\f1 \fs22 The Etruscan settlement of Sovana stood on the left bank of the river Fiora, on a plateau of tufa with st
eep cliffs on three sides. Between the seventh and sixth century BC the town must have been part of the territory of Vulci, but toward the end of the sixth century its interests probably shifted toward the area of the Tiber. In the famous paintings in th
e Francois Tomb in Vulci we find a personage from Sovana fighting alongside Tarquinius of Rome against the Volscenti. In the middle of the fourth century BC, after a period of relative decline, Sovana experienced an upturn in its fortunes, as is attested
by the presence of objects from Chiusi in the tombs. Around the middle of the first century BC Etruscan tombs ceased to be built in the various \b \cf1 \ATXht14 necropolises\b0 \cf0 \ATXht0 . Among the most important monuments in Sovana are the rock \b \cf4 \ATXht31 tombs\b0 \cf0 \ATXht0 (dado, shrine, and temple tombs), including the celebrated tomb of Hildebrand.\par
