Editing Italian art (section)

== Etruscan art ==

{{Main|Etruscan art}}
[[File:Louvre, sarcofago degli sposi 00.JPG|thumb|left|The [[Etruscan art|Etruscan]] ''[[Sarcophagus of the Spouses]]'', [[terracotta]], [[Cerveteri]], 520 BC]]

Etruscan bronze figures and terracotta funerary reliefs exemplify a vigorous Central Italian artistic tradition that declined by the time Rome began expanding its dominance over the peninsula.

The Etruscan paintings that have survived into modern times are predominantly wall frescoes found in tombs, especially in the necropolises of [[Tarquinia]]. These works represent the most significant examples of pre-Roman figurative art in Italy known to scholars.
[[File:Chimera d'arezzo, fi, 03.JPG|thumb|[[Chimera of Arezzo]], 400 BC]]

Etruscan frescoes were painted onto wet plaster—a technique known as fresco—which allowed the pigments to bond with the plaster as it dried, thereby enhancing their durability. In fact, nearly all surviving Etruscan and Roman paintings are in this medium. The colours were made by grinding stones and minerals into pigments and mixing them with a binding medium. Fine brushes, often made from ox hair, were used to apply the paint.

From the mid-4th century BC onward, Etruscan artists began employing [[chiaroscuro]] techniques to suggest depth and volume. While some frescoes depict scenes of daily life, mythological themes are more common. Notably, Etruscan frescoes generally lack accurate anatomical proportion, and figures often display exaggerated or stylized features.

One of the most famous examples of Etruscan painting is the ''Tomb of the Lioness'' in Tarquinia.