June 19

We decided to get an early start today and visit the Etruscan museum. Katie, Kristen, Michelle, Jacob and I all met up at 9:30 and took bus 19 to the museum. This museum is absolutely enormous. You could easily spend a few hours there looking at everything, but after a while it does all seem to look pretty similar. So many pots! It is amazing how they were able to do such a good job putting everything back together and keeping it in such good condition.

Here are a few things I learned:

1. The genre of the deceased can be detected from the grave goods. Male tombs are characterized by hut urns and objects that represent war and hunting. Where as the women's tombs are characterized by candles, whorls, distaffs, reels and elements used to hold fabric.

2. A distinctive element of Vulci funerary art is the intent to reproduce the physical aspects of the deceased who were cremated: the ossuary is sometimes sealed with a ball-like lid suggesting a head.

3. Since the beginning of the 7th century B.C., the most important families established their power. The monumental tumuli of cerveteri necropolises were 20-60 meters wide and 12-15 meters high. These imitated modes from the near east and contained several rooms containing the deceased of different generations. External stairs made the tomb accessible for ceremony. The grave goods are characterized by rare and valuable luxury objects.