Date post: | 02-Jun-2018 |
Category: |
Documents |
Upload: | flanagann-chimaeren-kuenstler |
View: | 219 times |
Download: | 0 times |
of 12
8/10/2019 The Tomb of the Siren
1/12
The Tomb of the SirenAuthor(s): Joseph Coleman CarterSource: American Journal of Archaeology, Vol. 78, No. 2 (Apr., 1974), pp. 131-139Published by: Archaeological Institute of AmericaStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/502797.
Accessed: 22/11/2014 13:02
Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at.
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp
.JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of
content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms
of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].
.
Archaeological Institute of Americais collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to
American Journal of Archaeology.
http://www.jstor.org
http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=aiahttp://www.jstor.org/stable/502797?origin=JSTOR-pdfhttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/stable/502797?origin=JSTOR-pdfhttp://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=aia8/10/2019 The Tomb of the Siren
2/12
T h e o m b
o f
t h i r e n
JOSEPH
COLEMAN
CARTER
PLATES 33-34
The
necropolis
of
Sovana
contains
one of
the
largest,
most
elaborately
decorated
and best
pre-
served
of
the
rock-cut
omb
facadesof Etruria.
The
reliefs
in
its
pediment,
which
represents
Scylla-
like "Siren"
lanked
by
two
winged
figures,
have
long
been
a
major
source
of
its
attraction.
"Mys-
terious
symbols
of a
forgotten
creed"
wrote
the
nineteenth-century
raveler
George
Dennis,
"thus
prominentlydisplayed, hey
cannot fail to stir
the
imagination
f the beholder"
pl. 33,
fig.
I),1
There
was, in fact, a greatdeal more to the monument
than
Dennis saw.
The
pioneering
nvestigation
f
Ranuccio Bianchi
Bandinelli
revealed
mpressive
sculptures
which decorated he lower
part
of the
fagade.2
till,
not all
came
to
light
during
the
cam-
paigns
of
the
1920's.
The
tomb
has
given
up
its
secrets
lowly.
In
June
of
1970,
permission
was
generously
granted
by
the
Soprintendenza
lle
Antichita
at
Florence
o
clean
and documentmore
fully
the re-
liefs
then
known.3
In the
course of
clearing
dirt
from the base a discoverywas made whichaltered
considerably
xisting
interpretations
f
the
facade.
It
provided,
as
well,
the stimulus
or
the
following
re-examination f the
monument.
THE
PEDIMENT4
The
coils
on
the
right
side
of
the
pediment
and
her
torso
are
the
"Siren's" est
preserved
arts (pl.
33,
fig.
3).
The
coils
swell like
waves,
diminishing
in size
toward he
angles
of
the
pediment.
Each of
the
two
coils
on the
right
side
turns
under and
comes
out behind
itself. Extensive
damage
to
the
left side of the
pediment
makes it
impossible
o
determine
what
the
tail on
this side
was
doing.
It
seems
not
to
have
beenso
active
as that
on
the
right
and therefore
as
been
restored
s an
uncomplicated
curve
(ill.
i).
The "Siren"
eans
backward
o
her
right.
There
were no
traces
of
dogs'
heads around
her
waist.
The
lower
edge
of
the
"Siren's"
ight
wing
is
visible,
ust
under
her
extended
arm
(pl.
33,fig. 3).
Its
outline
consists
of
three
small
scallops
and
a
large
one
which forms
the
tip,
and
is
partially
ov-
ered
by
the
right
foot
and left
ankle of
the
male
figure.5Her left wing was not represented.
The
"Siren"
olds
a veil.
It
circles
around
behind
her head' and
though
the
surfaceof
the relief has
disappeared,
t seems
that
her
right
forearm
was
foreshortened
nd
that
the end of
the
veil
was
in
her
right
hand.
The
other
end of the
veil
coversher
lowered
eft
forearm
nd
spreads
ut
in wide
folds,
just
above
the
junction
of
her torso
and tail.
The
"Siren's"
eft
arm as
well
appears
o be
involved
entirely
with the
veil.
She
turns
her head
slightly
to
the
right
and
her
gaze
is met
by
thatof a
winged
figurewho looks back over his shoulder(pl. 33,
fig.
3).
His
legs
touch
the coils
of
her
tail
but
slide
over them.
The
figure
on the
left
(pl. 33,
fig.
4)
looks
back over
his shoulder
and is likewise
free.
Both
figures
have
wings.
The
right
wing
of
the
figure
on the
left
is best
preserved
with
its
scalloped
ower
edge very
like
the "Siren's."
he
one
to
the
right
carries
peltast's
hield.Neither
of
them
seem to
have
worn
anything
else.
FRIEZE,
CORNICE
AND
ACROTERIA
A
moulding
framed
he lower
edge
of the
pedi-
ment. It resemblesa Doric frieze, consistingof
triglyphs
which
alternate
with
metopes
containing
1
G.
Dennis,
Cities
and
Cemeteries of Etruria,
II
(London
1883),
8.
2
R.
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
Sovana
(Florence 1929) 67f
with
bibliography.
3
The
work
was
carried out
by
the author
during
the
sum-
mer of
1970
with the kind
cooperation
of the
Soprintendente
at
Florence,
Dr.
Guglielmo
Maetzke.
Prof.
Bianchi Bandinelli
shared
with the author his
enthusiasm and
experience
of
Sovana.
4The
height
of
the
pediment
is
2.1o
m.,
not
including
the
central acroterion
which
extends another
0.40
m.
above the
apex.
It
is
5.30
m.
wide
at
the
"Doric" frieze.
The total
height
of
the
fagade
is 6.45 m.; its width is 5.1o m. just below the
"Doric"
frieze,
and it
projects
on the
average 1.50
m.
from
the face
of the cliff.
Cf.
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
fig.
5,
p.
43,
which,
however,
has
the
flanking figure
down
much too
low
on
the
fagade.
5
G.
Rosi,
"The
Rock
Fagades
of
Central
Etruria,"
JRS
15
(1925),
47,
first noted
the
wings.
This
type
of
wing
is
also
found on
the
Scylla
on
urns.
Cf.
G.
Korte,
I
relievi
delle
urne
etrusche
(Berlin 1916)
III,
pl.
18,
3.
6
Sic
Dennis 6f but
not
Bianchi Bandinelli
132,
n.
53,
who
said an
oar,
a common
attribute
of
Scylla
on
the urns.
Bandinelli
believed
too that the
"Siren"
held
the
two
flanking
figures
in
her
coils.
This content downloaded from 62.204.192.85 on Sat, 22 Nov 2014 13:02:15 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp8/10/2019 The Tomb of the Siren
3/12
132
JOSEPH
COLEMAN CARTER
[AJA
78
paterae
in low relief. The
triglyphs
reach from a
thin
moulding
at the base
of the
frieze
to one
at
the
top.
This
is
not the conventional
Doric frieze.
The central
triglyph,
just
below
the
point
where
the "Siren's"tails
join,
has
three incisions
(pl.
33,
fig. 3).7 Becauseof damage to the surfaceit is im-
possible
to
say
whether
the three
"triglyphs"
on
either side had
similar
incisions,
but it would
be
strange
if
they
did
not.
