Volterra - Museo Etrusco Guarnacci

In Volterra and the surrounding area rich finds of Etruscan material have been made, and the Guarnacci Etruscan Museum has a remarkable collection of this material. It owes its existence to a local prelate, Mario Guarnacci (1701-85), who bequeathed his collection to the town; together with a collection of Etruscan urns assembled by another ecclesiastic, Canon Franceschini, in the years before 1732, formed the basic stock of the museum, which also contains prehistoric and Roman material. The Etruscan section of the museum gives an excellent view of the life and culture of this people about whom so little is known. It contains more than 600 cinerary urns of tufa, alabaster or terracotta, mostly dating from the fourth to first centuries B.C. Of particular interest are two urns with reliefs depicting the Siege of Thebes, on one of which (No. 371) is an arched gateway resembling the Arco Etrusco. Other items include a crater (mixing vessel) from Attica, funerary stelae, jewelry, coins, etc.