Psychopompe étrusque (guide des âmes), Charun, est assis avec une main reposant sur le long manche de son marteau symbolique alors qu'il garde l'entrée des enfers. Détail de peinture murale dans les années 200 av. J.-C. tombeau étrusque dans la nécropole Monterozzi de l'ancienne ville de Tarchuna ou Tarchna, aujourd'hui Tarquinia, Latium, Italie.
4288 x 2848 px | 36,3 x 24,1 cm | 14,3 x 9,5 inches | 300dpi
Date de la prise de vue:
15 juin 2008
Lieu:
Monterozzi Necropolis, Tarquinia, Lazio, Italy.
Informations supplémentaires:
Cette image peut avoir des imperfections car il s’agit d’une image historique ou de reportage.
Tarquinia, Lazio, Italy: the Etruscan deity Charun rests his left hand on the long handle of his symbolic hammer as he sits guarding the gates to the Underworld, in this detail of a wall painting in the late 3rd century BC Tomb 5636, the likely burial place of the Arnthunas family in the vast Monterozzi necropolis. The rest of the artwork shows Vanth, a female Underworld demon, guiding a newly deceased woman and young boy to the afterlife, where they are greeted by two men, probably relatives. In Etruscan mythology, both Vanth and Charun were psychopomps: deities tasked with escorting the souls of the dead to the Underworld. The Etruscan Charun, also known as Charu or Karun, was derived from the Greek Charon, paid to ferry souls across the River Styx, but had a different role and was often portrayed as a more threatening deity. The hammer was his religious symbol and he was sometimes depicted with pointed ears, snakes around his arms and bluish skin symbolising the decay of death. The central pillar of Tomb 5636 has a much larger and more menacing painting of a winged Charun, with his hair a mass of writhing snakes. The burial chamber, discovered in 1969, dates from circa 250 to 200 BC and is among about 200 aristocratic or noble tombs in the necropolis with painted decoration. The frescoed tombs offer unrivalled glimpses of Etruscan daily life, including athletics, hunting, banquets, funeral rites and mythical scenes. The necropolis, first used in the 7th century BC, gained World Heritage Site status in 2004. UNESCO rates its frescoes as among the best examples of pre-Roman art in the western Mediterranean. D0719.A8606
