The military affairs of the peoples of the Apennine Peninsula were about the Samnites, since it seemed to the author that their influence on the military affairs of Rome was more significant. It is clear that we had to touch upon the Etruscans, about whose military organization only two proposals were given in the same Wikipedia. But ... everything happened as it should have happened: there were "experts" who knew for sure that the Etruscans were the ancestors of the Russians (Slavs), and it started. And although such people on this site, fortunately, are few, they are. And this is already like on a ship: if there is a small "hole" in the skin, then expect a big leak. It must be patched before it starts. Therefore, apparently, it makes sense to return to the Etruscan theme and see who they are, where they are from, and further study them in more detail. military history and armor.
Warrior and Amazons - mural from Targinia, 370 - 360 BC Archaeological Museum of Florence.
About where they came to the Apennine Peninsula, Herodotus reported that the Etruscans are people from Lydia, a territory in Asia Minor, and that their name is Tyrrens or Tyrsenes, and the Romans called them Tuski (hence Tuscany). Long time Villanova's culture was thought to be theirs, but now it is more associated with the other local population, the Italians. However, after the deciphering of the Lydian inscriptions, this point of view was criticized, since it turned out that their language has nothing to do with Etruscan. The modern point of view is that the Etruscans are not the Lydians as such, but an even more ancient, pre-Indo-European people of the western part of Asia Minor, belonging to the "peoples of the sea." And it is very possible that the ancient Roman myth about Aeneas, the leader of the beaten Trojans, who moved to Italy after the fall of the fortified Troy, was associated with them. For some reason, archeological data are enough today a large number of people are not convinced: “these are all fakes, buried in the ground,” they assert, although it is completely incomprehensible what the purpose of these “burials” could be (or had). In general, it turns out that the goal is the same: "to offend Russia." However, the purpose of this "event" is again incomprehensible. Before the 1917 revolution, Russia was an empire whose rulers were in the closest relationship with ruling houses Europe. That is, there was no point in it. After the revolution, at first no one took it seriously, that is, why offend an already offended one and bury money in the ground? But when we really began to represent something from ourselves, then it was already too late to bury something - the achievements of science make it possible to recognize any fake.
And it was precisely science that gave us the most important proof that Herodotus and the archaeologists were right. It can be considered proven that the ancient Etruscans moved to Italy from Asia Minor, where they lived in the territory of modern Turkey. Comparing the genetic data of the inhabitants of the Tuscan region (ancient Etruria) with the data of citizens from Turkey, scientists at the University of Turin concluded that they are obvious similarities. That is, the Asia Minor origin of the ancient inhabitants of the Apennine Peninsula, which Herodotus reported about - rightly so! At the same time, the DNA of the inhabitants of the Tuscan Valley of Casentino and the cities of Volterra and Murlo was studied. The donors of genetic material are men from families who have lived in the area for at least three generations, and whose surnames are unique to this region. Y-chromosomes (which are just passed from father to son) were compared with y-chromosomes of people from other regions of Italy, from the Balkans, Turkey and also the island of Lemnos in the Aegean Sea. There were more coincidences with genetic samples from the East than from Italy. Well, the inhabitants of Murlo were found to have a genetic variant, which is generally found only in the inhabitants of Turkey. At this point, as they say - everything, there is nothing further to argue about.
Etruscan pendant with the image of a swastika, 700 - 600 AD BC. Bolsena, Italy. The Louvre museum.
True, there is still linguistics, but it cannot yet give an exhaustive answer to the question of the origin of the Etruscan language. Although more than 7000 Etruscan inscriptions are known, its relationship with any family of languages has not been established. Well, that's not installed and that's it! And even by researchers from the USSR. But if the Etruscans are from Asia Minor and have Lydian ancestors, then their language must belong to the extinct Hittite-Luwian (Anatolian) group of Indo-European languages. Although the data on him Indo-European origin not convincing enough.
Etruscan warriors carry a fallen comrade. Villa Giulia National Museum, Rome.
And here the final answer to these disputes was given ... by cows! A study of the mitochondrial DNA of cows from Tuscany, carried out by a group of geneticists led by Marco Pellecchia from the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Piacenza, showed that their distant ancestors have cows from Asia Minor as their direct relatives! At the same time, animals from all regions of Italy were studied. And it turned out that about 60% of the mitochondrial DNA of cows from Tuscany is identical to the mitochondrial DNA of cows from the Middle East and Asia Minor, that is, in the homeland of the legendary Etruscans. At the same time, this study did not establish a relationship between Tuscan cows and cattle from the north and south of Italy. Well, since cows are domestic animals, since they do not fly, do not swim and do not migrate in herds, it becomes clear that they could get from one part of the Mediterranean to another only by sea on ships. And who at that time could sail the Mediterranean Sea on ships and "inherit" in this way with their own and "bestial" genes? Only the "peoples of the sea", first settled in Sardinia, and then on the mainland. By the way, the oldest tribal name of the Etruscans "Tursha" or "Turusha" is also known from the Egyptian monuments of the era of Ramses II - that is, the time when he was at war with the "peoples of the sea".
