The narrow streets of the medieval center, still surrounded by the original 13th-century walls, intertwine around the scenic Piazza dei Priori in the town of Volterra. From a topographical and social point of view, the city converged towards two main centers of power. These were the Palazzo dei Priori, seat of the commune government, and the Cathedral, symbol of episcopal authority. Although the urban fabric that developed in the Middle Ages has overwritten earlier evidence, it is still possible to find some important architectural elements dating back to Etruscan and Roman times in Volterra. The city is a product of time and history. It stands as an uncorrupted witness to past eras, where every alleyway holds memories and every stone tells stories.
Etruscan Volterra, the Acropolis and the Porta dell’Arco
On the summit of the hill overlooking the valleys of the Cecina and Era rivers, where Volterra stands today, the first settlement was established in the Villanovan period, between the 8th and 7th centuries BC. Evidence of this period can be found in the typical necropolises with shaft and pit tombs. During the 6th century BC, however, burial practices began to change. Chamber tombs, the presence of precious cinerary urns and the addition of commemorative steles were signs of a cultural transformation that was now moving towards fully Etruscan forms.
The coins minted in Volterra during the Etruscan period, now kept at the Guarnacci Museum, bear the name of the city: Velathri1. During the 6th and 5th centuries BC, fortified walls were erected on several occasions. The development of the settlement since the Villanovan period is particularly evident in the ruins of the Acropolis, located at the foot of the medieval fortress and within the Enrico Fiumi Park. Here, archaeologists have found traces of cult practices dating back to the 7th century BC. These include a small bronze statue of an offerer2, dedicated to a deity similar to the Roman Dis Pater3.
The temples of the Acropolis
The stone foundations of several buildings used for worship since the end of the 6th century BC have been uncovered in the Acropolis of Volterra. Only a few fragments of rough-hewn stone, remains of terracotta and some roofing slabs remain of an early temple4. This building was replaced, just to the north, by a larger sanctuary in the mid-5th century BC. This is the late-Archaic temple, of which a portion of the polygonal masonry facing remains. Considering the construction technique, it is conceivable that the structure was of imposing dimensions. The interior of the temple was covered with red and white plaster and polished limestone5. The decorative elements were also of great value, in particular the terracotta works created by craftsmen hired from southern Etruria6.
The late Archaic temple gradually fell into disuse. In the second half of the 3rd century BC, the sacred spaces were reorganised with the enlargement of the temenos and the construction of two adjacent buildings. The great Temple B, with cella and colonnade of Tuscan order, rose on the ruins of the pre-existing building. Just a few decades later, in the Roman age, Temple A was erected. Hellenistic in style, it had a single hall with a short pronaos and high podium.
The apogee of Etruscan Volterra
The renovation of the Acropolis in the 3rd century BC took place during a period of great prosperity and population growth, as evidenced by the increase in burials within the known necropolises. During this period there is evidence of the working of alabaster in the town of Volterra. Artisans used this precious material to make extraordinary cinerary urns depicting mythological scenes or the deceased.
In the same century, the Etruscans of Volterra completed the expansion of the gigantic sandstone wall that enclosed a large area of the hill and the fields and pastures below7. The remains of the Porta di Diana and the well-known Porta dell’Arco, built with blocks of tuff and later incorporated into the medieval walls, have been preserved. The gate represents an early use of the round arch in Italic architecture. The presence of three carved heads, much worn, placed at the shutters and keystone, characterizes it. It is unclear what or whom these carved faces depicted. Scholars speculated that they were the protomes of the city tutelary deities Tinia (Jupiter), Uni (Juno) and Menrva (Minerva).
The membership in the Dodecapolis also established the importance of the town of Volterra in that period. This was the confederation consisting of the twelve most influential Etruria military and political population centers.
The town of Volterra in Roman times
The victory of the Roman troops against the Etruscan coalition at Lake Vadimone in 283 BC marked the beginning of the decline of all the lucumonies of the Dodecapolis8. Volterra surrendered around the middle of the 3rd century BC. The Romans renamed the city Volaterrae and granted it the status of a municipality with the Lex Iulia de civitate of 90 BC. During the civil war, Volterra sided with Marius and was therefore subjected to a long siege by Sulla’s troops. Exhausted, it surrendered in 80 BC, but the presence of influential aristocratic families in the city, as we shall see shortly, cushioned the political and military consequences.
