---
title: Arretium
author: Mark Cartwright
source: https://www.worldhistory.org/arretium/
format: machine-readable-alternate
license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/)
updated: 1970-01-01
---
# Arretium
_Authored by [Mark Cartwright](https://www.worldhistory.org/user/markzcartwright/)_
Arretium (modern Arezzo) was an important [Etruscan](https://www.worldhistory.org/Etruscan_Civilization/) town located in the extreme north-east of [Etruria](https://www.worldhistory.org/Etruscan_Civilization/) in central [Italy](https://www.worldhistory.org/italy/). Flourishing as a [trade](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/trade/) and manufacturing centre, Arretium managed to overcome its rivalry with [Rome](https://www.worldhistory.org/Rome/) and continue as a prosperous town into the Imperial period. Although much of its ancient [architecture](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/architecture/) has disappeared, one significant legacy from the Etruscan period is the magnificent [bronze](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/bronze/) statue known as the [Chimera of Arezzo](https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1006/chimera-of-arezzo/), perhaps that [culture](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/culture/)'s finest surviving art piece.
### Early Settlement
Although human habitation of the site dates back to the Palaeolithic Period, Arretium was something of a late starter compared to other Etruscan sites which sprang up in the Villanovan Period (1100-750 BCE). Etruscan Arretium was established, rather, sometime in the 6th century BCE. Arretium prospered due to its geographical location at the junction of the Tiber River and Arno River valleys. The settlement was also situated near a break in the Apennine Mountains giving access for wider Etruria to the Adriatic coastal region of eastern Italy.
### Etruscan Arretium
Prospering as a trading hub, the town also manufactured its own goods, particularly bronze works, [pottery](https://www.worldhistory.org/pottery/), and terracotta statues. The artists of Arretium produced perhaps the finest single surviving Etruscan artwork, the 'Chimera of Arezzo.' This 5th-4th-century BCE representation of the mythical part-lion part-goat part-snake creature, exquisitely cast in bronze, was miraculously found in a ditch in 1553 CE when new fortifications were being raised by Cosimo de' Medici, the Grand Duke of Tuscany. It now takes pride of place in the National Archaeological Museum of Florence.
[  Etruscan Civilization NormanEinstein (GNU FDL) ](https://www.worldhistory.org/image/119/etruscan-civilization/ "Etruscan Civilization")### Relations with Rome
Arretium had a troubled relationship with her powerful neighbour Rome. According to Dionysius of [Halicarnassus](https://www.worldhistory.org/halicarnassus/), the town sided with the Latins during the 6th century BCE in their battles with the [Roman](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/Roman/) king Tarquinius Priscus. Illustrating the ambiguous nature of Etruscan-Roman relations over the centuries, the Roman historian [Livy](https://www.worldhistory.org/livy/) states that Rome actually helped Arretium in 302 BCE, or at least its ruling aristocracy. The dominant Cilnii clan faced a popular uprising from an increasingly disillusioned lower class and called in Rome for help. A Roman force was sent but was attacked and badly mauled in an ambush. A second larger force, led by the dictator Marcus Valerius Maximus, swiftly restored order. Rome was beginning to show an alarming interest in Etruscan affairs.
Rusellae (modern Roselle) was sacked in 294 BCE, a stark warning of the futility of opposing Rome. According to Livy, the Etruscan towns of [Volsinii](https://www.worldhistory.org/volsinii/), Perusia, and Arretium then negotiated a peace with Rome. The price for a 40-year truce was a huge 500,000 *asses per [city](https://www.worldhistory.org/city/). The truce did not last very long as, in 284 BCE, Volsinii took advantage of an invading army of Gauls to join them and attack Arretium, then loyal to Rome. A relieving [Roman army](https://www.worldhistory.org/Roman_Army/) was defeated, but the next year the Romans, led by P. Cornelius Dolabella, won a decisive victory at the [Battle](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/battle/) of Lake Vadimo.
