Animus Classics Journal, Volume 3, Issue 1

1.Smith,The
Etruscans:A
VeryShortIntroduction,1.
2.Izzet,The
Archaeology
ofEtruscan
Society,55.
3.Smith,1.
4.Smith,1.
LANDSCAPEPAINTINGS&PORTRAITUREOFTHE
‘MYSTERIOUS’ETRUSCANS1ANOTHERSTORYOF
ETRUSCANERASURE
2RinaRossi,Univ.OfCalifornia,Berkeley
D espitethelackofsurvivingwrittenrecords,theancient
Etruscans’ historical legacy can be marked by their
substantialcollectionofsarcophagiandwallpaintings,
fromtherecliningbanquetersdepictedontheTombofthe
Diverpainting,tothepaintedmulticoloredbirdsflyingabove
thewaterintheTomboftheHuntingandFishingfresco. 1 The
Etruscans were known to have created and embraced
intricately decorated sarcophagi, landscape paintings that
beautifullycapturedthebalancebetweennatureandman,
organizedelaboratebanquets,andledasocietythatallowed
womenformoresexualfreedom 2 .Despitebeingthefoundersof
thesenumerousinnovations,theEtruscans’achievementsare
oftencreditedtoGreeceandRome,andtheyarecontinuously
accused by Greco-Roman scholars of copying other
civilizations’ideas.Namely,theEtruscansstillhaveyettobe
creditedinmodernwesternMediterraneanscholarshipasthe
foundersoflandscapepaintinginancientItaly,aslandscape
paintings have long been attributed to the Romans.
Additionally, the Etruscans’ extensive portraiture and
distinctivefocusonemphasizingspecificphysicalattributesin
humanportraitureareovershadowedbyscholars’attributionof
portraitureasadistinctlyGreco-Romaninvention.Neglecting
torecognizetheEtruscansasthefirstproducersoflandscape
paintingsinancientItalycontributestothecontinuederasure
ofEtruscansbyGreco-Romanscholars.Similarly,attributing
portraitureasbeingdistinctlypartofGreco-Romanculture
largely erases the Etruscans’ revolutionary achievements in
portraiture.
TheEtruscanswereanancientgroupofpeoplefromancient
Italywholivedaround900–400B.C.E.Reigningasthe“most
innovative,powerful,wealthy,andcreativepeople”inancient
Italy,theyinhabitedtheplainsandhillsofcentralItalyandlived
inelaboratecities. 3 TheEtruscanempirestretchedfromthePo
ValleyintheNorthtoCampaniaintheSouth(seeFigure1) 4 ,and
16LANDSCAPEPAINTINGS
theytradedacrosstheMediterranean,spreadingtheirloveof
sport, wine, religion, music, technology, and art 5 .Yet, the
Etruscans’creativeinfluencehasbeenlargelyovershadowedby
the skepticism many Greek scholars have toward the
authenticity of Etruscan artistic achievements. One such
skepticoftheEtruscans’contributionstoancientarthistoryis
classicalarchaeologistJohnBoardman,whoarguedinhisbook
TheGreeksOverseas:TheirEarlyColoniesandTradethatEtruscan
art simply emerged out of their trade with the Greeks.
Additionally,BoardmancomparesEtruscanartwithGreekart
and asserts that the Etruscans lacked the creativity and
originalitythattheGreeksillustratedintheirwork.Claiming
thattheGreeksunderwentanextensiveprocesstouniquely
developtheirownculture,Boardmanpresentsthisclaimin
contrasttotheEtruscans,whohearguesoftencopiedorpaid
theGreekstoproducesomeoftheirartwork,statingthat
The Etruscans accepted all they were offered, without
discrimination.Theycopied—orpaidGreeksandperhaps
immigranteasternerstocopy—withlittleunderstandingof
theformsandsubjectswhichservedasmodels(200).
Boardman’s skepticism regarding the Etruscans’ artistic
innovationsisflawedbecausehefailstoaccuratelydescribethe
artisticrelationshipthattheEtruscansandGreekshad,oneof
sharingtheirownartistictechniquesthroughtrade,notof
mimicryorplagiarism.Inparticular,theArchaicandClassical
EtruscansworkedwithGreekartistswhocreatedpaintingsthat
werespecificallycateredtoanEtruscanmarket.Thus,the
EtruscansincorporatedelementsfromGreekmythologyand
combinedaspectsofGreekandEtruscanculturetocreate
funeraryandhistoricalsceneswithintheirpaintings. 6 Similarly,
the Etruscans also influenced the Greeks with their art,
particularly in their tomb and landscape paintings, often
displayingmorecreativityintheirartpiecesincomparisonto
the Greeks.This is most notably shown in the differences
betweenthelevelofcreativity,precision,andartisticdetailof
theEtruscanTomboftheHuntingandFishingpaintinganda
similarGreekpaintingcalledTomboftheDiveratPaestum. 7
LANDSCAPEPAINTINGS17
5.Smith,2.
6.Naso,Etruscology,947.
7.Hurwit,
“TheRepresentationof
Naturein
EarlyGreek
Art”,39.