Cerveteri

One of the most important cities in Italy, north of Roman, whose earliest occupation was the Iron Age Villanovan of the 9th-8th centuries BC. It flourished from the 7th-5th centuries as one of the 12 major cities of the Etruscan federation. Two necropoleis from this period have been identified, with evidence for pit, trench, and chamber tombs. Accumulating wealth is reflected in the grandeur of many surviving tombs. There were two ports, Pyrgi and Alsium, the former with evidence of temples, which have provided scholars of the Etruscan language an important pieces of evidence - a text on gold laminae. The city lost importance during the Roman period, and by the early Empire was reported to be no more than a village.

[Roman Caere vetus, Etruscan Xaire, Greek Agylla]. A town in central Italy, some 48 km north-west of Rome, Caere was one of the 12 great cities of the Etruscan federation. Earliest occupation seems to be Iron Age Villanovan of 9th to 8th centuries BC. Two necropoleis from this period have been identified, with evidence for pit, trench and chamber tombs (some of the latter large and rich). The town’s most splendid phase, however, was the Etruscan, which spans the 7th-5th centuries bc. Communications and commercial prosperity clearly expanded (as witness the large quantity of imported Greek pottery), and the accumulating wealth is reflected in the grandeur of many surviving tombs. Tomb architecture developed rapidly, with the grand tumulus-type chamber tombs, containing several rooms or indeed several separate tombs, becoming common. In the more elaborate examples, the internal tufa may be sculpted in imitation of (presumably contemporary) roof and ceiling structures, architectural features, weapons and domestic objects; and thrones and couches are carved out. Decoration may be by painting and/or relief-work. The road network which is so striking a feature of the necropoleis as seen today may be a relatively late aspect of reorganization, when streets of repetitive facades perhaps betray middle-class pressure for fashionable burial. Of Caere’s two ports, Pyrgi and Alsium, the former has yielded evidence of temples, and given scholars of the Etruscan language one of their most important pieces of evidence — a temple text on gold laminae. Unfortunately this bilingual text (one version in Punic, and two different ones in Etruscan) has perhaps created more problems than it has solved. One result is noteworthy: the confirmation of the value 3 for the Etruscan numeral ci. Caere lost importance during the Roman period, and by the early Empire was reported to be no more than a village.