Early Italian civilisation—Origin of Etruscans—Terramare civilisation—Villanuova period—Pit-tombs—Hut-urns—Trench-tombs—Relief-wares and painted vases from Cervetri—Chamber-tombs—Polledrara ware—Bucchero ware—Canopic jars—Imitations of Greek vases—Etruscan inscriptions—Sculpture in terracotta—Architectural decoration—Sarcophagi—Local pottery of Southern Italy—Messapian and Peucetian fabrics.
In the succeeding section of this work we propose, by a natural transition, to deal with Italian pottery, that is, Etruscan and Roman, as distinct from Greek. The subject naturally falls under three heads—the first two dealing with the pottery of the period previous to the Roman domination of Italy, and therefore contemporaneous with the Greek pottery; the third with Roman pottery from the second century B.C. onwards, and of necessity including also remains of similar pottery from Gaul, Britain, and other countries over which that civilisation extended.
In the present chapter the first two branches of the subject—namely, Etruscan pottery, and the local fabrics of Southern Italy—will be discussed; the period of time which they cover is, as has been said, coincident with that covered by the history of Greek pottery, extending from the Bronze Age down to the end of the third century B.C.
Helbig, Die Italiker in der Poebene; Ann. dell’ Inst. 1884, p. 108 ff., 1885, p. 5 ff.; Karo, Cenni sulla cronologia preclassica, Parma, 1898; Von Duhn in Bonner Studien, p. 21 ff., and in J.H.S. xvi. p. 125 ff.; Martha, L’Art Étrusque, passim; Dennis, Cities and Cemeteries of Etruria, 2nd edn. (good for topography; archaeology out of date); J.H.S. xiv. p. 206 ff. (C. Smith on Polledrara ware); Gsell, Fouilles de Vulci; Pottier, Cat. des vases ant. du Louvre, ii. p. 285 ff. (the best general survey); Notizie degli Scavi, passim, for excavations; Brit. Mus. Cat. of Bronzes, p. xliv ff.
As regards Etruria, it will be seen that the art of the people was largely imitative, being derived mainly from Greece, but in some measure also from the East. Few remains of their productions have reached the present day, with the exception of large numbers of vases, bronzes, and jewellery; these, however, afford a very clear notion of the characteristics of Etruscan art. It is hardly possible to treat the subject of working in clay in Etruria with such fulness as can be done in the case of Greece and Rome, owing to the greater dearth of literature; but in our previous chapter (III.) on this subject much has already been said with reference to what is known on this head. In regard to the pottery, careful scientific excavations, such as those undertaken by M. Gsell at Vulci (Vol. I. p. 77), have done much to increase our knowledge of all periods, and to place chronological certainty within the reach of the inquirer.
In dealing with the history of art in Italy, we are naturally first met with two questions: (1) Who were the earliest inhabitants of the country, particularly in the region afterwards known as Etruria, in which the first signs of artistic development appear? (2) At what period and from what quarter did the Etruscans occupy this region, or are they aboriginal? It will therefore be necessary to devote a few preliminary paragraphs to these much-debated questions,[2246] in order to gain a better understanding of the subsequent history.
The question of the origin of the Etruscans, to take the second first, is as old as Herodotos.[2247] As is well known, the Father of History held to the view that they originally came from Lydia, a view which found general support in antiquity, and is referred to by Horace,[2248] and many other writers. His fellow-townsman Dionysios was, however, of the opinion that they were autochthonous.[2249] However much of truth there may be in either of these theories, the fact remains that with certain modifications each of the two alternatives has found supporters even down to the present day, though to Niebuhr first is due the suggestion that the immigration of the Etruscans was by land and not by sea, and that they came from Central Europe by way of the Rhaetian Alps. He has been followed by most writers since—above all by Mommsen, who was the first to point out the absurdity of identifying the Lydian Τυρρηνοί or Τυρρηβοί with the Italian Tusci or Etrusci. It follows from this that the whole of the civilisation of Northern and Central Italy is due to this race, which would obviously have left its impress on each district as it passed through it; and, secondly, that it was this same race that was afterwards known by the name of Etruscan.
