Where did the Etruscans bury their dead?

The Etruscans buried their dead in necropolises laid out outside the cities, often on the other side of a road or in the nearby hills. Practices varied according to periods and cities: ashes were placed in urns, or the deceased were buried in pits and funerary chambers. Some tombs were individual, others served the same family over several generations.

The burials could be carved into rock, built as chambers or covered with a large mound of earth, the tumulus. At Banditaccia, near Cerveteri, the tombs almost form a city, with streets and neighborhoods; at Tarquinia, some chambers are decorated with paintings. In Maremma, you can see examples at Vetulonia, along the Via dei Sepolcri: the tumulus of the Diavolino II measures about 60 meters in diameter. The tombs of Populonia and the rock-cut burials around Sovana show other forms. The objects found in the tombs — tableware, jewelry or weapons — tell us about the rites and the status of the deceased, but the necropolises do not all tell the same story.