Volsinii

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This article deals with the Etruscan site near Orvieto ( Volsinii veteres ). For the Roman foundation Volsinii novi see Bolsena .

Volsinii (Etruscan Velsuna or Velzna ) was one of the most important and oldest cities of the Etruscan League of Twelve Cities . It was not far from the confluence of the Clanis and Tiber rivers on a steep cliff.

In Volsinii one suspects the central sanctuary of Voltumna , the supreme deity of the Etruscan religion . The rich and powerful city fought several wars against Rome , for example in 392 BC. BC, 308 BC BC and 294 BC BC, to finally come from Rome only after 30 years of resistance in 264 BC. To be conquered and destroyed under the consul Marcus Fulvius Flaccus , whereby no less than 2000 statues are said to have been looted. The former residents were forced to settle in a less defensible place at Lacus Volsiniensis (now Lake Bolsena ), known for its fish and waterfowl , in Volsinii novi , now Bolsena .

It is not yet completely clear whether Volsinii can be identified with today's Orvieto , in the immediate vicinity of which the Etruscan necropolis Crocefissio nel Tuffo is located. This tomb is a typical necropolis of the Hellenistic period. The name goes back to the tufa stone from which the tombs and the rock on which Orvieto lies are made.

See also

• Peter Rühmkorf : What does Volsinii mean here? Moving scenes from classic business life. Rowohlt, Reinbek bei Hamburg 1969 (stage play that goes back to the Etruscan studies of the poet during his time in the Villa Massimo ).