Volaterrae
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- an ancient town in Etruria, now Volterra, Liv. 10, 12; Cic. Rosc. Am. 7, 20.
- —Hence, Vŏlāterrā-nus, a, um, adj., of or belonging to Volaterrae, Volaterran: Vada, a seaport belonging to the territories of Volaterrae, now Torre di Vado, Plin. 3, 5, 8, § 50; Cic. Quint. 6, 24. —Plur. subst.: Vŏlāterrāni, ōrum, m., the inhabitants of Volaterrae, the Volaterrans, Plin. 3, 5, 8, § 52; Cic. Caecin. 7, 18; id. Att. 1, 19, 4; Liv. 28, 45 al.
VOLATERRAE (Οὐολατέρραι: Eth. Volaterranus: Volterra), one of the most important and powerful of all the Etruscan cities. It was situated on a lofty hill, rising above the valley of the Cecina, about 5 miles N. of that river and 15 from the sea. Strabo has well described its remarkable situation on the summit of a hill, which required a steep ascent of 15 stadia from whatever side it was approached, while the summit itself presented a level surface of considerable extent, bounded on all sides by precipices, and crowned by the walls of the ancient city. (Strab. 5. p. 223.) The hill on which it stands is, according to modern measurements, more than 1700 English feet in height above the sea, and completely overlooks all the surrounding heights, so that the position of the city is extremely commanding. It is indeed the most striking instance of the kind of position which the Etruscans seem to have generally preferred for their cities.
There can be no doubt of the great antiquity of Volaterrae, nor that it was, from the earliest period of Etruscan history with which we have any acquaintance, one of the twelve principal cities of the Etruscan confederation: this conclusion, to which we should be irresistibly led by the still existing proofs of its ancient greatness, is confirmed by the earliest notice of it that we find in history, where it appears as one of the five Etruscan cities which furnished support to the Latins in their war with Tarquinius Priscus. (Dionys. 3.51.) But from this time we find no subsequent mention of Volaterrae in history till a much later period. Its remoteness from Rome will indeed sufficiently account for the fact that its name never figures in the long protracted wars of the Romans with the southern Etruscans; but even after the Roman arms had been carried into the heart of Etruria, and the cities of Perusia and Arretium took active part in the wars, we find no mention of Volaterrae. In B.C. 298, however, we are told that the Roman consul L. Scipio was encountered near Volaterrae by the combined forces of the Etruscans (Liv. 10.12), among which there is little doubt that those of the Volaterrans themselves were included, though this is not expressly stated. But we do not again find their name noticed in the extant accounts of these wars, and the terms on which they were finally reduced to submission by the Romans are unknown to us. We learn only that in common with most of the Etruscans they were received on the footing of dependent allies, and they appear among the sociiw ho in the Second Punic War came forward to furnish supplies for the fleet of Scipio, B.C. 205. On that occasion the Volaterrans provided materials for shipbuilding as well as corn. (Liv. 28.45.) From this time we hear no more of Volaterrae till the civil wars between Marius and Sulla, when the city espoused the cause of the former, and from its great natural strength became the last stronghold of the Marian party in Etruria, and indeed in Italy. It was besieged by Sulla himself long after every other city in Italy had submitted, and did not surrender till after a siege or rather blockade of two years' duration. (Strab. 5. p. 223; Liv. Epit. lxxxix.; Cic. pro Rose. Amer. 7, pro Caec. 7.) As a punishment for its obstinacy, its territory was confiscated by the conqueror; but it appears that it was never actually divided, and the citizens who had survived the calamities of the war remained in possession of their lands, as well as of the rights of Roman citizens, which had been doubtless conferred upon them in common with the other Etruscans by the Lex Julia in B.C. 89. (Cic. pro Dom. 30, ad Fays. 13.4, 5, ad Att. 1.19.) It appears that another attempt was made to dispossess them by an agrarian law in the consulship of Cicero, but this calamity was averted from them by the efforts of the great orator, to whom the citizens in consequence became warmly attached (Id. ad Fam. 13.4), and it appears probable that Caesar subsequently confirmed them in the possession both of their lands and municipal privileges. (Ib. )