Well, then they just assimilated. They did not leave Italy, as some Slavophils claim, to become the ancestors of the Slavs, namely they assimilated. Otherwise ... we would not find their genes on its territory today. To do this, it takes a very long time ... to copulate in order to "inherit" so well. And then they would also have stolen cattle, because at that time it was of great value. But no: both people and livestock - all this remained in Italy. And this means that no Etruscans are Russian, and they have never been our ancestors!
Chimera from Arezzo. Bronze statue of the 5th century BC NS. Archaeological Museum, Florence.
Now culture. Her specific traits- whether it is spiritual culture or material culture, they never completely disappear during resettlement. This is especially true of religion. It is known that the Etruscans believed in the afterlife of the deceased and, like the Egyptians, tried to provide him “in the next world” with everything he needed. As a result, the Etruscans built tombs for them in such a way that they resembled the deceased of his native home and filled them with utensils and furniture. The deceased were cremated, and the ashes were placed in a special urn. Famous and beautiful sculptural sarcophagi.
Etruscan sarcophagus of the spouses from the Banditaccia necropolis. Polychrome terracotta, VI century BC NS. Villa Giulia National Museum, Rome.
Personal belongings and jewelry, clothes, weapons and various household items were subject to burial together with the urn, that is, there was a strong belief in the human soul, not connected with the body! Scenes that were pleasant in every respect, such as feasts, sports games and dances, were painted on the walls of the tombs. Memorial games, gladiator fights, sacrifices to the dead - all this was supposed to ease their fate in the "next world." In this, the religion of the Etruscans was very different from the ideas of the Greeks, for whom the tomb was just a tomb, a place for a dead body, but nothing more!
The main Etruscan deities were the goddess of love Turan, Tumus - an analogue of the Greek god Hermes, Seflans - the god of fire, Fufluns - the god of wine, Laran - the god of war, Fezan - the goddess of dawn, Voltumna, Nortia, Lara and the gods of death - Kalu, Kulsu, Leion and Etruscans recorded their religious views in sacred books, and the Romans later translated them and learned a lot of interesting things from them, in particular, about fortune-telling by the entrails of animals, about heavenly signs and various rituals with which one can "act" on the gods.
Etruscan black-figure vase depicting fighting hoplites, circa 550 BC Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Like many ancient societies, the Etruscans carried out military campaigns during the summer months; raided neighboring areas, tried to seize land, valuable goods and slaves. The latter could be sacrificed on the graves of the dead to honor their memory, in the same way as Achilles tried to honor the memory of the murdered Patroclus.
Etruscan helmet of the Corinthian type, 6th - 5th centuries BC. Dallas Museum of Art, Texas.
The written records of the Etruscan period are fragmentary, but they also suggest that the Etruscans competed with the early Romans for dominance in central Italy for almost two centuries (c. 700 BC - 500 BC), but the first of the neighboring cultures to Rome began to succumb to Roman expansion.
Etruscan helmet from the British Museum.
Etruscans, the ancient inhabitants of Central Italy, which was once called Etruria (modern Tuscany), is one of the most mysterious peoples I have ever known.
They had a written language, but modern scientists were able to decipher only a small part of the records that have come down to us. The richness of the Etruscans has been lost, apart from individual passages, and everything that we know about their history has come down to us only through the unflattering comments of Greek and Roman authors.
Ancient Etruscans
Etruria, an area that roughly coincided with the territory of the modern Italian province of Tuscany, was rich in iron and copper ores.
Chimera from Arezzo. Bronze statue of the 5th century BC NS.
Its coastline abounded with natural harbors. So the Etruscans were good sailors and mastered the art of processing very well.
The basis of their wealth was the sea trade in ingots, bronze and other goods along the entire coast of Italy and the South.
Around 800 BC BC, when Rome was still a cluster of wretched huts, clung to the top of the hill, they already lived in cities.
But Etruscan merchants faced fierce competition from the Greeks and Phoenicians.
Around 600 BC. NS. the Greeks founded the trading colony of Massilia (modern) in the south of France. With this stronghold, they were able to take control of an important trade route that led along the Rhone River to Central Europe.
The source of the Etruscan wealth was mining; in particular, they owned the largest copper and iron deposits in the Mediterranean. Etruscan artisans made wonderful works of art out of metal, such as this bronze statue of the Chimera, a monster with a lion's head and a snake instead of a tail.
