In The Etruscans Agnes Carr Vaughan takes the reader to the hart of this mysterious society and its people. Skilled sailors and traders, they came to control large portions of what is known today as Italy. Their influence derived not so much from the arts of war, as those of peace. They were superb artists and craftspeople. The power of their culture is still manifest in their matchless work in bronze, jewelry, terra cotta, and painting (in which their passion for multicolored imagery is striking for the period). Their language was complex and expressive. Their religious beliefs, centered on soothsaying and divination, kept them closely tied to the rhythms of nature joyous sexuality.