What did the Romans adapt From the Etruscans?

Answer 1

It is difficult to ascertain the actual extent of Etruscan influence on Rome. The fashionable theory that the Etruscans conquered or dominated Rome, or that the urban development of Rome in the 5th century B.C. was due to the Etruscans has been challenged. There is hardly any concrete evidence for this theory, which is based on unproven assumptions. Moreover, Etruscan civilization disappeared quite early on in history and very little Etruscan writing has survived. The Romans did not write much about the Etruscans. Therefore, there is very little literary evidence on the Etruscan influence on Rome. The situation with archaeological evidence is not any better. The Etruscans had an influence in the archaic (early) days of Rome and the city was continually redeveloped over the many subsequent centuries of her history, and this destroyed the earlier Archaeology. Therefore, there are very little archaeological finds in the city of Rome which date back to the days of the Etruscans.

The Etruscans were one of the various peoples who had some influence on the early development of Roman religion. Early Roman architecture might have been influenced by the Etruscans as well as the Greeks. However, if this was the case, it soon disappeared. The Etruscan order (style) for building columns was soon abandoned because the Roman preferred the Greek orders as the Etruscan one was unadorned and rustic.

According to the Roman tradition, the 5th king of Rome, who was half Greek and half Etruscan, introduced the following Etruscan customs:

· The celebration of triumphs in Etruscan style

· The golden chariot of the king

· The fasces, a bundle of wooden sticks with an axe sticking out in the middle. This was used by the lictors, the guards of the kings and later, during the period of the Roman Republic, the guards of the officers of state of the republic. The fascies were a symbol of the power and authority.

· The clothes worn by people in positions of authority: the trabea (the robe worn by the king and, in the republican period, the consuls and priests during public ceremonies; the toga preatexta ( the robe worn by higher officers of state); and the paludamnetum (a cloak worn by generals and their higher officers when commanding an army (but not during peace).

· The curule chair the officers of state sat on as a symbol of their authority

· The falerae round ornamental metal disks for helmets, armour and harness of horses.

Answer 2

The Etruscans are an important part of roman history because the Romans adopted many customs from them. Examples include the arch and the layout of the temple in Roman architecture, the Etruscan alphabet (adopted from the Greeks) used to write Latin, the reading of the future by looking at the entrails of animals, the art of bronze making, and very importantly, some aspects of Roman government. The Romans were also influenced greatly by the Greek culture, which can be seen in their architecture, sculpture, science, and literature.

Answer 3

It is not clear. The Etruscans had an influence on the Romans in the archaic (early) period. Then the Etruscan civilisation decayed, while the Roman one continued to prosper and became increasingly influenced by the Greeks. Therefore, archaeological evidence of Etruscan influence is only found in small quantities due to its ealry age. New building were often built on top of older ones.

Archaeological excavations in another Latin cities have found Etruscan and early Greek influence in their early stages. This may have been the case in Rome as well. However, their traces would have been lost later. Later Romans made very little use of the Etruscan architectural style, except for warehouses, fortifications and massive buildings.

It is also sometimes said that the wattle-and-daub huts of the archaic Latins were similar to that of the Etruscans. However, it is not clear whether this was due to Etruscan influence of similarities between the Italic peoples of central Italy.

It is thought that Etruscan religion influenced Roman religion. However, this is speculative and what this influence actually would have been in extremely unclear. However, the Romans did adopt the ritual for the foundation of towns from the Etruscans.

Roman tradition says that the 5th king of Rome introduced Etruscan customs: the togas and cloaks for the high officials, some of the priests and the military commanders, the curule chair the high officials sat on, the bodyguards of the high officials (lictors) and the fasces they used, the sceptre, the rings of the senators, ceremonial music and the Etruscan way of celebrating triumphs.

The archaic Latin alphabet adopted 21 of the 26 letters which the Etruscans adopted and adapted from the western Greek alphabet.

There was a tendency to attribute pretty much everything about the Romans of the 6th and 5th century BC to the Etruscans. The gladiatorial fights were thought to have come from Etruria. However, it is now thought that they originated from Campania, the area near Naples. It was thought that the famous statue of the Capitoline wolf was Etruscan. Scientific tests have shown that it was made in the 13th century.

Answer 4

According to Florus, Tarquinius Priscus, the fifth king of Rome, started the celebration of triumphs in the Etruscan fashion, with a golden chariot drawn by four horses. He also introduced other Etruscan insignia of civilian authority and military distinction: the sceptre of the king; the trabea, a purple garment that varied in form, but was perhaps most often used as a mantle; the fasces carried by the lictors; the curule chair; the toga praetexta, later worn by various magistrates and officials; the rings worn by senators; the paludamentum, a cloak associated with military command; and the phalera, a disc of metal worn on a soldier's breastplate during parades, or displayed on the standards of various military units. Strabo said that Tarquin introduced Etruscan sacrificial and divinatory rites, as well as the tuba, a straight horn used chiefly for military purposes. The Romans also thought that some of their deities were Etruscan in origin.

Answer 5

etruscans began rome...