To protect their interests, the Etruscans entered into an alliance with Carthage. The Etruscans possessed all the advanced technologies of their time; they built roads, bridges and canals.
They borrowed the alphabet, painted ceramics and temple architecture from the Greeks.
In the VI century. BC NS. the possessions of the Etruscans expanded to the north and south of their ancestral region of Etruria. According to Roman authors, at that time 12 large Etruscan cities formed a political union - the Etruscan League.
Founding of the Roman Republic
For some time, Etruscan kings ruled in Rome. The last king was overthrown by a group of Roman aristocrats in 510 BC. NS. - this date is considered the moment of the emergence of the Roman Republic (the city of Rome itself was founded in 753 BC).
From this time on, the Romans began to gradually take power from the Etruscans. At the beginning of the III century. BC NS. the Etruscans disappeared from the historical scene; they were swallowed up by the steadily expanding sphere of political influence of Rome.
The Romans adopted many ideas from the Etruscans in the field of culture and art, construction, metalworking and military affairs.
Etruria was glorified by skilled artists and artisans, especially since in military terms the Etruscans could not compete with the Romans.
Etruscan cities of the dead
The Etruscans buried the dead in spacious necropolises that resembled cities in their appearance. In the south of Etruria, they carved tombs out of soft tuff rocks and decorated them inside as dwellings.
Often, sculptures were placed in tombs depicting the deceased husband and his wife, sitting sprawled on a bench, as if during a feast.
The ancestral home of the Etruscans occupied part of modern Tuscany. They grew rich thanks to the sea trade in metal ores and with the help of wealth expanded their influence in the northern part of Italy.
Other tombs were decorated with frescoes that also depicted feasts, the participants of which were entertained by musicians and dancers.
Etruscan art A significant part of the tombs was plundered by thieves, but archaeologists managed to find many intact tombs.
As a rule, they contained many Greek vases, as well as chariots, gold products, Ivory and amber, testifying to the wealth of the Etruscan aristocrats buried there.
Key dates
The Etruscans, as one of the most highly developed civilizations of antiquity, play an important role in history. Below are the main dates of the Etruscan civilization.
Years BC |
Event |
| 900 | In northern Italy, the Villanova culture emerged, whose representatives used iron. |
| 800 | Etruscan ships sail along the western coast of Italy. |
| 700 | Etruscans begin to use the alphabet. |
| 616 | Etruscan Lucius Tarquinius Priscus becomes king of Rome. |
| 600 | Twelve Etruscan cities are united in the Etruscan League. |
| 550 | Etruscans seize the river valley. To the north of Etruria and build cities there. |
| 539 | Combined Etruscan-Carthaginian Army in naval battle defeats the Greek fleet and expels the Greeks from Corsica, which is captured by the Etruscans. Greek colonization of the Western Mediterranean is suspended. |
| 525 | The Etruscans unsuccessfully attack the Greek city of Kuma (southern Italy). |
| 525 | The Etruscans found settlements in Campania (southern Italy). |
| 510 | The Romans expel Tarquinius II the Proud, the last Etruscan king of Rome. |
| 504 | The Etruscans are defeated at the Battle of Aricia (southern Italy). |
| 423 | Samnites seize the city of Capua from the Etruscans in Campania. |
| 405-396 | The Romans capture Veii after a 10-year war. |
| 400 | Gauls (Celtic tribe) cross, invade northern Italy and settle in the valley of the river. By. The power of the Etruscans over the region is weakening. |
| 296-295 | After a series of defeats, the Etruscan cities make peace with Rome. |
| 285-280 | The Romans suppress a series of uprisings in the Etruscan cities. |
Now you know who the Etruscans are, and why historians are so interested in their ancient civilization.
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The history of mankind of the last millennia knows numerous evidences of the great migrations of peoples from one area of the Earth to others due to a sharp deterioration in natural and climatic conditions... As a result, many peoples left the beautiful lands where their ancestors had settled for many centuries and millennia. On these lands, they had to leave (at the mercy of natural elements) their cities and villages, palaces, majestic religious buildings, cultural monuments, ground and underground structures, necropolises, etc. The peoples migrated, taking with them only the most necessary things, suddenly finding themselves as nomadic refugees. The resettlement went to the free lands of good neighbors, at the same time a search was carried out for more free territories in the distant parts of the Earth.
It is known that many migrating peoples were the heirs of great civilizations. The question involuntarily arises: what did they leave of material creations on the lands they left? I would like to know where and what their cities and culture were. It is characteristic that large peoples moved from place to place at the head of their administrative and spiritual leaders (kings, princes, priests, heroes). This order has been maintained for almost all millennia. Such a reliable system of self-organization with a concern for the unity of society has passed the test of strength through many millennia, making it possible to preserve the long historical existence of peoples as an ethnos. Not many peoples of our time can be proud of the preserved spiritual and administrative self-government.
