REUTERS/Remo Casilli

Italy Just Paid €15 Million for the 2,300-Year-Old Etruscan Frescoes That Hold the Only Known Portrait of a Roman King

Updated 2 weeks ago, July 1, 2026

The king in question is Servius Tullius, the sixth ruler of Rome, shown in the frescoes as the warrior Mastarna freeing an Etruscan nobleman. Emperor Claudius later tied the two figures together, which is how a single Etruscan tomb painting became the closest thing we have to a portrait of a Roman king.

The 37 panels come from the François Tomb at Vulci, painted in the late 4th century BC (c. 340–300 BC) and discovered in 1857. They were peeled from the walls in the 1860s and vanished into the Torlonia family’s holdings, where they stayed largely out of reach. Italy had been trying to acquire them since 1921.

Etruscan tomb frescoes on display in Rome after being acquired by the Italian government — Newly acquired Etruscan tomb frescoes — including the only known likeness of a Roman king — go on public display in Rome after Italy’s €15 million purchase. Photo by Remo Casilli / Reuters.

Etruscan tomb frescoes on display at a public unveiling in Rome — Ancient Etruscan painted tomb panels, held in private hands for over a century, go on public display in Rome after being secured by Italy. Photo by Remo Casilli / Reuters.

The Culture Ministry signed the deal in May, buying the frescoes from 21 Torlonia heirs alongside the Sforza Cesarini and Gaetani families. The display at Rome’s National Etruscan Museum of Villa Giulia reunites the paintings with original tomb artifacts loaned back by the British Museum, the Louvre, the Vatican and others, the first time those pieces have returned in more than 160 years.

Etruscan tomb frescoes on display in Rome — Newly acquired Etruscan tomb frescoes go on public display in Rome after Italy purchased the ancient painted panels for €15 million. Photo by Remo Casilli / Reuters.

Etruscan tomb frescoes on public display in Rome, featuring ancient painted panels including a figure identified as a Roman king — Newly acquired Etruscan tomb frescoes, including the only known surviving likeness of a Roman king, go on public display in Rome after Italy’s €15 million purchase. Photo by Remo Casilli / Reuters.

“The François Tomb is one of the great treasures of archaeology,” said museum director Luana Toniolo, who called the Mastarna scene “the only portrait of a Roman king that we actually have.”