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The Social Significance of Communal Dining in Etruscan Italy from the seventh to the fourth century BC: an Iconographical Approach by Sabine Geißler Thesis submitted for the degree of Master of Philosophy University of Edinburgh, School of History, Classics and Archaeology 2012 VOLUME I TEXT i The Social Significance of Communal Dining in Etruscan Italy from the seventh to the fourth century BC: an Iconographical Approach Abstract Imagery relating to communal dining or banqueting in ancient Etruria is relatively abundant and provides a useful source of potential information about the workings of Etruscan society, not least because of the semantic value of banquet scenes. The conduct of eating and drinking in company generally reflects patterns of social behavior, governed by local traditions, rules, ritual, beliefs and ideology embedded in society. In addition, banqueting or feasting may be closely interwoven with other social events, while rules of inclusion or exclusion may well come into play, thereby helping to reinforce or create social hierarchies. The depiction of a convivial scene alluding to experiences of communal dining is automatically a reference to these concepts, irrespective of whether an image represents a specific event or not. This thesis examines the iconography of banqueting in Etruscan Italy from the seventh to the fourth centuries BC. The analysis takes into account all types of Etruscan artefacts with banquet iconography. These include tomb paintings, scenes on vessels, mirrors or plaques once attached to buildings, grave stelae, sarcophagi and urns as well as sculptural representations made of ivory or bronze. The scenes are examined by considering a variety of visual elements that help to constitute a banquet. Theoretical perspectives and the defining elements of banquets are discussed in Part I. The latter are essential to the study because they were chosen to be included in representations and were evidently deemed important by the Etruscans themselves. By approaching the social practice of sharing food and drink through a systematic formal analysis of local iconography, many interesting questions, such as specific seating arrangements according to age and gender, can be explored. The ultimate aim of this thesis is to help us understand what constituted an Etruscan banquet from a study of its component parts, and what can be learned from banquet representations about the make-up and workings of Etruscan society. ii Declaration: I confirm that this thesis is entirely of my own composition and represents my own original research. Signed: Sabine Geißler January 2012 iii Acknowledgements This research was initiated by Mr. D. Ridgway's lectures on Villanovan and Etruscan Italy which I attended as a first year student at Edinburgh University in 2002-03. My subsequent studies on the Ancient Mediterranean civilizations always made the Etruscans stand out as a society most interesting and different from their neighbours in time and space, and my passion for this particular society was always alert and active. I would like to thank Dr Katherina Kolotourou for her continuous and encouraging support throughout my studies and to our friendship lasting many seasons in the field of excavation. I would like to express my gratitude to Dr Fiona Sarah Jane Brown for her tireless and patient guidance and our discussions in manifold practical and theoretical aspects of Italian archaeology. With the help of Dr David Renshaw, the thesis was seen through to its conclusion, and I every so grateful for his patience. Warmest thanks are due to my partner John Humphries, and to my parents Fritz and Roswitha Geißler, and to my grandparents Adolf and Gertrude Wenk. I would also like to thank my friends and in particular Grace Campbell, Kirsty Calderon, Joe and Sharon Finney, Josephine Geddes, Magdalena and Grzegorz Mierzejewska, Sharon Moir and Marie Ramagge who always supported me with many banquets filled with food and drink and friendship. v CONTENTS Volume I (Text) ABSTRACT i DECLARATION ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii CONTENTS PAGE v ABBREVIATIONS vii LIST OF FIGURES viii PART ONE: INTRODUCTION AND METHODOLOGY 1. Introduction 1 1.1. Aim of the present study 1 1.2. Previous research on the iconography of Etruscan banqueting 3 1.3. Defining banqueting - sources of contemporary and archaeological evidence. What constitutes a feast, a banquet, a commensal event, conviviality and all other food sharing occasions? 