peninsula, several pieces of
cast bronze would have belonged to seats or benches similar to Etruscan productions.^20
Other Etruscan-style bronzes have been attributed to chariots at Gornja Radgon in
Slovenia, in Bavaria and in the Rhineland.^21 The Greek colony of Empúries (Ampúrias,
Emporion) in Catalonia has revealed a terminal piece in the form of a lion’s head, which
was originally part of a piece of furniture or the shaft of a chariot or sledge (see Fig.
17.19).^22
Figure 19.2 Crested helmets in bronze, of Villanovan type, discovered in the panhellenic sanctuary of
Olympia. Ninth-eighth century. (Kilian 1977).