Introduction
Etruscan tombs, Etruscan necropoleis/cemeteries, and Etruscan tomb architecture belong to the most interesting, exciting, and expressive groups of monuments of Etruscan civilization. They furnish a great deal of precious information about Etruscan culture, art, architecture, life, burial customs, funeral rites, and religion. They often reflect historical, economic, and social changes as well. Undoubtedly, the Etruscans invested many financial resources and architectural, technical, and artistic skill in their necropoleis and tombs. Thanks to the discoveries and excavations of thousands of tombs since the Renaissance period, we know much more about the world of the dead than the world of the living in Etruria.
The first discoveries of important Etruscan tombs and tomb monuments date to the Renaissance (late fifteenth–early sixteenth century CE), especially in Tuscany and in the area of Viterbo. It is possible that even great Renaissance artists such as Leonardo da Vinci and...
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Further Reading
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Steingräber, S. (2014). Tombs, Etruscan. In: Smith, C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-0465-2_951
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