Andante Travels

Introduction

At the height of their power and prosperity during the 6th century BC the Etruscans possessed a civilisation to rival those of the Greeks and the Phoenicians, with whom they traded extensively. They were one of the most important influences on Roman culture, and many skills, customs and artistic traditions were acknowledged by the Romans as having come from their close neighbours.

Before the rise of Rome the Etruscans dominated much of Italy, leaving a rich archaeological heritage of cities, with vast cemeteries and monumental tombs and a startling abundance of finely crafted objects. They remain, however, surprisingly enigmatic and evasive, since their language and most of their writings were lost. Those inscriptions which survive still present difficulties for translators, and there are few references to them in the works of the Greeks and Romans - a classic case of the victors writing history.

The evidence is primarily from their burials, especially the tomb paintings and the abundant grave goods. It is easy to empathise, despite the intervening millennia, with the smiling men and women depicted in sculpture and frescoes, who seem to be enjoying their music, sports, dancing and banqueting.  Some sites are off the beaten track and the going can e rough in places. We stay in just two hotels, the first is a converted convent, the second a 17th century palazzo.

Itinerary

Day One
Arrive Pisa, and drive to Volterra.

Day Two
Day in Volterra, one of the leading north Etruscan cities, located on windswept, dramatic hills, with Etruscan city walls and temple foundations, Roman theatre and museum. Local alabaster was used to produce fine cinerary urns, some of which survive in the Guarnacci Museum collection, and this is an industry which has continued to the present day.

Day Three
To Populonia to see chamber tombs which lie within sight of a beautiful bay - this was the only Etruscan city to be located directly on the coast. Then to Roselle, another important Etruscan centre which continued to flourish under the Roman Empire. Much of the Etruscan city disappeared when the area between the two hills on which it was founded was cleared for an early Imperial forum, but the earlier city walls and a possible early cult building of mud-brick have survived.

Day Four
Day in Chiusi, the key inland city of northern Etruria, with its excellent museum. Collections include the striking ‘canopic urns’, so-called because they resemble such vessels from Egypt, but in this case it was the ashes of the dead which they held rather than their vital organs. They were a speciality of Chiusi, and the jars were often placed on model chairs, usually of clay but sometimes of bronze. We visit some of the Etruscan tombs, the cathedral and the labyrinth of Porsenna - a series of tunnels under the town dating from the 6th-5th centuries BC, and actually part of the town’s drainage system.

Day Five
Veii, an important Etruscan township and site of the famous temple. This was the most southerly Etruscan city, and the closest to Rome, holding the right bank of the Tiber as far as the estuary. Even today it lies in a beautiful rural situation. The cemeteries extend over the surrounding hills, and some of the tombs were finely painted. The Villa Giulia Museum in Rome, with its unique collection of Etruscan art, including the ‘married couple’ sarcophagus (above) and many other treasures.

Day Six
Visit Tarquinia, including museum and exquisitely painted subterranean chamber tombs. Over 6000 tombs have been discovered since the 18th century, making this one of the largest burial grounds of the ancient world. Tomb painting began here during the 7th century BC and continued until the 3rd, although the painted tombs (about 180) are a relatively small proportion of the total number. A selection of these are open to the public (we cannot predict exactly which, but previous guests have been able to visit the Tomb of the Leopard, above, and several others).
San Giovenale, romantically-situated, where excavations have revealed occupation from the Bronze Age to the Etruscan period, when a settlement was built over the Villanovan village. The acropolis must have been at the highest point, where the castle now is. One area of settlement, on the slope of the Borgo, dates to about 600BC and has stone walls, rooms separated by narrow alleys, open courtyards, wells, hearths and drainage channels. The cemeteries were situated on the surrounding hills. There are chamber tombs with carved façades and a series of street-side tombs, and there are also some large tumuli with carved funerary beds in their chambers.

Day Seven
The Etruscans presumably established a settlement at Orvieto because of the excellent defensive opportunities offered by the spectacular volcanic citadel, with its panoramic views of rolling hills and vineyards. It is thought to be the site of ancient Volsinium, one of the twelve cities of the Etruscan federation, sacked by the Romans in 280BC. Little of this early town survives, although we see the distinctive Crocifisso del Tufo cemetery, but it is the glories of medieval Orvieto which we visit, with its magnificent Renaissance cathedral.
There is also an excellent museum here. Free time this afternoon.

Day Eight
Cerveteri, most remarkable and famous of all the Etruscan sites. A vast necropolis in which the tombs were carved in the tufa rock to imitate the houses of the living, including one showing decoration on furniture, household vessels, and even the family cat. Continue to airport for flight home.

Note: Some sites are off the beaten track and rough underfoot, and entrances to some of the tombs are really low.