In the
reconstruction
(ill.
I)
it is assumed that
they
did.
The
pediment
has neither
a horizontal
nor a
raking
geison.
The frieze borders
it
below,
and
along
the
sloping edge
is
a
moulding
which
projects
from the
plane
of
the
pediment,
but
does not
ex-
tend
above
the
roof level.
Its
form
is
a
simple
con-
vex
curve,
which
enters
the
plane
of
pediment
at
an abrupt angle near the center (pl. 33, fig. 4).
Moving away
from the
center,
the curve
straightens
out and
merges
at a
very gentle angle
with the
plane
of
the
pediment.
Its
best
preserved
section
is
above
the head
and
wing
of
the
figure
on
the
left.
The relief-the
"Siren's"
veil,
the
heads of
the
winged figures-overlaps
this
moulding freely.
The
moulding
was
apparently
conceived,
like those
on
the
urns,
as
a
decorative
frame,
rather than an
architectural
feature.
Something
like acroteria
existed in
the
corners
of
the
pediment,
just
above
the
frieze,
and
in
the
center.8
On the
right
side a
fan-shaped
surface with
a
patera
in
relief can be
distinguished
(pl.
33,
fig.
I;
ill.
I).
Projecting
from the
center
of the
roof
of
the
pediment
is
a
platform,
which
is
flat
on
top,9
and
probably
supported
a
cippus.'0
Its
front sur-
face
has
suffered,
but would seem
to have been
decorated
with two
paterae
in
relief,
one on
either
side of
the center.
The
upperpart
of the
fagade,
though
it
obviously
resembles
a
pediment,
does not
have
the
usual
tri-
angular
shape,
nor
the
pentagonal
form found
on
the
lids
of
urns and
sarcophagi.'
For
most of its
length
the
raking edge
has
a
gradual slope.
As
it
approached
the
lateral
extremes
it
curves
and
fol-
lows,
for a
short
distance,
a
much
steeper
slope
until it
joins
the lower
extremity
of the
pediment,
the "Doric" frieze. The absenceof sharp angles is
not
a result
of
weathering
but
an
important
aspect
of the
original design.
Further
evidence
of
the desire
on
the
part
of
the
sculptor
to
play
down
the
angular
effects of a
pedi-
ment can be seen in the facts that
(I)
the "Siren's"
head and
curving
veil
cover
the
central
angle
of
the
pediment
and
(2)
the
lateral
acroteria
mask,
also
with
curves,
the base
angles.
THE
SUBJECT
OF THE PEDIMENT
Though it contains many familiar elements, the
scene
represented
n the
pediment
of the Tomb of
the
Siren is
unparalleled
in Etruscan
art.
The "Si-
ren" has
wings
and
tails,
and
as noted
above,
no
traces
of
dogs'
heads
surround
her waist.12 She con-
forms to
the
type
of sea-creature
usually
referred
to
as
Scylla,
represented
often
in
Etruscan
funerary
contexts on urns
and
sarcophagi,
on tomb
walls,
naiskos
pediments
and
vases.
She
appears
either
alone or
swinging
an
oar
in
combat
with
armed
men,
over
whom
she is
almost
invariably
victorious.
The
pediment
of the Tomb of the Siren differs
in one
important respect
from the
Scylla
scenes on
the urns.
Present
are
two
winged
male
figures,
but
there
is
no
suggestion
of violence. The
only
con-
tact is
eye
contact.
Why
are
these
figures
present?
The shield
carried
by
the
figure
on the
right
would
suggest
that combat
was
anticipated,
at
least.
Yet the "Siren" does
nothing
about
them,
and
they
look back
at
her
as
they fly
off,
their
legs
trail-
ing
unmolested over her
coils.
The
identity
of these
nude
and
winged, young
males,
like that of the
armed
men
who
fight
with
Scylla,
is
obscure.'8
7
They
have
not been noted before.
Rosi,
47, fig.
39,
de-
scribed them as
"smooth" as
did
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
67.
8
Generally ignored,
their existence was also noted
by
S.
Ainsley,
"Monumenti
sepolcrali
di
Sovana,"
Annal Inst
15
(I843)
229,
P1.
56.
9
The
front
surface
is
0.65
m.
across,
0.40
m.
high,
and
0.50
m.
wide.
Behind this
surface the
platform
widens out
to a
square,
o.90
m.
on
a side.
10
Cf.
the semi-dado
tombs on
either side of
the
Tomb
of
the
Siren. Bianchi
Bandinelli,
47.
Access
to
the
top
of
the
tomb is
another feature
which
the
Tomb
of
the Siren
may
have
in
common
with
the semi-dado tombs.
The
stairs of
the
Tomb of
the
Siren,
however,
are
very
crude,
hidden
behind
the
faqade,
and
may
not
be
contemporaneous
with it.
Dennis,
8,
n.
4,
believed
they
were.
11
Cf. Bianchi
Bandinelli,
fig.
8,
and
a
sarcophagus
from
Vulci
in
nenfro
(indigenous
dark
volcanic
stone).
R.
Herbig,
Jiingeretruskischen
Steinsarkophage
(Berlin
1952)
no.
49,
pl.
42,
pp.
31-32.
Bandinelli
67
believed it
to
be a
triangular
pedi-
ment.
12
An
example
of this
type
of sea
monster
appears
on
the
neck of a volute
crater of the Vanth
group.
Beazley
EVP
169,
Photograph,Soprintendenza
alle
Antichith,
Palermo
Neg.
17667.
It should
be dated to
the
late
fourth
century
B.C.
M.
Del Chi-
aro,
"Scylla
on
a
Caeretan
Red-figured
Vase,"
Arch Cl
21
(1969)
213
notes
that
two-tailed
Scyllas
do not
appear
before
that
date in
Etruria.
Most
comparisons
are
of a
considerably
later date.
13
The
pediment
as
a
whole can
be
interpreted
as
repre-
senting
the
dangers
of
the
journey
to
the
other
world-the
This content downloaded from 62.204.192.85 on Sat, 22 Nov 2014 13:02:15 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp8/10/2019 The Tomb of the Siren
4/12
1974]
THE TOMB OF THE SIREN
133
They
seem to
emanate
from the
center
of the
pedi-
ment,
and
may
be her
minions.
THE STYLE OF THE PEDIMENTAL
RELIEF
Scylla,
either alone
or
in
the
company
of one
or
more figures, appearsoften on Etruscan urns and
sarcophagi,14
o
often,
in
fact,
that
it
might suggest
that
the
sculptor
of
the
pediment
of
the
Tomb of
the Siren
borrowed his
material
from the
repertoire
of
the
urn-carver.
An examination
of
the
style
of
the relief
should
demonstrate,
however,
that if
a
relationship
exists
between the
urns
and
this
pedi-
ment,
it
is
not on the order of a
simple
translation
from small-
to
large-scale
relief.
Striking
contrasts of
style
exist
between
the
figures
on
the
urns
and those of the
Tomb
of
the
Siren.
The different
proportions
of the
figures
are
one
of the most
obvious contrasts.
