Cerveteri

Today we traveled away from Rome to the Cerveteri.  This is a large Etruscan cemetery dating back to the 9^th century BC; similar to the Tarquinia.  Immediately I was surprised with how many tombs there were in the beautiful forest.  One of the things the Etruscan culture is now known for is its burial of the dead.  The deceased were buried in cut circular structures that housed entire families.  What I found interesting was that the land was originally covered in tuff, not rock, which was hardened lava from a volcano eruption.  Instead of building tombs on top of the tuff, the Etruscans carved into the tuff using pick-axes.  This made for very precise work because they could not add back to the tomb once something was chipped away.  It’s hard to believe how time consuming it must have been.  Grassy mounds then covered these tombs and a small opening, that usually lead to one or two small rooms which housed the dead, was on the outside.     

            The Etruscans believed that once someone died they went to the afterlife.  The inside of the tombs were created to resemble a home with bed-like formations often with pillows to lay the dead on.  I was surprised that we could actually see the little pillows carved in the tuff, and see the individual rooms.  When someone died, they would have a procession into the tomb carrying special objects, usually candles and vases, bring in the body covered under a sheet, and feast with the body before closing the tomb.  There were different styles of tombs for families of different size and status.  One tomb in particular which I enjoyed, Tomba dei Rilievi, housed 54 bodies all lying one after the other for a large family.  Others we saw had only small rooms with a few individual beds for the dead.  

            Upon seeing the Cerveteri, I was initially surprised at how many tombs there actually were.  There were so many different sizes and locations in the forest area, some tucked away under the trees and others larger with steps leading up or down to it.  I was very impressed at how well preserved they were.  Almost all of the tombs were accessible, and we got to go all the way inside.  Getting to stand in the place that the actual Etruscans were laid to rest was a very surreal experience.  This also made for a very interactive trip which really helped me to understand what the tombs must have looked like.  I also really enjoyed the digital reconstruction done in the three tombs which outlined the places for the dead and objects in a typical tomb.  It’s said that when the tombs were opened, all the objects and vases were broken, this could have been caused by an earthquake, or what I found interesting, a little mouse trapped in the tomb knocking things over.  All in all, I found the Cerveteri to be in a very beautiful area with an interesting history.      

  

~Kaitlyn Ryder