The Villa Giulia, a 16th-century Renaissance villa built for Pope Julius III, now houses the National Etruscan Museum, the world’s most important collection of Etruscan art and artifacts. The Etruscans, whose civilization flourished in central Italy before and alongside the rise of Rome, profoundly influenced early Roman religion, art, and political institutions, including the toga, the fasces (a symbol of authority later adopted by Rome), and elements of Roman temple architecture. Among the museum’s most celebrated pieces is the Sarcophagus of the Spouses, a life-sized terracotta funerary monument from the 6th century BC depicting a married couple reclining together at a banquet, offering a strikingly intimate glimpse into how the Etruscans imagined the afterlife. [Editor’s note: this page did not appear on the original site at all. This paragraph was drafted as a placeholder using general reference sources and should be reviewed/expanded by Dr. Siegel.]