Great migrations of peoples occur almost every millennium. Their occurrence is relevant and possible in the coming decades. If earlier learned priests predicted the signs of imminent impending resettlement from their habitable places, now this can be done on the basis of the richest factual scientific and historical material.
It is known from history that many peoples came to Europe from the East: Etruscans, Celts, Scythians, Aryans, Huns, Hungarians ... They brought their original culture, traditions to new lands, creating new cities, states, civilization.
The most global reasons that forced people to leave their inhabited lands were: firstly, the sinking of islands and coastal land under the water in some places (with their complete loss) and the rise of new islands and land from the water in other places with the formation of free territories. It is known that the waters of the seas and oceans have absorbed large and small islands of legendary lands: Atlantis, Lemuria, Arctida, Hyperborea ... The process of lowering and raising of lands in different places is observed in our time. The second reason for resettlement in our Northern Hemisphere of the Earth (as well as in the Southern) is the constant movement across the globe of the North Geographic Pole (SGP), and with it "permafrost" and glaciation. It is known from history that permafrost and glaciation were where it is now warm (Africa, Europe ...), but today it is cold in places where it was warm (Greenland, the north of our country and its northern islands ...). The location of the geographic North Pole is to some extent related to the location of glaciated and permafrost zones. About 11.6 thousand years ago, the SCT was located in the northwest of Canada near the border with Alaska with a small area of "permafrost" and glaciation. But after the death and sinking of the island of Atlantis, the SCT began to move towards its present position, either approaching Alaska and Chukotka, then moving away, making zigzags to the sides (see the map-diagram).
The process of migration of peoples can be traced to the example of the distant ancestors of the Krivichi (Prakrivichi), who in the X millennium BC. occupied the territory north of Pevek (Chukotka) for many hundreds of kilometers. But the gradual departure of coastal lands under water forced them to move southward to the level of Wrangel Island and Bear Islands, and then even further south. In the VII millennium BC. they were located around the Anadyr plateau (from the coast of the Chukchi Sea to the Kolyma plateau).
In the IV millennium BC. in the north-west of Alaska, a powerful focus (center) of spreading permafrost and glaciation began to operate, spreading its influence to Chukotka. This forced the Prakrivichs 6 thousand years ago to leave their lands and go westward to the banks of the Lena River, and then to the Yenisei and the Urals. The formation of new foci of cold formation on Wrangel Island, the New Siberian Islands, etc. allowed the permafrost and partly glaciation to spread from Chukotka to Yamal, and southward to Aldan, Vilyuy, Podkamennaya Tunguska ... in the western and southern directions. Northern Europe and Scandinavia, recently freed from ice and "permafrost", had free, uninhabited territories.
The Prakrivichi in the middle of the 3rd millennium BC, being in the Polar Urals, were divided into two groups. One group went to the Mezen River, and then through the Pskov lands, to the Baltic states on the Rhine, the coast of the North Sea. This group arrived here about three thousand years ago. The second group went south, west of the Urals to the source of the Kama, and further along the Kama, Oka, through the Zhitomir region, Thuringia, about 4 thousand years ago (the first) came out to the Rhine region - the coast of the North Sea. About 2.5 thousand years ago, after the unification of this people with the formation of statehood (principalities), a significant part of the northern group of people again went eastward through Dresden, the region of Warsaw, Vilnius, Smolensk region, Bryansk region, Muscovy to the Vyatka lands. Here, in the middle of the 2nd millennium AD. their independence was interrupted (but their priests left for the East). Grozny, the church, and others contributed to their oblivion.
The routes of resettlement of the ancestors of the legendary Etruscans, traversed by them for many millennia, are interesting. Let us call them "praetrusks". 12-13.5 thousand years ago, they lived in the northeast of Greenland. It was warm there during that period.
