Echt of fantasie? Etruskische tombereconstructies in de 19de eeuw

In the 19th century, the first exhibitions of Etruscan objects took place in northwestern Europe. Many of these exhibitions contained not only Etruscan objects, but also reconstructions of Etruscan tombs. Visitors were invited to descend into candle-lit tombs to gaze at staged Etruscan funerary scenes, including facsimiles of frescoes from Tarquinia. These exhibitions were received with excitement and fascination, and many newspapers and magazines wrote about them. The frontier between fake and authentic, however, was not always clear: the archaeological experience was very important, and the question remains how veracious these reconstructions actually were.