Approaches to Ancient Etruria covers a wide range of topics within the legacy of the Etruscans material and immaterial. Through close examination of the visible we gain insight into the questions of social and cultural identities, and broader questions lead to new interpretations and hypotheses. In fifteen articles, scholars from Italy, Germany, Sweden, Norway and Denmark present recent work on a broad range of Etruscan issues. Contributions include a settlement study and a detailed work on architectural mouldings, and they provide insights into religious practices, burial customs, funerary art, portraiture and social relations, deduced from epigraphical testimonia. Several articles deal with imagery in tombs, tomb paintings, bronze reliefs etc. one presenting a new hypothesis on the scenes on the Tragliatella oinochoe, another examining the Magistratensarkophag from Tomba dei Sarcofagi in Cerveteri while others explore space in tombs or invite the reader to experience images of nature or imagine Etruscan music. Two contributions deal with objects in the Etruscan Collection created by the Danish sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen during his extended sojourn in Rome (17971838). The introduction includes a useful overview of Etruscan studies and Etruscan collections in Denmark.

Tradition from the Latin tradere, literally to hand over or hand down has many meanings and as a concept has a long history in Western culture. When using archaeological remains to interpret the social relations of people of Antiquity, tradition becomes an important concept. We cannot explain change without knowing and being conscious of la longue duree of material culture. Thus, over a long-term perspective archaeologists seek to trace a record of continual change. This lavishly illustrated book takes readers from prehistoric Santorini to Late Antique Rome and discusses the role of tradition in the transmission of culture and the creation, maintenance and negotiation of identity in the ancient world. Covering a wide array of subjects, including cultic rituals and the use of magical objects and symbols, votive traditions in Greek sanctuaries, funerary portraits, and Iron Age pottery, Tradition reveals how culture inheres in each and how actions and objects alike play a role in the continuation and change of culture. With its thoroughly interdisciplinary approach, Tradition breaks new ground in the studies of the classical and ancient world.