Monterozzi necropolis

The Monterozzi necropolis is the main Etruscan cemetery area near Tarquinia in Lazio, Italy, noted for its rock-cut tombs with painted interiors. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage ensemble for Etruscan funerary art.

The site contains thousands of tombs carved into the Monterozzi plateau, of which roughly 200 preserve notable wall paintings dating mainly from the 7th to 4th centuries BCE. Highlights include the Tomb of the Leopards and the Tomb of Hunting and Fishing, which show ritual and banquet scenes in vivid colour.

Construction and use of the necropolis span the Etruscan period, with tomb types and decoration reflecting social and religious practices across several centuries. Excavations in the 19th and 20th centuries documented the painted tombs and brought them to wider scholarly attention.

The necropolis sits on a limestone plateau above the town of Tarquinia, facing the Tyrrhenian coastal plain in northern Lazio; Tarquinia is the nearest town and is accessible by road and regional rail.

• UNESCO: Part of the Etruscan Necropolises of Tarquinia and closely associated with the UNESCO World Heritage designation for its painted tombs.
• Scale: Contains thousands of rock-cut graves on the Monterozzi plateau, with around two hundred tombs retaining significant painted decoration.

What to See #

• Tomb of the Leopards: A painted chamber tomb dating to the late 6th century BCE, famous for lively wall paintings of banqueters and hunting scenes.
• Tomb of Hunting and Fishing: A richly painted tomb illustrating scenes of hunting and fishing, dating to the Archaic period of Etruscan art.
• Tomb of the Augurs: A tomb decorated with figural scenes used as an example of Etruscan funerary painting and ritual imagery.