- chapter 43: Food and drink in the Etruscan world –
how Romans repeatedly described Etruria’s lush lands and abundant grains, especially
farro (spelt) as a rich resource (Diod. V, 40; Varro Rust. I, 44).^3 Farro (puls), which was a
staple in the Roman diet, certainly had its roots in Etruria.^4
The Romans documented the plentiful Etruscan crops as early as the^ fi fth century
bc when Etruria provided grain to Rome during several famines (Dio. Hal. Ant. VII, 1,
2–5; Livy II, 34–3, IV, 52; XXII, 3, 1–7).^5 Romans also mention Etruscan sites for their
splendid vineyards, olives, and fi gs (Dio Hal. Ant. I, 37, 1–4; Livy, V, 33; Plut, Cam. XV,
1–6). The quantity of grain was so abundant in Etruria that we hear of Cerveteri, Roselle,
Volterra, Chiusi, Perugia and Arezzo giving large amounts of grain to the Roman general
Scipio during the Punic Wars (Livy XXVIII, 45).^6
Fruit too played a signifi cant role in the ancient Etruscan diet; the vineyards, olive
groves and wild fi g trees supplied drink, oil, and food and formed a staple component
of the ancient Mediterranean diet. Fava beans, peas and chestnuts were widely abundant
and we know that chickpeas were cultivated as well.^7 The various meats available to the
Etruscans consisted of wild boar, pig, sheep, bovine and goat, not to mention chickens,
ducks and various other fowl, which also provided eggs.^8 The lakes and rivers, as well
as the Tyrrhenian Sea, certainly supplied a variety of fi sh for local fi shermen.^9 One of
the most important testimonies of this is the celebrated Tomb of Hunting and Fishing
at Tarquinia dating to circa 530 bc.^10 The back wall of the second chamber offers a
snapshot of life on the coast with fi shermen pulling up their nets, a hunter using a sling
to capture colorful birds who swoop above the fi shermen, while dolphins dive in and
out of the sea (Fig. 43.1). Although this tomb features an aristocratic banquet in the
upper pediment of the same wall, the actions below belong to the world of fi shermen and
hunters. Likewise, the Golini Tomb I in Orvieto offers an image of slaves preparing food
for the banquet, a unique scene indeed.^11 Although we cannot assume that the slaves were
consuming the same food items as the aristocracy, at least we know what was available in
Etruria at this time; from this we can postulate that some of the population outside of the
aristocracy, farmers, hunters and fi shermen for example, were consuming high-protein
foods whenever possible.
Figure 43.1 Tomb of Hunting and Fishing, Tarquinia, circa 530 bc. The back wall depicts fi shermen
pulling up nets while dolphins dive in and out of the water (Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici
dell’Etruria Meridionale).