Scylla
on
the
urns
tends to be
buxom and
short-waisted
with
small
coils
which
twist around and trail off
rather
abrupt-
ly.
The
human
figures
involved with her are
short,
square,
and
muscular,
with
large
heads. The "Si-
ren"
of
the
fagade,
instead,
is
lithe. Her
long
and
slender
torso
contrasts with
the massive coils of
her
tail.
These in turn
create a
low center of
gravity
for
the focal
figure
of the
relief. She
gives
the im-
pression
of
being
agile
and at
the same
time
well-
anchored.
The
winged
male
figures
are likewise
slendererand more youthful than the usual genii
of Etruscan
funerary
art.'
The
outlines of
their
bodies are
graceful
curves.
Though
little else of
the
figures
remains,
the outlines
prove
that
they
were
narrow-waisted
and
long-legged.
Their
lightness
coincides well with the
seeming
effortlessness
of
their
flight--or
rather their
suspension
in
air.'6
Of the distinctive elements
of the
design
of
the
pedimental
relief,
it is
the subtle
balance
between
contrasting
elements
and movements which
above
all demonstrates its independenceand its superior-
ity.
The "Siren's"
elongated
and smooth
torso,
for
example,
leans
back
to
the left
away
from the cen-
ter
of
the
pediment.
Balancing
this
is the
turning
of her
head and
her
gaze
towards the
winged figure
on
the
right.
Scylla's
tail on the left seems to
ripple gently
to-
ward
the
angle
of
the
pediment.
However
much
Scylla's
coils were
contorted on the
left,
they
are
not
likely
to
be
mirror
images
of those on
the
right.
Further,
the two coils
on
the
right,
though
similar
in outline, reenter the plane of the relief at dis-
tinctly
different
angles.
The "Siren's"
right
arm moves
forward in
a
counter-clockwisetorsion out
of it. The movement
of her
coils,
however,
is
just
the
opposite.
There
is
a
dynamic
balance, thus,
between
coils and
torso.
Finally
the combinationof these
effects-freedom
of movement
into and
out of the
plane
of the
pedi-
ment,
the wind-blown veil and
interlocking
gazes
-creates a
strong
sense
of
space
and
atmosphere.
This
is a
sense
not
present
in the urns
which
rep-
resent
Scyllas.
The
style
of the
pedimental
relief
would indicate that it was
designed
and executed
by
a
sculpture
of considerable
ability,
not a
stone-
carver,
and
it
belongs
more
nearly
in
the
main-
stream of Hellenistic
art than do
the reliefs
on the
urns.17
"terrors
of
transit"
(cf.
Beazley
EVP
9)
personified
by
the
Scylla
and
the
winged "giovani,"
as
they
are
identified
by
Bianchi Bandinelli.
There are
a number of
possibilities
for
a
more
specific
identification of the
"giovani."
The
most
probable
in
my
opinion
is
Hypnos
and
Thanatos,
by
analogy
with
South
Italian
funerary
art
where
they appear
young,
nude,
winged
and
always
together.
They
are the
bearers
of the
de-
ceased
to the
next world. Cf.
a Tarentine
relief,
L.
Bernabo-Brea,
"I relievi
tarantini
in
pietra
tenera,"
RivlstArch,
N.S.
I
(1952)
213, fig.
198,
but
cf.
also
a
bronze mirror
in Berlin
where
the
bearers are
bearded,
E.
Gerhard,
Etruskische
Spiegel
III
(Ber-
lin
1863)
pl. 255.
Two other
possibilities
are Kalais
and
Zetes,
the sons
of
Boreas,
or a
pair
of
Erotes.
The sense
of
the
pediment
would seem to be
entirely "pros-
pective"-to
portray
what the
deceased
might expect
to meet
after
death. Del
Chiaro,
212;
213,
n.
I7
interprets
the
figures
to
the
left
and
right
of
the
Scylla
(relying
on Bianchi Bandi-
nelli's
description
of
the
Scylla
brandishing
an
oar),
as
ship-
wrecked
sailors,
and
postulates
that
the tomb
belonged
to one
who
had died
at sea.
There
is no
evidence that
monuments
were
personalized
in
this
way.
Further,
this
gives
the
pediment
a
"retrospective"
ense
that
does not
accord
with the
rest of
the
program.
See
E.
Panofsky,
Tomb
Sculpture
(New
York
1964)
20ff for
a definition
of the
terminology.
14
Korte
III,
pls.
11-33.
Cf.
especially pl.
20,
8
(reproduced
by
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
fig.
8)
which
is
a rare
example
of the
Scylla
in
a
pedimental space
on
an
urn.
For
another
cf.
G.
Giglioli,
L'Arte
Etrusca
(Milan
I935)
pl.
406,
2.
Herbig,
No.
109, pl. 46,
b.
15
Cf. however the Eros
(Thanatos?)
of
the Tomb
of
Orcus
at
Tarquinia.
R.
Herbig,
Gdtter
und Ddmonen
der Etrusker
(Mainz 1965)
47,
pl. 41,
2.
16
Airborne
genii,
if
they
occur at
all
on
the
urns,
must be
very
rare.
They
are
not
common,
either,
in
painting.
An
ex-
ceptional
case
is an
Eros in
the
angle
of
the
painted
Tomb
of
the Warrior
at
Tarquinia.
M.
Sprenger, "Esegesi
e
cronologica
della Tomba del
Guerriero,"
StEtr
37
(1969)
407,
pl.
99b.
The
Eros
appears
to
be
jet-propelled.
Sprenger
dates the
paint-
ings
ca.
330
B.C. These
winged figures
seem
almost to be
walk-
ing
horizontally. They
resemble
especially
the
vertically
sus-
pended
Erotes
on
Apulian
Red-figured
vases,
H.
Sichtermann,
Die
Griechische
Vasen
in
Unteritalien
(Tiibingen
1966)
54,
pl.
138,
and Tarentine
terracotta
relief. P.
Wuillemmier,
Tarente
des
origines
a
la
conquete
romaine
(Paris
1939)
pl.
4I,
figs.
5-6.
17
Cf. the Tomb of
the
Typhon
at
Tarquinia
where
the tails
recede into
the
background
with
exaggerated
perspective.
M.
This content downloaded from 62.204.192.85 on Sat, 22 Nov 2014 13:02:15 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp8/10/2019 The Tomb of the Siren
5/12
134
JOSEPH
COLEMAN CARTER
[AJA
78
EXPLORATION BELOW
THE
PEDIMENT
Below
the
pediment
is
a shallow
niche
in
the
shape
of an arch. It
contains a
relief
of a
banqueter
reclining
on a couch. The folds of the
drapery
be-
tween
the
legs
of the
figure
and his
left
arm,
stretched
along
his
side,
are
barely
discernible
(pl.
33, fig-
5).
His
head
was
in
the
right-hand
corner
near the
back
of
the
niche.
The
top
surface of the
figure
had been
smoothed
off
to make
a
more
or
less level
platform
and
a
rectangular cutting
near the
center
of
it
obliterated
the
mid-section
of
the
banqueter.
