- Nancy T. de Grummond –
Thus in describing the procedures of Etruscan haruspication it is always necessary
to fi lter the evidence. It seems likely that one difference between the early Etruscan
approach to exta and that of the haruspices in the Roman phase was that the Etruscans
removed the exta from the animal, while the later ritual sometimes (perhaps normally?)
left them attached to the animal.^85 Further, the Piacenza liver, with all of its inscriptions,
tells us that the reading of a liver was a far more complex procedure for the Etruscans than
it was for either the Greeks or the Romans, who normally sought a simple answer in the
response, either favorable or unfavorable.^86 The Etruscan system must have been much
more than binary, since the priest would have to determine fi rst of all which god or gods
were present on the liver being consulted. Then, with a subtle interpretation based on
protasis and apodosis, a nuanced answer could be produced.
Many of the characteristics of divination by liver, lightning and thunder that noted
above apply to the surviving evidence about augury obtained by studying the activities
of birds.^87 But here, perhaps more than elsewhere in ancient divination, it is diffi cult to
separate out the beliefs of the Etruscans, because prophesying from birds was widespread
and long-lasting in Greece and Italy, and again there is a rich background of Near Eastern
practices.^88 The Iliad and the Odyssey both contain references to augury, and the Greek
perception that the skill was developed early was confi rmed in the story of Prometheus,
who gave mankind many gifts, including prophecy from birds.^89 For the Romans no story
was more basic than the foundation legend detailing the confl ict between Romulus and
Remus, the resolution of which was based on messenger birds from the gods.^90 As for the
priesthoods, just as the haruspices represented Etruscan tradition, the augurs were solidly
Roman, formed into a college with a well-developed tradition of law and employed to
consult sacred chickens on whether or not to go to battle.^91
Certainly, augury was well developed among the Etruscans, and it is no surprise that
among the few glosses surviving on Etruscan vocabulary are the words for falcon, capys;
eagle, antar; crane, gnis; and hawk, arak.^92 Pliny refers to birds that were depicta in Etrusca
disciplina, (N.H. 10.37) implying that Etruscan augurs had sacred books to help them
to identify birds. The number, color, conspicuous size and variety of action of the birds
painted in Etruscan tombs strongly suggest that the artists attempted to show birds of
omen, whether good or bad.^93 Among artistic representations, an evocative image of a
semi-nude, bearded man gazing towards the heavens (Fig. 26.8), with his head resting
on his hand in a pose of meditation (cf. Avl Tarchunus, Fig. 26.1), may show a legendary
or divine augur taking the auspices.^94
At the end of this inquiry, we return to what was observed at the beginning. The
primary sources for studying Etruscan divination are meager and diffi cult to interpret.
If we had even a few more of the various treatises in the corpus of Etrusci libri, it
would revolutionize our understanding of how the Etruscans practiced divination. The
reclaiming by Turfa of the brontoscopic calendar of Nigidius Figulus opens windows in
many directions for the study of the origins, history and praxis of the Etrusca disciplina
and shows how advances can be made. Intensifi ed research into ancient libraries or the
(highly unlikely) discovery of new documents could likewise advance comprehension in
a dramatic way. An encouraging development, not central to this essay on haruspicy and
augury, is the examination of Etruscan images and artifacts that may tell about other
forms of divination known to have been practiced in the ancient world, which have not
been studied in relation to the Etruscans because there is little or no textual evidence for
them. The evidence to prove, for example, that the Etruscans practiced sortition (casting