Mars from Todi
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The Mars of Todi is an Etruscan bronze statue dating from the late 5th century BC. BC or early 4th century BC And shows a warrior with armor who is about to offer a libation . The statue is an important example of Etruscan bronze processing and is one of the few large bronzes that have survived. The sculpture was discovered in the 19th century and is now in the Museo Gregoriano Etrusco of the Vatican Museums in the Vatican City of Rome .
description
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The almost life-size, 1.41 m high statue consists of individual parts, cast using the lost wax technique and then soldered, with inserts made of various materials. The figure depicts a warrior in plate armor , who probably offers a libation shortly before a battle. To do this, he held a libation bowl ( patera ) in his right hand , which was found with the statue. With his left hand he leaned on an iron lance. The patera and remains of the lance have been preserved and are displayed in a showcase. The bronze statue appeared to be wearing a helmet that has not yet been found. The face has inlaid eyes and shows an implied smile. The figure's weight is shifted to the right leg, the left leg is clearly angled. This attitude is known as counter post .
The statue, apparently created by an Etruscan workshop, shows similarities with sculptures of the Greek classical period from 450 to 425 BC. BC, especially from the school of the sculptor Phidias . There are also references to the works of Polyklet . In terms of craftsmanship, the statue comes close to Greek models, but the pose is a bit clumsy, with an expression of dull self-assertion instead of calm self-assurance. There is also a disturbing incongruity between the delicacy of the hands, feet, and clothing, and the coarseness of the swollen neck and misshapen thighs. As in other Etruscan works, the surface of the body is treated in a summary manner without considering the underlying structure of bones and muscles. The lack of heroic nudity also distinguishes this work from its Greek models. In Etruscan sculpture and painting, people of lower class, such as servants and slaves, are depicted undressed.
discovery
The bronze statue was found in 1835 in the Tiber Valley on the slopes of Monte Santo near the small town of Todi , between Rome and Florence . It had been buried there between two or four blocks of travertine in ancient times. The limbs and head were separated from the torso and were attached later. In 1836 the bronze figure came into the possession of the Papal States . The Danish sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen added a helmet to the statue, which was later removed.
Mars from Todi with helmet
detail
inscription
At the lower end of the armor an inscription is carved in the Umbrian language with Etruscan letters . According to the writing habits of the Etruscans, the dedication inscription is written from right to left with mirror-inverted letters.
detail
inscription
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The transcribed reading is:
- AHAL TRUTITIS DUNUM DEDE
Noteworthy is the use of the letter D, which is missing in the Etruscan alphabet, since the corresponding D sound does not occur in the Etruscan language. The Umbrians first used Etruscan and later Latin letters for their inscriptions . Therefore, it cannot be conclusively determined whether an Umbrian or Etruscan wrote the inscription.
AHAL TRUTITIS appears to be the name of a person of Celtic origin. DUNUM is accusative meaning gift . DEDE is a third-person perfect verb and stands for he gave . Overall, the equivalent translation results:
- Ahal Trutitis gave this as a consecration gift.
The Umbrian language is related to the Oscar language and is similar to Latin . The inscription would end with DONUM DEDIT in Latin.
interpretation
The Etruscans were accomplished metalworkers and Orvieto (Etruscan Velzna , Latin Volsinii ) was particularly known for the production of bronze statues. The Romans supposedly removed 2,000 bronzes from Volsinii when they did it in 265 BC. Conquered. The Mars of Todi could have been originally produced there. But it is also conceivable that the bronze figure was made in Perugia (Etruscan Persna ) or in Todi (Umbrian Tutere , Latin Tuder ). Both cities were also known for outstanding bronze work. The Umbrian city of Todi was culturally and politically under Etruscan influence. The inscription, written in Umbrian, shows that the statue was intended for the Umbrian market.
The religions of ancient Italy relied heavily on votive practices. Offerings in a temple or sanctuary were intended to establish or confirm an agreement between the donor and a deity. Votive offerings could be modest objects from everyday life or larger prestige objects such as the Mars of Todi. It can be assumed that the statue was dedicated to the god of war. For the Etruscans this was laran , while the Umbrians, like the Romans, worshiped Mars as the god of war. The libation before the battle was the opportunity to ask the god of war for support and success in battle.
The bronze statue could also represent the god of war himself, as the name Mars von Todi suggests. The combination of lance and donation bowl as an attribute of a deity speaks for this. The design of the bronze in the classical sculpture style indicates that the artist was familiar with Mediterranean style conventions. If the statue were only the image of a mortal, the left hand would have to be raised to accompany the donation in prayer. The find circumstances also speak for the representation of a deity. The figure was carefully buried as if it were a burial, a common practice in antiquity when a cult statue was desecrated, for example by a lightning strike. Perhaps the bronze stood on a podium as a statue of a god and fell from a lightning strike, so that a ritual burial was necessary.
A mediating point of view is also represented in the research: The Mars of Todi was initially a votive offering from Ahal Trutitis and, in a second use, a cult image of the god of war. The fact that the founder was probably of Celtic origin gives the dedication of an Etruscan artifact in an Umbrian sanctuary a cosmopolitan element and testifies to a heterogeneous culture on the Italian peninsula at the time.
See also
literature
- Giuliano Bonfante , Larissa Bonfante : The Etruscan Language. An Introduction. 2nd Edition. Manchester University Press, Manchester / New York 2002, ISBN 0719055407 , p. 26.
- Nancy Thomson de Grummond (Ed.): Encyclopedia of the History of Classical Archeology. Routledge, New York 1996, ISBN 188496480X , p. 540.
- Hugh Honor, John Fleming: A World History of Art. Laurence King Publishing, London 2005, ISBN 1856694518 , p. 163.
- Erika Simon : Writings on Etruscan and Italian art and religion. Franz Steiner Verlag, Stuttgart 1996, ISBN 3515069410 , pp. 21-22 and p. 207.