In the Augustan age the municipium of Volterra was included in Regio VII Etruria9. A renewed enthusiasm led to the redevelopment of the urban fabric with the construction of new specialised buildings. This led to the construction of the magnificent theatre of Volterra, a venue for theatrical performances and public assemblies. Because of its political function, the structure was likely located not far from the Forum, which has not yet been identified by archaeologists. The only clue is provided by the name of an early medieval church: San Michele in Foro10.
The Theater
The Theater was built on the slopes of the high ground facing north, toward Vallebuona basin, so that it had excellent natural acoustics. The wealthy city gens, among whom Caecinae family10, contributed to its construction. This was an act of evergetism toward the population of Volaterrae. Nonetheless, it also pursued certain political aims, not least the desire to ingratiate themselves with Emperor Augustus. Not surprisingly, A. Caecinae Severus and C. Caecinae Largus are mentioned in a dedicatory epigraph of the Theater as consuls in Rome11.
The monument was conceived in accordance with the typical architectural canons of the Roman theater12. A sacellum used for imperial worship, surmounted the cavea. This was partly lying on the hillside and partly raised with opus caementicium substructures. A vaulted ambulatory in fact supported the summa cavea, allowing visitors access to the lower sectors of the steps. The scaenae frons consisted of a half-moon niche and two side doors. Fine white marble adorned the pavement of the semicircular orchestra.
In Volterra we then find some additional rooms connected to the needs of the performance, called parascenia. A velarium allowed the covering of the entire cavea, in order to keep spectators cool during sunny days. The theater accommodated about one thousand five hundred spectators. They could even walk along a colonnaded porticus that ran behind the stage. In the center of the portico, between the second and third centuries AD, there is a thermal building with dressing rooms (apodyterium), frigidarium, tepidarium, and calidarium.
The town of Volterra in the Medieval Age: the two centers of power
With the exception of a few remnants from earlier centuries, mostly sections of the walls with the Etruscan gates, the Acropolis, the Theater and an amphitheater, the Medieval and Renaissance city completely overbuilt the ancient structures. The growth of a residential neighborhood interested Enrico Fiumi Archaeological Park with the Acropolis. However, the dwellings were demolished in 1472 to facilitate the remodeling of the defensive fortress. In contrast, Vallebuona area, which houses the Theater and the thermal complex, has preserved ancient vestiges due its use for the dumping of city waste. Indeed, nothing survives even from the Lombard age, although the town of Volterra was the seat of an important gastald. Extensive renovations in the Romanesque period erased traces of the early cathedral. The advance of landslides near the Balze has rendered the early medieval churches of San Clemente and San Giusto unusable, including subsequent renovations.
The Diocese of Volterra and the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta
During the first barbarian invasions of the fifth century, well-fortified Volterra was the seat of a diocese. It extended roughly along the boundaries of the Roman municipium. Some letters of Pope Gelasius I from the years 495 and 496 mention the bishop of Volterra Eucharistus and his predecessors Eumazio and Opilione14. According to tradition, the city boasted important Christian ancestry since it gave birth to the first successor of Saint Peter, Pope Linus15.
At the end of Lombard rule in 774, the advent of Franks generated a political power vacuum in Volterra, filled by the figure of the bishop. This was responsible for the rich imperial concessions to the diocese, such as that of Louis I the Fair in 82116. It was Guido (1042-1061) who transformed the episcopal office into a real lordship. This had jurisdiction over a large slice of the territory of Tuscia. In the second decade of the 12th century Bishop Ruggero Gisalbertini (1103-1132) ordered the reconstruction of the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, at the center of the urban fabric. The liturgical calendar compiled by archpriest Ugo attests the consecration of the building to May 20, 1120, in the presence of Pope Callistus II17.
The structural layout had a nave and two aisles and a Latin cross. In the 13th century the construction of quadrangular chapels in place of semicircular apses modified it. Today the interior decorations show in their late Renaissance appearance. Only the elevation, in Pisan Romanesque style, allows to perceive the original Medieval soul of the cathedral. The salient façade, tripartite by pilasters, is bare except for some rhombic ornaments and the top hanging arches. The quadrangular bell tower was erected at the end of the 15th century.
The Age of the Commune and the advent of the Gothic in the town of Volterra
The temporal power of the episcopal lordship of Volterra achieved its peak under Galgano (about 1150-1170), but new ferments of autonomy for the Commune eventually led to his assassination by the angry mob18. From that point on, the diocese entered a spiral of crisis. This culminated in the loss of most of its ecclesiastical privileges over the city, despite the staunch opposition of bishops Ildebrando Pannocchieschi (1185-1211) and Pagano Pannocchieschi (1212-1239).
