Iconography of Beliefs About the Afterlife and Evidence for Funerary Practices in Etruscan Tarquinia Al

Footsteps of the Dead: Iconography of Beliefs about the Afterlife and Evidence for Funerary Practices in Etruscan Tarquinia Allison Jean Weir This thesis is submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree of PhD at the University of St Andrews 5 November 2012 Declarations 1. Candidate’s declarations: I, Allison Jean Weir, hereby certify that this thesis, which is approximately 80,000 words in length, has been written by me, that it is the record of work carried out by me and that it has not been submitted in any previous application for a higher degree. I was admitted as a research student in September 2008, and as a candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in September 2009; the higher study for which this is a record was carried out in the University of St Andrews between 2008 and 2012. DATE: _________________ SIGNATURE OF CANDIDATE: ___________________ 2. Supervisor’s declaration: I hereby certify that the candidate has fulfilled the conditions of the Resolution and Regulations appropriate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the University of St Andrews and that the candidate is qualified to submit this thesis in application for that degree. DATE: _________________ SIGNATURE OF SUPERVISOR: __________________ 3. Permission for electronic publication: In submitting this thesis to the University of St Andrews I understand that I am giving permission for it to be made available for use in accordance with the regulations of the University Library for the time being in force, subject to any copyright vested in the work not being affected thereby. I also understand that the title and the abstract will be published, and that a copy of the work may be made and supplied to any bona fide library or research worker, that my thesis will be electronically accessible for personal or research use unless exempt by award of an embargo as requested below, and that the library has the right to migrate my thesis into new electronic forms as required to ensure continued access to the thesis. I have obtained any third-party copyright permissions that may be required in order to allow such access and migration, or have requested the appropriate embargo below. The following is an agreed request by candidate and supervisor regarding the electronic publication of this thesis: Access to all of printed copy but embargo of all of electronic publication of thesis for a period of three years on the following ground: publication would preclude future publication. DATE: _________________ SIGNATURE OF CANDIDATE: ___________________ SIGNATURE OF SUPERVISOR: __________________ iii Abstract This thesis is a study of Etruscan attitudes to the afterlife, based on analysis of the funerary archaeology, architecture, and iconography of death from the ancient city of Tarquinia. The focus on one settlement allowed for a more precise reconstruction of funerary attitudes; it also avoided the pitfalls of approaching Etruscan civilisation as uniform and homogeneous across its varied city-states; and it made clear when particular beliefs about the afterlife changed or developed. After a general discussion of approaches to the subject in the published literature and of the specific conditions at the site of Tarquinia, it proceeds through a series of case studies chosen from each of the major periods of Etruscan civilisation from the Villanovan to the Hellenistic period. The analysis is based on published excavations and studies, supplemented by fieldwork conducted in Rome and at Tarquinia. The case studies were chosen based on the type of information that they can give about the way the underworld was imagined. No one tomb can be used to illustrate the entire set of beliefs and traditions that occurred at one time. Throughout the course of this study, I focus on the changes and developments of funerary traditions over the nine centuries of Etruscan civilisation at Tarquinia. The main finding to emerge from these studies relates to the long term stability of funerary practices at Tarquinia. As elsewhere in Etruria, there are changes in the scale and design of tombs and in the subjects and manner of their decoration. Yet it is difficult to identify any sudden discontinuities of practice. In a number of cases, it is argued that motifs that are well attested only in later periods can already be seen in the earlier material, while few themes introduced into the repertoire are ever completely lost. Rather, the same motifs are occasionally represented in different form from period to period. Whether the explanation is to be sought in the conservative influence of a small number of ruling families, or in the absence of social revolutions of the kind that characterised some Greek poleis, or in a conscious desire to preserve local, i.e. Tarquinian, traditions and styles, it seems that the history of Etruscan death is – in this case at least – not to be written in terms of dramatic changes so much as of gradual evolution and development. On this basis, a tentative account of the (local) Etruscan underworld is offered as it emerges from material drawn from all the periods studied. iv v Acknowledgements This thesis was written with the help, support, and inspiration of a great number of people. Whilst it would be impossible to name everyone, I would like to acknowledge a few contributions. I would like to begin by thanking the Guthrie Scholarship Fund, the Thomas and Margaret Rodden Trust, the Classical Association of Canada Bursary Fund, and the Weidemann Trust Fund, and, of course, the University of St Andrews for their generous financial support, without which I would not have been able to embark on my studies, conduct first hand research in Italy, and present my findings at conferences. In Rome, I am greatly indebted to Ms. Maria Pia Malvezzi and the staff at the British School at Rome for their help and support during my time there. In addition, I am also greatly indebted to the Soprintendenza Archeologica di Roma for access to closed tombs at Tarquinia, Sarteano, as well as museums in Orvieto and Rome. In addition, the School of Classics has provided the necessary facilities and resources, as well as the essential administrative support from Irene Paulton, Margaret Goudie, and Carol Wright. Turning to academic matters now, I owe much to the advice and support of my team of supervisors. Most especially, I am eternally grateful to my phenomenal supervisor Greg Woolf, who ceaselessly supported me in all aspects of my studies. I would also like to extend my gratitude to the rest of my team of primary supervisors, Rebecca Sweetman, and last, but never least, the incomparable Jon Coulston. Furthermore, thanks must be extended to my external supervisor Phil Perkins for a wealth of great suggestions and many interesting discussions over Italian wine after days of digging in the mud at Poggio Colla. Along similar lines, I would like to express my gratitude to my examiners, Robert Leighton and Christopher Smith, without whom I might never have discovered an interest in the Etruscans. I also owe thanks to the staff in Classics at the University of St Andrews, most especially, Emma-Jayne Graham for her invaluable assistance with many questions regarding the archaeology of death, as well as Felix Racine. Thanks must also be extended to Vedia Izzet. Special mention must also be made to my good friends Julietta Steinhauer and Elsbeth Hymes for their friendship, support, and advice. I cannot fail to mention three people in particular from my time as an undergraduate, Roland Jeffreys, Gregory MacIsaac, and last but not least, Josh Beer from the College of the Humanities at Carleton Univeristy. Without Josh vi Beers’ fascinating and sometimes theatrical Latin classes I never would have gone into Classics. Of course, this thesis would never have been possible without the support of my family. Firstly, I would like to thank my father, Bruce Weir, who not only has supported me throughout the course of my long journey as a student, but whose skills with computer photoshop programs was highly appreciated in creating the maps for this thesis. Similarly, I would like to thank my mother Cynthia, my sister Elizabeth, my mother-in-law Debbie, and my sister-in-law Heather and her husband Steve. And of course my nephews and niece for whom I am “the best at digging up dead people and dinosaurs.” And, last but not least, my most heartfelt thanks must be extended to my dearest husband Trevor, for listening ad nauseam to my comments about Etruscan funerary art and whose support and assistance was unceasing. I would like to take this opportunity to dedicate this thesis to the memory of three special individuals. First of all, my aunt Sophia Steadman, who fought for the day when women would be allowed to go to university, let alone undertake postgraduate studies, and always told me that I could be whatever I wanted. Secondly, my grandmother Barb Weir, who was one of the kindest people I have ever met. And, last but not least, my Annie Kuna, who always kept me company when I was working in Canada and ensured that I refreshed my mind and got some exercise by taking her for many walks a day. vii Table of Contents LIST OF FIGURES & TABLES ............................................................................................................ XI NOTE TO READER .................................................................................................................................. 1 CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................

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