Included

WHAT’S INCLUDED

• Flights Scheduled flights London to Pisa, Rome to London.
• Transfers private coach provided to coincide with group flights
• Local Travel Private a/c coach.
• Meals All meals included (dinners with wine & water) except lunch on Day 7  
• Guide Lecturer (also local guides where these are compulsory)  Not to be confused with "guest lecturers"!  The guide lecturer will be with you from breakfast to supper, and probably even a drink in the bar afterwards.  There is the occasional site where they may not be allowed to guide because of local regulations (we normally manage to circumnavigate these) but otherwise the guides are just that. They will have been chosen because of specialist knowledge and their ability to communicate and interest you.  After 22 years of making tours worldwide, we are highly appreciative of the attributes of a good guide, and intensely critical of people who do not possess them.  If you would like to know more about Dr Judith Toms, please click her name.
• Tour Manager We never know how best to call the very special people whom we choose to accompany you on your tour.  They are usually employed in this capacity only by us, and have been trained to do things in the Andante way - unobtrusive, friendly and quietly efficient.
• Fieldnotes written for the tour
• Entry & tips Entry to all sites in programme; tips included.

Flights & Visa

Airline: BA - details to be confirmed
 

Visa and Passport Requirements (for British passport holders only)*

Note: Passport must be valid for the duration of your stay.

Hotels

3 nights in a converted convent hotel in Volterra;
4 nights in a 4* hotel converted from a 17th century palazzo in the historic centre of Civita Castellana.

Comments

What Did You Enjoy Most About This Tour?

The opportunity to see so much in such a short time. Carrie our lecturer was very good. Always good company.

The enthusiasm of Carrie and Martin and the fascinating sites and museums we visited.

the ability of Carrie Roth Murray to bring to life this civilisation unknown to me. Her evening illustrated talks were extremely helpful in gaining an overall impression of the Etruscans.

I particularly enjoyed the Palace Hotel Relais Falisco in Civita Castellana as it had a rare combination of character and comfort.

The museum at Tarquinia was excellent having been re-arranged in a modern style - overview panels in English, reconstructed tombs, sarcophagi laid out in the pattern in which they were discovered. I was very impressed by the Etruscans engineering skills as exemplified by the underground cisterns in Chiusi.

The excellent Guide Lecturer and Tour Manager. Meeting new people. The subject matter and locations - the fact that each location was unique.

The opportunity to learn about a previously unknown topic - The Etruscans. The company of fellow travellers. The reasonably gentle pace which allowed me to see other aspects of the places we visited, especially churches.

I had read quite a lot about the Etruscans before the tour, but that was nothing in comparison with visiting the sites and seeing first hand the richness of their material culture. I particularly enjoyed the Villa Guilia in Rome. An unexpected aspect of the tour was seeing the towns and landscape of a part of Italy I had never visited before. The siting of the towns, their architecture and churches/cathedrals are particularly attractive and interesting.

Staying in Volterra, which I had not visited before. And the Etruscan tombs at Tarquinia and Cerverteri.

The people. After 24 hours I felt I was travelling with a party of friends with the same interests, even though I did not know anyone else before the tour. I recommend this type of holiday to single friends.

 

Reading List

This list is no more than a guide to some books that you may find useful to read in advance of the tour. Talks given on the tour will attempt to fill in the background to what we are seeing, so no prior knowledge or pre-tour cramming is expected or needed. In many cases, we expect that you will find some of these books even more interesting and useful to read once the tour is over.

History and Archaeology:

G Barker & T Rasmussen (1998) The Etruscans, Blackwell, Oxford

A Boëthius (1978) Etruscan and Early Roman Architecture, revised edition, Harmondsworth

L Bonfante (Ed.) (1986) Etruscan Life and Afterlife, Detroit

L Bonfante & J Swaddling (2006) Etruscan Myths, British Museum Publications, London

M Cristofani (1979) The Etruscans; a new investigation, trans. B. Phillips, London & New York

S Haynes (2000) Etruscan Civilisation - A Cultural History, British Museum, London

E MacNamara (1990) The Etruscans, British Museum Publications

M Pallottino (1978) The Etruscans, rev. edition, D Ridgway, Harmondsworth

Suggestions - Etruscan language book in British Museum ‘Reading the Past' series

Natural History:

Lars Jonsson, The Birds of Europe, Christopher Helm - highly recommended, and now available in paperback.

Schonfelder & Schonfelder Wildflowers of the Mediterranean - a beautiful, practical and comprehensive guide.

Art:

N Spivey (1997) Etruscan Art, Thames and Hudson

S Steingräber (1985) Etruscan Painting, ed. D & F Ridgway, New York

O J Brendel (1995) Etruscan Art, Yale University Press, New Haven and London

D H Lawrence (1927), Etruscan Places

Map:

Lazio, 1:200,000 scale - Italian Touring Club

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4  Travel books

We recommend to you a publishing company with a mission to keep the classic works of travel literature in print. Eland and Sickle Moon Books produce an excellent catalogue of travellers' literature, old and new.

+44 (0) 20 7833 0762 - www.travelbooks.co.uk This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Archaeology books

Oxbow Books, based in Oxford, are suppliers of probably the biggest range of archaeology and history books. They produce a quarterly catalogue, and can be contacted on

+44 (0)1865 241249 - www.oxbowbooks.com This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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