The chief objection to the theory of an autochthonous origin is that, as we shall presently see, a break in the civilisation of Northern Italy which can be traced about the beginning of the ninth century B.C. is of such a marked and rapid character that it cannot be regarded as due to any cause but the irruption of a new race. Moreover, there is probably, as M. Pottier points out,[2250] more truth in the words of Herodotos than appears at first sight. It is true that there are no grounds for accepting the Lydian theory absolutely; but apart from this, it is to be noted that Herodotos nowhere states that the Tyrrhenians landed on the west coast of Italy—i.e. in Etruria. What he does say is that, “after having visited (or coasted along) many nations, they arrived at the Umbrians, where they founded cities and inhabit them to this day; and instead of Lydians, their name was changed to that of Tyrrhenians.” Additional evidence is given by Hellanikos,[2251] who explicitly states that they landed at the mouth of the Po; and as the Umbrians probably occupied a larger territory in prehistoric than in classical times,[2252] we may fairly place here the city of Tyrsenia or Tyrrhenia, which Herodotos gives as the name of their first new home. Thus the Umbrians will represent the early aborigines whose civilisation, known as the Terramare, we shall presently describe, and it was this civilisation, transformed and developed, which was carried by the invaders over the Apennines into the region now to be known as Etruria. It will be noted that this theory at least satisfactorily combines the land and sea migrations of the Etruscans into Etruria, though it does not profess to dogmatise as to the region whence they first started. The idea that they first landed on the west coast is entirely due to Roman ideas, fostered by poets like Virgil; and though it is in one passage accepted by Dionysios of Halicarnassos, he expressly contradicts himself in another.[2253]
The two chief characteristics of this new Etrusco-Umbrian civilisation are the development of geometrical decoration and the predominance of a metallurgic element, both of which are obviously derived from Eastern sources, whether Hellenic or Oriental. It will suffice here to point out that the “Tyrrhenians” during their previous voyages (see above) might well have come in contact with the other civilisations of the Eastern Mediterranean, such as Cyprus, Asia Minor, Mycenae, and the Greek islands, and that their natural acquisitiveness and capacity for imitation, which we shall find illustrated throughout their history, enabled them to pick up and use artistic ideas from all these quarters. Even their earliest art yields many points of comparison with that of the Eastern Mediterranean.
The earliest civilisation of which traces have survived in Italy is, as we have already seen, that of the Terramare, so called from the remains discovered in that district, covering the basin of the Eridanus or Po, but chiefly between Piacenza and Bologna. We have further seen that the aboriginal people to whom these remains belong are probably to be identified with the Umbrians, but it is perhaps safer to style them Italiotes. They were lake-dwellers, living in wooden houses built on piles in the water or in the marshy lagoons of the district which they inhabited, and their civilisation was of the rudest description.
We find among their remains, besides rude objects in bronze and other substances, pottery of the very simplest kinds, hand-made and roughly baked. This is not found in tombs, but mingled with the débris of the dwellings. The shapes comprise cups and pots, and there are few attempts at decoration beyond rows of knobs or bosses. A crescent-shaped or lunulated handle is attached to many of the vases, serving as a support for the thumb; but this is a feature also found in other parts of Italy and in Sicily. Iron, glass, and silver are quite unknown, and gold only represented by a doubtful specimen; on the other hand, along with the finds of bronze, which include weapons, tools, and objects of toilet, are survivals of the Neolithic Age in the shape of axes, spear-heads, and tools of stone. In several of the settlements actual moulds for bronze-casting were found.
The Neolithic remains are sufficient to indicate the early date of this civilisation, and it is probably contemporary in point of development (if not of date) with the earliest remains from Hissarlik and Cyprus. It may thus be traced back as far as 1500 B.C. at least, and seems to extend down to about the end of the tenth century B.C. The analogous pottery found at Thapsus in Sicily is mixed with Mycenaean vases, and may therefore be more precisely dated; but it is altogether more advanced than that of the Terramare. The influence of the latter no doubt spread gradually downwards during these thousand years through Central and Southern Italy.[2254]
The next stage in the development of civilisation in Italy, probably separated from the preceding by a period of transition, is what is known as the Villanuova period, from a site of that name at Bologna. It begins with the ninth century B.C., and lasts for some two hundred years; its traces are much more widely spread than those of the Terramare people, being found not only to the north of the Apennines, but all over Etruria. It is interesting to note that the chief finds have been made in what afterwards became the principal centres of Etruscan civilisation, such as Bologna, Corneto, Vetulonia, etc. In almost every respect it shows a marked development on the preceding stage. Iron is already known, and the working of bronze better understood, the processes of hammering plates (σφυρήλατον) and working in repoussé being introduced to supplement that of casting.[2255]
We now for the first time meet with tombs, the characteristic form of which is that of a well or pit, ending in a small circular chamber, in which the remains are deposited. Italian archaeologists have given to these tombs the name of a pozzo. The method of burial practised was almost exclusively that of incineration, but it appears certain that the inhabitants of Etruria never showed a special preference either for one method or the other, and the alternative method of inhumation already appears at Corneto before the next stage is reached with the eighth century.