Volaterrae, however, certainly received a colony under the Triumvirate (Lib. Col. p. 214), but does not appear to have retained the title of a Colonia: it is expressly included by Pliny among the municipal towns of Etruria. (Plin. Nat. 3.5. s. 8; Ptol. 3.1.48.) We find no mention of the name in history under the Roman Empire; but it is certain that the city continued to exist; and it appears again, after the fall of the Western Empire, as a place of importance during the wars of the Goths with Narses (Agath. B. G. 1.11). It continued to subsist throughout the middle ages, and still retains the title of a city and its episcopal see; though it has little more than 4000 inhabitants, and occupies only a small portion of the area of the ancient city. The latter is clearly marked out, having comprised the whole level surface of the hill, a very irregular space, above a mile and a half in length and more than 1000 yards in its greatest breadth: the whole circuit of the ancient walls is above three miles and a quarter. Very large portions of these walls are still visible, and these massive fortifications are incontestably the finest specimens of the kind now existing in Etruria: they resemble in their general style of construction those of Faesulae and Cortona, but are composed of a different material, a soft, arenaceous limestone, which composes the whole summit of the hill on which Volterra stands. This stone, however, like the macigno of Fiesole and Cortona, lends itself readily to the horizontal structure, and is wholly distinct from the hard Apennine limestone of which the polygonal walls of Cosa and other cities are composed. These walls may be traced, at intervals, all round the brow of the hill, following the broken and irregular outlines of its summit, and frequently taking advantage of projecting points to form bold salient angles and outworks. Two of the ancient gates are still preserved; of which the one called the Porta all‘ Arco still serves as the principal entrance to the city. It is of very massive construction, but regularly built, and surmounted by an arch of perfectly regular form and structure, adorned with three sculptured heads, projecting in relief from the keystone and two of the principal voussoirs. The antiquity of this arch has been a subject of much dispute among antiquarians; some maintaining it to be a specimen of genuine Etruscan architecture, others ascribing it to the Roman period. The arguments in favour of the latter view seem on the whole to preponderate; though there is no reason to doubt that the Etruscans were acquainted with the true principles of the construction of the arch. (Dennis's Etruria, vol. ii. pp. 146--150; Micali, Antichi Popoli Italiani, vol. iii. pp. 4, 5.
The gate itself is figured by Micali, pl. 7, 8; and by Abeken, Mittel-Italien, pl. 2, fig. 4.
) The other gate, on the N. side of the Etruscan walls, now known as the Porta di Diana or Portone, is of similar plan and construction to the Porta all‘ Arco; but the arch is wanting.No other remains of ancient edifices are now extant on the site of Volaterrae, except some portions of Thermae, of Roman date and little interest; but the sepulchres which have been excavated on all sides of the city, but particularly on the N. slope of the hill, have yielded a rich harvest of Etruscan antiquities Among these the most conspicuous are the sepulchral urns, or rather chests, for ashes, resembling small sarcophagi, and generally formed of alabaster, a material which is quarried in the immediate neighbourhood. Many of them are adorned with sculptures and bas-reliefs, some of them purely Etruscan in character, others taken from the Greek mythology, and there is no doubt that many of them belong to a period long after the fall of Etruscan independence. The inscriptions are for the most part merely sepulchral, and of little interest; but those of one family are remarkable as preserving to us the original Etruscan form (Ceicna) of the well-known family of the Caecinae, who figure frequently in Roman history [CAECINA Biogr. Dict. ]. Indeed, the first of this family of whom we have any knowledge--the Aulus Caecina defended by Cicero in B.C. 69--was himself a native of Volaterrae (Cic. pro Caec. 7). His son was the author of a work on the Etruscan discipline,w hich is frequently referred to as a valuable source of information in regard to that department of antiquities (Cic. ad Fam. 6.6; Plin. i. Arg. Lib. ii; Senec. Nat. Quaest. 2.39).
