Vittoriano
CYCLE: Frontiers of archaeology: comparing experiences
SPEAKER: Giuseppe Sassatelli
DATE: Tuesday, October 27, 6:00 PM
LOCATION: Bibliotheca Maior - Sala della Crociera
In the collective imagination, the Etruscans are those of Cerveteri, Tarquinia and Populonia: in other words, those who inhabited Etruria proper, the seventh Augustan region (Etruria), traditionally regarded as their homeland.
In fact, the Etruscans were also firmly established in the Po Valley (Etruria Padana) and Campania (Etruria Campana), where they founded permanent settlements. These two regions, often somewhat simplistically regarded as areas of secondary colonisation, are now emerging, thanks to new discoveries and research, as territories deeply connected to the historical and social developments of Etruria proper, as well as to its artistic and cultural traditions. These traditions were, in turn, closely intertwined with those of neighbouring peoples, including the Veneti and Celts to the north, and the Greeks of the colonies and the Italic peoples to the south.
Bologna (ancient Felsina), Marzabotto (ancient Kainua), Spina, Adria and Mantua in the Po Valley, together with Capua, Pontecagnano, Fratte and Pompeii in Campania, are increasingly being recognised as fully fledged Etruscan cities. Their standards of living and cultural development, political organisation and institutional structures were entirely comparable to those of the cities of Etruria proper.
These are the “frontier Etruscans”, spread across a vast territory extending from the River Po to the River Sele. Greek and Latin historical traditions already regarded them as an integral and equal part of the Etruscan world, stating that “almost all of Italy was under Etruscan rule”.
The latest archaeological discoveries and most recent studies have revealed the profound connections between these “frontier Etruscans” and Etruria proper, allowing us to write a new, more comprehensive history of this important civilisation of ancient Italy.
