APAH: Etruscan Art
Mysterious origins (~1,200 BC)
Ancient & contemporary historians
Emerge distinctly (~700 BC)
Controlled north/central Italy: Etruria
Tuscany
Natural resources – wealth
Sea-faring
Influenced by Greek colonization
Development of urban centers
City-states
Conquered by Romans
Lacked cohesion
Last city conquered 273 BC
Jewelry
Showed social/economic position
Imports of gold
Lions fibula – Orientalizing
Architecture – Temples and Tombs
Little known – Vitruvius: Roman authority on architecture
Used masonry arch – influenced Romans
Created atrium – central open hall
Portonaccio Temple of Minerva (c. 510-500 BC)
Veii, Italy
Similar to Greek Prostyle
Set on high base – podium
Single stairway entrance
Wooden post and lintel system
Ornate façade
Viewed from front
Not a sculptural mass like Greek temples
Large deep porch
Three cella interior
Open pediment
Roof statuary
No entablature (frieze / architrave)
Cemeteries (necropolises)
Richly decorated interiors
Joie de vive
Dance, feasts, music
Built outside city
Orderly arrangement
Tumulus – domed burial mound
Above/below ground
Most common
Rectangular interior
Aristocratic society
Elaborate funerary rituals
Dining and dancing – celebratory not somber
Burial with rich goods
Greek pottery
Showed social status – reinforced social hierarchy
Painting
Murals in tombs
Tomb of the Triclinium (c. 470 BC)
Lively, active, spirited
Musicians and dancing for entertainment
Banqueting
Funeral games – athletic competition
Bright colors
Elites recline on couches as couples
Gender still defined by skin color
Celebration of the transition to afterlife
Tomb of the Leopards
Woman of the Velcha Family
More serene
Contact with Hellenistic world
Sculpture
Cinerary urns
Disposal of ashes
Individuality of the deceased
Etruscan Couple Sarcophagus (c. 520 BC)
Loving couple
Greeks never show couples
Sharing banquet that continues after death
Specific individuals
Relaxed (compare to Menkare and Khamerernebty)
Terra cotta
Apollo of Veii (c. 510-500 BC)
Architectural temple sculpture
Ridgepole
Master sculptor Vulca
Greek archaic elements
Archaic smile
Etruscan elements
Lack of proportion and idealization
Strength, energy
Clay sculpting – quick, additive
Enacts scene from Greek mythology
Story of Heracles
Mars of Todi
Orator
Clear Greek influence (classical period)
Exaggerated Greek pose
Unbalanced
Odd liveliness