05 · Caere · a banquet modelled in terracotta
Two voices in an urn The Sarcophagus of the Spouses
It looks like a monumental sarcophagus, but it was an urn for ashes reconstructed from hundreds of fragments.
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History and context Evidence and facts Objects connected through time Further reading Reference images Location and territory Where it is held Sources and references Comments Museum documentation · free public access, no account required.
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Main image 2 RECONSTRUCTION FROM ORIGINAL · AI · CC BY-SA 4.0 Reconstruction · Declared visual hypothesis
Interpretive reconstruction with AI from a photograph by Sailko with background adaptation by Waterborough, CC BY-SA4.0. Adaptation distributed CC BY-SA4.0. Changes: removal of the ground and modern supports, neutral lighting and conservative surface finish. It is not an archaeological photograph nor a certified restitution. Microdetails, finish and colour are interpretive approximations.
Tracekeepers / OpenAI ImageGen; source photograph: Sailko; background adaptation by Waterborough · Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Villa Giulia · Inventory: Código catálogo patrimonial1200655033 (no número de inventario) · CC BY-SA 4.0
View full image: RECONSTRUCTION FROM ORIGINAL · AI · CC BY-SA 4.0 RECONSTRUCTION FROM ORIGINAL · AI · CC BY-SA 4.0 Reconstruction · Declared visual hypothesis
Interpretive reconstruction with AI from a photograph by Sailko with background adaptation by Waterborough, CC BY-SA4.0. Adaptation distributed CC BY-SA4.0. Changes: removal of the ground and modern supports, neutral lighting and conservative surface finish. It is not an archaeological photograph nor a certified restitution. Microdetails, finish and colour are interpretive approximations.
Tracekeepers / OpenAI ImageGen; source photograph: Sailko; background adaptation by Waterborough · Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Villa Giulia · Inventory: Código catálogo patrimonial1200655033 (no número de inventario) · CC BY-SA 4.0
View full image: ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPH · Sailko; background adaptation by Waterborough · CC BY-SA 4.0 ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPH · Sailko; background adaptation by Waterborough · CC BY-SA 4.0 Documentary original · Exact correspondence
Documentary photograph without semantic retouching. Preserves the condition and visible details of the reference piece.
Sailko; background adaptation by Waterborough · Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Villa Giulia · Inventory: Código catálogo patrimonial1200655033 (no número de inventario) · CC BY-SA 4.0
History and context A reclining couple shares the same banquet couch. Their legs are reduced beneath the volume of the cushion, while faces, braids and hands dominate the scene. The work was modelled in parts, fired and assembled at almost human scale.
Calling them spouses is reasonable, not certain: the exact relationship is not written. Their visual equality has fed readings about the social position of Etruscan women, although an aristocratic funerary image is not enough to describe the whole society.
The work measures approximately 1.40 metres high by 2.02 metres long and was reassembled from about four hundred fragments. Although its usual name says sarcophagus, the museum classifies it as a cinerary urn intended for cremated remains.
The empty hands retained the memory of lost accessories, perhaps a cup and a perfume vessel. That emptiness reveals how an image depended on added objects and how restoration must distinguish what is preserved from gestural reconstruction.
Evidence and interpretation Documented fact: the ETRU Museum dates the urn to 530–520 BCE, identifies it as polychrome terracotta and explains its cinerary function. Interpretation and caution: marriage, the original gesture of the hands and the social scope of the couple's apparent equality are not fully demonstrated.
Expanded documented fact: Polychrome terracotta cinerary urn, 530–520 BCE, found in the eastern area of the Banditaccia and reassembled from about 400 fragments.
Expanded interpretation and caution: "Spouses" and the objects held are plausible identifications, not inscribed facts; the compositional equality does not demonstrate general social equality.
Catalogue facts
Narrative date 530–520 BCE
Location Necropolis of the Banditaccia, Cerveteri
Material Polychrome terracotta
Context Monumental cinerary urn of funerary banquet
Curatorial reading The documented fact and its interpretation appear separately in the evidence block.
