Tomba dell'Orco
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The Tomba dell'Orco (German grave of Orkus or grave of the underworld , also Tomba del Polifemo ) is an Etruscan tomb that belongs to the Monterozzi necropolis in Tarquinia .
The grave was discovered in 1868 by an officer in the French army. Probably during the officer's attempt to detach the frescoes in the burial chamber from the ground in order to transport them to the Louvre in Paris, the previously well-preserved wall paintings are said to have been largely destroyed. Soon afterwards the grave of Louis Schulz was recorded in color drawings and published by Wolfgang Helbig in 1869. From 1895 many frescoes were drawn in detail as part of the Copenhagen documentation project under the direction of Helbig, but not published.
The grave complex originally consisted of two independent burial chambers, which were merged in ancient times. The older is the grave of Velchia or Velia , where steep steps led into an approximately 4.5 × 4.5 m room. In the walls there were niches in which sarcophagi originally stood. The whole chamber was once painted, but not much of it has survived. The picture of a woman, which is one of the most beautiful examples of Etruscan painting, is particularly famous. The grave dates to the end of the 4th century BC. Chr.
The grave of Polyphemus is the other grave complex. The original entrance has not yet been excavated. This grave was also completely painted with figures from Greek mythology . Hades and Persephone appear on the back wall, snakes emerging from their curly hairs. On the left wall you can see Ajax , Teiresias and Agamemnon , on the right wall Theseus and Peirithoos , sitting at a table. Tuchulcha stands behind them . This grave dates from the turn of the 3rd to the 2nd century BC. Chr.
Both tombs were united in antiquity, with parts of the decoration being destroyed. The newly created room was not painted.
While earlier Etruscan tombs show the joys of life, the later ones were often decorated with scenes from the underworld. This tomb provides one of the best examples of this.
literature
- Wolfgang Helbig : Scavi di Corneto. In: Bulletino dell'Instituto di Corrispondenza Archeologica. No. 12, 1869, ZDB -ID 3761-8 , pp. 257-260 .
- Mario Moretti , Leonard von Matt : Etruscan painting in Tarquinia. Du Mont Schauberg, Cologne 1974, ISBN 3-7701-0541-9 , pp. 118–122, figs. 83, 88, 89.
- Stephan Steingräber : Etruria. Cities, sanctuaries, necropolises. Hirmer, Munich 1981, ISBN 3-7774-3330-6 , pp. 391-392.
- Cornelia Weber-Lehmann : Polyphemus in the Underworld? To the Tomba dell'Orco II in Tarquinia. In: Communications of the German Archaeological Institute, Roman Department . Volume 102, 1995, pp. 71-100 ( PDF ).
Web links
Coordinates: 42 ° 14 ′ 48.3 " N , 11 ° 46 ′ 47.6" E