It has been sometimes objected that the introduction of inhumation must connote the first arrival of the Etruscan people in these regions, on the ground that they did not practise incineration; but this idea rests on no sound basis. The introduction of the new system, which never entirely ousted incineration, can easily be explained as due to external influences; not indeed to the Phoenicians (although it was a universal Oriental custom), for their influence in Italy has been much exaggerated; but rather to the Greeks, who colonised Cumae in the middle of the eighth century, from which time onwards Hellenic influence gradually becomes more and more apparent.
We have seen, then, that the Villanuova civilisation may be fairly regarded as Etruscan. It was not, however, by any means confined to Etruria, for it is spread all over the country to the north of the Apennines, and two of its most important centres were at Bologna and Este. The whole of this region shows traces of having been for a long time under the early Etruscan domination. It is, in fact, in close dependence on the Terramare civilisation which here preceded it, the difference, as we have indicated, being brought about by commerce and foreign influences.
From Ann. dell’ Inst.
FIG. 178. TOMB A POZZO
WITH CINERARY URN.
The pozzo tombs usually contain a large cinerary urn or ossuarium, in which the ashes were placed after being burnt (Fig. 178).[2256] These urns are fashioned by hand from a badly levigated volcanic clay, generally known as impasto Italico. It is to be distinguished from the later bucchero nero (see p. 301) by its quality, and by the fact that vases of the latter clay are always wheel-made. The clay is irregularly baked over an open fire, and the colour of the surface varies from red-brown to greyish black. It is covered with a polished slip, and there is no doubt that it was the intention of the potter to give the vases a metallic appearance as well as form.
As regards their shape, they are of a peculiar but uniform type, with a small handle at the widest part, and cover in the form of an inverted bowl or saucer with handle (Fig. 179: see also Fig. 178).[2257] The ornamentation consists of geometrical ornaments incised or stamped in bands round the neck and body—such as maeanders, chevrons, stars, and dots—the incisions being made while the clay was moist. In rare cases we meet with painted ornaments in white applied directly to the surface. Besides the urns, which often almost fill the chamber, accessory objects in the form of common pottery, fibulae, and other bronze objects, spindle-whorls and amber objects, are found in the tombs.
The common pottery does not in its character exhibit much advance on that of the Terramare. The difference, indeed, consists not so much in development of technique as in a greater variety of decoration. It has points of resemblance with the far earlier pottery of Hissarlik and the early Bronze Age tombs of Cyprus (see Chapter VI.), and there are not wanting evidences of commercial intercourse with and importation from the Eastern Mediterranean. But two salient features of the Italian wares are the employment of handles and the unique form of the hut-urn (see below).
From Notizie degli Scavi.
FIG. 179. CINERARY URNS FROM TOMBS OF VILLANUOVA PERIOD AT CORNETO.
The clay is mostly of the same kind as that of the urns, and the smoked and irregularly fired surface shows that furnaces were not yet in use, but that an open fire sufficed for the purpose. The technique is exceedingly primitive, and the forms are simple but heavy. In the latter respect the striking difference in the inherent artistic capacity of the Greeks and Italians is already apparent. The latter never at any time displayed that unfailing eye for form which distinguishes the Greeks in all their products. The shapes include saucers like the urn-covers, bowls with a flat vertical or high-looped handle, flasks with long beak-like necks like the early Cypriote vases, bowls with small feet, jars with one or two handles, aski, and kerni, or groups of vases united on one stem.