Dimensions 140 × 202 cm
Conservation Reassembled from about 400 fragments
Museological typology Cinerary urn, despite the traditional name
Documentary coverage 2 museum, heritage, primary corpus or research sources for this stop. Terracotta9 Sculpture54 Human imagery73 Funerary contexts64 Cremation7
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2 / 8 In the centre: Two voices in an urn
Also connected, without a comparable date (1) These objects are not placed after the others: an unknown date does not mean a more recent object.
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Sculpture Lion-man · ≈40,000 years · Aurignacian · PrehistoryLespugue · ≈28,000 years · PrehistoryZaraysk Bison · ≈23,000–21,000 years · PrehistoryShigir Idol · C. 10,000 BCE · approximation; debated dating · PrehistoryWarka Mask · End of the 4th millennium BCE · SumerGebel el-Arak knife · 3600–3200 BCE · Naqada II C–D · Ancient EgyptUruk Vase · ca. 3300–3000 BCE · SumerNarmer Palette · ca. 3100 BCE · Ancient EgyptBefore Yayoi · Middle Jōmon, ca. 3000 BCE · Yayoi JapanUr-Nanshe relief · Mid-3rd millennium BCE · reign of Ur-Nanshe · SumerThe goat from PG 1237 · ca. 2600–2400 BCE · SumerStele of the Vultures · Towards 2450–2425 BCE · SumerAkkadian sovereign head · Akkadian period · 23rd century BCE · SumerBassetki Statue · Akkadian period · 23rd century BCE · SumerNaram-Sin Stele · Reign of Naram-Sin, 2254–2218 BCE · SumerBefore Pre-Inca Cultures · Kotosh-Mito Tradition, c. 2200–1500 BCE; the enclosure is usually situated around 1800 BCE. · Pre-Inca culturesQueen of the Night · 19th–18th centuries BCE · SumerBull-leaping · c. 1600–1450 BCE · Greek worldsWooden faces · c. 1600–1000 BCE, in several phases · Maya worldsHead 2 · c. 1200–900 BCE · Maya worldsThe voice of Ahiram · c. 11th–10th century BCE · PhoeniciansBefore the Scythians and Sakas · Final Bronze–Initial Iron, ca. 1200–600 BCE · Scythians and SakaBlack Obelisk · 825 BCE · SumerIvory in Nimrud · 9th–8th centuries BCE · PhoeniciansLas Limas · c. 1000–600 BCE · Maya worldsAstarte from El Carambolo · 8th century BCE · PhoeniciansAstarte from El Carambolo · 8th century BCE · IberiansLamassu of Khorsabad · Reign of Sargon II · 721–705 BCE · SumerThe Lanzón · c. 900–500 BCE · Pre-Inca culturesStele of Esarhaddon · 7th century BC C. · 671 campaign BCE · SumerThe so-called ‘Priest of Cádiz’ · 7th century BCE · PhoeniciansThe so-called ‘Priest of Cádiz’ · 7th century BCE · IberiansThe Tello Obelisk · c. 800–500 BCE · Pre-Inca culturesAshurbanipal Hunt · 645–635 BCE · SumerHeads on the wall · c. 800–300 BCE · Pre-Inca culturesTwo voices in an urn · 530–520 BCE · Etruscans and Rome — You are viewingThe god on the roof · Towards 510–500 BCE · Etruscans and RomeGlazed brick guards · 522–486 BCE · Achaemenid PersiaTwenty-three delegations · 6th–5th centuries BCE, mainly under Darius and Xerxes · Achaemenid PersiaSarcophagus of Eshmunazar · first quarter of the 5th century BCE · PhoeniciansThe statue was the urn · First half of the 4th century BCE · IberiansThe Raimondi Stele · c. 400–200 BCE according to MNAAHP · Pre-Inca culturesTorreáguila fountain spout · 101–125 CE · Etruscans and RomeThe date of 292 · 292 CE · Maya worldsArticulated doll from Tarragona · Late 3rd–4th century CE · Etruscans and RomeSeven heads · c. 500–700 CE · Bantu-speaking worldsSeated figure · 13th century, date attributed by the museum · Mande WorldsGold rhinoceros · ca. 1220–1290; found in 1933 · Bantu-speaking worldsZimbabwe birds · main period of Great Zimbabwe, c. 12th–15th centuries · Bantu-speaking worldsKongo crucifix · 16th–17th centuries · Bantu-speaking worldsKuba ndop · ca. 1760 · Bantu-speaking worldsWithout a comparable date (not part of the chronological order):
