Editing Etruscan language (section)

====Cistae====
A cista is a bronze container of circular, ovoid, or more rarely rectangular shape used by women for the storage of sundries. They are ornate, often with feet and lids to which figurines may be attached. The internal and external surfaces bear carefully crafted scenes usually from mythology, usually intaglio, or rarely part intaglio, part [[cameo (carving)|cameo]].

Cistae date from the [[Roman Republic]] of the fourth and third centuries BC in Etruscan contexts. They may bear various short inscriptions concerning the manufacturer or owner or subject matter. The writing may be Latin, Etruscan, or both. Excavations at [[Palestrina|Praeneste]], an Etruscan city which became Roman, turned up about 118 cistae, one of which has been termed "the Praeneste cista" or "the Ficoroni cista" by art analysts, with special reference to the one manufactured by Novios Plutius and given by Dindia Macolnia to her daughter, as the archaic Latin inscription says. All of them are more accurately termed "the Praenestine cistae".<ref>Paggi, Maddalena. "The Praenestine Cistae" (October 2004), New York: The [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]], in [http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/prae/hd_prae.htm Timeline of Art History].</ref>