Many of these are quite plain, but the majority are decorated with geometrical patterns, like the ossuaria or urns already described. Some of the patterns show quite a mechanical regularity, as if produced from a stamp. These take the form of circular sinkings and other patterns formed by circles, an early instance of a motive which afterwards became common in Etruria. There are even some instances of designs in colour, a sort of cream pigment being used. A peculiarity of this class is the fondness for protuberances in the form of horns on the handles (ansae lunulatae), which are also found in the Terramare, as already mentioned; or knobs round the body of the vase, in order to hold cords for suspension, which afterwards served a merely decorative purpose, like the bosses on cups described by Homer.[2258] Sometimes are to be seen rude attempts at modelling horses or heads of oxen, or at giving the whole vase the form of a bird, as is seen in some of the aski.[2259]
The absence of accessory vases in Villanuova tombs, as is sometimes the case at Vulci,[2260] seems to show either very great antiquity or else a long survival of an older type. On the whole, however, a chronological classification is hardly possible. Generally speaking, the pit-tombs were still in use throughout Etruria at the end of the eighth century, and no tombs of the next stage can be dated earlier than 700 B.C. The line of demarcation for the latter end of the period is therefore the seventh century, coincident with the first undoubtedly Greek importations found in the tombs.
The real interest of the Villanuova period is, however, centred in remains which do not come within our province—namely, the objects in bronze which have been found in such enormous numbers at Bologna, Vetulonia, and elsewhere.[2261] They fall into line with the earliest remains on Hellenic sites—such as Olympia, Rhodes, and Crete—and a connection can often be traced, as in the fibulae, with the Hallstatt civilisation.[2262] On the other hand, they are entirely free from any Oriental influence.
Sometimes the cinerary urns in the tombs of this period take the form of huts (tuguria), though these are more often found in the neighbourhood of Rome, as at Alba Longa. They represent, in fact, the civilisation of the Italiote people on their first arrival in Latium, which they probably colonised by moving southward through Umbria and Picenum, leaving Tuscany to the Etruscans. One of the best examples of these hut-urns is that from the Hamilton collection in the British Museum (Plate LVII. fig. 4), which still contains ashes. The ashes were inserted through a little door, which was secured by a cord passing through two rings at its side and tied round the vase. The ornamentation suggests the rude carpentry which was applied to the construction of the dwellings of this primitive people, the cover or roof being vaulted, with raised ridges intended to represent the beams of a house or cottage. These urns have no glaze on their surface, but a polish was produced by friction. They are occasionally painted with patterns in white, inlaid in grooves. On the Museum example are fragments of maeander. They are usually found inside large vases, which protected them from falling earth and other accidents. The fact that they were found under beds of lava originally led to an exaggerated opinion of their antiquity, but in any case the nature of their contents confirms their very primitive use.[2263]
An interesting account of the early settlements in the southern extremity of Etruria is given by Von Duhn,[2264] as the result of exploration by local archaeologists on the sites of Falerii (Civita Castellana) and Narce.[2265] The most interesting feature of these results is the gradual migration of the peoples from the hill-tops to the valleys as they became more civilised. Thus many modern cities, such as Florence, are direct descendants of the early hill-settlements of primitive Italy. In Etruria it was usually the reclaiming of the marshes for cultivation that enabled the population to settle in the lower and more accessible situations.
The Faliscan region well illustrates this principle, as does Narce. In the earliest graves on the hill-tops cremation is the rule, and the urns are of the Villanuova type. Nothing of later date than the eighth century is found, and no importations. The hut-dwellings at Narce seem to have been of the hut-urn type. The common pottery is of the primitive hand-made greyish black clay; but after the eighth century the position of the settlement was shifted lower down, and in these later tombs a remarkable series of red-glazed wares is found (see below, p. 301), and Greek and Oriental importations soon make their appearance. Narce soon fell under Etruscan sway, but Falerii retained its individuality for some time longer.
The next stage in the development of Etruscan civilisation is marked by a change in the form of the tomb. The pit is now replaced by a trench; in other words, the vertical form is exchanged for a horizontal one. Concurrently with this change the practice of inhumation becomes fairly general. This period may be regarded as extending from the eighth century B.C. to the beginning of the sixth, and is marked by the first signs of importations from Greece in the shape of Geometric pottery and bronzes. In general character it is not strongly marked off from the preceding. The great advance is in the development of art in the objects found in the tombs. Not only do we witness the first beginnings of what is destined to become the typical species of Etruscan pottery—namely, the bucchero nero—but towards the end of the period the Greek influence, as evidenced by finds of wheel-made vases with Geometrical decoration, or even of the so-called Proto-Corinthian type, becomes widely felt. It was no doubt largely due to the foundation of colonies in the south of Italy, such as Cumae. Altogether it is a most important period for the history of Etruscan pottery. Of Oriental influence there are at present hardly any signs, and all wheel-made vases found in these tombs are probably of Greek origin, as it does not appear that the wheel was in regular use before the middle of the sixth century.[2266]
It is now necessary to turn our attention to the local hand-made varieties. And, in the first place, it is worthy of note that pottery of the Villanuova type actually survives the transition from the pit-tombs to the trenches, as is seen at Corneto, Vetulonia, and elsewhere. Probably it indicates the pottery in common use, the imported objects being only regarded as de luxe; or else, as Prof. Helbig suggests,[2267] the former types were preserved for religious reasons connected with burial rites, as was often the case in Roman religion.
