Etruscan Domestic Architecture, Hydraulic Engineering, and Water Management Technologies: Innovations and Legacy to Rome

This chapter explores the ways in which Etruscan architects refined and blended technologies from Near Eastern and Greek cultures, as well as the Romans, and applied them to their own constructions. It traces the impact of the Etruscans not only in private architecture (e.g., the house plan), but also at southern Tuscan sites such as Mezzomiglio (locality of Chianciano Terme) where an ancient spa demonstrates that their ability to innovate and adjust outside influences to their own needs continued well into Roman times. Etruscan architects continued to innovate even in their latest phases as they reacted to architectural and engineering developments in Roman Republican and even Imperial architecture. Using their hydraulic technology, they built dams, irrigated agricultural areas, created cuniculi, developed sacred pools, and established associations between deities and natural springs. They also created monumental architecture using stone, timber and clay, thereby demonstrating a comparable level of technology with Greece.