CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE

THE ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE

OF ETRURIA

Ingrid Edlund-Berry

VITRUVIUS AND THE TUSCAN TEMPLE

E

truscan architecture is an acquired taste for those expecting well-preserved ancient
buildings such as the Greek temples or the Roman bath complexes. Instead of
gleaming marble and indestructible brick walls, it is the bare remains of a foundation
course, a threshold, a column base, a tile fragment, or a cutting for a post hole that
provide evidence for reconstructing an Etruscan temple or other building. Yet, thanks to
references in the ancient texts as well as an increasing body of archaeological remains, it
is recognized, sometimes somewhat reluctantly, that Etruscan architecture is important,
and that its heritage deserves to be acknowledged.
Although Etruscan buildings and monuments are mentioned in a variety of ancient
texts, it is thanks to the Roman architect Vitruvius that the architectural heritage of Etruria
was known and appreciated long before the discovery of actual Etruscan temples and other
buildings excavated in the nineteenth century and later. Vitruvius lived in Rome at the
time of Augustus, and his work, de architectura, refl ects his interests in both architectural
theory and building practices.^1 Before the advent of archaeology he represented the
most esteemed source for ancient architecture, and his work was studied in great detail
throughout the Renaissance and later.^2 At the same time, it was also recognized that
Vitruvius could not be counted on to describe and analyze only what he saw with his own
eyes, but rather that he was a theorist providing models and suggesting solutions, some
of which were purely theoretical and philosophical, others based on architectural practice.
As a result, when Vitruvius describes Etruscan architecture we need to be aware of
the context of his narrative and of his terminology. Thus, in referring to Etruria as a
region of Italy (for example, 2.6.4 or 2.10.1) or the location of temples as prescribed
by Etruscan priests (1.7.1), he uses words such as “Etruria” and “Etruscus” to indicate
that which pertained to the Etruscans, their land, and culture. On the other hand, in
discussing architectural styles, he prefers the adjective “tuscanicus,” derived from the Latin
noun “Tuscus,” a variant of “Etruscus,” in contexts which indicate that he is analyzing a
form that resembles Etruscan models, but which because of its age and tradition should
be perceived of as “Etruscan-inspired” rather than historically or culturally “Etruscan.”^3