In the earlier types of pottery from the fossa tombs, such as are common at Vulci, the hand-made pottery of impasto Italico still continues, preserving the same shapes and the same simple linear decoration; but it is better baked, and the surface is somewhat better polished. Red wares are also found, and yellow wares with Geometrical ornaments painted in red, which are evidently local imitations of the Greek Geometrical fabrics (see below).
Later, while the technique remains unaltered, a difference is seen in the forms, which become lighter, more varied, and more symmetrical. Such shapes as the stamnos, kantharos, and trefoil-mouthed oinochoë now for the first time appear. The methods of ornamentation are also modified; new varieties of incised patterns are seen, and the bodies of the vases are sometimes fluted or ribbed; while such motives as friezes of ducks, which are also found on the contemporary bronzes,[2268] now first find a place. M. Gsell, describing in detail the various fabrics found in the Vulci tombs of this period,[2269] speaks of pottery of a grey clay baked to red, perhaps in a furnace, forming urns and jars of a considerable size. He thinks that some primitive kind of wheel (see above) must have been used to produce these. In some of the impasto wares there is a decided advance in technique, the clay being better levigated and the walls of the vases thinner. Some black wares seem to have been fumigated like the later bucchero. Generally speaking, both incineration and inhumation are still practised.
The ornaments are incised, stamped, or painted, and the decoration almost exclusively linear, the stamped patterns being usually in the form of stars. This pottery is, in fact, merely a continuation of that of the pit-tombs, except that the imitation of metal-work is much more strongly in evidence.
Yet another variety preserves the methods and forms of the Villanuova class, but introduces a new kind of clay, altogether black, as distinguished from the earlier reds and browns. A remarkable specimen of this early black ware found at Orvieto has incised upon it the subject of Bellerophon and the Chimaera, the style being, as we should expect, childish to the verge of the ludicrous.[2270] Later, the black wares acquire a very fair glazed surface, and are ornamented with incised linear patterns of zigzags, chevrons, etc.; these are mostly small vases. It is in these two particularly that we see the forerunners of the highly developed bucchero ware.
Besides these local fabrics, there are found Greek imported wares with Geometrical decoration of pale yellow clay, with ornaments in brown turning to red; the commonest form is the oinochoë, and the patterns include circles, zigzags, wavy lines, embattled patterns, etc. These are all wheel-made, and are, in fact, the same types as are found in the Dipylon cemetery at Athens and in Boeotia (Chapter VII.); the earliest instances belong to the end of the eighth century, in some late pit-tombs at Caere, in which also “Proto-Corinthian” pottery was found. They coincide with the great impetus given to Greek colonisation in Sicily and Southern Italy, and probably came by that way into Etruria. It should be borne in mind that these vases were imported not for their own merit, but for the value of their contents. It has already been mentioned that local imitations of them are found in the trench-tombs.
To the seventh century belong also two classes of pottery which are more or less connected, and are chiefly associated with Caere.[2271] The first class consists of a series of vases of red ware, mostly large jars and πίθοι, ornamented with designs in relief, the lower part of the body being usually ribbed. The designs take the form of bands of figures stamped round the upper part of the vase, either in groups on the principle of the metope or in extended friezes. In the former case the design was produced from a single stamp for each group; in the latter, it was rolled out from a cylinder resembling those in use in Assyria for sealing documents. Besides the jars, plates of this ware are not uncommon; they may have formed either covers like those of the Villanuova ossuaria, or stands for the jars, in order to hold drippings of liquid, etc. The use of the πίθοι in tombs is not quite clear, though they were doubtless in daily use for holding grain or liquids.[2272]
The subjects are always of an Orientalising character, similar to those found on Greek vases under Oriental influence, and comprising animals, monsters, hunting scenes, combats, and banquets. The origin of these vases is doubtful; they may be either indigenous or imported, as similar examples have been found in Rhodes, Boeotia, Sicily, and elsewhere; but they are rare outside Etruria. The suggestion of a Sicilian origin[2273] has found some favour, but it is more likely that they are native productions after Greek models (see Vol. I. p. 496); some are undoubtedly of local make,[2274] and they were probably made at Caere or in the neighbourhood. Their prototypes go back almost to the Mycenaean period, but were hardly imported before 700 B.C., after which time the local imitations begin, being one more instance of the invariable rule that all Etruscan pottery is more or less imitative. Similar vases in metal were manufactured on the coast of Asia Minor, and the ἀναθήματα of the Lydian kings at Delphi[2275] were probably examples of this class.[2276]
From Gaz. Arch.