There is no doubt that Volaterrae in the days of its independence possessed an extensive territory. Strabo.distinctly tells us (5. p. 223) that its territory extended down to the sea-coast, where the town of VADA or as it was called for distinction's sake, VADA VOLATERRANA constituted its sea-port. It was not indeed a harbour or port in the strict sense of the word; but a mere roadstead, where the shoals, from which it derived its name, afforded a good anchorage and some shelter to shipping. Hence it was, in the Roman times, a frequented station for vessels proceeding along the coast of Etruria (Cic. pro Quinct. 6: Plin. Nat. 3.5. s. 8; Itin. Marit. p. 501); and Rutilius, in particular, has left us an exact description of the locality (Rutil. Itin. 1.453--462). The site is still marked by a mediaeval tower on the coast, called Torre di Vada.
The coins of Volaterrae are numerous, and belong to the class called Aes Grave, from their large size and weight; but they are distinguished from all other Etruscan coins of this class by their having the name of the city in full; whence we learn that the Etruscan form of the name was FELATHRI, or VELATHRI, as on the one of which a figure is annexed. COIN OF VOLATERRAE.
[E.H.B]Now Volaterra, called by the Etruscans Velathri; one of the twelve cities of the Etruscan confederation, built on a lofty and precipitous hill, about 1800 English feet above the level of the sea. It was the most northerly city of the confederation, and its dominions extended eastward as far as the territory of Arretium, which was fifty miles distant; westward as far as the Mediterranean, which was more than twenty miles off; and southward at least as far as Populonia, which was either a colony or an acquisition of Volaterrae. In consequence of possessing the two great ports of Luna and Populonia, Volaterrae, though so far inland, was reckoned as one of the powerful maritime cities of Etruria. We have no record of its conquest by the Romans. Like most of the Etruscan cities, it espoused the Marian party against Sulla ; and it was not till after a siege of two years that the city fell into Sulla 's hands. After the fall of the Western Empire, it was for a time the residence of the Lombard kings. The modern town contains several interesting Etruscan remains.
A city on a high ridge commanding the Cecina river valley to the W, and the Era river valley to the E. In antiquity it was in Regio VII, Etruria. It is mentioned by Pliny (HN 10.29.78), by Cicero (Quinct. 6.24), by Strabo (1.1), by Rutilius Namatianus (1.453), in the Antonine Itinerary (p. 292), in the Itinerarium Marit. (p. 501) and in numerous mediaeval documents. The city was very important in the Etruscan period, when it was called Velathri, and even into the Roman period. In the Etruscan era, it was the defensive fortress of N Etruria and its influence spread from the river Pesa in the E, to the sea at Cecina and Vada in the W; from the river Cornia in the S, to the mountain stream Fine in the N. The city's influence is also documented on gravestones (from Bologna) of the 5th c. B.C., wherein the Cecina, the principal family of Volterra, are mentioned twice; it controlled, in all practical matters, the entire mid area of the river Arno.
Archaeological evidence, both in and around Volterra, begins in the Stone Age, with invasions by the Rinaldone and Remedello civilizations. In the Iron Age there was a notable increase in population, particularly between the 10th and the 7th c. B.C. to judge from tombs at Badia Guerruccia; and then, in the Late Iron Age, by numerous rock-cut tombs at Guerruccia, at Santa Chiara, and from San Giusto to Porta Diana. The empty chambers are still partially visible. From these tombs have come significant ceramic and bronze ware. In this era, the first settlement was established on the acropolis (Piano di Castello), with massive retaining walls, in an area still quite limited. Between the 6th and 5th c. B.C. an enlarging of the area, now the area of the modern city, is notable. It was a self-sustaining settlement (agricultural and mining), with only scattered traces of imports. During the first half of the 4th c. B.C. the encircling walls reached a perimeter of more than 7 km, enclosing an area of 116 ha. With mounting pressure from Rome, the city became the center for the protection of the Etruscan elements of the twelve lucumonies of which Volterra formed a part. In the 3d c. B.C. the city was very nearly subject to Rome, but preserved, by enrollment in the Sabatine tribe, its own organization and continued to exert considerable influence on a large surrounding area. The Cecina (Cic. Fam. 6.6 and Att. 16.4), owners of vast tracts of land, clay pits, kilns and salt beds, dedicated the great theater at Vallebona, N of the settlement. The city's importance outlasted the Middle Ages.