But by the X millennium BC. the boundaries of permafrost and ice around the pole began to expand significantly with the emergence of new cold centers, and the SCS itself began to actively move towards Greenland. Under the onslaught of cold in the X millennium BC. the ancestors were forced to move to the area of Svalbard and Scandinavia. At that time, this territory was part of one of the 15 confederations of the empire of Atlantis with the capital in the north of Scandinavia, the remnants of which are now on the shelf of Norway. In search of more free lands, the praetruscans, by the time of the death of the island of Atlantis, moved beyond the Urals to the North Sosvenskaya Upland. What followed after the death of Fr. Atlantis, the glaciation of Scandinavia and Northern Europe caused waves of migrations of peoples from these places in the eastern and southern directions (this period of migrations still remains a blank spot in human history). About 8 thousand years ago, the Praetruscans moved beyond the Yenisei at Podkamennaya Tunguska, later they were in the Baikal region (near Bodaibo, Nerchinsk), in the north of the Big Khingan (Manchuria). By the 4th millennium BC. they came to the land between the Sea of Okhotsk and the Aldan River. In relation to Greenland, these lands are located on the other side of the present position of the North Pole. At Aldan, the people lived quietly for about six hundred years. The "eternal" permafrost and glaciation that covered Chukotka reached Aldan 5.4 thousand years ago. This forced the praetruscans (and a number of other peoples) to leave in the western direction. Driven by the spreading cold zones, the Praetruscans found themselves in the Southern Urals about 5 thousand years ago. Here the people were divided (like the Prakrivichi) into two groups. One group went southward, circling the Caspian from the east, reaching the southern coast of the Black Sea and the west of the Middle East (Turkey) by the end of the 2nd millennium BC. The second group passed in a westerly direction at the large bends of the Volga and Don, through the Zaporozhye steppes, the Carpathians, to the Etruria region (Italy). In the Dnieper region, part of the people separated from the second group and went along the north-western coast of the Black Sea to the territory of Bulgaria, Greece to the Sea of Marmara with the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits. Practically, the Etruscans were on the southern and northern shores of the Sea of Marmara. From the Etruria region, a mobile expedition left in the western direction to search for new lands, which, passing Spain, crossed to the northern coast of Africa and passed along it to the places of Carthage and Tripoli (the capital of modern Libya). There they created strong points. Somewhere in the first centuries of the new era and later, a significant part of the Etruscans moved from the Apennine peninsula to the Balkans, the northern Black Sea region and the Dnieper, as well as to the region of Hungary and the Baltic States (up to Lithuania).
In the process of resettlement, the ancestors of the Krivichi, Etruscans and other peoples partially settled on the lands of other peoples for one reason or another. Some groups of Krivichi settled: near the Ob (along the Nadym and Pur rivers), on the Mezen River, south of Lake Pskov, on the Belarus-Poland-Lithuania border, in the Carpathian region. The ancestors of the Etruscans remained to live: in the South Urals, west of the Dnieper, in the east of the Balkans and in Asia Minor (in the west of Turkey). For the most part, the descendants of these glorious peoples now live in the European part of the continent.
The process of moving the North Geographic Pole across the globe continues so far at a slower pace, but to the side of it, new hotbeds of cold are forming. The regularity of the movement of the SCT indicates its zigzag direction towards the cold pole (to the region of Verkhoyansk). How many decades or centuries this will happen will be shown by further studies and real manifestations of the climate. A change in the position of the North Pole is synchronously associated with a change in the position of the South Pole. In the glaciated zone, new lands may appear and at the same time vast areas in other places may be freed from ice.
The study this process in nature, it is necessary to pay due attention so as not to be caught by surprise. This issue concerns many countries of the world, and it should be resolved jointly, including within the framework of the UN.
"Unannounced Visit", No. 4 (18), 1996
(1494-1559)
The reasoning behind the migration version
The works of Herodotus, which appeared in the 5th century BC, speak in favor of the second theory. NS. As Herodotus argued, the Etruscans are immigrants from Lydia, a region in Asia Minor, - Tyrrhenians or Tyrsens, forced to leave their homeland due to a catastrophic crop failure and hunger. According to Herodotus, this happened almost simultaneously with the Trojan War. Gellanicus from the island of Lesbos mentioned the legend of the Pelasgians who arrived in Italy and became known as Tyrrhenians. At that time, the Mycenaean civilization collapsed and the Hittite empire fell, that is, the appearance of the Tyrrhenians should be dated to the 13th century BC. NS. or a little later. Perhaps this legend is associated with the myth of the flight to the west of the Trojan hero Aeneas and the founding of the Roman state, which was of great importance for the Etruscans. The hypothesis of Herodotus is confirmed by the data of genetic analysis, which confirm the relationship of the Etruscans with the inhabitants of the lands currently belonging to Turkey.
Until the middle of the XX century. The "Lydian version" was subjected to serious criticism, especially after the deciphering of the Lydian inscriptions - their language had nothing to do with Etruscan. However, there is also a version that the Etruscans should not be identified with the Lydians, but with the more ancient, pre-Indo-European population of the west of Asia Minor, known as the “proto-Luvians”. With the Etruscans of this early period, A. Erman identified the legendary Tursha tribe, who lived in the eastern Mediterranean and made invasive raids on Egypt (XIII-VII centuries BC).