[  Minerva of Arezzo Egisto Sani (used with permission) (Copyright) ](https://www.worldhistory.org/image/2270/minerva-of-arezzo/ "Minerva of Arezzo")During the latter half of the 3rd century BCE, Arretium was also attacked by [Carthage](https://www.worldhistory.org/carthage/). However, the city was an ally (albeit a passive one) of [Hannibal](https://www.worldhistory.org/hannibal/) during his attacks in Italy during the [Second Punic War](https://www.worldhistory.org/Second_Punic_War/) (218-201 BCE), despite previously promising loyalty to Rome and often acting as an important Roman base from which to launch attacks in northern Italy. In the complex and delicate situation of a foreign army in Italy and Etruscan [cities](https://www.worldhistory.org/city/) of dubious allegiance, Rome attempted to ensure greater loyalty by taking a number of hostages from Arretium's ruling families. When the Romans won victory over Carthage, Arretium's lack of support was not forgotten and the city was made to pay compensation by way of thousands of pieces of bronze weapons and armour.
Arretium then seems to have settled down as a minor town within the burgeoning [Roman empire](https://www.worldhistory.org/Roman_Empire/). In the 2nd century BCE, part of its territory was redistributed to Roman veterans, but it did benefit from being the first stopping point on the *via Cassia* which went from Rome and crossed the Apennines to [Aquileia](https://www.worldhistory.org/aquileia/). In the early 1st century BCE Arretium was made a *municipium*. The city then made the fateful decision to back the wrong side in Rome's civil [war](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/War/), supporting [Gaius Marius](https://www.worldhistory.org/Gaius_Marius/). The victor, [Sulla](https://www.worldhistory.org/sulla/), made a colony and resettled his veterans at Arretium in 80 BCE; [Julius Caesar](https://www.worldhistory.org/Julius_Caesar/) was to do exactly the same before the century was out.
Having got over its initial problems with Rome's expansion, Arretium became a relatively prosperous Roman town in the early Imperial period, no doubt helped by the fact that Emperor [Augustus](https://www.worldhistory.org/augustus/)' great confidant, Gaius Maecenas, was a native of Arretium. Benefits included construction of an [amphitheatre](https://www.worldhistory.org/amphitheatre/), [theatre](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/theatre/), forum, and [Roman baths](https://www.worldhistory.org/Roman_Baths/). The town also became noted as a major production centre for the Arretina *terra sigillata* pottery with its distinctive coral colour and which was exported widely throughout the Roman world. The town gradually slipped into obscurity from the 2nd century CE when [Trajan](https://www.worldhistory.org/trajan/) made the decision to connect the *via Cassia* directly to Florentia (Florence), thus bypassing Arretium and robbing it of its commercial traffic. The town would regain some of its former glory in the late Middle Ages, though, when it became an independent [city-state](https://www.worldhistory.org/Polis/) once again.
### Archaeological Remains
As with other Etruscan towns that have since been built over in medieval times and which continued to be occupied today, the [archaeology](https://www.worldhistory.org/Archaeology/) of ancient Arretium has met with difficulties. There are traces of fortification walls from the period. Two Etruscan sanctuaries on the outskirts of Arretium are indicated by the presence of votive offerings. One, the Fonte Veneziana (named after a fountain near one of the city gates), had some 200 items in a votive pit. They included bronze figurines of humans and animals (some with [gold](https://www.worldhistory.org/gold/) leaf decoration), pottery vessels, and anatomical plaques of eyes, arms, legs, and busts. The second deposit at Monti Falterona was a lake in use between the 6th and 3rd century BCE where offerings were thrown in such as arrow heads, nuggets of bronze, pottery fragments, and bronze figurines. Fine examples of the latter category are a bronze male head and a warrior statuette, both are now in the British Museum, London.
[  The Arringatore (Orator) corneliagraco (CC BY) ](https://www.worldhistory.org/image/6404/the-arringatore-orator/ "The Arringatore (Orator)")From the Roman period, there are remains of pottery workshops and some private housing. In addition, there is a lower course and several arches of the Roman amphitheatre still *in situ,* which gives an idea of the outline of the building.