FIG. 180. PAINTED ETRUSCAN PITHOS FROM CERVETRI (IN LOUVRE): BIRTH
OF ATHENA; BOAR-HUNT.
The second class shows some affinities to the other in regard to the shape and the nature of the clay; but the important difference is that the vases are decorated with painted subjects instead of reliefs. The subjects are painted in white outline on a brick-red glazed ground, the process being as follows: The clay, which resembles the impasto Italico, is first hardened by baking, and then a mixture of wax and resin and iron oxide is applied to it, and a lustre given to the surface by polishing. The pigment, a mixture of chalk and lime, is then laid on. The process can hardly be said to be Greek, and yet the subjects are purely Greek, being borrowed in part from the Greek Geometrical vases, such as sea-fights, and in part from later (Ionian) sources[2277]; we actually find representations of the Birth of Athena and the Hunt of the Calydonian Boar (Fig. 180).[2278] The shapes of the vases again are certainly local, as are the animal forms, which resemble those incised on the bucchero wares. The drawing is usually crude in the extreme. It is interesting to note that on the vase from which Fig. 180 is taken the potter has painted in white an Etruscan inscription (not shown in the cut). Another vase of the same class was found in the Polledrara tomb (see Plate LVI. and p. 300 below). The method of painting in opaque pigment on a red or black ground is, it would seem, an Ionian characteristic, being found at Naukratis in the seventh century (Vol. I. p. 347), and also, as we shall see on other quasi-Ionic fabrics in Etruria.
Generally speaking, the tombs a fossa are not later than the middle of the seventh century; evidence of this is given by the absence of bucchero proper and of Corinthian fabrics. There are, however, traces of their lingering on even down into the sixth century, as at Vulci, where Helbig mentions a tomb found in 1884 containing Corinthian vases of that date.[2279] At Corneto the latest belong to the end of the seventh century.
Our fourth period, which in many respects shows a close continuity with that of the tombs a fossa, is nevertheless clearly defined by two circumstances: firstly, the adoption of a new type of tomb, doubtless developed out of the fossa, which takes the form of a large chamber, and is therefore known as a camera; secondly, the influence of Oriental art, concurrently with an increased influx of importations from Greece. The period covers about a century of time, from 650 to 550 B.C., and includes several of the largest and most important tombs that have been found in Etruria, which will demand more or less detailed treatment. In none, however, were any great finds of pottery made; but one of these tombs, the Grotta d’ Iside or Polledrara tomb at Vulci, contained several specimens of exceptional interest.
The simplest form of chamber-tomb consists of a narrow corridor or δρόμος leading into a larger chamber; next, the δρόμος opens into a square or rectangular vestibule, round which various side-chambers are attached; finally, the tomb assumes the form of a vast subterranean edifice composed of several wings, and used for more than one corpse—in fact, a “family vault.”
While on the one hand the ceramic types of the Villanuova period still linger on, as in the retention of ossuaria for the receipt of ashes, on the other the painted Greek vases and the local bucchero wares increase more and more, and altogether there is a great advance in the direction of variety and richness. This period saw not only the general introduction of the wheel into Etruria, but also the introduction of the alphabet of Western Greece, through Cumae. A vase of bucchero ware found at Vetulonia bears an Etruscan inscription, which can hardly be much later than 700 B.C.,[2280] and we have already seen an instance on a vase from Caere.