The visible monumental remains of Volterra begin with the Etruscan period. In 1926 there were brought to light the remains of a building, recognized for its sacred character, on the ancient citadel of Piano di Castello. The podium and a meager bit of wall from the building still remain. A road paved with large slabs extends outside the building, which is flanked by other structures, at least one of which is clearly recognizable as a temple. Thus a temple complex is defined which dates from the 4th-3d c. B.C., together with lower structures that have been identified as belonging to the period from the 8th c. to the 5th c. In the excavated area are private dwellings and one or more very deep cisterns probably antedating the 4th c. There seems to have been another area, perhaps sacred in character, at Vallebona, to the E of the present excavations on the Roman theater. A significant foundation of an Etruscan structure has appeared. In addition, remains of a wall probably Etruscan have come to light beneath the orchestra of the theater. The great circuit of the walls, an imposing Etruscan monument, has already been mentioned. Better preserved and visible remains are at Santa Chiara (to the SW), at San Giusto (to the N), and from San Giusto to Porta Diana (from N to E), and some minor remains also; everything is well built of squared blocks.
In the circuit of the walls are two large gates, the Porta Diana and the Porta dell'Arco (the latter entirely rebuilt during the Roman period) with three large human protomi. Notable Etruscan traces are from the necropolis, the rock-cut tombs, at Badia or Montebradoni, at Portone, Marmini, Ulimeto, and Poggio alle Croci. Among all the tombs, one of the most famous is the Inghirami, reconstructed in the National Archaeological Museum in Florence. Also from the Etruscan period came pottery and bronzes and in particular alabaster funerary urns that date from the 3d to the 1st c. B.C., well into the Roman era.
In the Roman period, the settlement was already beginning to shrink, as is evident from the cemeteries (the hypogea of the aristocracy of the Etruscan period were abandoned and the tombs were scattered everywhere, with a dirth of furnishings) and from the public buildings. However, an entire quarter developed outside the Etruscan circuit wall to the N, beginning at the mediaeval Porta Fiorentina. It included a forum, a theater, and a bath building (still another archaeological area probably exists W of the theater). From discoveries of the last few years in the area, some excellent figured mosaics have been recovered. There are remains of another bath building (mosaics and a calidarium) to the SW outside the Porta San Felice and a fine swimming pool on the acropolis of Piano di Castello which continued in use from the Etruscan into the Roman period.
The most significant building, however, is the theater. It was completely hidden, from the Middle Ages on, by the dumping of urban waste from the top of the walls. The theater building itself is now almost totally excavated. Its large cavea, facing N, is crowned to the S by a cryptoporticus to which two inner staircases give access to the theater as they descend to the upper row of seats. A fairly substantial number of the seats, reused in the area to the N of the stage building, were recovered, with names inscribed of the persons for whom they were reserved. The orchestra and the parodoi have been uncovered and, above all, the imposing structure of the stage building, which undoubtedly had two sections. As a result of different finds (busts of Augustus and Drusilla; remains of a dedicatory inscription of the Cecina from the front of the stage), it is almost certain that the theater was erected between 35 and 25 B.C. Behind the stage building, there was a large square with a portico definitely identified on three sides. But to the N, a fourth portico must have closed the square and faced the natural slope of the terrain from a terrace buttressed by a huge sustaining wall. The theater must have fallen into disuse between the 3d and 4th c. Inside the quadriportico and behind the stage building, a bath building was constructed in the square. Nearly all of the environs of the bath have been uncovered.
Most of the finds from Volterra are in the Museo Guarnacci in Volterra and in the National Archaeological Museum in Florence.
BIBLIOGRAPHYG. Dennis, Cities and Cemeteries of Etruria (1848); A. Cinci, Guida di Volterra (1885); D. Levi, NSc (1928) 34-44; G. Caputo & G. Monaco in FA, vols. 4, 9-19; G. Maetzke, StEtr (Rassegna Scavi e scoperte) 25 (1957) 37 (1969) and G. Monaco, ibid., from 27 (1959) to 40 (1972); C. Laviosa, Guida alle stele arcaiche e al materiale volterrano (1962).
O. MONACO