Argumentation of the complex version
Based on the material of ancient sources and archeological data, it can be concluded that the Etruscans took part in the ethnogenesis of oldest elements prehistoric Mediterranean unity during the period of the beginning of the movement from East to West in the IV-III millennium BC. NS.; also a wave of immigrants from the Black and Caspian Seas in the II millennium BC. NS. In the process of the formation of the Etruscan community, traces of the Aegean and Aegean-Anatolian emigrants were found. In confirmation of this, the results of excavations on about. Lemnos (Aegean Sea), where inscriptions similar to the grammatical structure of the Etruscan language were found.
Geographical position
It is not yet possible to determine the exact limits of Etruria. The history and culture of the Etruscans began in the Tyrrhenian Sea region and is limited by the basin of the Tiber and Arno rivers. The river network of the country also included the rivers Aventia, Vesidia, Tsetsina, Aluza, Umbro, Oza, Albinia, Armenta, Marta, Minio, Aro. The wide river network created conditions for developed agriculture, in a number of places complicated by swampy areas. Southern Etruria, whose soils were often of volcanic origin, had vast lakes: Tsiminskoe, Alsietiskoe, Statonenskoe, Volsinskoe, Sabatinskoe, Trasimenskoe. More than half of the country's territory was occupied by mountains and hills. From the paintings and reliefs one can judge the diversity of the flora and fauna of the region. The Etruscans cultivated cypress, myrtle, and the pomegranate tree brought to Italy from Carthage (the image of the pomegranate is found on Etruscan objects in the 6th century BC).
Cities and necropolises
Each of the Etruscan cities controlled a specific territory. The exact number of inhabitants of the Etruscan city-states is unknown; according to rough estimates, the population of Cerveteri during its heyday was 25 thousand people.
Cerveteri was the southernmost city of Etruria, it controlled the deposits of metal-bearing ore, which ensured the city's well-being. The settlement was located near the coast on a steep ledge. The necropolis was traditionally located outside the city. A road led to it, along which funeral carts were transported. There were tombs on both sides of the road. The bodies rested on benches, niches or terracotta sarcophagi. The personal belongings of the deceased were placed with them.
From the name of this city (etr. - Cere) later came the Roman word "ceremony" - as the Romans called some funeral rites.
The neighboring town of Veii was well-defended. The city and its acropolis were surrounded by moats that made Veii almost impregnable. The altar, the foundation of the temple and water tanks were found here. Vulka is the only Etruscan sculptor whose name we know was a native of Wei. The area around the city is notable for the passages carved into the rock, which served to drain water.
The recognized center of Etruria was the city of Tarquinia. The name of the city comes from the son or brother of Tyrren Tarkon, who founded twelve Etruscan city-states. The necropolises of Tarquinia were concentrated near the hills of Colle de Civita and Monterozzi. The tombs carved into the rock were protected by mounds, the chambers were painted for two hundred years. It was here that magnificent sarcophagi were discovered, decorated with bas-reliefs with images of the deceased on the lid.
When laying the city, the Etruscans observed rituals similar to the Roman ones. An ideal place was chosen, a hole was dug into which sacrifices were thrown. From this place, the founder of the city, with a plow drawn by a cow and a bull, drew a furrow that determined the position of the city walls. Where possible, the Etruscans used lattice street layouts, orienting them to the cardinal points.
History
The formation, development and disintegration of the Etruscan state took place against the background of three periods Ancient Greece- orientalizing or geometric, classical (Hellenistic), as well as the elevation of Rome. The earlier stages are given in accordance with the autochthonous theory of the origin of the Etruscans.
Proto-Villanovian period
The most important of historical sources, which marked the beginning of the Etruscan civilization, is the Etruscan chronology of saecula (centuries). According to him, the first century ancient state, saeculum, began around the 11th or 10th century BC. NS. This time belongs to the so-called Proto-Villanovian period (XII-X centuries BC). Data on the Proto-Villanovians is extremely sparse. The only important evidence of the beginning of a new civilization is the change in the funeral rite, which began to be performed by cremating the body on a funeral pyre, followed by burying the ashes in urns.
Villanov I and Villanov II periods
After losing independence, Etruria retained its cultural identity for some time. In the II-I centuries BC. NS. local art continued to exist; this period is also called Etruscan-Roman. But gradually the Etruscans adopted the way of life of the Romans. In 89 BC. NS. the inhabitants of Etruria received Roman citizenship. By this time, the process of romanization of Etruscan cities was practically completed, along with the Etruscan history proper.
Art and culture
The first monuments of Etruscan culture date back to the late 9th - early 8th centuries. BC NS. The cycle of development of the Etruscan civilization ends by the II century. BC NS. Rome was under her influence until the 1st century. BC NS.
