Civitavecchia (Rome)

Tarquinia,

Italy

Sunday April 2, 2017

Sunday, April 2, Civitavecchia, Etruscan Ruins in Tarquinia

We arrived on time and moored in Civitavecchia, the port city serving Rome. Don’t worry, it is pronounced just like it is spelled. We had been to Rome before and been so put off by the traffic, that we opted to stay in the nearby countryside to avoid all of that. It was a good decision. Turns out, even though it was Sunday and traffic would normally be somewhat diminished, on this Sunday the Rome Marathon was being run and the inner city was paralyzed. People who attempted to go on tours there demanded their money back, folks trying to get the ship and join the cruise were stuck at their hotels for over 4 hours, some thought the train and a hop-on, hop-off bus would be the solution, but these busses were idle until 2:00 pm, about the time you would have to start back to the ship. In short, those who headed to Rome got to see little more than angry people stuck with them in their bus. We were so happy with our decision- plus we had a wonderful day, despite the downpour of rain that greeted us as we left the ship.

This was our first day of serious rain, but it stopped by late morning and so it really did not affect us, and it gave the ship a great wash- down. Our drive was to the town of Tarquinia which was founded in the 7th century BC and is now known because of a magnificent Etruscan burial ground. Those tombs date from the 6th to the 1st century BC and are further demonstration of just how advanced the Etruscans were. We visited the Palazzo Vitelleschi, which was a private home, but is now a museum. When you realize that the Etrus- cans predated the Romans; some say the Romans evolved from the Etruscans, and see the precision, delicacy and preservation of their artifacts – you have to be amazed. We were looking at almost perfectly preserved items that were about 2500 years old – some looked like they were less than 10 years old.

Yes that is rain you see in the courtyard of the Palazzo. The cistern in the center would certainly be doing its job today.

Just other views of the Palazzo

These coins look like they were minted yesterday.

Most of these are from about 640 BC

The state of preservation and the persistence of the artwork, some with colors, is just amazing. This set of horses is considered to be one of the finest examples of Etruscan sculpturing. It may not show in the picture, but the horse on the left is a shade of tan, slightly darker than the horse in front. That was done to provide a 3D effect, not to depict horses of different colors.

Then we took a break for lunch at the Mandoleto Farm. By this time the rain had stopped and we were treated to cheeses, hams, wines, breads and vegetables by the farmer’s daughter; I am not kidding. This farm is also part vineyard and winery owned by the par- ents and the daughter is the marketing arm of their operation. After the wine flowed at lunch we were able to buy wine there and bring it back to the ship and consume it in the dining room without paying a corkage fee. Very pleasant experience. We then departed the farm to head for the Etruscan burial grounds.

These were the markers for the graves of the lower class Etruscans. They were buried in vertical tubes, with their worldly possessions placed in a small hole beneath the body. In the background are the entrances to the under- ground burial tombs for the more noble. Again, these are some 2500 years old. Burial practices were well advanced. The more noble Etruscans were buried in elab- orate tombs 20 to 30 feet underground. Within these tomb structures, stone coffins, such as those shown in the bottom picture with our guide, were used. Again, just the state of preservation is a real marvel. About 60 of these subterranean tombs have been excavated and the process continues. With a final look at the Palazzo, we headed back to the ship. But even that short ride gave us time to reflect on what we had seen. To be looking at very recognizable items that were 2500 years old does beg the question of what historians and archeologists will be look- ing at remaining from our “civilization” in the year 5500 AD. We don’t build forts any more, maybe they will find a Minuteman silo. Our churches are brick and mortar and hardly made of 4 foot thick stone. Some of our government buildings are pretty sturdy and hopeful- ly there will more to walk around and ponder than the outline of the Pentagon. Will they be amazed to find the carcass of a Tesla, or perhaps the remnants of the space shuttle? Maybe they will have a maritime museum featuring the hull of a supertanker that kids can sleep over on with classmates. They might unearth a Boeing 737 or find a burial ground for thousands of smartphones. Or mayibe they might find evidence of a call center in India or the remains of the computers that constitute the cloud. Meticulous digging might bring them an integrated circuit embedded on a silicon chip containing one of my text messages to our grandchildren. Hopefully, they will find books, music, poems, artwork and evidence of medical, social and humanity advances.

Today has been a real mind stretcher. The ship departed on time for the short overnight run down to Naples.