These
cuttings
belong
to a
later
use
of
the
monument,
perhaps
as
an
outdoor
shrine. The crude
cross
on the
couch
may belong
to
the
same
period
as
the
alterations
of the
figure
on
it.
The couch has an unusual form. The upper edge
is
scalloped.
In
lower relief are
three
vertical
strips
-which
should
be
understood as behind
and
par-
tially
covered
by
the
scalloped edge. They
divide
the
face of
the
couch into
four uniform
panels.
The
scalloped
edge
is
not
symmetrical
with
the
strips,
which
suggests strongly
that
these
represent
the
legs
of the
couch'8
while the
scallops
are the
edge
of
its
covering, perhaps
a
fur."9
Below
the
couch,
and
also as wide
as
the
niche,
is a
footstool
(pl. 33,
fig.
5)-an adjunct
of
the
banqueting
couch.
It is clear
that
a
representation
of
the
deceased as
banqueter
was
intended,
and
the
inscription
at the back of the niche
undoubtedly
identifies him. It
reads:20
nulina
vel:/velus'
Earth was cleared
away
from the couch and
the
right flanking
statue,
revealing
the full
height
of
the footstool and the statue
base,
both noted
by
Bianchi Bandinelli.
The
stool
(pl. 33,
fig.
6;
ill.
I)
has two
projecting
legs
with
a
curving profile.21
The
monument
rests
directly
on the
steep slope
of
the cliff with
no
artificial
podium
to facilitate
ap-
proach.22
Its
inaccessibility
was
clearly
deliberate,
and the
stairs,
a
very
recent
addition,
violate
the
intention of
the
designer.
It was to be
admired
from
below.
THE
TOMB CHAMBER23
The burial
chamber
(pl.
33,
fig.
2)
is located
be-
low and in front of the facade.
It is
approached
by
a narrow dromoswhich is
barely
visible because
of
the dense
undergrowth
to the left of the
modern
steps.
Both
the chamber and
the
dromos are
ori-
ented
obliquely
with
respect
to the axis
of
the
facade.
This was
not common
practice
and
suggests
that,
perhaps,
the
monumental
facade was a later
thought,
its
position
being
determined
by
the
slope
of the cliff
and
the
requirements
of the
sculptural
program.
In
this case it must have
replaced
a
sim-
pler
early
monument.2 The burial chamber is
Cristofani,
"La Tomba
del
Tifone,"
Memorie,
Academia
dei
Lincei Ser.
8,
14
(1969)
223ff
I.
Far
closer
to
the
"Siren"
is
a
small metal
relief of
a
sea monster from
Southern
Italy.
Cris-
tofani,
pl.
8,
I.
Strong
similarities of
style
and
subject
matter
suggest,
at
least,
that
the
sculptor
of
the tomb was
of South
Italian
origin. Compare
also
the
Scyllas
in
the
pediments
of
Tarentine
naiskoi:
H.
Klumbach,
Tarentiner
Grabkunst
(Reut-
lingen
1937)
P.
3,
pl.
I,
no.
8,
p. 24, pl.
21,
no.
120.
18
For an
example
of
the
six-legged
variety
cf. bronze
couch
from
Cerveteri,
L.
Pareti,
La Tomba
Regolini-Galassi
(Vatican
City
1947) 285,
P1.
30.
19
Cf.
a
cinerary
urn in
the
Villa Giulia.
G.M.A.
Richter,
The
Furniture
of
the
Greeks,Etruscansand Romans (London 1966)
fig. 457.
20
The
nscription
robably
ames
hemost
mportant
urial.
A
new
reading y
A.
Maggiani,
Rivista
i
epigrafia
trusca,"
StEtr,
38
(1970)
330-31,
makes
the
best
sense of a
doubtful
letter.
21
The
stool
measures
.45
m.
high.
Cf.
the urn
of
Arnth
Velimna. A.
von
Gerkan,
F.
Messerschmidt,
"Das Grab
der
Volumnier bei
Perugia,"
RM
57
(1942)
pl.
20.
22
The
concept
is
related to
the wall
tomb
of Asia
Minor,
rather than
the
Apulian
heroon.
See
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
131,
n.
51.
23
The
entrance to the tomb
chamber is
3.60
m. in
front of
the
faqade
and
4.70
m.
below
it
(measured
to
the
floor
level).
The dromos is
4.50
m.
long
and
0.70-0.80
m.
wide,
and makes
an
angle
of
30 degrees
with
respect
to
the
plane
of the
facade.
At the entrance to
the tomb the floor of the dromos is
3.60
m.
below the
level
of
the
sloping
hillside.
The tomb
chamber
measures
2.0o
m. to the
back
wall;
1.70
m.
wide
and 1.20
m.
high.
The benches
which
extend
all
along
the side
and back
walls
measure
0.50-o.6o
m. wide
and
rise
0.75
m. from
the
level
of the
chamber
floor.
The
space
on the
benches
is
enough
to
accommodate three
cinerary
urns,
but not
three
bodies. Cf.
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
p.
43,
fig.
4,
no.
5.
24
In
some
cases
at
Sovana,
for
example
the
Hildebrand
Tomb,
it
is clear that
the burial
chamber and
the
monument
are
contemporaneous
Bianchi Bandinelli,
82).
There is
no evi-
dence, however,
which
excludes
the
possibility
of later
amplifi-
cation of the monument. The
pottery
found in an "undisturbed
corner"
of the tomb
chamber
sounds
like late
fourth or
early
third
century
B.C.
material:
An
unglazed
balsamarium,
a
foot of a
red-figured
kylix,
and a
piece
of
good
black-glazed
ware
of
"fourth
century
B.C.
type,"
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
129,
n.
42.
Bianchi Bandinelli dates
the Tomb of
the Siren
to
the
last
years
of
the
third
century
or
first
part
of
the
second
century
B.C. If he is
correct,
the
discrepancy
between his
date
for the
pottery
and
facade
of the tomb can
only
be
explained
by
assuming
that
the
monument
accompanied
a
later
interment
in
the tomb
beneath.
Alternatively,
the
fourth
century
date
for
the
pottery
could be
taken
with a
grain
of
salt.
A
tomb
This content downloaded from 62.204.192.85 on Sat, 22 Nov 2014 13:02:15 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp8/10/2019 The Tomb of the Siren
6/12
1974]
THE
TOMB
OF
THE SIREN
135
small,
with three
benches
of
rough workmanship
which
must have held
cinerary
urns.
THE FIGURES
FLANKING THE NICHE
The
flanking figure
to
the
right
had been
badly
damaged. Cleaning revealed little that was not al-
ready
known
(pl.
33,
fig.
6).
The
weight
of
the
figure
seems
surely
to have
rested
on
its outside
leg,
which
turns
outward.
The
right
is
bent
slightly
at
the knee. The
heavy garment
which
is drawn
horizontally
around
the
figure
has three
gatherings
of
zig-zag
folds
which
hang vertically
below the
knees
and
are
longer
than
the
rest
of
the
garment.
A
corresponding
figure
on
the left side
of
the
area had
obviously
once
existed,
but no traces of
it had
been
noted.25
That side
of
the tomb
was
split, the backing
block which
had been
preserved
to
nearly
its full
height
was shattered
(pl. 34,
fig.
