CHAPTER FORTY TWO

THE WORLD OF ETRUSCAN TEXTILES

Margarita Gleba

INTRODUCTION

A

ubiquitous commodity in Etruscan life, one that required not only substantial
material but also human resources, was cloth.^1 As an item of consumption, textiles
range between luxury and necessity and are ideal for the creation of specialized products,
the manufacture of which may be narrowly localized. Such localization creates demand
and necessitates redistribution, resulting in textile trade. Hence, two developmental
directions can be observed.^2 The fi rst is towards production of luxury items needed for
status display and (long-distance) gift exchange between the elites, which leads to the
development of highly specialized/skilled craftsmanship and a network of exchange
and resource and object circulation, which can be archaeologically traced through the
distribution of objects. The second is directed towards the quick production of necessity
goods, which are in demand by the developing urban communities. This in turn leads
to a development of more organized modes of production and trade in these necessity
products. Unlike many other specialized crafts that appeared in Etruria already during
the Iron Age (e.g. glass or certain metal and pottery types), textile production was not a
new craft. Instead, part of the production shifted from making subsistence products to
the manufacture of non-essential or luxury goods. Thus, in addition to the adoption of
new weaving techniques, technological changes were also induced by an organizational
shift in production, i.e. a change in purpose, intensity and scale of organization of textile
production. As such, textiles present a special case in the production system of Etruria.
Despite the poor preservation of textiles on the Apennine Peninsula, we can get a
glimpse of the rich world of Etruscan textiles and their economic, social and religious
signifi cance through archaeological, iconographic and written evidence. Textiles were
used for a variety of purposes by the Etruscans. Colorful garments are depicted on
Etruscan fi gurines, statues, vases and tomb paintings and refl ect not only changes in
fashion through time but also the meaning of textiles as conveyors of individual and
group identity.^3 Textile fi bers were also used for a particular kind of linen armour,
used during the fourth century bce and illustrated in Etruscan tomb art.^4 In addition
to garments, objects such as colorful bed covers, cushions, tablecloths, wall hangings