Nothing remains of Etruscan palaces, public buildings, and early temples,
which were built of wood and brick. Votive ceramic models of temples, as
well as traces of later stone structures, indicate that temples were built
in enclosures and had tiled, gabled roofs supported on pillars, like their
Greek counterparts. A Greek temple, however, was built on an east-west
axis on a low terrace and could be entered from a colonnade on all four
sides; an Etruscan temple, to meet religious requirements, was located on
a north-south axis and stood on a high podium with a four-columned porch
in front of three doors leading to three parallel rooms for the three
chief Etruscan gods. The brilliantly painted terracotta statuary that
decorated the roof along the eaves, ridge pole, and at the gable ends also
served the practical purpose of hiding and protecting tile joints and
rafter ends. Plaques with low-relief figures adorned the entablature.
Roman temples followed the plan developed by the Etruscans.
Most
Etruscan cities were laid out in the form of a quadrangle, with
fortifications and encompassing walls enforced by double gates and towers.
These building methods were also used outside Etruria. The wall
surrounding the early city of Rome, reputedly built during the time of
Servius Tullius (reigned 578-534 BC) was of Etruscan construction.
Remains
of Etruscan houses have been found at San Giovenale, Luni Sul Mignone, and
Murlo. The interiors of tombs and house-shaped funerary urns suggest that
they had flat or gabled roofs of tile and one to three rooms. Later
examples had an atrium, with an open roof over a pool for rainwater, and a
loggia—a plan continued by the Romans. The Etruscans also built
aqueducts, bridges, and sewers.
Outside
the cities were cemeteries containing family tombs. Some were built
underground but, as at Cerveteri, had large vaults of overlapping stones
covered by mounds of earth. Early tombs were simple structures, no more
than a narrow passage partitioned into two rooms, with a small alcove on
either side of the front room. Later tombs contained several rooms laid
out to resemble a house. They held sarcophagi, funerary urns, and
offerings, according to regional practice. |