In the earlier chamber-tombs no bucchero is found, and the pottery is of the same types as in the trench-tombs; but with the enlarged arrangement of the tomb come the Corinthian vases of Orientalising style, to be followed later by the Ionian and later Corinthian fabrics, and finally by the Athenian wares. The vestibule disappears after the sixth century, and all later tombs have the simple δρόμος. The typical contents of a chamber-tomb are, as regards local pottery, in the earlier tombs impasto Italico wares, in the later bucchero. The former is hand-made, the shapes similar to those found in the trench-tombs—i.e. pots incised with zigzags, circles, and other patterns, or painted in white. The latest varieties are wheel-made, of bucchero forms. The latter wares, which are much more numerous, are evolved from the impasto: (1) by the use of the wheel; (2) by the introduction of the furnace; (3) by extensive imitation of Greek ceramic and metal forms. The earliest bucchero vases at Vulci and Corneto synchronise with Corinthian pottery of the middle style, about 630-600 B.C., and they last down to the end of the fifth century.
The appearance of the alphabet seems to point to a marked incursion of Greek influence in the early part of the seventh century. The story of the arrival of Demaratos of Corinth, about 665 B.C., with the three artists whom he brought in his train, Diopos, Eucheir, and Eugrammos,[2281] is no doubt an echo of this. The progress of Hellenism was, however, momentarily arrested by the growing power of Carthage, which may partly account for the temporary Orientalising of Etruscan civilisation. It is certainly to the Carthaginian influence in Italy that the Phoenician objects found in the seventh century tombs, such as the silver bowls of Praeneste, are due. Oriental influence is also seen in the large tombs at Vulci, Caere, and Vetulonia, but it is hardly so strong as was at one time supposed; and of late years scholars have generally recognised that Ionian art and commerce played a much larger part throughout in the civilisation of Etruria[2282]; and, further, that Oriental art found its way mainly through these channels. At all events there was throughout the seventh and sixth centuries a keen struggle for supremacy in the Western Mediterranean, in which the Etruscans, the Phoenicians of Carthage, and the Ionian and Continental Greeks alike shared; and hence the diverse influences at work in Etruria.
But it was not long before Greece, with its rising colonies of Cumae, Sybaris, and Syracuse, made its predominance to be felt in the Western Mediterranean, and this was consummated by the final victory of Hiero over the combined fleets of Carthage and Etruria off Cumae in 474 B.C. A monument of this exists to the present day in the bronze helmet dedicated by that king at Olympia, now in the British Museum.
We may further define as the second great period of Greek importations, that extending over the sixth and fifth centuries, a period which saw the development not only of the local bucchero fabrics, but also of the Greek black- and red-figured vases, which, heralded by the Corinthian wares, now pour in a continuous stream into Etruria. To this same period belong the paintings of the Etruscan tombs.
The earliest influences from Greece came, as has been hinted, through colonies like Chalcidian Cumae, which were the chief agents in the Hellenisation of Etruria; but at Cervetri, at any rate, the prevailing influence was Corinthian, as testified by the remarkable series of Corinthian and quasi-Corinthian vases in the Campana collection at the Louvre. Later in the sixth century came the connection with Athens, the chief results of which are to be seen in the contents of the tombs of Vulci (Vol. I. p. 76). It extends from the time of the Peisistratidae (540-520 B.C.) down to about 450 B.C., being probably brought to an end by the Peloponnesian War and the destruction of the Athenian maritime supremacy; but isolated instances of importations occur down to the time of Alexander the Great, in the Panathenaic amphorae of which dated examples of 336 B.C. have been found at Cervetri (Vol. I. p. 390).
In sketching this outline of Hellenic influence in Etruria we have overstepped the limits of chronological sequence, and must retrace our steps in order to deal first with the local products of the period from 650 B.C. onwards, and secondly with the effects of the Greek civilisation on the same.
Polledrara ware.—The Grotta d’ Iside or Polledrara tomb at Vulci has been dated, on the authority of a scarab of Psammetichos I. (656-611 B.C.) which it contained, towards the closing years of the seventh century. This dating has been generally accepted, and there seems no reason to doubt it, although the evidence of an isolated scarab is not always as trustworthy as appears at first sight. Besides local bronze work and objects of Egyptian or quasi-Egyptian character, it contained one vase of unique character which calls for special consideration.[2283]
This is a hydria of somewhat peculiar, if not unique form, with a very wide body and rudimentary foot. In some details, especially in the treatment of the handles, it exhibits obvious evidence of imitation of metal-work. Although at first sight resembling bucchero ware, the clay is seen on examination to be of a different type, not being grey but reddish brown in fracture, while the lustrous black surface is produced by a thin coating or slip. It is decorated with designs in three colours, red, blue, and a yellowish white, which were laid on the black and then fired. The red is best preserved, the blue fairly so, but the white has almost entirely disappeared.[2284] The designs are arranged in three friezes, of which the lower consists only of isolated bits of key-pattern. On the two upper rows are scenes from the story of Theseus and Ariadne, together with Centaurs, Sphinxes, and other accessory figures. On the upper row Theseus slays the Minotaur; on the lower, Theseus and Ariadne are seen, firstly in a chariot, secondly leading a dance of four other figures, the hero playing a lyre, while Ariadne holds the clue.[2285] The colouring scheme is most elaborate, and cannot be detailed here; an occasional use of incised lines may also be noted.