The Etruscans long preserved the archaic cults of the first Italic settlers and showed a particular interest in death and the afterlife. Therefore, Etruscan art was significantly associated with the decoration of tombs, and proceeding from the concept that objects in them should remain in touch with real life... The most notable of the surviving monuments are the sculpture and sarcophagi.
Etruscan language and literature
A special category was made up of items of women's toilet. One of the most famous products of Etruscan craftsmen were bronze hand-held mirrors. Some are equipped with folding drawers and are decorated with high reliefs. One surface was carefully polished, the other was decorated with engraving or high relief. Shears were made of bronze - spatulas for cleaning off oil and dirt, cysts, nail files, chests.
The Etruscans all wore short hair, with the exception of the priests - the haruspics [ ]. The priests did not cut their hair, but removed it from their foreheads with a narrow headband, gold or silver hoop [ ]. In more ancient period the Etruscans cut their beards short, but later they began to shave them clean [ ]. Women let their hair down over their shoulders or braided them in braids and covered their heads with a cap.
Leisure
The Etruscans loved to participate in combat competitions and, possibly, in helping other people with the housework [ ]. Also, the Etruscans had a theater, but it was not as widespread as, for example, the Attic theater, and the found manuscripts of the plays are not enough for a final analysis.
Economy
Crafts and agriculture
The basis of Etruria's prosperity was agriculture, which made it possible to maintain livestock and export surplus wheat to Largest cities Italy. The archaeological material contains spelled, oat and barley grains. High level Agriculture of the Etruscans made it possible to engage in selection - the Etruscan variety of spelled was obtained, for the first time they began to cultivate cultivated oats. Linen went to sewing tunics and raincoats, ship sails. This material was used to record various texts (later this achievement was borrowed by the Romans). There is evidence from antiquities about the strength of linen thread, from which Etruscan artisans made shells (tomb of the 6th century BC, Tarquinia). Quite widely, the Etruscans used artificial irrigation, drainage, regulation of river flows. Ancient canals known to archaeological science were located near the Etruscan cities of Spina, Veii, in the Koda region.
In the bowels of the Apennines, there were copper, zinc, silver, iron, on the island of Ilva (Elba) iron ore reserves - everything was developed by the Etruscans. The presence of numerous metal products in the tombs of the 8th century. BC NS. in Etruria it is associated with an adequate level of mining and metallurgy. Remnants of mining are widely found near ancient Populonia (Campiglia Marittima region). The analysis makes it possible to establish that the smelting of copper and bronze preceded iron processing. There are finds of copper inlaid with iron miniature squares - a technique used when working with expensive materials. In the VII century. BC NS. iron was still a rare metal to work with. Nevertheless, metalworking in cities and colonial centers has been identified: in Capua and Nola, the production of metal dishes was developed, in the Minturny, Venafra, Suessa an assortment of items of blacksmith's craft was found. Metalworking workshops are noted in Marzabotto. At that time, the mining and processing of copper and iron was significant in scale of application. In this area, the Etruscans have succeeded in building mines for the manual extraction of ore.
Etruscan houses are sparsely furnished by modern standards. As a rule, the Etruscans did not use shelves and cabinets, things and provisions were stored in caskets, baskets or hung on hooks.
Luxury goods and jewelry
For centuries, Etruscan aristocrats wore jewelry and luxury items made from glass, earthenware, amber, ivory, precious stones, gold and silver. Villanovians in the 7th century BC NS. wore glass beads, precious metal jewelry and earthenware pendants from the Eastern Mediterranean. The most important local products were brooches, made of bronze, gold, silver and iron. The latter were considered rare.
The exceptional wealth of Etruria in the 7th century BC NS. caused the rapid development of jewelry and an influx of imported products. Silver bowls were imported from Phenicia, images on them were copied by Etruscan masters. Caskets and cups were made from ivory imported from the East. Most of the jewelry was produced in Etruria. Goldsmiths used engraving, filigree and grain. In addition to brooches, pins, buckles, hair bands, earrings, rings, necklaces, bracelets, and clothing plates were widespread.
During the archaic period, decorations became more elaborate. Earrings in the form of tiny pouches and disc-shaped earrings came into vogue. Used semi-precious stones and colored glass. During this period, beautiful gems appeared. Hollow pendants or bulla often played the role of amulets and were worn by children and adults. Etruscan women of the Hellenistic period preferred Greek-style jewelry. In the II century BC. NS. they wore a tiara on their heads, small earrings with pendants in their ears, clasps in the form of discs on their shoulders, bracelets and rings adorned their hands.
An ancient mysterious people who once lived on the Apennine Peninsula, on the territory of modern Italy. Etruria is a region of Tuscany located between the Tiber and Arno rivers. The self-designation of the Etruscans - "rassenna" was preserved in the name of the mountain range near Arezzo (ancient Arezzium) in Tuscany. The Greeks knew the Etruscans under the name Tyrrhenian or Tirsen, and it is preserved in the name of the Tyrrhenian Sea.