8).
An
exploratory
trench
was
dug
in
front
of it
(pl. 34,
fig.
7).26
The
first
objects
to
emerge
were
red
terracotta
tiles
in
large
numbers,
forming
a
fairly
even
layer
over
the
area of the
trench.27
Just
under these were four
large
blocks of
tufa.
The
three nearest
the
facade
had an
irregular
outline,
while
the
fourth showed
a
smooth
surface and
was
seen
to
join
a similar
one
along
an
axis at an
angle
to
the
facade.
These
two,
as
it
turned
out,
were
sections
of
the
backing
block
of
the
statue.
At the same level as the statue on the right ap-
peared
the
corresponding
one
on the
left
(pl.
34,
fig.
8)
with
the feet
of
the statue still in
situ.
On
this
level
and
just
in front was a
layer
of tufa rub-
ble.
Here the
three
irregular
blocks nearest the
facade had rested. Some of
these were
sections of
drapery.
It
was feared that the entire
surface
of
the
statue
had crumbled
away.
Then the
three
blocks
were
cleaned.
From
the
block
farthest
from
the
facade
emerged
the bust of
a
female
figure
holding
some tresses
of
her
hair in
her
right
hand
(pl. 34, fig.
9).
The
sec-
ond
and
smallest was
part
of
the mid-section
of the
figure
with traces of
drapery
around the
waist.
The
fragment
nearest
the
feet
proved
to
be the
legs, brokenat the ankle and preservedon one side
nearly
to the
waist.
The
figure
wore mid-calf
boots
like the one on
the
right,
and a
garment
which did
not
quite
reach the
knees and
was
gathered
in
vertical
zig-zag
folds on
the
right
side.
As
it came out of
the
ground
the tufa was moist
and
spongy
and
it crumbled
easily.
Its color
was
dark
red-brown.
Despite
the
greatest
care,
a section
of
the
lower
lip
of
the
figure
broke
off
while it was
being transported
to
the
town.28
After
several
weeks
the
sculpture
dried out
and became both
more brittle and lighter
in
color.
The
state
of
the
preservation
of
details
such
as
the
lips
and
the
in-
dividual
strands of
hair
grasped
by
the
fingers
in-
dicate that
the statue
was not
exposed
to much
weathering
on
the
face
of
the tomb.29 It
seems
logi-
cal
to conclude
that
it
fell and was covered
by
earth
in ancient times.
Probably
an
earth
tremor,
which
split
that side
of
the
tomb,
also knocked
down the
statue.
This would accord
well
with the fact that
the
backing
blocks seem to
have
been
violently
dislodged
at
the
same
time.3o
The
figure
was in
high
relief,
the
right
side
higher
than the left. This is evidenced by the right
arm,
which extended out
from
the
background
but
was
not
freed from it. It
is about
twice
as
deep
as
it is
wide,
and in the
very
scant detail on
the
left
side-the
hair,
for
example-it
is clear that the left
side of
the
figure
turned
decidedly
towards
the
niche and
central axis
of
the
tomb.
The three
fragments
were
found
to
join
each
other
(pl.
34,
fig.
Io)"3
and the
feet
on
the
base.
The total
height
of the
figure
is about
1.63
rn.32
recently
discovered in another
part
of the
necropolis,
at
Poggio
Grezzano,
with the burial
intact,
contained no
red-figured
material,
but considerable
black-glazed
ware which
can
be
fairly
securely
dated
200-15o
B.C.
P.E.
Arias,
"Sovana,"
NSc
(0971) 58-85.
25
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
fig.
4,
no.
5.
213
The
tools and
much
valuable
assistance
was
lent
by
Sig.
O.
Merli of
Sovana
and Miss
M.
Randolph.
27
All were
pan
tiles. Some
had
one
edge preserved.
One
fragment
of a local imitation
of
a
Campana
black-glaze
shal-
low bowl was found
just
above the
layer
of tiles. It
may
have
been thrown
up
when the
dromos was
cleared.
28
This
was
accomplished
with assistance from
the Parroco
of
Sovana,
Don Vasco
Carini. The
fragments
were
wrapped
in
several
layers
of
burlap
and
carried
down the
hill in a small
chaise
(which
served
also to
carry
religious objects,
the
coffins
of
children,
and
grapes
in
autumn).
They
were
deposited
in
the Palazzo Pretorio.
29
The
surface of this
and the entire
facade
would have been
covered
with
a
protective
coat
of
stucco and
painted.
Cf.
the
traces of this still
remaining
on the
nearby
Hildebrand
Tomb,
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
80.
30
The
layers
of
tiles
which covered the
fragments
must
have
washed down
the
hillside. It does
not
seem
likely
that
they
would
have
anything
to
do
with the tomb.
31
Because
it
was not
possible
to
photograph
the
fragments
together except
at a
great angle,
the
recomposed
statues must
be illustrated
with a
composite
photograph.
3S2Leg
section at the maximum measures:
height
0.75
m.,
width
0.50
m.,
thickness
0.35
m.;
the
central section:
height
0.75
m.,
width
0.50
m.,
thickness
0.35
m.;
and
the bust:
height
0.48
m.,
width
0.65
m.,
thickness
0.32
m.
This content downloaded from 62.204.192.85 on Sat, 22 Nov 2014 13:02:15 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp8/10/2019 The Tomb of the Siren
7/12
136
JOSEPH
COLEMAN
CARTER
[AJA
78
The stance
of
the
figure
is an
exaggerated
contra-
posto,
with
her
weight
resting
on the
right
leg,
which
was
perpendicular
to the
fagade,
while
the
left
was slack
and
angled
towards
the central axis
(ill.
i).
The
weight
distribution of the two
flank-
ing figures
(though
not the
position
of the
feet)
is
I(
_ __
--
........
_
ILL.
I.
Reconstruction
of
the
fa;ade
symmetrical.
The
right
foot was
advanced and the
right hip
was thrown out.
The
upper
torso
turned
at
a
considerable
angle,
in a counterclockwise di-
rection.
Her
hair
circled
around
behind
her head
and fell over
her
shoulder,
which
appears
not
to
have
been covered. There
she held
the
strands in
her
right
hand.
What meanwhile
was
the left
arm
doing?
There
are
only
the
very
faintest
traces on
one of the backing blocks of what might have been
part
of
the
left
arm,
falling
down
beside
the
left
flank.
The
garment
is
a short off-the-shoulder
chiton.
Three folds
on either
side of the
torso
indicate that
the
drapery
was
wrapped
around the
waist
horizon-
tally and was probably belted under the breasts.
THE
ICONOGRAPHY
OF
THE
LOWER
FA9ADE
The
poor
state of
its
preservation
will make the
identity
of
the
figure
on
the
right
side of the tomb
a
mystery
forever.
Before the
discovery
of the
figure
on the
left it
was
recognized
as
one
of
a
hypotheti-
cal
pair
of
"slaves."
(There
is
in
fact
no evidence
to
suggest
that the
left and
right
figures
were
not
identical.)
