This comprehensive survey of Etruscan civilization, from its origin in the Villanovan Iron Age in the ninth century B.C. to its absorption by Rome in the first century B.C., combines well-known aspects of the Etruscan world with new discoveries and fresh insights into the role of women in Etruscan society. In addition, the Etruscans are contrasted to the Greeks, whom they often emulated, and to the Romans, who at once admired and disdained them. The result is a compelling and complete picture of a people and a culture. This in-depth examination of Etruria examines how differing access to mineral wealth, trade routes, and agricultural land led to distinct regional variations. Heavily illustrated with ancient Etruscan art and cultural objects, the text is organized both chronologically and thematically, interweaving archaeological evidence, analysis of social structure, descriptions of trade and burial customs, and an examination of pottery and works of art.

In The Etruscan Cities and Rome, H. H. Scullard examines the cities of Etruria, the dominant power on the Italian peninsula just prior to the ascendancy of Rome. Though eventually conquered by the Romans, the Etruscans exerted enormous influence on Roman political and social institutions. Scullard describes the mysterious origins of these people, their years of conquest and expansion, and their encounters with Greeks, Romans, Celts, and others. Generously illustrated, the book admirably captures the distinct qualities of Etruria's various urban centers - from the southern cities, where art and handicrafts flourished, to the metal-working northern cities, to the outlying Etruscan areas of Latium and Campania.

The Etruscans have long fascinated scholars, artists, historians, and even the general public primarily due to their mysteriousness and the lack of information about them. These ancient peoples lived in Etruria, a region of Central Italy situated between the Arno and Tiber Rivers. Their civilization reached its height of wealth and power during the sixth century BCE. Their way of life, dress, religious beliefs, and so many more cultural elements would later be adopted and integrated by the Romans. They would come to dominate much of Europe, Asia Minor, and North Africa. The origins of the Etruscans have been a source of debate for centuries. Herodotus was the first to claim that they were the descendants of a group of people from Lydia in the Middle East, who their king had sent before relieving the pressures of an eighteen-year drought before 800 BCE. A few centuries later, another Greek historian, Dionysius of Halicarnassus, would claim that the Etruscans were native to Etruria and the descendants of the Villanovan culture.

During the last millennium B.C., before the coming of the Romans, the Etruscans built a thriving civilization in the western Mediterranean basin, which was rich in natural resources. From the eighth century B.C., Etruria became a destination on the Italian peninsula for refined works by artisans of the Hellenic regions, the Near East, and central Europe, and for masters from these regions, who emigrated and began to work for the local clientele. These artisans would contribute significantly to the development of an art that was recognizably Etruscan. The influence of Etruscan civilization on other cultures has received less attention from archaeologists than has the effect of the Eastern and Greek worlds on Etruscan culture. This lavishly illustrated volume seeks to redress this imbalance by tracing the Etruscans' impact beyond Etruria. It focuses on the panorama of their commerce and the Etruscan ideological and cultural initiatives that radiated from their native territory into other regions. Etruscan civilization spread across a surprisingly vast area, from ancient Italy out into the Mediterranean basin and continental Europe. The book devotes new attention to details that vary from region to region, with a number of chapters devoted to regional specialists. They offer fresh perspectives on the history, art, and political organization of a culture that, in many ways, remains mysterious.