The 13th century saw numerous monastic orders settle in the town of Volterra, most notably the Cistercians. The followers of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux introduced a significant artistic innovation that had already produced extraordinary results at the impressive Abbey of San Galgano in Chiusdino: Gothic architecture. The Baptistery of San Giovanni, for example, has Cistercian sculptural and architectural features. This octagonal structure, located in front of the cathedral, features a single ornate façade with bichromatic detailing and a splayed portal.
The Baptistery displays the symbolism proper to those monastic orders, not least the Knights Templar who certainly passed through here. On the façade of the building and on the palaces overlooking the square, one can see mysterious depictions of the Cross Pattée and the Flower of Life.
Palazzo dei Priori in the town of Volterra
The Cistercian Gothic style also characterizes Palazzo dei Priori, the seat of power of the free Commune. The architectural influence of the Order’s craftsmen can be seen in the ribbed cross vaults, the mullioned windows with hooked capitals and the striking verticality of the tower, set on a quadrangular block. The Florentines took the Volterra building as a model for the construction of Palazzo Vecchio.
Palazzo dei Priori was an architectural landmark for the town of Volterra. The other public buildings of the 13th century and the most important noble house-towers are connected to it. The reconstruction of the city walls also dates to the middle of the century. After a few years Volterra became embroiled in the heated disputes between the Guelphs Belforti and the Ghibellines Allegretti. With the expulsion of the latter in 1340, the townspeople proclaimed the Signoria. But the rule of the Belforti did not last long. The town became a possession of Florence as early as 1361. Hence, Volterra lost that centuries-long hegemony that had characterized it since the earliest Etruscan settlements.
Samuele Corrente Naso
Notes
- F. Burchianti, Museo Etrusco Guarnacci, scheda 79, Pacini Editore, Pisa, 2013. ↩︎
- M. Bonamici, Volterra (PI). Santuario dell’acropoli, in Notiziario della Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici della Toscana, 2/2006, Volterra, 2007. ↩︎
- G. Belloni, Dis Pater, in Lexicon Iconographicum Mythologiae Classicae III, 1986. ↩︎
- M. Bonamici, Volterra. L’acropoli e il suo santuario, Pisa 2003. ↩︎
- M. Bonamici, L. Rosselli, E Taccola, Il santuario dell’acropoli di Volterra, in E. Govi, La città etrusca e il sacro. Santuari e istituzioni politiche, Atti del Convegno,
Bologna, 21-23 January 2016. ↩︎ - Ibidem. ↩︎
- A. M. Esposito, Le mura di Volterra. Profilo storico-archeologico, in R. Sabelli, Mura etrusche di Volterra: conservazione e valorizzazione, Pisa 2012. ↩︎
- H. Nissen, Italische Landeskunde, II, Berlino 1902. ↩︎
- Pliny the Elder, Naturalis Historia, III, 50. ↩︎
- F. Schneider, Regesta Chartarum Italiae. Regestum Volaterranum, 1907. ↩︎
- M. Munzi, Il teatro romano di Volterra: l’architettura, in G. Cateni, Il teatro romano di Volterra, Octavio, Firenze, 1993. ↩︎
- E. Fiumi, Volterra. Scavi nell’area del teatro romano degli anni 1950-1953, Notizie degli Scavi di Antichità, s. VIII, vol. IX, 1955. ↩︎
- Ibidem note 11. ↩︎
- A. Caleca, Volterra d’oro e di Pietra, Pacini Editore, Ospedaletto (Pi), 2006. ↩︎
- M. L. Ceccarelli Lemut, Cronotassi dei vescovi di Volterra dalle origini all’inizio del XIII secolo, in Pisa e la Toscana nel Medioevo, 1, Pisa, 1991. ↩︎
- Liber Pontificalis, 6th-7th century. ↩︎
- Ibidem note 10. ↩︎
- Biblioteca Guarnacci of Volterra, L. 4.17 (inv. 5789), in De Sancti Hugonis actis liturgicis, trascrizioni a cura di mons. M. Bocci, Firenze, 1984. ↩︎
- L. A. Cecina, Notizie istoriche della città di Volterra, a cura di F. Dal Borgo, Pisa 1758. ↩︎