Boots and
a
garment
which reaches
to
the
knees
with folds
hanging
below can be distin-
guished (pl. 33, fig. 6), but the sex is indetermina-
ble.
The
figure
on the left side
of
the
tomb was
a
beautiful
woman,
dressed
in
a
skirt which
stops
well above the
knees
and
mid-calf-length
boots.3"
She would
therefore
appear
to
be
one of the female
death daimons of the Etruscans.
With the
names,
Vanth
and
Culsu,
they
appear
on
urns,
sarcophagi
and
frescoes
in
just
such dress with
breasts
bared,
long
hair,
and
as
often
as
not,
wings.
They,
further,
are
often found
flanking
an arched
doorway,
as is
here the
case."4
Though
much is in favor of
identifying
her as one
of
these death
divinities,
an
explanation
is
needed
for her
remarkable behavior.
She turns
her
head
toward the arch and
the
image
of
the
deceased
as
banqueter.
Her
gaze, though,
is
directed
into the
distance
and
she holds
in her
hand several
strands
of hair and seems to be
absentmindedly
playing
with them. This would
seem
to be the
gesture
of
the mourner
familiar
from
many
examples
of
mourning
slaves
and
sirens
(pl. 34,
fig.
I1),"5
though
it
is
also
very
like
that of
Venus
arranging
her hair.3 She has an air of resignation and re-
33
Cf.
the
winged
demons and
Erynnues
of South
Italian
vases
after
whom
probably
the
Etruscan daimons
were
patterned.
See
K.
Schauenburg,
"Toteng6tter
in der unteritalischen
Vasen-
malerai"
AA
73 (1958)
figs.
o0-I2,
Sichtermann,
pi.
70
and cf.
the
daimon with the
whip,
0.
Brendel,
"Der
grosse
Fries in der
Villa dei Misteri"
JdI
81
(1966)
232.
Similar
costumes
are
worn
also
by
Amazons
in fourth
century
B.C.
South
Italian
vase-
painting.
Cf.
the
recently
discovered
hydria,
manufactured
in
Metapontion,
D.
Adamesteanu,
Metaponto
(Naples
1973)
28,
Fig.
8.
34Vanth
on the
sarcophagus
of
Hasti Afunei stands in
the
doorway;
Culsu,
beside
it.
Two daimons
flank
a
painted
arch
on
the
urn of
Arnth
Velimna;
see n.
22
supra.
See
also R.
Enking,
"Culsu and
Vanth,"
R6mMitt
58
(1943) 59ff.
35
See
G.
Neumann,
Geste und Gebdrden n
der
Griechischen
Kunst
(Berlin
1965) pp.
86ff.
For
the Attic
siren
see
M.
Col-
lignon,
Les Statues
funeraires
dans
l
art
grec (Paris
1911)
222,
fig. 143. Examples
of
mourning
women are
uncommon
in
Etruscan
art. E.
Gerhard,
Etruskische
Spiegel,
I
(Berlin
1884)
pl.
15,
16, 2-4,
H.
B.
Walters,
Catalogue
of
the
Bronzes
of
the
British
Museum
(London
1889)
N.
743, 130-31.
Cf.
Korte
I,
P1.
43,
15,
which
shows
similar
mourner
at
the
sacrifice
of
Iphigenia.
S6E.g.
the
Aphrodite
Anadyomene
type,
M.
Bieber,
Sculp-
ture
of
the
Hellenistic
Age
(New
York
I96I)
83,
figs.
294-95.
This content downloaded from 62.204.192.85 on Sat, 22 Nov 2014 13:02:15 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp8/10/2019 The Tomb of the Siren
8/12
1974]
THE TOMB OF
THE SIREN
137
served
concern. If
she
is
Vanth, then,
she is
unlike
any
other
previously
known,"3
since
Vanth
never
shows human
concern.
The
figure's
apparently
sympathetic gesture
and
her daimon's dress can be
reconciled
by assuming
that she is a Vanth or Culsu who besides per-
forming
her role
as
guardian
was
also
a
mourner,38
or
that she is
under
her
Vanth
dress,
a
Venus."9
THE
ARCHITECTURE
F
THE
FAqADE
Though
grouped by
Bianchi
Bandinelli
with
tombs whose
fagades
are
believed
to
represent
buildings,
it is
not clear
how far the
Tomb
of the
Siren should be
considered
architectural.
Carved in
relief in the face
of the
tufa cliff
are
two
promi-
nent
architectural
features-a
pediment
and an
arch. Becauseof the pediment and lack of a colon-
nade,
the
facade
has
generally
been
classified
as
an
aedicular
or
naiskos form.40
Below the
pediment,
however,
all
resemblance
to what
is
known
of the
Greek
or
South
Italian
naiskos
vanishes.
The
arched
space
encloses the
image
of
the
deceased
reclining
on
a
banquet
couch,
enjoying
the
pleasures
of
the
otherworld,
flanked
by
two daimons
in
high
relief.
The
Tomb
of the Siren
cannot be
understood
except
as
a
collection of
symbols,
some
with
archi-
tectural
form. The
pediment
and
the
Doric
frieze
of the Tomb of the Siren, it is
suggested,
inten-
tionally
recall
a
naiskos
monument like
those em-
ployed
in
Southern
Italy,
or
Asia
Minor,
as the
focus
of
the
cult
of
the
deceased
as
hero. On the
other
hand,
the
flanking figures,
though
conceived
in
sculptural
terms
and
placed
on
bases,
are
clearly
not functional
parts
of
a
naiskos. Like
the
painted
Charuns beside
the doors
of
Tarquinian
tombs
they
are visual
reminders
of
imaginary
presences,
at the
dividing
point
between
this world
and
the
next,
symbolized
by
the
arch.41
Behind,
in the
arch-
shaped space
is the
image
of the
deceased,
removed,
aloof,
reclining
in
otherworldly
bliss.
SOURCES
The Tomb
of the
Siren,
as far as the
decoration
of the
facade
is
concerned
is an isolated and
in
many
ways
unique
monument.
It
has
apparently
drawn
the elements
for
synthesis
from familiar
but
disparate
sources. The
pediment
resembles
those
of South Italian
naiskoi,
the archhad both
practical
and
symbolic
uses in
Etruria,
while
the
figure
of
the deceased
reclining
is
normally
found
on the
lids
of Etruscan
urns and
sarcophagi.
The
preponderance
of Etruscanfeatures
suggests
that the sources for the monument as a whole
should
first be
sought
in Etruria.
Further,
the
naiskos
pediment,
the one
seemingly
foreign
com-
ponent,
was also
known in
Etruria,
above
all
at
Vulci
and
Populonia.42
The naiskos
pediments
of
Vulci
were decorated
with relief
sculpture
of
sim-
ilar
subject
matter,43
and it is
logical
to
suppose
that
Vulci,
a
major
center,
would have
received
foreign
influences
first,
later
transmitting
them
inland. Naiskos
pediments,
which
were
also
imi-
tated on
urns,"
would
have
provided
easily
avail-
able
models for
sculptors
at
Sovana.
Some
urns,
in
fact,
contain
many
of the same
ele-
ments as
the
facade
of
the Tomb
of the
Siren.