Besides the magnificent Chimera already mentioned, other fine bronze statues are the '[Minerva](https://www.worldhistory.org/Minerva/) of Arezzo' (3rd-1st century BCE), a 4th-century BCE statuette of two oxen and a ploughman, and a 1st-century BCE lifesize figure known as the *Arringatore* or 'Orator.' The latter work was discovered near Lake Trasimene in 1566 CE. The confident figure with arm raised in appeal and wearing a toga is perhaps the answer to the frequently asked question 'what became of the [Etruscans](https://www.worldhistory.org/Etruscan_Civilization/)?': they became Romans.
#### Editorial Review
This human-authored definition has been reviewed by our editorial team before publication to ensure accuracy, reliability and adherence to academic standards in accordance with our [editorial policy](https://www.worldhistory.org/static/editorial-policy/).
## Bibliography
- Bagnall, R.S. *The Encyclopedia of Ancient History.* Wiley-Blackwell, 2012
- [Barker, G. *The Etruscans.* Wiley-Blackwell, 2000.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0631220380/)
- [Brendel, O.J. *Etruscan Art.* Yale University Press, 1995.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0300064462/)
- [Haynes, S. *Etruscan Civilization.* J. Paul Getty Museum, 2005.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0892366001/)
- [Heurgon, J. *Daily Life of the Etruscans.* Phoenix, 2002.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/1842125923/)
- [Hornblower, S. *The Oxford Classical Dictionary.* Oxford University Press, 2012.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0199545561/)
- [Keller, W. *The Etruscans.* Random House Inc (T), 1974.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0394473019/)
- [Simon, E. *The Religion of the Etruscans.* University of Texas Press, 2006.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0292721463/)
- [Spivey, N. *Etruscan Italy.* B T Batsford Ltd, 1992.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0713465212/)
- [Spivey, N.J. *Etruscan Art.* Thames & Hudson, 1997.](https://www.worldhistory.org/books/0500203040/)
## About the Author
Mark is WHE’s Publishing Director and has an MA in Political Philosophy (University of York). He is a full-time researcher, writer, historian and editor. Special interests include art, architecture and discovering the ideas that all civilizations share.
## Timeline
- **c. 500 BCE - c. 400 BCE**: The [Etruscan](https://www.worldhistory.org/Etruscan_Civilization/) [bronze](https://www.worldhistory.org/disambiguation/bronze/) statue known as the '[Chimera of Arezzo](https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1006/chimera-of-arezzo/)' is sculpted.
- **302 BCE**: [Rome](https://www.worldhistory.org/Rome/) intervenes to assist the ruling Cilnii clan at [Arretium](https://www.worldhistory.org/arretium/) against a popular uprising.
- **284 BCE**: [Etruscan](https://www.worldhistory.org/Etruscan_Civilization/) [Volsinii](https://www.worldhistory.org/volsinii/) with an army of Gauls attacks [Arretium](https://www.worldhistory.org/arretium/).
- **283 BCE**: Romans defeat the [Etruscans](https://www.worldhistory.org/Etruscan_Civilization/) and [Celts](https://www.worldhistory.org/celt/) at lake Vadimo.
- **80 BCE**: [Sulla](https://www.worldhistory.org/sulla/) attacks [Arretium](https://www.worldhistory.org/arretium/) and then creates a colony for his veterans.
## Cite This Work
### APA
Cartwright, M. (2017, March 09). Arretium. *World History Encyclopedia*.
### Chicago
Cartwright, Mark. "Arretium." *World History Encyclopedia*, March 09, 2017. .
### MLA
Cartwright, Mark. "Arretium." *World History Encyclopedia*, 09 Mar 2017, .
## License & Copyright
Submitted by [Mark Cartwright](https://www.worldhistory.org/user/markzcartwright/ "User Page: Mark Cartwright"), published on 09 March 2017. The copyright holder has published this content under the following license: [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/deed.en). This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon this content non-commercially, as long as they credit the author and license their new creations under the identical terms. When republishing on the web a hyperlink back to the original content source URL must be included. Please note that content linked from this page may have different licensing terms.