Before Persia · Central core c. seventeenth century BCE; Neo-Elamite additions between the ninth and sixth centuries BCE · Achaemenid PersiaLararium of Vilauba · Roman period · Etruscans and RomeThe Thracian Horseman · Roman era · diffusion especially in the 2nd–3rd centuries CE · ThraciansHuman imagery Lion-man · ≈40,000 years · Aurignacian · PrehistoryHohle Fels · ≈40,000 years · Aurignacian · PrehistoryWillendorf · ≈29,500 years · PrehistoryBrno II Articulated Figure · ≈28,000 years cal BP · by funerary association · PrehistoryDolní Věstonice I · ≈29,000–27,000 years · PrehistoryLespugue · ≈28,000 years · PrehistoryKostenki I · ≈23,000–21,000 years · PrehistoryShigir Idol · C. 10,000 BCE · approximation; debated dating · PrehistoryNahal Hemar mask · Eighth millennium BCE · context dating, not direct dating of the stone · PrehistoryEl Miradero spatula-idols · ≈4000–3800 cal BCE · PrehistoryWarka Mask · End of the 4th millennium BCE · SumerCueva de las Manos · Sequence ≈9300–1300 BP · PrehistoryUruk Vase · ca. 3300–3000 BCE · SumerWorshiper of Tell Asmar · Towards 2900–2600 BCE · SumerStandard of Ur · ca. 2600–2400 BCE · SumerStatue of Ebih-Il · Towards 2400 BCE · SumerAkkadian sovereign head · Akkadian period · 23rd century BCE · SumerBassetki Statue · Akkadian period · 23rd century BCE · SumerBefore Pre-Inca Cultures · Kotosh-Mito Tradition, c. 2200–1500 BCE; the enclosure is usually situated around 1800 BCE. · Pre-Inca culturesQueen of the Night · 19th–18th centuries BCE · SumerBull-leaping · c. 1600–1450 BCE · Greek worldsWooden faces · c. 1600–1000 BCE, in several phases · Maya worldsHead 2 · c. 1200–900 BCE · Maya worldsIvory in Nimrud · 9th–8th centuries BCE · PhoeniciansLas Limas · c. 1000–600 BCE · Maya worldsAstarte from El Carambolo · 8th century BCE · PhoeniciansAstarte from El Carambolo · 8th century BCE · IberiansLamassu of Khorsabad · Reign of Sargon II · 721–705 BCE · SumerThe Lanzón · c. 900–500 BCE · Pre-Inca culturesOffering 4 · c. 800–600 BCE · Maya worldsKushite king · c. 721–664 BCE · Nubia, Kerma and KushThe so-called ‘Priest of Cádiz’ · 7th century BCE · PhoeniciansThe so-called ‘Priest of Cádiz’ · 7th century BCE · IberiansHeads on the wall · c. 800–300 BCE · Pre-Inca culturesShabti of Psamtek · 570–526 BCE · Ancient EgyptTwo voices in an urn · 530–520 BCE · Etruscans and Rome — You are viewingThe god on the roof · Towards 510–500 BCE · Etruscans and RomeGlazed brick guards · 522–486 BCE · Achaemenid PersiaTwenty-three delegations · 6th–5th centuries BCE, mainly under Darius and Xerxes · Achaemenid PersiaBanquet under leopards · Around 480–470 BCE · Etruscans and RomeThe statue was the urn · First half of the 4th century BCE · IberiansA battle on a comb · Early 4th century BCE · Scythians and SakaThe Kul-Oba vase · 4th century BCE · Greek worldsThe Solokha gold comb · 4th century BCE · Greek worldsFaces of the Steppe · Second half of the 4th century BCE · Scythians and SakaLady of Ibiza · 4th–3rd centuries BCE · PhoeniciansPunic head pendant · Mid 4th–3rd centuries BCE · PhoeniciansLady of Ibiza · 4th–3rd centuries BCE · IberiansThe Raimondi Stele · c. 400–200 BCE according to MNAAHP · Pre-Inca culturesChão de Lamas pectoral · 3rd–2nd centuries BCE · concealed in the early 1st century BCE · IberiansVas dels Guerrers · 3rd–early 2nd century BCE · IberiansWarriors' Vase · 3rd–2nd centuries BCE · IberiansThe dismantled cauldron · 2nd–1st centuries BCE · Celtic worldsThe walls of San Bartolo · c. 100 BCE · Maya worldsGladiators Cup of Chavagnes · 25–75 CE · Etruscans and RomeThracian Gladiator from Cádiz · 67–100 CE · Etruscans and RomeTorreáguila fountain spout · 101–125 CE · Etruscans and RomeArticulated doll from Tarragona · Late 3rd–4th century CE · Etruscans and RomeSeven heads · c. 500–700 CE · Bantu-speaking worldsSeated figure · 13th century, date attributed by the museum · Mande WorldsKongo crucifix · 16th–17th centuries · Bantu-speaking worldsKuba ndop · ca. 1760 · Bantu-speaking worldsWithout a comparable date (not part of the chronological order):