One
from
Perugia,
for
example,
has a
pediment
with
Scylla
and
a Doric frieze:
below this
is
an
arched
door
in relief.
Another,
also from
Perugia,
has
a
Scylla
in the
pediment
above
two
banqueters
on
couches
and
the
base
moulding
is
a
Doric
frieze.45
Flanking figures
are often found
beside
the
door
on urns." The
fact that the Tomb
of
the
Siren
37
It
is
Vanth's
and
Culsu's
nature
to
be
hostile,
or at
best
impassive.
See
Enking,
"Culsu"
65.
88
This in
effect
makes the
sculptor responsible
for
changing
the daimon's
character,
which would
not
be out
of
line
with
the sort
of
changes
noted in an
age
of
syncretism.
On
one
sar-
cophagus
Vanth-Culsu has been
replaced
entirely
by
creatures
who
resemble
mourning sirens,
Enking "Culsu,"
68,
fig.
Io.
39
For
the
syncretism
of
Vanth
and
Venus,
cf.
O.W.
von
Vacano,
"Vanth-Aphrodite,"
Hommage
a
Albert
Grenier,
Vol.
3
(Brussels
I962)
I53Iff.
40
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
6Iff.
41
Cf. the
Doric
temple
tomb
at
Norchia,
where
a
procession
of
humans and
imaginary creatures,
including
Charun,
passes
along
the
facade
behind the
colonnade.
N.
Demus-Quatember,
"Die
Tomben
mit
Tempelfassade
in der
Necropolen
von
Norchia,"
JOAI 40
(i953)
II2ff.
42
A.
de
Agostino,
Populonia,
La
Citta e la
Necropoli (Rome
I965)
26f,
fig. 13.
The
Tomb
of
Votive
Bronze
dates
from
the fifth
century
.C.andwas
n use n
the
fourth.
t
seems
to havebeenrobbed
n the third.
Therewas
apparently
o
sculpturalecoration.
43G.
Bendinelli,
Vulci"
Sc
(1921) 354,
fig.
6. A num-
ber
of
these,
unpublished,
re
in the
Villa
Giulia
Museum.
Cf.
Ducati,
l.
I68,
fig.
428.
Cf. an urn
from
Vulci,
with a
head
growing
rom
heacanthusn
a
pediment
nd
the
pedi-
ment
of
the Tomb
f the
Typhon.
ianchi
andinelli,
l.
28.
44Bianchi
andinelli,
ig.
8.
This
pedimental
cylla
was
in a
position
o
influencehe
tomb
builder
f
Sovana
more
directly
han he
Tarentine.
ovana
robably
elonged
o
the
territory
f
Vulci,
before
he
Roman
onquest
f
278
B.C.
and it
appears
o have
had
close
artistic
ies
later.
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
8.
45
Giglioli,
l.
4o6,
2.
46
KorteII,
94.
Cf.
also
he
urnof
Arnth
Velimnas,
erbig,
Gutter,
fig. 7.
This content downloaded from 62.204.192.85 on Sat, 22 Nov 2014 13:02:15 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp8/10/2019 The Tomb of the Siren
9/12
138
JOSEPH
COLEMAN CARTER
[AJA
78
combines
elements found on
three
separate
urns
with
pediments
would seem to
indicate that it
and
the
urns
draw
inspiration
from
a common
source.
THE
SYNTHESIS
Though the fagade of the Tomb of the Siren
and
the
urns are
clearly
related,
the most that
can
be said is that
they
are
parallel
and related
develop-
ments.
This is
apparent
not
only
when
one
con-
siders the
stylistic
differences
in the
pediments
but
also the
masterful
way
in which the various
ele-
ments of
the
fagade
have been
arranged
(ill.
I).
The
flanking figures
are
symmetrically posed.
Both rest
their
weight
on the
leg
which
is
farther
from
the center
of
the
tomb,
and
one,
probably
both,
turned the
upper part
of
his
body
and
his
gaze toward the archedspace.This createsa strong
central axis
in
the lower
fagade.
The
figures,
in
effect,
close off
the
space
in front of the arch
from
the
outside
world
and lead
the
eye
of
the
spectator
inevitably
to
the
reclining
figure.
The
eye
is
guided
inward
to the
deepest plane
of
the relief.
Just
the
reverse
is the case
in
the
upper
half
of
the
fagade.
The
focus
is
again
the center. This is
underlined
by
the
attention of the
winged
genii
to
the
"Siren." Their
flight upward
and
away,
how-
ever,
draws
the
spectator's
eye
away
from the
cen-
ter
along
rising
and
centrifugal
lines. Similar ele-
ments are combined in the urns, but never with
the
same
forceful
visual effects as in the Tomb
of
the
Siren.
IMITATORS?
The
Etruscan
rock-cut
tomb of aedicular form is
said to
be
a
stage
in
the
transition
between the
Hel-
lenistic
heroon and
the Roman tomb
monument."
In the case of the
Tomb of the Siren
this
could
apply
only
in the most
general
sense. As far
as
it
can be
known,
no
tomb, Greek, Roman,
or Etrus-
can, really resembles it. Here, the design of the
funerary
monument in the form
of a
fagade
achieved a
degree
of
sophistication
not seen
again
until the
Renaissance.
Similar
spatial concepts,
movement,
and even
the
architecturalelements
were
employed
in the
Ren-
aissance wall tomb. An
outstanding
example
is
the
tomb of the Tuscan architect, A. Sansovino, for
Cardinal Sforza
in
Santa
Maria del
Popolo,
Rome.8
The
Cardinal
reclining
on his lit de
parade,49
ike
an Etruscan
magistrate,
with his head
propped
on
his
fist,
occupies
an arched
space
and the center
of
attention.
Flanking
are the
Virtues,
who
turn
to-
ward
him,
their
weight
resting
on
the
outside
leg.
They
close
off
the
space
before the
arch,
while
on
the
upper
level
two
moving
and one
stationary
figures
occupy
a
space
of
pedimental
shape.
What
a
comparison
of these two monuments
illustrates,
above all, is that both sculptors had an unusual
ability
to
take
elements
from diverse
sources and
to combine them in
visually
powerful
and
dramatic
designs.
A NOTE
N
THE
DATE
No
further
material
evidence
on
the
date of
the
Tomb of the Sirencame
to
light
during
the
investi-
gation
of
1970.
The
possibility
of
different
dates
for the tomb and
the
monument
makes
the
ceramic
evidence a
very
unreliable
indicator."
Thus,
a date
for
the Tomb
of the Siren must
be
based
solely
on
internal
evidence,
on the
style
of the
reliefs,
and
the form
of the
architectural
elements.
The
relief
in
the
pediment
can
be
paralleled
throughout
the
Hellenistic
period.
The
"Siren"
resembles
the
Scyllas
of fourth
century
B.C.
South-
ern
Italy
no
less
than
the
painted
Typhon
of
the
"Tomba
del
Tifone"
at
Tarquinia.
The
figure
re-
clining
on
his
couch is
of
little
help,
because
of
the
poor
state of
preservation,
while
the
couch itself
is
a
common
type
through
the
Hellenistic
period."