The mysteriousness of the Etruscan people manifests itself in almost everything.
Their language is unknown, their writing has not been deciphered, their origins and ethnicity are not clear. Surprisingly little has been written about this people, as if the Etruscans lived some kind of closed life and practically did not come into contact with their neighbors. The point, apparently, is that the way of life and worldview of the Etruscans was perceived by most of the peoples of the Mediterranean as something exceptional. Their way of life, manners and customs seemed so incomprehensible and contradictory to their contemporaries that along with admiration they caused acute rejection and even hatred. "
In September 2013, archaeologists announced a stunning discovery - in the Italian region of Tuscany, they managed to find a completely sealed tomb carved into the rock.
The intact tomb contained what looked like the body of an Etruscan prince armed with a spear. He was buried in the crypt along with his wife's ashes. European media reported on the opening of the tomb of the 2600-year-old warrior prince. But it turned out that the crypt contains another surprise. An analysis of the bones showed that the warrior prince was in fact a warrior princess.
Historians still know relatively little about Etruscan culture that flourished in what is now northeastern Italy and was swallowed up by Roman civilization around 400 BC. Unlike their contemporaries - the ancient Greeks and Romans - the Etruscans left almost no historical documents that modern European science could unambiguously interpret.
Authors of Greek and Roman written sources most often either write about the Etruscans with condemnation, or simply keep silent about them. But the Etruscans created an original civilization, amazing masterpieces of art, ecological and economic-social systems. They brought grapes and olives to Italy, founded Rome itself and ruled it for a hundred and fifty years, but disappeared as a people from the face of the planet as if overnight, taking their secrets with them. The most interesting thing is that they predicted their disappearance several centuries later.
“Etruscan is not readable,” they said in ancient Rome, and this point of view is still held in the west, although quite interesting attempts have been made in Russia to decipher the Etruscan inscriptions. Currently, there is no generally accepted point of view on the language of the Etruscans, their graves are a unique opportunity to look into the past and get acquainted with their culture.
Read also: Etruscan underground pyramids
New tombs discovered by archaeologists in Tuscany have been found in the Etruscan necropolises of Tarquinia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where there are over 6,000 crypts carved into the rock.
"In an underground chamber dating back to the early sixth century BC, there are two burial beds carved into the rock," said Alessandro Mandolesi, an archaeologist at the University of Turin who excavated the crypt.
When the archaeological team removed the crypt-sealing slab, we saw two large platforms. On one platform lay a skeleton with a spear next to it. On another platform lay partially burned parts of a skeleton. In addition, several jewelry and a bronze box were found, which may have belonged to a woman.
Initially, it was thought that the spear would offer a skeleton lying on a larger platform - a male warrior, possibly an Etruscan prince. And the jewelry, most likely, belonged to the wife of a warrior-prince, whose ashes rested nearby. But the analysis of the bones showed that the prince holding the spear was in fact a woman between 35 and 40 years old, while the ashes in the urn belonged to a man.
But why would a woman need a spear? As a scholar of the Western school, Alessandro Mandolesi suggested that it was most likely placed there as a symbol of the union of the two deceased. But his colleagues expressed a different opinion, it is possible that the spear shows the high status of a woman.
In this case, it is possible that the perception of the Etruscan culture was distorted by the images of the ancient Greeks and Romans. While Greek women were actually locked in their homes, Etruscan women, according to the testimony of ancient historians, were more independent and led a rather free lifestyle. So historians, as often happens, rushed to conclusions, declaring the Etruscan princess - a prince only on the basis of their ideas about which sex is more natural to use certain objects.
By the way, if Italian archaeologists would have been more attentive in studying the ancient history and culture of our fellow countrymen - the Sarmatians, then a woman with a spear would not have caused them so much surprise. And, perhaps, this is another argument confirming the closeness or even commonality of the cultures of our ancestors. It is possible that someday the world will learn how to read correctly in Sarmatian, excuse me, in Etruscan.
Who are the Etruscans? What did they believe in, what did they live in?
Read an interesting book: A.E. Nagovitsyn Etruscan mythology and religion
, in which the author tries to understand and trace what the ancient Slavs had in common with the Etruscans, and how they differed, and are the Etruscans and Russians really close relatives:
“We will try to show that many similar mythological, religious and ideological representations of the Slavs and Etruscans are not borrowing or heritage, but general views having one root extending into the depths ancient history peoples of the Mediterranean region. In our opinion, the ancient peoples inhabiting the Mediterranean were the ancestors of both the Etruscans and the modern Russian people. "