A small two-handled cup or kylix,[2286] of a type often found at Naukratis decorated with eyes, was also found in this tomb, and appears to belong to the same class. The clay is similar to that of the hydria, as is the decoration, which however, owing to the flaking off of the black slip, has largely disappeared. Although in its technique it resembles the hydria, the subjects and motives are probably derived from Naukratis. Only a few other examples of this “Polledrara” ware are known: an oinochoë in Berlin,[2287] two vases in the Louvre,[2288] and a vase found at Cervetri, unpublished.[2289] From the contents of the tomb in which the last-named was found, it may fairly be dated early in the sixth century.
Mr. Cecil Smith regards the Polledrara hydria as the result of an Italian attempt to imitate the new bucchero technique which was at this time being perfected (see below), the form of the vase being borrowed from an Ionic source.[2290] Ionic influence (see above, p. 296) is visible in more than one respect in this vase, as also in the reliefs decorating the bronze bust from the same tomb. Other details, such as the imitation of metal-work, are rather to be referred to a Corinthian source; and it is worthy of note that two Corinthian vases were among the contents of the tomb.
The striving after a gaudy effect by the use of polychrome decoration, and especially the employment of blue, a colour otherwise unknown in vase-painting before the end of the fifth century, finds a parallel in the sixth century poros-sculptures from the Athenian Acropolis, in which even more violent effects of colour are attained, as in the bright blue beard of the Triton. But in this case there seems little doubt that the idea is borrowed from Egypt, with its fondness for brightly decorated mummy-cases and bright blue images of faïence and porcelain. Other details which betray an Egyptian origin are the lions’ masks, the all-pervading lotos-flower, and the seated dog or jackal. The connecting link is no doubt the great trading centre of Naukratis, through whose agency the Egyptian scarabs, porcelain objects, and ostrich eggs found in this tomb also came to Etruria.
As a parallel to the Polledrara finds should here be cited the painted terracotta panels from Caere now in the British Museum and Louvre, which are certainly local products, and give a realistic representation of the Etruscan people. They are described below (p. 319). These again, both in subject and style, lead to a comparison with the large Etruscan terracotta sarcophagi, of which the most remarkable is that in the British Museum.[2291] Here, as in the Polledrara bronze bust, the rude native attempts at sculpture in the round are combined with reliefs which successfully reflect the style of Ionic art. Lastly, we note another parallel in the paintings of animals on the walls of a tomb at Veii.[2292]
Mr. Cecil Smith sums up: “The Polledrara ware was probably local Italian, made at Caere under the combined influence of Ionian and Naukratite imports, acting on an artistic basis principally derived from Corinth.” Developed pari passu with the red impasto ware (of which a painted example was found in the Vulci tomb), it gradually gave way to the bucchero ware with which we deal in our next section. It only remains to note that similar ware has been found in Rhodes,[2293] where also later wares of a genuine bucchero type, unpainted, have come to light; and these appear to be instances of a counter-importation from Etruria to Asia Minor.
The only other piece of pottery from the Polledrara tomb which calls for special comment is one to which reference has just been made, a large pithos of the primitive impasto red ware, made on the wheel (Plate LVI.). It falls into line with the painted and stamped fabrics from Caere already described (p. 292 ff.), and is, like the hydria, painted in polychrome, but the colours are much faded. The subjects are a frieze of animals and a ship.
Three other tombs which rival the Polledrara in size and importance are the Regulini-Galassi tomb at Caere,[2294] the Tomba del Duce at Vetulonia,[2295] and the Bernardini tomb at Praeneste.[2296] Although the finds of pottery herein were small, they are yet of great interest for the history of Etruscan art in general, especially as they afford evidence for approximate dating. In the two former Etruscan inscriptions were found. The Caere and Praeneste tombs are probably the earliest, about 650 B.C., and the Del Duce and Polledrara tombs are not later than the end of the seventh century.