6 1.3.1. Artistic-iconographical representations 15 1.3.2. Architectural evidence 15 1.3.3. Banqueting equipment 16 1.4. Structure of thesis 21 2. Methodology 23 2.1. Theoretical approaches to communal dining, research traditions, and theoretical schools of thought 23 2.2. The significance of research into conviviality to archaeology, anthropology, history and social science 25 2.3. Sampling strategy and chosen criteria for the assemblage of the database 26 2.3.1. Sampling strategy 26 2.3.2. Context and categorisation of banquet scenes 28 2.3.3. Chosen criteria for the analysis of the banquet scenes 29 2.3.4. Grouping of the criteria 31 2.4. General issues when describing and examining the banquet scenes 33 2.4.1. The use of paint to colour the banquet scenes 33 2.4.2. The size of the representations 33 2.4.3. Food and drink 34 2.4.4. Arrangement of furniture 37 2.4.5. Domestic-residential and funerary contexts combined 37 PART TWO: THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES ON THE SOCIAL SIGNIFICANCE OF COMMUNAL DINING: 3. From Structuralism to sacrificial use of food 40 3.1. Theoretical perspectives 40 3.1.1. Symbolism of food and food sharing as discussed in Structuralist and Post-structuralist research 40 3.1.2. The systems of socio-cultural rules for communal meals and feasts 45 3.1.3. The ritual of dinner and the sacrificial use of food 47 3.2. Historical Overview - Food in the Greek and Roman world from the eighth century BC to the first century AD, from necessity to symbolism 49 3.2.1. Material evidence for the upper stratum of society 50 3.2.2. Literary evidence for the upper stratum of society 51 3.2.3. Socio-cultural aspects of communal dining in Greek and Roman society 54 3.2.4. Material evidence for the diet of the lower stratum of society 56 3.2.5. The staple food of cereals in the Greek and Roman world 57 3.2.6. Sacrificial use of food in the Greek and Roman world and its social implications 58 PART THREE: ETRUSCAN BANQUET ICONOGRAPHY 4. The value of banquet representations for the purpose of gaining knowledge of Etruscan Society 61 4.1. The importance of research into conviviality in Etruscan-specific context 61 4.2. The reasons for choosing exclusivity for Etruscan-indigenous iconography 63 4.2.1. Banquet scenes from funerary context 64 4.2.1.1. Burial evidence 69 4.2.1.2. Intoxicated banquet participants 70 4.2.2. Banquet scenes from domestic-residential contexts 71 4.3. Textual records from Greek and Roman times 72 4.3.1. Etruscan communal eating habits as perceived by ancient writers 74 5. The analysis of the Etruscan banquet scenes 77 5.1. Reclining versus seated arrangements, and the significance of furnishings 77 5.1.1. Revetment plaques from domestic-residential buildings 77 5.1.2. Small finds on pottery, bronze and ivory 87 5.1.3. Tarquinian tomb paintings 96 5.1.4. Tomb paintings from Cerveteri, Chiusi, Orvieto and Sarteano 110 5.1.5. Funerary monuments 115 5.2. Servants and their significance 121 5.2.1. Revetment plaques from domestic-residential buildings 121 5.2.2. Small finds on pottery, bronze and ivory 124 5.2.3. Tarquinian tomb paintings 127 5.2.4. Tomb paintings from Cerveteri, Chiusi, Orvieto and Sarteano 137 5.2.5. Funerary monuments 139 5.3. The significance of food and drink 145 5.3.1. Revetment plaques from domestic-residential buildings 145 5.3.2. Small finds on pottery, bronze and ivory 154 5.3.3. Tarquinian tomb paintings 161 5.3.4. Tomb paintings from Cerveteri, Chiusi, Orvieto and Sarteano 173 5.3.5. Funerary monuments 178 5.4. Social details 183 5.4.1. Revetment plaques from domestic-residential buildings 183 5.4.2. Small finds on pottery, bronze and ivory 195 5.4.3. Tarquinian tomb paintings 199 5.4.4. Tomb paintings from Cerveteri, Chiusi, Orvieto and Sarteano 213 5.4.5. Funerary monuments 218 5.5. Tangible extras 223 5.5.1. Revetment plaques from domestic-residential buildings 223 5.5.2. Small finds on pottery, bronze and ivory 225 5.5.3. Tarquinian tomb paintings 227 5.5.4. Tomb paintings from Cerveteri, Chiusi, Orvieto and Sarteano 231 5.5.5. Funerary monuments 232 6. Conclusions 234 7. Postscript 263 Volume II Appendices Appendix I: Catalogue and illustrations of the Etruscan banquet representations and the analysis according to the chosen criteria 271 Appendix II: Diagrams and Greek and Roman textual quotes 450 Appendix III: Bibliography 455 vii ABBREVIATIONS Cat.