A quote from an ancient story, told by Critias (Plato’s uncle). A story that Critias had heard from his father Dropides, who in turn had heard it from Solon (an Athenian lawmaker who lived around 600 BC), who had learned it during his stays in Egypt from certain priests—specifically, the following quote—from a priest of Sais.
On this island of Atlantis a great and extraordinary monarchy arose, which ruled the whole island and also many other islands and parts of the continent; moreover, it ruled, on this side of the strait, Libya up to Egypt, and Europe as far as Tyrrhenia.
Timaeus by Plato
The Tyrrhenia mentioned by Plato refers to Etruria, corresponding to those regions we now know in Italy as parts of Tuscany and Lazio. These are lands steeped in myth and legendary tales, such as the journey of Aeneas to the coasts of Lazio after the Trojan War—a story that leads to the myth of Rome’s foundation, with Romulus and Remus being the sons of a priestess and Mars. The priestess, named Rhea Silvia, is mythically descended from Aeneas, and thus also from Venus.
From ancient tales, myth and legend reveal a connection between Etruria and mythical Greece, as well as between Etruria and Egypt (especially through the myth of Atlantis). But now let’s return to tangible reality with a video by the Ministry of Culture.
Etruscan Necropolises of Cerveteri and Tarquinia
Myths and stories of ancient peoples often help us connect missing pieces of history. In the not-so-distant past, in 1873, the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann uncovered the remains of Troy—following, amid general mockery, the account in Homer’s Iliad as though it were a historical text. A sharp and educated eye will notice remarkable similarities between Etruscan and Egyptian works, both in objects (such as sphinxes) and in architecture. The latter can be appreciated in the following video. As we know, in ancient times the cultural channel between Greece and Italy was particularly strong, as was that between Egypt and Greece—and even directly between Egypt and Rome.