Before Persia · Central core c. seventeenth century BCE; Neo-Elamite additions between the ninth and sixth centuries BCE · Achaemenid PersiaBhimbetka · Mesolithic–historical and medieval period · PrehistoryEland Cave · Regional tradition of ≈4,000 years · up to historical period · PrehistoryFour offerers · Iberian period · individual dating according to catalogue · IberiansGame Pass Shelter · Regional rock art chronology · panel not dated in isolation · San historiesLararium of Vilauba · Roman period · Etruscans and RomeLeang Karampuang · Minimum 51,200 years · dating published in 2024 · PrehistoryQuinkan Country · Regional art up to ≈27,000 BP · modern continuity · PrehistorySierra de San Francisco · Broad tradition with direct dates ≈5290–295 BP · PrehistoryTassili n’Ajjer · Corpus ≈6000 BCE–first centuries CE · PrehistoryThe Thracian Horseman · Roman era · diffusion especially in the 2nd–3rd centuries CE · ThraciansFunerary contexts Brno II Articulated Figure · ≈28,000 years cal BP · by funerary association · Prehistory'Jamila's' necklace · ≈7250–7000 BCE · PrehistoryThe Gold of Varna · Towards 4600–4200 BCE · ThraciansEl Miradero spatula-idols · ≈4000–3800 cal BCE · PrehistoryGuadancil idol-plaque · 3750–2500 cal BCE · IberiansStaff of Anta 4 · Late 4th–first half of the 3rd millennium BCE. · PrehistoryAbydos Boats · ca. 3000 BCE · Ancient EgyptQueen's Lyre · ca. 2600–2500 BCE · SumerPuabi headdress · ca. 2600–2450 BCE · SumerStandard of Ur · ca. 2600–2400 BCE · SumerCemetery R-37 · ca. 2550–2030 BCE · Indus civilisationKerma vessel · c. 1802–1640 BCE · Nubia, Kerma and KushGrave Circle A and Chrysolakkos · 18th–16th centuries BCE · Greek worldsBurial at K IV · circa 1750–1550 BCE · Nubia, Kerma and KushBefore Vedic India · c. 1900–1300 BCE · Vedic and later Indian worldsOsmankayası and Ilıca · ca. 1700/1650–1200 BCE · HittitesTutankhamun's grave goods · death towards 1323 BCE · Ancient EgyptFu Hao’s burial goods · ca. 1200 BCE · Ancient ChinaThe voice of Ahiram · c. 11th–10th century BCE · PhoeniciansBefore Etruscans and Rome · ca. 850–800 BCE · Etruscans and RomeThe urn under the helmet · 9th–8th centuries BCE · Etruscans and RomeTomb 1 at Kuntur Wasi · c. 800 BCE · Pre-Inca culturesBeads from Cerro de los Vientos · 8th–7th centuries BCE · orientalizing · IberiansCeramic stand 1010 · 8th–7th centuries BCE · orientalizing · IberiansRegolini-Galassi tomb · ca. 675–650 BCE · Etruscans and RomeShabti of Psamtek · 570–526 BCE · Ancient EgyptTwo voices in an urn · 530–520 BCE · Etruscans and Rome — You are viewingThe great Greek krater of Vix · ≈530–500 BCE · Greek worldsSteppe kurgans · 7th–4th centuries BCE · Scythians and SakaVix Tomb · c. 500 BCE · Celtic worldsLa Venta grave goods · ca. 600–400 BCE · Maya worldsSarcophagus of Eshmunazar · first quarter of the 5th century BCE · PhoeniciansBanquet under leopards · Around 480–470 BCE · Etruscans and RomeTwenty-six voiceless signs · 5th–4th centuries BCE · Scythians and SakaThe oldest knotted carpet · 5th–4th centuries BCE · Scythians and SakaThe statue was the urn · First half of the 4th century BCE · IberiansGrave