Etruscan Roman Remains and the Old Religion

The Etruscans are one of history's great mysteries - a sophisticated society that flourished at the heart of the Classical world and then vanished, leaving relatively few archaeological remains and few records of their culture - their beliefs, world view and customs. The Etruscans were more concerned with religious matters than any other nation. They were adept at magic and it is known that Etruscan books of spells were common among the Romans, but they have not survived. While greatly influenced by the Greeks, the Etruscans were known to retain elements of an ancient non-Western culture, and these archaic traits survived well past the rise of Rome, contributing a great deal to the civilization once thought of as purely Roman - gladiators, for example, and many kinds of divination. In this unusual work, Leland seeks to retrieve elements of Etruscan culture from the living popular traditions of remote areas of the Italian countryside where belief in 'the old religion' survives to an astonishing degree. This manifests as stregaria or witchcraft - something more than sorcery and less than faith - and a mythology of spirits that retain the names and attributes of the old Etruscan gods, along with a wealth of traditions, customs, ceremonies and spells which are neither Greek, classical Roman or Christian in origin. Recorded over many years at a time when many of these secret beliefs and practices were beginning to pass away, this remarkable volume deals with ancient gods, spirits, witches, incantations, prophecy, medicine, spells and amulets, giving full descriptions, illustrations and instructions for practic.