Damage
to the
flanking
figures
has
been
too
ex-
tensive for stylistic analysis and comparisons to
carry
much
conviction,
though
the
exaggerated
47
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
5,
P.E.
Arias
EAA,
7, 420
sub
Sovana.
48
Panofsky (supra
n.
13)
fig.
367.
49
This
is
the first
time that
the
gisant
s
shown as
though
awake
his eyes
are still
closed).
The
responsibility
or this
innovation
s
Sansovino'snd
he
must
have
borrowed
t
from
an Etruscan
arcophagus
over.
G.S.
Davies,
Renascence,
he
Sculptural
Tombs
of
the
Fifteenth
Century
in Rome
(London
1910)
I76ff
and
Panofsky,
82.
The lit and
image
of the
Cardinal
are
symbolic.
As
in the
Tomb of
the
Siren,
the
body
was
else-
where.
Sansovino
must
have
had
contact with
Etruscan
antiqui-
ties
which
were
in
vogue
in
this
period.
A.
Chastel,
Art
et
Humanisme
a'
Florence
(Paris
1959)
67ff,
and he
may
have
passed
Sovana
on his
way
to
Rome,
by
the
Via
Cassia.
50
Supra
n.
24.
51
Cf.
the
edge
of a
stone
sarcophagus
lid
from
Tarquinia
which is
represented
as the
edge
of the
couch
with
reclining
deceased as
banqueter,
Herbig,
Gdtter,
44,
pl. 30,
2.
The
tomb
has
been
variously
dated
from
the
late
third
to
early
first
centuries
B.C.
The urn
of
Arnth
Velimnas
has
on
top
of it
a
reproduction
of a
couch.
This
has
also
a
scalloped
edge.
The
legs
are found
at the
extremes and
its
front
surface is
divided
by
three
vertical
gatherings
of
drapery.
Herbig, ibid.,
44-45,
pl.
31.
It has
been
dated
to
the
first
century
B.C.
This content downloaded from 62.204.192.85 on Sat, 22 Nov 2014 13:02:15 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp8/10/2019 The Tomb of the Siren
10/12
1974]
THE TOMB OF
THE SIREN
139
contraposto
of Vanth would
seem
to
point
toward
the later
Hellenistic
period.52
There is
one
element of the
fagade
which
does
seem
to
narrow
the time
span
down
somewhat
more
convincingly.
The "Doric" frieze is of the
form commonly found on urns with both plane
and
incised
triglyphs,
most of
which
have been
dated
to
the
second
century
B.C.
or
later."5
The
weight
of
the
evidence thus
reconsidered
points
to
a date for
the
Tomb of the Siren in the
second
century
B.C.,
closer
probably
to the mid-
century
mark than
its
beginning.54
By
this time
Sovana
was
firmly
under Roman
political
control.
Yet,
she
must have
enjoyed
cultural
autonomy,"5
as evidenced by this and other tombs, and once
again
a
prosperity
which
surpassed
even
that of
the
archaic
city.
52
G.
Krahmer,
"Stilphasen
der hellenistischen
Kunst,"
R6m-
Mitt
38
(1923)
142ff.
Cf. a
bronze statuette
of Athena dated
about
130
B.c.,
R.
Horn,
"Stehende weibliche
Gewandstatuen,"
RdmMitt,
Suppl.
2
(i931)
82,
pl. 34,
I.
53
Cf. a Travertine
urn
from
Chiusi
in
Palermo,
J.
Thimme,
"Chiusinische
Aschenkisten
und
Sarcophage
der
hellenistischen
Zeit,"
StEtr,
23
(I954)
fig.
14,
61-62.
Thimme,
71,
dates it
to
ca.
200 B.C.
Paterae
are
not
nearly
so common as rosettes
on the
urns,
e.g.
the terracotta
sarcophagus
of Larthia
Seianti
from
Chiusi,
Herbig,
20,
122,
P1.
53,
no.
20,
who
dated it to
the
first
half of
second
century
B.C. This
can
only
be a
terminus
post quem.
See
E.
Turr,
Spdtetruskische
Tonsarcophage (Gies-
sen
1969) 36
for
a discussion
of
the
dating.
Similar
Doric
friezes are found
on
the
Roman
funerary
naiskos of the
first
century
B.C.,
though
its
continuity
with
the
tradition
of the
urns seems doubtful.
M.
Torelli,
"Monumenti
funerari romani
con
fregio
dorico,"
Dialoghi
di
Archeologia
II,
I
(1968) 47ff.
54
Bianchi Bandinelli dates it to the late third or
early
second
century
B.C.
(supra
n.
24)
and this has
generally
been fol-
lowed,
e.g.
Del
Chiaro,
213.
The
Tomb
of
the Siren
seems
to
be the culmination of the
development
of
monumental tombs at
Sovana,
begun
perhaps
a
century
earlier.
(There
is
as
yet
no
reason
to
question
the
date
of the Hildebrand Tomb
given
as
ca.
200
B.C.
by
Bianchi
Bandinelli,
p. 83 (supra
n.
24).
55
W.V.
Harris,
Rome
in
Etruria
and
Umbria
(Oxford 197I)
175.
G. Colonna
in
a
paper
on the rock-cut
necropolis
of
Central
Etruria
given
at the
Eighth
Convention
of Etruscan
Studies
at
Orvieto,
June 30,
1972,
emphasized
the
Roman
support
of a
new
agricultural
prosperity
n
Central Etruria in the
Hellenistic
period,
manifested
in
the construction
of
roads
into
the
interior.
M.
Torelli
on
the same
occasion
argued
that
prosperity
had
begun
before
Roman
interference.
This content downloaded from 62.204.192.85 on Sat, 22 Nov 2014 13:02:15 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp8/10/2019 The Tomb of the Siren
11/12
8/10/2019 The Tomb of the Siren
12/12
PLATE
34
CARTER
~.s.
~~~p~
5Q;rl
:s
s;: ,,..az
~:";a?--,
:*:i???:?I
r?
~?~au
FIG.
7.
Trenches in front of the
fagade
(from
the
pediment)
"
r
,?i"
L?
Q1
~i":gr
FIG.
9.
Head
of
Vanth
I,,
z
t
:I-
?,
FIG.
Io.
Composite
of Vanth
cj7
'.
i7
vta.
r.:*-3"P?rN
74:I~
FIG. 8. Trench on
the left
side
with
base
and feet of
flanking figure
i~d:;i?
^~?en:?
3?,1---
::
";
.
~c?~ .
~-nr:t:
i
?:-:::?;??
~I~BkBss~':?-: :
:1
;*
~h;llli
:?il::-:?:?:?-;i?;:I-
-Sa.-~i~B
Aii
a:i:???;:?-
i.?E~~~
"i,--OtiC~e:~1
";:?
?~--R1;
?:'
ss~--~~~l-,
?*
,-:-9w-
~iWi ~,~g
-:
~Fs
ca
-?
FIG.
I
I.
Attic
siren,
Louvre
(after
Collignon,
Les statues
funeraires
dans l'art
grec,
fig.
143)