goods of Baza and Toya · First half of the 4th century BCE · IberiansThe Attic krater that took on a new life in Cástulo · 4th century BCE · Greek worldsThe silver amphora of Chertomlyk · 4th century BCE · Greek worldsThe Kul-Oba vase · 4th century BCE · Greek worldsSusa grave goods · c. 350 BCE · Achaemenid PersiaFaces of the Steppe · Second half of the 4th century BCE · Scythians and SakaLady of Ibiza · 4th–3rd centuries BCE · Phoenicians453 astragali from Alarcos · 4th–3rd centuries BCE · necropolis chronology · IberiansLady of Ibiza · 4th–3rd centuries BCE · IberiansFalcata from Almedinilla · 4th–3rd centuries BCE · IberiansGolyamata Kosmatka · End of the 4th century – beginning of the 3rd century BCE; ritual burial at the beginning of the III according to Iskra. · ThraciansThe blade became straight · 5th–1st centuries BCE · Gojoseon and early KoreaGeometry in very fine lines · 3rd–2nd centuries BCE · Gojoseon and early KoreaNorthern mound · 2nd–1st centuries BCE · Yayoi JapanTwo rows of coffins · Mainly Middle Yayoi, 2nd century BCE–1st century CE · Yayoi JapanKabusanza, ca. 400 · ca. 400 CE · Batwa / Twa historiesPakal’s grave goods · sealed on 28 August 683 CE · Maya worldsMissing grave goods · 13th–15th centuries according to the heritage overview · Bantu-speaking worldsWithout a comparable date (not part of the chronological order):
Cremation Osmankayası and Ilıca · ca. 1700/1650–1200 BCE · HittitesBefore Etruscans and Rome · ca. 850–800 BCE · Etruscans and RomeThe urn under the helmet · 9th–8th centuries BCE · Etruscans and RomeTwo voices in an urn · 530–520 BCE · Etruscans and Rome — You are viewingThe statue was the urn · First half of the 4th century BCE · IberiansWithout a comparable date (not part of the chronological order):
A closer look About 1 min to read · 1 section. Further reading and sources · free access. Editorial review recorded: September 5, 2026 .
The bed retains traces of a more colourful appearance The Italian national cultural heritage catalogue records traces of intense colour on the legs of the bed and compares its conservation with that of another example from Cerveteri, now in the Louvre. It also explains that the modelling was cut vertically in two halves to reduce risks during firing. These details return the object to a workshop dimension: calculating drying, controlling the kiln and applying colour were part of the work. The current earthy tone must not be confused with its ancient presentation, nor the Louvre example with this same piece.
Reference images and provenance View full-size photograph ⛶ ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPH · Sailko; background adaptation by Waterborough · CC BY-SA 4.0 Documentary photograph without semantic retouching. Preserves the condition and visible details of the reference piece.
Documentary original · Exact correspondence
Sailko; background adaptation by Waterborough · Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Villa Giulia · Inventory: Código catálogo patrimonial1200655033 (no número de inventario)
Location and territory Physical world map with routes of human evolution Present-day world coastline from Natural Earth in an equirectangular projection. The overlaid markers let you explore each milestone. Map base: Natural Earth 1:110m · public domain · present-day reference coastline LOCATED SITE
Cerveteri · Italy Marker of the necropolises of Caere. Where it is held Item or group in the record · Documented collection
The holding institution is documented; public display may change. Check its official record before visiting.
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