- Jean-Paul Thuillier –
and also of Archaic Latin tragedy. And above all, one may fi nd on these urns, which in
Volterra are often produced in alabaster, elements of a theatrical setting (palace gates,
caves, harbors, towers, temples), and of stage-setting accessories (altars): all this could
have been directly inspired by representations of tragedies (Etruscan?) played in Etruria
itself, and here we reach the Varronian allusion to Volnius (Camporeale 2004 :163–167).
SPORT IN ETRURIAThe quote from Livy concerning ludi held in Rome by Tarquin the Elder places the existence
of such games in Etruria itself during the seventh century bce. Etruscan iconography
confi rms this assertion, in particular for combat sports. An olla of incised bucchero, found
at Veii and now lost, dating to the last third of the seventh century bce, permits us to
observe a beautiful scene of a fi ght, two boxers are squaring off, their arms are raised in high
guard and they are dressed in short tunics (Thuillier 1985: 57–65). At Caere, on a painted
urn, also from the seventh century bce, a boxing match is represented (Martelli 1987: 260).
We visit the same period and same city (the tomb of San Paolo) on an olpe of bucchero
decorated with mythological scenes with Daedalus and Medea, and Jason (if indeed it is
him) who is boxing. (Rizzo 2001: 170–171; see Chapter 24, Figs 24.1–2). Finally, and
from the seventh century bce again, a painted olla attributed to the Painter of Civitavecchia
allows us to attend a boxing match that is accompanied by a musician, a fl ute-player for
the fi rst time: this practice will now be a constant among the Etruscans (Bruni 2000: 556).
Boxing is not the only competition at this early period in Etruria, since a small bronze
group found in Murlo, south of Siena, and dating from the late seventh century bce, also
shows two wrestlers in action watched by a referee armed with a long staff.
Athletic competitions: combat sportsBut it is boxing that remains the favorite sport of the Etruscans, although as indicated
in the passage from Livy, chariot races are very popular too. We see quite a number of
representations of boxing in the sixth and fi fth century bce, especially in the frescoes
of Tarquinia, where the boxers are sometimes the only athletes represented, and where
they often occupy a prominent place, such as framing the doorway like two guards ready
to threaten any undesirable visitors (Cardarelli Tomb) (Steingräber 1985: no. 53). This
popularity of boxing can also be found on the tombstones of Felsina (Bologna) where
it is essentially the only athletic sport – sometimes represented beside the chariot race:
moreover, this sport also has a privileged place in the decoration of tombs, for example on
the stele No. 169 (according to the catalog of P. Ducati), the boxing scene is spread over
an entire register with fi ve characters (the two athletes, the second with the sponge, the
musician and the referee: see also the Amphora BM 64 by the Micali Painter) (Sassatelli
1993: 45–67). A tibicen, a fl ute-player, is almost always present alongside Etruscan boxers
(Thuillier 1985: 231–254). Several Greek authors have noted this custom, wanting to see
it as a sign of weakness, an indication of the dissolute life with which the Etruscans often
were reproached in Antiquity. This grievance concerning “truphē” (“excessive luxury”)
as regards the musical accompaniment of Etruscan boxing was totally inappropriate. As
seen today in traditional Thai boxing, which is certainly not “soft,” it was the task of the
musicians to pace the moves of both opponents and even wake up their fi ghting spirit as
well, if it were ever waning.